A Pooley Bridge restaurant with rooms will celebrate its fifth birthday by reopening for the third time in 18 months and taking on new staff.
The team from 1863 are raising a glass to celebrate reopening on Thursday May 20 – which coincides with its fifth birthday.
Owner Mark Vause said: “Never in a month of Sundays did I think we’d be marking our fifth birthday by reopening our business for a third time in 18 months because of a pandemic.
“But here we are, and we’re absolutely delighted to be able to say that, as we are all too aware that other businesses have not been so fortunate.”
Bookings are already coming in thick and fast, Mark added, with dining and rooms in high demand until late summer.
Phil Corrie, head chef and general manager, said: “We simply would not be here without the support of our customers from around Cumbria and indeed the UK.
“Thanks to them we’ve been able to launch two new initiatives despite lockdown.
“What lockdown did for us in a positive way was it actually allowed us to really look at the 1863 as a whole, take a step back and see where we could improve and how we could expand.”
It has begun to open during the day over the weekends, which it did not do previously and will continue to do so.
The November lockdown saw it launch its 1863 at Home service – weekly food boxes delivered nationwide.
Phil added: “Initially we thought this was just a way to engage with customers during lockdown.
“However it turned out a major added benefit was that ‘at home’ really helped us keep our tight-knit team together throughout the more difficult lockdown winter months.”
Due to the popularity of 1863 at Home, the team has decided it will continue and the business has hired two more local people to join the team full-time.
The property was first built as the village blacksmith’s and later became the post office. Today, 1863 features a bar, restaurant and seven bedrooms.
Previously known as Elm House Bed and Breakfast, 1863’s owners, Mark and Anne Vause, moved to the area from Blackburn in 2008 and spent eight years running the award-winning B&B.
In November 2015, the couple carried out a £300,000 refurbishment project and relaunched the venue in early summer 2016 as 1863 Bar Bistro Rooms.
