THE EXETER INN

​You did it! …. Due to your kind financial donations and offers of help, The Exeter was able to open its doors again on 16th November last year and since then has been welcoming customers, both old and new, to enjoy all that our unique pub has to offer.

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A team of 23 wonderful volunteers worked in the pub over the 2 week change-over; clearing, cleaning, polishing brass, painting and shifting furniture. The goal was to give the interior a ‘facelift’ without losing its traditional feel and, going on the extremely positive feedback, we think this balance has been achieved. Customers have commented that it seems ‘the same but different’ which sounds odd but sums it up nicely! A snug was created with a sofa and comfy chairs and is now running very successfully as a lending library and a place to relax quietly, maybe enjoying your drink over a card game, a crossword, a good book or just some delicious homemade cake and steaming real coffee (c/o Exe Valley Roasters.) The toilets have been redecorated, the kitchen completely re-organised and renovated and the bar area now glows with warm lighting and a newly varnished bar. Well done everyone!

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There have been many highlights over the past couple of months including a jam-packed opening night, carol singing in the pub, a Christmas Day community lunch and customer-run quiz nights (so successful that there will now be 2 per month.) ‘Crazy Goat’ brought the feel-good factor with their traditional music - lots of toe-tapping and a few silly ‘sing-alongs.’  Hopefully they’ll be joining us again soon (warning – this might involve dancing!) Also, at the time of writing, the pub is really looking forward to hosting the Burns Night Supper complete with poetry, haggis and bagpipes!

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The kitchen is getting busier all the time and has been serving up tasty Sunday Brunches (from 10am) which are proving very popular with options of traditional fry-ups, home-made waffles and ‘specials.’ Homemade cakes are available from 11am Thursday to Saturday and the pub has had the pleasure of hosting various food trucks including The Pig Press, Pasta and More and West Country Dim Sum, whilst cooking ‘in house’ with pie nights and Quiz Night curries and casseroles. Listening to feedback from customers, the kitchen group are now busy developing a lunchtime menu and vegetarian and vegan options (watch this space….)

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Serving the community is the sole motivation behind keeping the Exeter open. As part of that, we’ve been pleased to support various local projects and charities including Devon Air Ambulance, Lucy’s Larder, RBL, Hospicecare, the school SEN room and sponsorship at the cricket club. As well as local good causes however, the pub will be looking beyond our locality to support global charities when opportunities arise. Please approach us with your ideas for future charity events, whether they’re local or further afield.

 

The ‘stage 2’ group (looking into the possible purchase of the pub) is now meeting regularly and has planned a public meeting at the Memorial Hall for Monday 17th February. This will provide an opportunity to update the village on what’s been happening so far, to ask what people want from the pub and gauge support for community ownership. Although we’ve succeeded in keeping it open, this has only ever been a temporary measure until such time as the pub is sold or we as a community are able to buy it and set up some form of model whereby the burden isn’t entirely borne by volunteers. With this in mind, we strongly encourage you to come along to the meeting with your ideas, comments and questions.

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Meanwhile, to ensure the smooth running of the pub over the coming months, please consider joining any of our friendly volunteer ‘crews.’ The 3 main teams working to ensure the pub continues to run efficiently are the bar staff, the cleaning team and the kitchen group, all of whom deserve our thanks for their time and effort. There’s a particular need for bar staff so if you fancy learning how to pull a pint and can offer a 4 hour shift whether that’s on a regular basis or not, please contact us on the number below. (Full training will be given where necessary.)

Hope to see you in the pub!