Angel on the Green pub in Bishopthorpe Road reopens

Angel on the Green, in Bishopthorpe Road, is back open after a two-month closure while work was carried out at the venue.

The pub, which opens as a café during the day, has been given a new open plan look created by knocking through walls inside the building.

Carrying out the work in the Victorian building was no easy feat, said the pub’s general manager, Bella Brunton, who praised the contractor, Elvington Park Builders.

“They were absolutely fantastic,” she said of the firm that carried out the work. “I’d like to say a big thank you to Tim and the rest of his team – they smashed it out of the park.”

The Angel on the Green team ahead of the reopening on Friday (February 27) with general manager Bella Brunton, back right (Image: Dylan Connell)

Inside Angel on the Green, in Bishopthorpe Road, York, which has reopened after a major renovation (Image: Dylan Connell)

The refurbishment comes as the Angel approaches its 10th anniversary, after opening in December 2016.

Bella said the pub had been planning the refurb for the past two years and felt the time was right after returning to a healthy financial footing following disruption caused by the pandemic.

“It’s really improved,” she said of the upturn in trade. “And now we want to celebrate that – and make it even better.”

The Angel will be celebrating its reopening on Friday (February 27) with back-to-back live music from 4pm.

Angel on the Green, in Bishopthorpe Road, York, which has reopened after a major renovation (Image: Dylan Connell)

Bella said the reopening will come as good news to regulars who have been left with no option but to drink elsewhere since the Angel closed on New Year’s Eve.

She did, however, add that the closure failed to stop many regulars from stopping at the pub to look in at the work.

“We felt like we were in a zoo – in a good way,” she said of the large number of people stopping to look in the window. “It’s good that everyone is so interested in what we’re doing.”

Pub’s regulars at ‘the heart of what we do’, says manager

Bella said a strong community has been created around the pub, which resulted in some regulars fearing it would lose its “Angel-vibe” if it was refurbished.

“But quite a lot of people have said it’s still got that same feel which is nice,” she said, adding that the pub’s regulars are at “the heart of what we do”.

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The pub is a community venue, owned by a group of York residents and run by local staff, “who are all integral to the Angel”, according to Bella.

She said the team has been “working their socks off” to get the venue ready for its opening night.

Customers can expect the same high standards, she said, but “amplified”. “We’re working to do everything to the best of our ability so that when people do come in, they feel a sense of trust.”