Real Ale, Live Music & Jazz in Reading
We are now closed for refurbishment and our contractors have already started work. Our reopening date will be in November but we cannot confirm the precise date yet.
In the meantime, do please visit our friends at the local pubs in the beer triangle: The Lyndhurst and the Weather Station.
We will be keeping you posted on our progress on this page and via Facebook and Twitter.
Pop in and see us this week, we will be open Wednesday to Sunday. This is your chance to see The Retreat before we set about our refurbishment. Click here for our opening hours.
I wanted to update you about the refurbishment plans at The Retreat. We will be locking our door at the close of business on Thursday 22 October and work to refurbish the pub will commence on Monday 26 October 2020. NB, there is a small chance these dates could vary.
We’ve got lots to get done, from the chimney right down to the bars and the toilets. Our contractors feel confident that everything can be completed in four weeks. You can keep up to date on the progress via our website at www.TheRetreat.pub where there will be regular updates.
Brian Moignard and The Retreat Team
It’s Quiz Night this evening, Wednesday 9 September, at The Retreat. Gather together your cleverest three friends and get along to The Retreat and have some fun with Mike Burt’s quiz.
Here are the details you need to know.
The quick answer, for The Retreat, is no.
The announcement yesterday that people can only meet in groups of up to six was ambiguous with regards to its impact on pubs.
The good news is that a Government spokesperson this morning explained, “Pubs and restaurants will be allowed to have more than 30 people on the premises provided Covid-19 secure guidelines are being followed and other social distancing measures are still in place. This includes limiting those at a table to groups from a maximum of two households. Pubs and other hospitality venues are not subject to the 30-person limit because they have put measures in place to be Covid-secure.
Brian Moignard, landlord of The Retreat, was a guest on the mid-morning on BBC Radio Berkshire with host Sarah Walker on Tuesday 1 September. He was being asked about how Track & Trace is working at the pub.
You can here is dulcet tones here >>> https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p08ntw59 (from 1:39:12 to 1:41:37).
If the programme is not available, here is the clip:
Luke Kendrick heard about the refurbishment plans for The Retreat. Like a good neighbour, he didn’t want to let the street down and he set about decorating his own front door.
Our plans for the works at The Retreat should be finalised and agreed with the contractors next week. The project has already been approved by the Brewery.
At the moment, we expect to be closing in the second half of September for about four weeks. We will be able to provide more precise dates soon.
What work will be carried out? Well, we don’t want to give away too much at the moment, but the carpet is going, the toilets will dramatically change and there are many more things on the list as well.
We are proud that The Retreat is a Real Heritage Pub in the eyes of CAMRA and we will be ensuring that the essential character of the pub will be preserved.
If any of the clothing above is yours, now is a good time to collect it.
Good news. We now have a couple of tables for four people in the back bar. After reviewing how the pub has been operating, it’s been decided that it’s appropriate to slightly increase the seating capacity and that has allowed us to configure the seating to allow for a couple of tables for four.
You can now buy the real ales on tap at The Retreat in two-pint sealed containers to takeaway. Enjoy some great beer at home at a special price of £7 for two-pints.
This weekend we have Harvey’s Brewery Sussex Best Bitter, Wye Valley Hereford Pale Ale (HPA) and Butcombe Original…all subject to availability.
Remember, the off-sales are not to be consumed on the premises or immediately outside of the pub.
It’s great to have been able to open our doors and welcome lots of regulars again. Generally, things have gone pretty smoothly and we are now increasing our opening days and hours.
This weekend we will be open Friday, Saturday and Sunday. From next week we will be regularly open from Wednesday to Sunday. Check our updated opening hours.
>>> Our real ales for the weekend.
Thank you to all the people that have been supporting our COVID-19 guidelines. These have now been adjusted and we are in a position to welcome children over 12-years old into the pub.
Following our ‘see how it goes’ opening last week will be opening this weekend:
Friday 15 August, 16.00 – 23.00
Saturday 16 August, 12.00 – 23.00
Sunday 17 August, 12.00 – 18.00
Harvey Sussex Best and Butcombe Original will be on tap. As ever, the barrels aren’t bottomless, so they are ‘subject to availability’.
Guinness and Pravha will be on tap and many of the regular bottled beers will also be available.
We are limited to 20 people indoors. See our Guidelines for Visiting The Retreat before you arrive.
Distancing guidelines are also important in front of the pub.