Smiles all round for Melksham’s Pub of the Year!

THERE were smiles all round for the town’s much-loved pub The Market Tavern after it was presented with the award for winning MP Michelle Donelan’s Pub of the Year competition.

The award was presented by the MP herself and Leader of House of Commons Penny Mordaunt, after The Market Tavern won the competition following nearly 2,000 public votes.

Penny Mordaunt said, “It’s a real honour for me to be here. It’s wonderful to see people who have set up a business, worked so hard through very difficult times and they have produced something that is absolutely amazing. There’s an incredible atmosphere here, it’s so beautiful, it’s so cosy, the planting is amazing they have real gone the extra mile to make it a wonderful, wonderful venue.

“I understand a lot of people voted in the competition but this was the hands down winner. It’s been great to come and give everyone pats on the backs today and present this wonderful award.”

Local support 

Thanking the hard-work and dedication of his team, landlord Rob Carter said, “This has been such a massive joint effort. I am shocked, it’s totally unexpected and I never aspired to do it, it’s great to see that we’ve got so much local support, we are obviously pleased that so many people have such faith in us. We have an amazing team, without our staff we would not be here, they are incredible.”

The Market Tavern opened two years’ ago in 2021, towards the end of the Covid-19 pandemic and has experienced many challenges during their time in the town. However, Rob says, together with his team, his wife Lorraine and brother Steve, they have all worked hard to keep the pub going.

Rob said, “We’ve also had the cost-of-living crisis and one thing after the other but we are still here and we are still smiling. Thank you for the support of the freeholders, Paul Fister and Susan Dann.

Rob’s wife, Lorraine said, “It’s overwhelming to know how much support is around the town considering that we’ve only been open two years.”

Dedication

MP Michelle Donelan said, “It’s absolutely amazing to be able to recognise the dedication and hard work of all the team at the Market Tavern; they had a resounding win ahead of some incredible local pubs but it’s no surprise as to why local people enjoy coming here. You only have to look at what they have done with the décor, with the food and with the service to see how well they have done. The landlords, Rob and Lorraine, are well known by local residents. They always have a smile on their face and are very welcoming so it’s great to award them with this trophy today.”

The MP launched the search to find the best pub in her Chippenham constituency, which covers Melksham, in May, with all pubs in the constituency listed in a first round of public voting. The 10 local pubs with the highest number of votes then went through to a second round of voting to determine the Pub of the Year 2023 winner.

MP Michelle Donelan launched the competition to help celebrate all of our local pubs and how important they are to the community and encourage people to support them.