Windmill pub in Southport rings in the changes ready for reopening

One of the Southport’s oldest pubs is looking forward to reopening its doors after lockdown – with a superb new look.

The Windmill, on Seabank Road in Southport, first opened in the 1800s. It has been trading ever since, catering for hungry and thirsty local residents and visitors to the seaside resort.

The popular venue is fast becoming renowned for its top quality food after being taken over a couple of years ago by professional chef Neil Walsh and his partner Tom Hodgin.

The new landlords are both in their 20s and they are delighted to be gaining a great reputation already at their new venture.

They haven’t wasted a second during the latest Covid lockdown, using the time to carry out a £15,000 revamp of the venue with new-look seating inside, improvements to the kitchen, and brand new outdoor furniture – perfect for when visitors return to enjoy the sunshine in the famous Windmill beer garden.

Outdoor hospitality is set to be allowed to reopen from Monday, 12 April, although fans of The Windmill will have to wait just a little longer to visit.

Neil Walsh said: “We did think about reopening in April. We have a big beer garden, but we have decided that we are not going to reopen just yet as we would like our customers to enjoy their visit both inside and out. We are also reliant on the great British weather.  “We also considered the possibility of putting up a marquee outside, but if it’s a nice sunny day, would you really want to be underneath it?”

Beers on draught at The Windmill pub on Seabank Road in Southport

Neil and Tom are now looking forward to Monday, 17 May when all indoor hospitality is expected to be able to reopen and the grand unveiling of The Windmill’s new look can take place.

They took over the running of the pub in November 2018 and have made some big changes to things like furniture, and the food, while also keeping many of the things which The Windmill has been famous for over the years.

Neil said: “It needed a new lease of life and we have managed to do that in quite a short space of time.

“When lockdown happened, we started repainting The Windmill from top to bottom, we painted the outside, we refurbished the men’s toilets and we have plans to refurbish the ladies’ toilets later in the year. We are also in the process of replacing the pub sign for reopening.

“My background is as a chef. We have improved the menu and the food using fresh produce and more homemade dishes, with our fish and chips for example, we now make our own batter, and make our own mushy peas.

“We also hold a 5 star hygiene rating in Sefton.

“Our food has been well received and attracts new and regular visitors.

A roast dinner at The Windmill pub on Seabank Road in Southport

“We have just received our mini outside pizza oven and once the lockdown restrictions have been completely lifted in June, customers seated outside can order a pizza that will take a couple of minutes to cook from our wood fired pizza oven.

“We have been busy! A lot of the work we have done ourselves.

“We are dog friendly, we also have recommissioned our real fire for those cold winter nights which has been a big hit with customers. We have also introduced passion fruit and espresso martinis on draught which will be perfect for summer.

“The pub is owned by Heineken and they have been really supportive during these tough times to ensure that we are able to reopen where we left off. We have been lucky with that, but the brewery has been able to see that we have been working hard to make this place even better.

“We have developed a great relationship with the guest houses along Bath Street. We help places like The Stamford, Le Maitre and The Sunnyside.

“We have been enjoying watching Sarah and Rick Blaney from The Stamford on Four in a Bed on Channel 4 this week! They invited us around to have a look around The Stamford, the rooms there are absolutely beautiful. We watch Four in a Bed religiously, so we have been looking forward to them being on the show!

“Cafe Bar N’Ista in Birkdale was on Four in a Bed a couple of weeks ago, so hopefully it is all good publicity for Southport.

Visitorss can enjoy hot drinks in front of a roaring fire at The Windmill pub on Seabank Road in Southport

“We are both 28 years old, we were 26 when we took over The Windmill – I think we might be the youngest pub landlords in Southport! We really threw ourselves in at the deep end when we started, and I would like to think we are swimming!

“We have a lot of regulars at the pub who we have kept in touch with during lockdown. We help one of our regulars twice a week and offer our help with shopping and general care. We are looking forward to welcoming them back.

“Tom runs our popular quiz nights and is looking forward to seeing everyone return for those.

“When we took over we had two darts teams here, now we have four, including two ladies teams and two men’s darts teams, one with the players all in their 20s. We have a good pool team here too.”

Visitors enjoy the beer garden at The Windmill pub on Seabank Road in Southport in Summer 1981

The Windmill has a rich history in Southport, having served people for the past two centuries. However its location on Seabank Road, between Lord Street and The Promenade, means not everyone knows it is there – something the new landlords are working hard to change.

Neil said: “We think the pub has been here since perhaps the 1830s, although the well-known local historian Geoff Wright thinks it may have been here since the 1850s. We would love to learn more about its history. Considering we have been here for well over 150 years, not many people know we are here!

“We are working on that. When we took over The Windmill was ranked 127 in Southport on TripAdvisor but we have been moving it up those rankings.

“Moving forward from the Covid pandemic, when we have got this place going again we are looking to add another pub to our business by the end of the year.”

• The Windmill pub is at 12-14 Seabank Road, Southport town centre. For more details please email them at: info@thewindmillsouthport.co.uk or find The Windmill – Southport on Facebook or thewindmillsouthport on Instagram.