By Deirdre Huston
Simon Hodges has taken over The Greyhound. He and his wife, Josie, live about five minutes away from the pub, on the other side of Keymer Church. Their three children have attended local schools. Simon and Josie have long been regular visitors at The Greyhound and felt they could make a difference to the pub. Simon says: “We wanted to turn the Greyhound into a village pub again and give it back to the community.”
This new venture is very much a team effort. Simon is the Licensee, Zoe Scozzi is the manager, and Josie provides backroom support alongside Debbie Smith. Debbie is also a local parent and already works with the Hodges in another business.
Josie says: “We want to return the pub to how it used to be: a lovely, vibrant village pub.” The strength of local support has already taken the couple by surprise. Simon explains: “Our vision has been realised quickly because a couple of residents, Kenny and Gill Packham, organised a welcome do for us, and the pub was rammed with locals who wanted to wish us well.”
The pub is over 450 years old. Simon says: “We want this to be a pub with traditional food where you can come for a drink in a friendly, relaxed atmosphere.” Food will continue being served from Wednesday to Sunday, with a proper roast at the weekend, and a view to including more days in the future. Meat is sourced through Twine Butchers in Hassocks, and, as well as the beer, a lot of the wines come from the Harveys Brewery. Simon says: “We will add to our ale and lager selection with guest beers.” Look out for the dried hops on the inglenook fireplace, which are a gift from a Harveys employee.
From 1st January, the pub will hold Open Mic nights every Thursday, a pizza van will visit every Tuesday while Wednesday will be Quiz Night.
The pub is open every day from 10.30am except on Sundays when the doors open at 11am. Josie says: “We would like the pub to be a Wi-Fi hub where people can come and sit and work and be warm during the day.” Every Wednesday, there will be a drop-in surgery when Emma Warner, the IT Girl from Hurstpierpoint, will be based here.
The Greyhound are members of HCO (Hassocks Community Organisation) and offer 10% discount on Wednesday to Friday lunchtimes.
“Everyone’s been amazing,” says Josie, and Simon adds: “We want to thank everyone for their immediate support because they’ve been fast to rally around us.” Many are keen to see the pub continue in the coming years as a hub of the local community.