Restaurant, bar and hospitality operator, Christian Arden has taken on his first pub with Star Pubs & Bars, The Tree House in Barnes. The pub will reopen as The Crossing in August following a joint £450,000 refurbishment with Star Pubs & Bars.
The new venture will be a top-quality neighbourhood family and dog friendly pub with an emphasis on serving outstanding seasonal freshly prepared food, great beer and curated wines from lesser-known growers plus a few classics. Sustainability will be at its heart. It is Arden’s second south London pub, his other is The Rectory in Clapham, with a third pub in Kennington in the pipeline.
Christian says: “I have wanted to open a pub in Barnes for some time and so was delighted when the Tree House became available. The pandemic delayed plans, but on the flipside it gave me the opportunity to finesse them and collaborate with Chef Anthony Demetre. I even had time to go on Star Pubs & Bars’ Innside Knowledge course for new licensees which was a fabulous experience.”
“My wife is a founder of the award-winning A plastic planet, so as you can I imagine I am also passionate about creating sustainable pubs. Pubs generally are sustainable businesses using glasses, bottles and cans and like us employ local people and use local suppliers. Reducing waste and energy consumption will be a focus of operations.”
Enhanced Hospitality are providing HR and financial services support.
Richard Campbell, Regional Operations Director of Star Pubs & Bars said: “It’s great to have Christian on board. He has a fantastic reputation in the hospitality industry, having run his own Michelin star restaurant, built a highly successful group of late-night venues and turned around many other businesses. He is now returning to his passion – top end pubs with a reputation for superb service. Barnes has been crying out for a pub restaurant of this calibre and with Christian at the helm it will undoubtedly be a great success.”
