Restaurant & Bar Awards 2021

www.lux-review.com Page 21 LUX 2021 Restaurant & Bar Awards Operating out of a historically prestigious building, the Leicester Arms is a pub working both with and for its community. Its service has become renowned as exemplary in its area, and with a seamless blend of the old and the new, it tells us a little more about what has made it such a local favourite. The Leicester Arms - Restaurant Best Family Dining Pub 2021 - Kent Apr21014 The Leicester Arms is a pub that has made itself an integral part of the local community infrastructure, and a valued business to its customers. The establishment itself is a grade 2 listed property and is steeped in medieval history, a legacy that lives on in the pub’s ambience, tempered by modern service and delicious food. The building started out originally as a part of the Penshurst Estate. This was the home and grounds of one Viscount De L’Ilse, or Robert Sidney, when he was awarded the title of the Earl of Leicester if 1618. The current custodians of the pub are highly knowledgeable about its history and excited to share such a prestigious establishment with their guests, maintaining the historical lifeblood that runs through it. With an attitude of being one in a long line of people maintaining the beauty of the past, the founders have kept the gorgeous climbing ivy and traditional façade as the first thing that greets guests. In this vein, the Leicester Arms is a place that benefits from its location just as much as the prestige of who walked the halls in latter centuries. Surrounded by beautiful countryside and rolling Kentish greenery, it takes great pride in using predominantly Kentish products in its services. In a move that benefits the local area, shows off its regional pride, and allows it to serve only the freshest and the best to its clientele, its championing of local produce has only enhanced its reputation. It has invested over the years to ensure that the Leicester Arms is as welcoming a place it can be; since the current proprietors took it over, it has funnelled resources into updates across the board. This has included the building and garden. Over the last twelve months, it has been busy redeveloping and reimagining its bedrooms, built a beautiful beer garden with a bar and barbeque, and added additional amenities. Its dedication to constant improvement whilst still maintaining its history is something that forms a through line for this business. In addition, its vision is one of exceeding expectations. When a client walks through its doors, it does everything in its power to ensure that every moment is memorable and spectacular. From the service to the food, the accommodations, and the quality of the drinks, it works towards consistently high standards of hospitality. This dedication has over time made it the staple for good protocol within its local area. Boasting an extremely high rate of return custom, with guests going away looking forward to bringing friends and family to the experience next time, its opening hours are characterised by a lively and welcoming environment. All of this is emboldened by its values of forming strong connections with its neighbours, working both for the community and with it, and delivering outstanding service. It also takes pride in its staff; in this way, The Leicester Arms has not just built a great environment front of house, but behind the scenes too. It is dedicated to cultivating a fun, warm, and enthusiastic working atmosphere that inspires its staff to work to the best of their ability, supporting them in doing so. It appreciates the conscientiousness, customer service acumen, and speed of all its team, and the commitment each of them have towards the business’s success. With such a storied past behind it, it is now blazing ahead towards an equally bright future. In the next five years it will be expanding, the founders buying more establishments across a multitude of other villages, hoping to bring its ability to fuel and bolster local pride to many more places. Company: The Leicester Arms - Restaurant Contact: Laurence Bowes Website: https://www.theleicesterarms.com /