A POPULAR Ealing micropub has been granted permission by the Council to open for takeaway beer.

The Owl & The Pussycat in Northfields got the good news only last week and has since reopened its doors to those who want to buy some of their home-brewed beer.

The coronavirus pandemic has hit the hospitality industry particularly hard, with venues being forced to open and close on short notice.

One way in which restaurants and pubs could make some income was through takeaways, but the government guidelines did not permit alcohol to be included as part of this.

Paul Nock, one of the co-owners at The Owl & The Pussycat told Nub News: "We don't really understand why customers couldn't buy some beer from pubs but could go to the supermarket across the street and get it.

"The worry is that once they get their beer, they would congregate with their friends and drink together, but what's stopping them from getting their Guinness or their Foster's in the supermarket and going to the park and drinking it with their mates."

Luckily for Nock and his fellow co-owner, Mark Yarnell, their pub has been classed as a brewery shop by the Council, allowing them to sell alcohol via takeaway.

"It's such a relief", said Nock.

"Mark and I, along with our two members of staff have been doing delivery services every day in order to sell our beer, but now people can come to us instead," he added.

The pair have now suspended their daily delivery service, but the weekly delivery van service will remain in place.

The co-owners, who both used to work as teachers, take great pride in their beer, which Yarnell brews himself.

"Mark has been brewing beer for decades and he's fantastic at it, which is why we've got so many awards in only the five years we've been running," said Nock.

"The people of Ealing have really warmed to us in that time and you can't get our beer anywhere else, so it's great that now we can open for takeaways and serve more customers," he added.