National pub award for the Hand & Dagger in Preston

A landlord from Preston is being recognised by leading pub company Admiral Taverns for his hard work in giving a much-loved pub a new lease of life.

Martin Evans of the Hand & Dagger in Kirkham has been chosen from nearly 2,000 landlords nationwide to receive an Admiral Taverns Achievement Award.

Martin, who runs the pub with business partner Steve Morgan, has been at the Hand & Dagger for three months.

Martin said: “Steve and I first met while working for Paul Caddy at the Clifton Arms Hotel in Lytham many years ago. We’ve both worked in the hotel and catering industry for some time – we have 38 years’ experience in the industry between us – but we wanted to try something different.

“We decided that running our own pub was the perfect way to draw on our previous skills but also provide us with a new challenge. We’re both local to the area and, when the Hand & Dagger became available, we jumped at the chance to take it on.”

Martin and Steve have focused on providing customers at the Hand & Dagger with quality food and a warm welcome.

Martin said: “We’ve tried to create an attractive food offering that will bring in customers from far and wide, but we also want to look after the local community, so we’ve kept the pool table and dart board and hold weekly quiz nights.

“We’ve overhauled the entire menu to offer a range of simple, home cooked food. We’ve also redecorated the pub throughout and made changes to the drinks offerings to ensure we can offer customers everything they expect from a traditional country pub and more.

“We’re really enjoying running the Hand & Dagger and are delighted to have received this award.”

Admiral Taverns – one of the UK’s largest independent operator of tenanted and leased pubs – introduced Achievement Awards to help recognise landlords like Martin who have shown best practice and made a positive impact on their pub and their community.

Stuart Watt, business development manager for Admiral Taverns, said: “Martin and Steve are fantastic role models for anyone who’s ever wanted to run a pub.

“They have transformed the Hand & Dagger into a thriving business and demonstrated that, with a committed and enthusiastic team onboard, community pubs can be hugely successful.

“We are always on the look out for people who have the personality and drive to run a successful pub and have a number of available venues in the area. To find out more, contact our recruitment team on 0845 070 8950 or visit www.admiraltaverns.co.uk.”