A pub rescued from closure by the community will soon be taken over by a MasterChef winner.
Top cook Thomas Frake won the hit BBC cooking series in 2020 thanks to his hearty grub and since then has run the The Wheatsheaf pub in Chilton Foliat.
But Mr Frake will now take on his latest challenge, being the landlord of the The Silk on the Downs, located on the A346 between Ogbourne St George and Ogbourne Maizey.
On Thursday, April 18, the pub announced on social media that having impressed TV presenters John Torode and Gregg Wallace, MasterChef winner Thomas Frake was looking to refresh the offering at the once-doomed watering hole.
"The pub continues to provide a warm and welcoming space for the local village patrons and the community, but will evolve its food, drink and accommodation proposition under the stewardship of Thomas and the team," said a spokesperson for The Silk on the Downs.
The Silk on the Downs has been through its fair share of ups and downs in recent years after it was saved by a community campaign which bought and reopened the pub in 2022.
For two years, residents of the Ogbourne St Andrew, Rockley and Ogbourne Maizey hamlets fundraised £240,000 to bring the pub back into operation after shutting at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
The money would later be matched by the government through its Community Ownership Fund, which is designed to help save pubs in rural areas.
"The Silks pub is the only place that locals can get together, making it vital to the lives, wellbeing, and economy of the community," said the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities at the time.
While this fundraising was going on, London-born chef Thomas Frake was making his TV debut, beating 60 other chefs on MasterChef 2020.
Thomas was praised for his fondness for classic British cooking and throughout the series, he impressed with what could be loosely described as 'gastropub food'.
His winning final dish featured monkfish scampi, ox cheek and salted caramel, and TV star Greg Wallace described his style as “proper, old-fashioned, hearty grub” that “had his heart and his soul in every single forkful”.
In 2022, the winning chef took over The Wheatsheaf pub in Chilton Foliat, stating: "I believe country pubs like this are the beating heart of the community, whether that's for the locals or our guests from further afield."
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