Landmark Huddersfield pub The Scape House reopens tomorrow (Friday, October 3) under an experienced chef who is delivering what he promised … a quality value for money menu.
The pub at Scapegoat Hill, which also welcomes people just wanting to pop in for a drink and is dog friendly, shut suddenly in the summer due to spiralling costs and many feared it would close forever but it’s now been taken over by 29-year-old executive chef Tom Finan.
He will be in charge of the kitchen while partner Josie Jones will be running the pub and restaurant and the couple’s hands-on roles means overheads have already been cut.
Tom said: “We’ll be managing the pub and restaurant and leading the kitchen ourselves which all saves costs. I’ll be putting my heart and soul into that kitchen. I’m very keen and passionate about the hospitality industry and I’ve a really positive mindset.”
The menu has starters priced from £5 to £8 with most mains around £14 and there will be a grill board every day offering everything from pork chops to steaks.
It’s already proving very popular with food bookings flooding in.
There will be a DJ entertainer called Andy Biggs from 8pm this Friday and an acoustic singer, Charlie Whittaker, from 4pm to 6pm on Sunday.
Tom knows them well from previous pubs and restaurants he’s run and he still owns the Char Steakhouse on Huddersfield Road, Newhey in Rochdale, which his sister Alice Williams will now run.
Tom said: “I pledged to make The Scape House a quality place to eat and drink at affordable prices and that’s what we’ve done and the response even before we’ve opened the doors has been phenomenal.
“From the moment we put the menu on our Facebook site the phone’s hardly stopped ringing.
“I can’t stress enough that this is also a pub and we want all the locals in having a drink as it’s a place that’s always been at the heart of its community.”
Tom’s signature is classic pub food with a modern twist and starters include creamy garlic mushrooms, garlic king prawns, Cajun halloumi fries with roasted garlic aioli and a crispy pork belly with honey and soy, spring onions and chilli.
Mains include a range of burgers and grills along with classics such as steak and ale pie with local stout and bone marrow gravy, fish and chips with minted mushy peas, beef stroganoff, ham, egg and chips with treacle glazed ham and runny egg.
The restaurant has been lightened up with a newly varnished wooden floor and the pub redecorated with a new carpet, along with higher seats and tables for drinkers.
Tom added: “I know it’s going to be a challenge but I’m young and motivated. It’s a great feeling to be able to run a local pub and restaurant that’s often also been regarded as a destination venue over the years.”
To book online go to the website http://www.scapehouse.co.uk or phone 07843 918833.
Written by ANDY HIRST who runs his own Yorkshire freelance journalism agency AH! PR (https://ah-pr.com/) specialising in press releases, blogging, website content, copywriting and ghost-writing autobiographies.
