THEY came looking for a new restaurant but they ended up with a pub. That is how Alex and Sally Marie Wood came to be the new tenants at the Fox & Hounds pub in Crawley.

The couple moved in with their five children two weeks ago, after reaching a deal with owners Enterprise Inns just weeks after spotting the pub.

Sally, 39, said: “We started looking for our own premises last October and had a couple of false starts because we were looking for a restaurant.

“But I went online and took one look at the details of this place and fell in love with it. The village is idyllic and we both felt a sense of home about it.”

The pair both have lots of experience in the trade with Alex previously earning two AA Rosette awards for his food.

He added food would be a big part of the business now, with the menu moving away from frozen food meals to fresh, locally sourced produce.

Alex, 42, added food was slightly more expensive then under the previous tenants but it was within a normal range and of a good value.

The pair are hoping to ingratiate themselves quickly in the community, making the pub a focal point of local life.

Alex said: “We are trying to promote this as a hub for the community because there is not much else in the village.

Looking after the community is important but the community does not have the money to keep us going so we have to target people from far and wide in surrounding villages and towns.”

The pub is set to bring out a new website in the next few weeks and also uses social media for promotions.

In the future Alex and Sally are hoping to organise regular pub quiz nights and bring in full English breakfasts and cream teas.

Fox & Hounds,
Crawley,
Winchester,
Hampshire
01962 776006
foxandhoundscrawley.co.uk