Joule's New Inn pub in Newport wins vote after only being open a year since refurb
Staff and customers are celebrating a fantastic first year in business at a Shropshire pub after scooping the top prize in the Shropshire Star's Pub of the Year competition.
The New Inn on Stafford Road in Newport, racked up the most points from readers' votes and judges' scores which pitted the county's best boozers head-to-head.
Coming in second place in the competition was The Old Bell in Monkmoor Shrewsbury, while third place was The Unicorn in Little Dawley, Telford.
Darren Wood, landlord of the Joules Brewery-owned New Inn said it topped off a fantastic first year for the pub.
The 42-year-old said the pub opened in June 2015 after a six-month refurbishment that saw it given a new lease of life and a new, extended restaurant with 72 seats.
He said: "We've not been here long, we're chuffed to bits, everyone has worked very hard, the staff are brilliant because we've become a very busy pub almost overnight. I'm very proud of everyone involved.
Mr Wood said the relaxed atmosphere at the pub was what helped it pip other, longer-running, pubs to the post.
He said: "It is a nice, comfortable, relaxed place to be.
"We do good, home-cooked English food, freshly prepared from ingredients sourced as locally as possible.
"It is nice because at the top end of the pub it is very traditional, somewhere you can come with family and friends while the restaurant is different and it has a nice, commercial feel."
