Return of The Dev
From: InnSpire - Issue 65 – February 2007
Having
been closed since February the previous year, 2006 ended
on a high note with the re-opening of the Devonshire
Arms at Middle Handley, on Saturday 23rd
December.
New landlord and landlady Craig and Bev found they had
so many requests to re-open that they did so whilst
there is still much to be done, although much has
already been achieved! The refurbished pub now has a
glass entrance door, tiled floor, a new pale oak bar,
wall lights and a mix of new and old tables, benches and
chairs, but the layout remains essentially the same as
before. Dogs are welcome. The breathable atmosphere has
been greatly improved by the removal of all ashtrays. An
appeal has gone out for anyone with old photos or prints
of the area to supply copies to populate the
freshly-painted walls.
The
next stage is the building of new toilets at the back of
the pub, then the site of the old ones will be part of a
new 28-seat restaurant/dining room that will take shape
in the next nine months or so. Three real ales are
available, the ‘new’ 4.1% ABV Stones, which
unsurprisingly has proved very popular, plus two guest
beers - Black Sheep Best Bitter and Taylor Landlord at
first - which have changed recently to Kelham Island
beers; the Pale Rider was on superb form lately at £2.30
a pint. The good news on the beer front is that they are
planning to take more local brews, with Peak, Spire,
Abbeydale and Wentworth already in their sights as
possible guests.
I must say that I really like the resurrected Dev (great
to see a pub re-opening when nearly every week seems to
bring another closure) and I think that Tom and Jean,
the previous landlord and landlady, both sadly now
passed on (and whose ashes are buried under the chestnut
tree outside) would have approved.
The
Handley Hack
This webpage was last updated on
Sunday, 07 October 2007
Having
been closed since February the previous year, 2006 ended
on a high note with the re-opening of the Devonshire
Arms at Middle Handley, on Saturday 23rd
December.
The
next stage is the building of new toilets at the back of
the pub, then the site of the old ones will be part of a
new 28-seat restaurant/dining room that will take shape
in the next nine months or so. Three real ales are
available, the ‘new’ 4.1% ABV Stones, which
unsurprisingly has proved very popular, plus two guest
beers - Black Sheep Best Bitter and Taylor Landlord at
first - which have changed recently to Kelham Island
beers; the Pale Rider was on superb form lately at £2.30
a pint. The good news on the beer front is that they are
planning to take more local brews, with Peak, Spire,
Abbeydale and Wentworth already in their sights as
possible guests.