Austin Whelan behind the bar at the Fox, his company's ninth pub (Photo: Star Pubs & Bars)
Four and a half years after closing to enable redevelopment of its car park into flats, Palmers Green's landmark pub, the Fox, is back in business and ready to resume its role as an "asset of community value".
Behind the bar at the re-opening was Austin Whelan, founder of Whelan's Pub Company, which has leased the Fox from Heineken subsidiary Star Pubs and Bars. The two companies have together invested £1.35 million in refurbishing the building, which before it closed in September 2018 had long since lost much of its former splendour.
The unusual decorative features of the exterior are now much more evident and the restored cupola with its appropriately themed weathervane helps mark the Fox out as one of our most important local features. On the inside, the new owners have opted for restoring an Edwardian-style quality which emphasizes warmth and cosiness, in sharp contrast to the stripped back aesthetic which has predominated in pub refurbishments over the last couple of decades.
Inside the reopened Fox is very different from the rather spartan interior of 2018 (Photo: Star Pubs & Bars)
While the new owners boast that the Fox is now a "premium local, offering quality food and drinks", press releases have stated that the menu will be based around "pub classics such as fish and chips, sausages and mash, and Sunday roasts". As regards drinks, Whelan's pubs are all tied to Heineken, so it may well turn out to be the case that the "craft and cask beers" are all sourced from breweries that have been swallowed up by the multinational brewing giant and whose products have consequently been affected by the emphasis that such companies place on cost-cutting and maximization of profit.
Commenting on his latest opening, Austin Whelan says that despite the tough economic climate, “Our experience is that people still want a more premium offer and are prepared to pay for it. Palmers Green has excellent demographics and is crying out for a quality local. We’re happy to be expanding with Star; they’re fair and deliver the support we want. We always opt for tied leases as we see the benefits.”
Having lost the area to the left of the Green Lanes entrance to the new gym, the floorplan of the reopened Fox is radically different from how it was in 2018. Whelan's describe it as featuring "a traditional bar, a spacious dining area and a large lounge that converts into a private function room – complete with its own bar – accommodating up to 120 people". The function room will have a "wall of nine TV screens" that will be used to show major sporting events.
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