Once again, the Fitzherbert Arms was part of the 94 pubs and bars across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland who scooped a prestigious County Winner title as part of the 2023 National Pub & Bar Magazine Awards. This is the fourth time the Fitzherbert team have been recognised by the publication as Staffordshire’s Best Pub since the Fitz re-opened in 2016 after a period of closure.

The National Pub & Bar Awards aims to put exemplary businesses across the UK in the national spotlight, showcasing the hospitality industry’s diversity, creativity and vital importance to the UK economy.

The announcement of this year’s 94 County Winners shows the level of quality being delivered to pub and bar visitors every day of the week.

The Fitzherbert Arms was selected on overall best practice across a number of operational categories and was officially crowned at a ‘red carpet’ celebration at 30 Euston Square, London, on Wednesday 23 June 2023.

Head Chef Connor joined owners Tim and Mary on the trip to London to celebrate the award and enjoyed time in the City looking at food operations of interest.

Mary said “we are very proud indeed of the Fitzherbert Team. They have shown an amazing degree of consistency over the years and deserve this award. It was great to be accompanied by Connor our head chef who plays a very big part, with his kitchen team, in the success of the Fitz, a big well done and thank you!”

With consumer confidence on the rise and hospitality venues continuing their journey on the road to recovery, 94 pubs and bars across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have scooped a prestigious County Winner title as part of the 2022 National Pub & Bar Magazine Awards, including our very own Church Inn for Cheshire and our Fitzherbert Arms for Staffordshire.

The National Pub & Bar Awards aims to put exemplary businesses across the UK in the national spotlight, showcasing the hospitality industry’s diversity, creativity and vital importance to the UK economy.

The announcement of this year’s 94 County Winners shows the level of quality being delivered to pub and bar visitors every day of the week.

The pubs, which have been selected on overall best practice across a number of operational categories, will be officially crowned at a ‘red carpet’ celebration at 30 Euston Square, London, on Wednesday 22 June 2022. At this ‘grand finale’, 15 Regional Winners will also be announced, as well as the esteemed accolade – the overall National Pub & Bar of the Year 2022. An award which has been won twice by our Church Inn in Mobberley in 2019/20 and 2016/17.

“Just from being out and about, you can see how much pubs and bars mean to people across the UK,” says Tristan O’Hana, editor of Pub & Bar magazine, which hosts the event. “With visitor numbers increasing, it’s more important than ever for operators to deliver standout service and product quality during every visit – no matter the business in question. The 94 County Winners are wonderful examples of the brilliance of today’s modern on-trade. If you live near one of these county winners, make sure you pay them a visit!”

The National Pub & Bar Awards is sponsored by Hellmann’s, Kegstar, Kingfisher, Knorr and St Pierre.

Saturday 16th November 2019

The Fitzherbert Arms, Stone, Staffordshire

In the old village of Swynnerton on Lord Stafford’s estate is the dog-friendly Fitzherbert, perfect for a pint after a winter’s walk. Pups are welcome in the bar and snug, which entwine with an open-plan feel and are warmed by three delicious fires.

A vivacious team ferry platefuls of food to elegant tables: seafood platters, steak and stout pies, crumbles, brownies and local cheeses. Your four-legged friend won’t feel left out thanks to tasty treats on the bar.

sawdays.co.uk/pubs/thefitzherbertarms

The 30 best winter pubs in Britain, as selected by Sawday’s

The Fitzherbert Arms in Swynnerton, Staffordshire, situated on Lord Stafford’s estate, has been appointed a ‘Graham’s Port Ambassador’ at a Port Tasting evening held at the pub on the 24th October 2019. The Fitzherbert Arms is the first pub in the UK to be presented with the award and joins a very special group of just eight establishments worldwide. The award recognises not only the exceptional Port list, with 30 different Ports available, (twelve of which are served by the glass) but also the dedication and professionalism of the Fitzherbert team who have delivered a consistent experience over the past 3 years with Graham’s and Port overall.

João Vasconcelos, Head of Sales for the Symington Family Estates, flew in from Porto to present the plaque to James Griffiths, Landlord of The Fitzherbert Arms and his deputy manager Charlotte Dawe in recognition of the work they have done. It has been an exciting time for James and Charlotte, as both spent three days in Porto and the Douro Valley on a company trip in September to improve their knowledge and experience even further.

Commenting on the evening, Tim Bird and Mary Mclaughlin, the owners of the Fitzherbert Arms, stated “It has been a wonderful evening celebrating the Ports from this historical region of Portugal, we are over the moon and very honoured to own the first pub in the UK to be appointed as a Graham’s Port Ambassador. We look forward to continuing to increase the awareness and enjoyment of these amazing Ports in the Fitzherbert Arms and across our other pubs within our Cheshire Cat Pubs and Bars Group. It was lovely to share this special night with our loyal customers and Lord Stafford. They too are very proud of the pubs achievement.”

What a fabulous day we had on Saturday 29th June when we hosted our second Village Fete. As always, the dog show was a huge success. Our winners this year were:

Perfect Puppy – Biscuit
Cheeky Chum – Reggie
Prize Pedigree – Sydney
Marvellous Mixed Breed – Daisy-Mae
Golden Oldie -Harvey

We were lucky to be treated to a performance by a local dance troop from MLDC Studios. There were local craft stalls, a barbecue and a bake-off competition with delicious sweet and savoury offerings and we enjoyed excellent live music all afternoon too.

Thank you to all our customers who came and supported us, and to our staff for working so hard on the day. We look forward to seeing everyone (and hopefully some new faces too!) next year.

We are very excited to announce that Cheshire Cat Pubs and Bars have been nominated for three very prestigious awards at the 2019 Casual Dining Awards, taking place in London on Wednesday 27th February. We feel very honoured to be nominated for two such special awards as ‘Employer of the Year’ and ‘Multi-Site Operator of the Year’ and are also very proud of our sister pub, the Cholmondeley Arms, for being nominated for ‘Pub of the Year’. Our owners, Tim Bird and Mary McLaughlin, are heading off to the Big Smoke as guests of our excellent wine suppliers, Boutinot, to attend the awards ceremony, and we will keep you posted on the results of our nominations.