More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
Are you raising a glass to news that boozers are coming back?
If you are, you're not alone, as thousands of thirsty regulars gear up to greet their locals' open doors once again.
After three long months of being unable to open, many pubs across the county are preparing to reopen their doors on Saturday, July 4.
This comes after the Prime Minister announced a relaxing of the 2m rule, allowing pubs and restaurants to reopen.
The country's oldest brewer is to reopen 11 of its pubs in the county on Saturday. Faversham-based brewer Shepherd Neame confirmed the ones opening this weekend are: the Bell Hotel in Sandwich; Botany Bay Hotel in Kingsgate; Marine Hotel in Whitstable; Minnis Bay Bar and Brasserie in Birchington; Pier Five Bar and Kitchen and Ship and Trades in Chatham; Royal Albion Hotel in Broadstairs; The Royal in Tankerton; Spitfire in Kings Hill; The Sun Inn in Faversham and Conningbrook Hotel in Ashford.
Many pubs have been busy behind the scenes preparing for the day they can reopen their doors.
At the Duke of Marlborough in Union Street, Maidstone, owners Danny and Jan Penman even celebrated their 20th anniversary at the pub during lockdown in May.
But they have also been hard at work having the place redecorated inside, with new furniture, and the large beer garden updated, ready for reopening.
They said: “We are a family run pub and we had a fairly big renovation and extension to our premises last August. Since lockdown the entire pub has been redecorated inside and new furniture added. Also, our very large beer garden at the back of the pub has been improved and updated."
Check out videos of the work that’s been completed on the pub’s Facebook page.
Jon and Teresa Booth at the Riverside Inn Ale and Feasting House alongside the River Stour near Ashford have been hard at work throughout lockdown, and in the run-up to reopening, making sure their pub is one to come back to.
The pair have been there for the past 15 years, and will be one of the ones to be reopening on Saturday, July 4 - with a fresh, new look for returning punters into the bargain.
There's now a 18x6m marquee, which has been decked and is lit throughout, to cater for drinking in socially-distanced safety ad a large garden at the dog friendly pub, a stone's throw from the Designer Outlet. Find out more here.
During the long lockdown, many of our much-loved locals continued to be the hub of their communities, diversifying, and opening their doors for takeaways and deliveries.
We've been supporting them with our campaign, Love Your Local offering free ads, in What's On, which is carried inside all KM Group paid-for papers across the county.
If you run a pub and want to be included, sharing the news of your planned reopening, there's one more week you can. Get in touch by emailing whatsoneditor@thekmgroup.co.uk with details of your pub, what you have on offer and how to contact you.
To see the full list of pubs that we are already supporting and which have signed up to the campaign so far click here.
Read how our Secret Drinker's been preparing for Super Saturday here.
