1 week Ago
A pub has been crowns Gosport's best in a competition organised by an MP. The Windsor Castle in Hardway has been crowned the winner of the inaugural Gosport's Best Pub competition. The pub on Grove Road came out on top with 35 per cent of the vote, and a total of 553 votes, after two rounds of voting.
In total, more than 2,250 votes were cast across both rounds. The competition was introduced by Dame Caroline Dinenage, member of parliament for Gosport, to give local people a chance to show local pubs how much they are valued in the community after a difficult couple of years. Dame Caroline visited The Windsor Castle to deliver the award, and a bottle of House of Commons fizz, to the pub’s owners, Kathy and Chris.
The runners-up were The Foresters Arms, The Old House at Home, The Jolly Roger, and The Junction Tavern. Dame Caroline said: "I wanted this competition to spotlight our brilliant pubs and their owners, and to recognise how much they do for our local economy and how valued they are to people in Gosport. "We know it has been a tough few years for hospitality and tourism, with the sector at the epicentre of all the economic shocks that we’ve experienced, first with Covid, then energy costs due to the war in Ukraine, and now the chancellor’s disastrous budget which has made hiring prohibitively expensive and raised business rates.
"I loved meeting Kathy and Chris, and hearing how hard they and their team have worked to build their business around a popular live music offering. "It was heartwarming to meet some of their regulars and understand how much local people appreciate The Windsor Castle as a cornerstone of their community." Kathy Williams, speaking on behalf of The Windsor Castle management team, said: "Winning this award has created such a positive and exciting vibe in the pub.
"The staff are all so proud of it, we are all proud of what we have achieved, and it makes all the hard work seven days a week worthwhile. "It's only awards like this that bring the hospitality sector to the fore. "We are displaying the award with pride, and all of our regular customers are so happy to have played a part in The Windsor Castle winning this accolade.
"We wish all the other pubs in Gosport best wishes and a prosperous year.".
