The Highclere Red House bucks the trend against rural pub closures with successful deli and coffee shop

A pub that transformed a small fruit and vegetable service into a full-blown successful deli has encouraged other country pubs that might be struggling to do the same.

The landlord of the Highclere Red House first starting selling fresh produce to his customers in November 2022.

Demand for the fruit and vegetables kept growing, and so it was decided at the end of 2023 that a disused garage at the side of the pub would be converted into a deli to sell fresh food, coffee and more.

The HRH deli opened in February this year, and it has been doing a roaring trade ever since.

Deli manager Ellie Palmer said: “The ethos behind it is to support the community. Pubs are hubs of the villages and we just wanted to provide more.

“After Covid, you had to think outside of the box and be innovative and keep pushing because pubs got hit. We needed to find something else.”

It was Red House landlord Simon Liquorish’s “dream” to open the deli, and according to Ellie he will do “anything and everything” to keep the Red House going, and fulfilling the vision of establishing the deli has been a big part of that.

Most of the deli’s customers are from Highclere village and the surrounding areas, but due to the pub’s location by the side of the A343, commuters and tradespeople travelling between Newbury and Andover also frequent the shop on a regular basis.

Alongside the fruit and veg, the deli has a broad offering of dairy products including milk, yoghurt and a wide variety of different cheeses as well as several preserves, cured meats and bakery products.

Customers can also buy freshly made coffee and breakfast baps to take away and enjoy.

Ellie said that the deli’s homemade bread was by far the most popular item customers came in for.

She said: “Everyone needs and loves bread, and that is something that Simon and his team of chefs really looked at perfecting. It is a winner.

“We sell bread from a Wednesday through to a Saturday. We make it here, we bake it here and we use simple, pure ingredients.”

The deli sources most of its ingredients from local suppliers, and all of the salads, tarts and soups available at the counter are made fresh on-site at the Red House.

All of the produce not sold to customers is then used to make new dishes for both the pub and the deli counter.

At a time when rural pubs up and down the country are staring closure in the face, The Highclere Red House is flourishing because of its deli.

Ellie believed that it was the quality of its products and the welcoming atmosphere that keeps the regulars coming back.

She said: “For customers, it is a social experience. They enjoy coming here, they bump into friends and have a conversation with us.

“If you go to a supermarket you very rarely get a conversation with someone on the till.”

The Highclere Red House deli is open Tuesday to Saturday, 8.30am to 5pm.