Greedy Gordons Pub Group opens third site

Greedy Gordons Pub Group has opened its third site in Northamptonshire, The Snooty Fox at Lowick, near Thrapston. The site is a private leasehold which has been opened by owners Richard Gordon and Sonya Harvey following a £500,000 refurbishment. It was initially due to open in April 2020 but was delayed due to the pandemic. It now features a 50-cover restaurant and 60 seat bar area, with the bar featuring a nine pump beer wall offering beers from around the world. The Northamptonshire pub operator also runs award-winning pub The Red Lion at Cranford, a Punch lease which opened five years ago, and private leasehold The Pig and Waffle in Grafton Underwood, which opened last June. There are plans for further pub openings in Northamptonshire, including Northampton. The Snooty Fox’s menu focuses on dry-aged steaks and fresh seafood, including oysters and native lobsters, and much of the menu is cooked over wood-fire on the pub’s hand-built British Ox grill. Dishes on offer include cote de boeuf, wagyu steaks, lobster roll, steak burger and The Snooty Fox Steak and Lobster, which includes a 6oz fillet steak and lobster tail. Classic dishes include shepherd’s pie, Scotch eggs and Croque Madames. The Snooty Fox is also serving a chicken kyiv, which has been renamed as part of a ‘Kievs 4 Kyiv’ initiative in support of Ukraine. For every chicken kyiv sold at the pub, £2 is being donated to The British Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal. Later this year some of the dishes will also feature fresh fruit and vegetables from the group’s own kitchen garden, which is being set-up on land near to the three pubs and will feature its own polytunnel. As well as a formal restaurant, The Snooty Fox also has a large bar area with big tables and board games, darts and a Space Invaders machine. The bar features real ales, including from local breweries Phipps of Northampton and Pot Belly Brewery in Kettering, while the beer wall features draught world beers, including Belgian beers from breweries including Vedett, Duvel and De Koninck. Gordon has worked in the hospitality industry for 36 years, including in food development for McManus Pub Company and as an area manager for Northamptonshire Inns. He said: “We are delighted to finally open The Snooty Fox. It has been a big challenge because as the pub was due to open in April 2020, but hadn’t started trading, we didn’t qualify for any Covid-19 grants and the industry recruitment crisis has also had a huge impact on getting enough team members to open. So it feels a massive achievement to be trading at last. “Following the challenges of the pandemic many people are looking for an experience and to treat themselves when going out and The Snooty Fox aims to offer them that, with a premium menu celebrating the best of British produce, complemented with quality drinks offer including Belgian beers, Champagne by the glass, cocktails and a cigar menu.”