By Jill Stocks
A new venue has opened on New Road Side – and the team are ready to bring the people of Horsforth something a little bit different.
Hive bar opened on Thursday and has high hopes of becoming a valued part of the community.
Wayne Ince, who is opening the premises alongside business partner and friend Andy Godfrey, said the venue had been a long time in the making:
“We’ve been looking for over 25 years. One very late evening last summer, 13 or 14 months ago, this cropped up and we said ‘right we’re going to do this, this is the right place to do this’. Horsforth can still deal with another bar, a different style of bar, especially down this New Road Side part, with this front area and Escape next door, it’s made for the sun. It’s been a long time.”
Wayne is keen to emphasise that they are hoping the new venue will add to the community and that everyone will benefit from a new hospitality offering on New Road Side, and they have consulted with their neighbours throughout the process:
“We went to see the guys at Escape before we started all of this and they’ve been superb. We’ve basically used it as an office for twelve months, and they can’t wait for this to be open.
“The whole thing should help everybody on this little part of New Road Side but I think it still will all the way down to bringing other people into the Three Swords, Hoc Loco, Horsforth Brewery and the Hopshack. I think everyone will benefit from it.”
Fans of European beers are in for a treat with a selection of specialist German and Belgian beers forming just one part of a carefully thought out drinks menu. Wayne said:
“We don’t have any of your mainstream products. It’s a range of German and Belgian stuff really. We’ve got a stout which is a real Irish stout.
“We’ve got Augustiner Brau on tap, we’re the twelfth in the country to get that, first in Leeds, second in Yorkshire and the actual font we’ve got on the bar is the only one in the world, anyone coming in will not have seen that font before. It’s a geeky pub and it’s a pub.”
The venue will be open from 9am seven days a week serving coffee and pastries but may look at opening earlier if the mood is favourable. Wayne said:
“We will see how it goes, if it is busy we will speak to the community, the locals around us and residents and see if we can open earlier. If not we will keep it as it is.
“We want to be at least that time so that we can do community things, whether that be things at the weekend, running clubs or whatever, dog walkers, cyclists, or other groups from care homes or whatever that need somewhere to go for a couple of hours. Whatever it takes to do that community part.
“We close at 10pm Sunday to Wednesday and 11pm Thursday, Friday and Saturday, because it’s a residential area. We do have people living opposite.”
As well as morning pastries there will be sharing boards later in the day, made up of local produce, with meats from Lishmans in Ilkley, Yorkshire cheeses from Metz in Farsley, dairy products from MD Dairies, coffee from Yorskhire supplier Casa Coffee and the pastries and sourdoughs are from Fat Pigeon bakery in Bramley.
A selection of Wolfe Bros gins are also on the extensive drinks menu, as are Eden Wines and the team took part in a wine tasting and training session prior to opening.
You can follow Hive on facebook and keep up to date with what’s going on.
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