WORK will be starting on a more than £400,000 upgrade at the former White Hart Inn next Monday (July 18.)
The family and dog-friendly pub will is set to open in early September and will be re-branded the Hart at Headless Cross and will create 15 new jobs.
It will feature fresh home cooked food and barista-style coffee, and a new all-weather garden will be installed.
The outside will be redecorated to give it a more modern style and new signage and planting will be installed.
The courtyard will be open most of the year and features will include covered seating booths, a heated stretch tent and hurricane lamps, doubling the capacity.
Inside the bar will be replaced and the interior will be refurbished in a traditional style that suits the pub.
The bar will have dark grey walls and deep blue leather banquette seating, and the lounge areas will have booths as well as leather tub chairs and wooden tables surrounding an open fireplace.
Kitchens will be placed at the back of the pub and the menu will feature homemade pub classics mostly sourced from local suppliers, with drinks including local draught beers as well as premium lagers and spirits.
An upstairs bookable cocktail bar that can seat 40 people will be open in time for Christmas and next year there will be a new function space at the back of the pub that will be able to house up to 200 guests.
The work will be completed by Heineken-owned Star Pubs & Bars and The Hart Pub Company, which is run by the new licensee and owner Vicky Coliandris.
Vicky has over twenty years of hospitality experience having worked at places including the Gas Street Social in Birmingham’s Mailbox although this is the first time she has owned a pub.
Vicky said: “I can’t wait to open the doors and show off the improvements we’ll be making to The Hart and I’m excited to be creating several job opportunities for the local area.
“I want The Hart at Headless Cross to be a real hub of the community – a great place to go for a coffee, a night out or for Sunday lunch with friends and family.”
