Camerons Brewery to reopen The City in Durham after £200,000 refurbishment

Drinkers are being asked for their feedback as a city centre pub returns after a £200,000 refurbishment.

Hartlepool-based Camerons has taken over the tenancy on The City, on Durham’s New Elvet, from owners Star Pubs and Bars and will reopen the pub today.

The takeover and face-lift has seen the creation of 10 new jobs and the new managers are keen to hear what people think of their changes.

Yousef Doubooni, Camerons commercial and marketing manager said it was a little strange for the brewery to be a tenant rather than landlord of a pub, but when The City came up, the business felt it had to go for it.

“Whilst we are used to being the landlord rather than the tenant, when The City tenancy became available we jumped at the chance to manage such a respected pub in the heart of Durham’s City Centre,” he said.

“The pub was in need of a make-over but at the same time both Star and Camerons wanted it to retain its character and charm.

“The emphasis will be on quality and we will be serving premium brands, locally sourced cask ales and high end wines and spirits.”

As well as being a major contract brewer and producer of its own range of real ales, Camerons owns 69 pubs across the North East, 63 of which are tenanted, with the other six managed.

The City’s new manager, Chris Makin has worked for Camerons for the past four years and will become one of their youngest pub bosses.

The 25-year-old who has worked his way up through the ranks is looking forward to the challenge of running his own pub.

“Camerons gives its managers a lot of autonomy to run the pubs as individual operations, which whilst challenging allows me to make a real impact in the decisions and running of the site,” he said.

“The City is a great pub and watching it transform every day over the last six weeks has been fantastic. A lot of hard work has gone into making it look right and now the work will really begin once doors open.

“I am a big believer in customer service and for me the recruitment process has been about getting staff with the right personality because I want warm and friendly people to create a great atmosphere with a welcoming quality feel.

“As well as stocking some of the best ales we will be serving a small but quality food menu which will include deli platters and our own twist on traditional pub classics.”

As well as serving their own flagship ale, Strongarm, Durham Brewery’s Castle Eden will also be on draft alongside weekly guest ales and world lagers such as Birra Moretti and Tiger.

The pub, which has six letting rooms, also plans to hold regular pub quizzes, live music evenings and Wednesday student nights.