A couple who have been running an Oxford pub for nearly 30 years are to retire.
David and Jenny Rhymes have been in charge of the Gardeners Arms in North Parade Avenue for almost three decades, and will serve their last pints next week.
The Greene King-owned pub will then be managed on a temporary basis by Josh Mullett-Sadones, who is currently in charge of the Old Bookbinders Ale House and the James Street Tavern.
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A refurbishment of the Gardeners Arms is expected to go ahead in 2023.
Mr Rhymes said: “Of course we will miss the regulars and they will miss us but after nearly 30 years it’s time for us to retire.
“We have had some good times and some hard times - it was very difficult during Covid pandemic and now we have to cope with increasing fuel prices.”
Mr Rhymes, who was born and bred in Oxfordshire, will now move with his wife to Yarnton.
“That’s the next big challenge for us - moving all our things over to the house in Yarnton,” Mr Rhymes added.
The Oxford branch of real ale group CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale) is planning to present Mr Rhymes and his wife with a long service certificate before they leave.
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Oxford branch spokesman Dave Richardson said: “David and his wife have been at the Gardeners Arms for a very long time - it’s definitely the end of an era.
“David was previously at a pub near the Westgate, now called the Cow & Creek, for five years before he arrived at the Gardeners Arms.
“David and Jenny have dedicated most of their careers to the Gardeners and will definitely be missed.”
The pub is thought to date back to 1876.
Mr Rhymes and his wife took over in March, 1993.
When they started out they could never have imagined their trade would ever be interrupted by a global pandemic.
In 2020, Mr Rhymes told the Oxford Mail: “It certainly has been a tricky time and it’s not getting any easier - we will just have to see how it goes.”
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After being forced to close like all hospitality businesses when lockdown was enforced in March 2020, the pub reopened in July.
Mr Rhymes said in September that year: “We have track and trace and it’s table service now - people are being asked not to come to the bar.
“The pub is very long and narrow like a railway carriage and people are used to coming to the bar to get served but now from now on it will have to be table service.”
Another pub anniversary is due next year - the Halls who run the Rose & Crown opposite will celebrate their 40th birthday.
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This story was written by Andy Ffrench, he joined the team more than 20 years ago and now covers community news across Oxfordshire.
Get in touch with him by emailing: Andy.ffrench@newsquest.co.uk
Follow him on Twitter @OxMailAndyF
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