Moat House added to your enquiry
Ready to proceed? Complete your application.
You can select more pubs to enquire on if you are not quite finished!
Moat House
Corporation Street, Taunton, Somerset, TA1 4AH
Annual Rent: £42,280
FindMyPub.com
Beer Garden
FindMyPub.com
External Drinking Area
Property details
Moat House occupies a highly visible position on Castle Green in the heart of Taunton, close to the main shops, bus station, museums and the castle. Around 3,552 adults live within walking distance of the pub, and the surrounding town-centre hospitality scene is busy, with 21 competing venues within a 10-minute radius. The area already attracts customers looking for everything from all-day food and cocktails to louder late-night entertainment, allowing Moat House to establish a distinct place in the circuit.
The pub is currently closed, so the planned investment creates an opportunity to relaunch it with a clearly defined customer proposition. The refurbishment will reposition the venue to appeal to a broader and more diverse audience, particularly younger professionals and customers aged 25-45 looking for after-work socialising, quality drinks, good music and a more grown-up late-night atmosphere. The intention is to trade later than a typical cocktail bar, offer better quality than a standard late pub, feel more premium than a youth-skewing nightclub and provide a stronger entertainment offer than a restaurant bar.
The refurbishment of Moat House will cover both the interior and exterior of the pub.
The pub's trading area and facilities post-refurbishment will be:
- Two trading floors with a main bar area
- Snug area
- Approximately 50 internal covers
- Approximately 16 external covers
- Small patio overlooking the central square
- HEINEKEN SmartDispense
- Upstairs space with potential for private area hire
The private accommodation consists of three bedrooms, a large lounge, a separate kitchen, a bathroom, and a separate office room.
FindMyPub.com
Cask Ale
FindMyPub.com
Team Games
FindMyPub.com
Pool Area
FindMyPub.com
Live Entertainment
FindMyPub.com
Experienced Operator
Trading style
An investment of around £499,000 is planned to deliver a full internal and external refurbishment of Moat House. The scheme will bring the pub’s two trading floors back to life, create a stronger late-night identity, refresh the exterior and signage, improve the outside trading space and support a clear premium drinks and entertainment proposition. The private accommodation is also included within the refurbishment.
The pub is currently a shell, allowing the investment to reshape the customer experience across both trading floors. The upstairs area is planned to have a more relaxed feel, while the downstairs space will carry more energy and support the venue’s late-night positioning. This contrast will allow Moat House to serve different occasions through the evening, from after-work drinks and group socialising through to later-night entertainment.
Externally, new signage and a planned name change will signal the transformation to passing customers and help the venue stand out on Castle Green. A simple but effective outside trading area overlooking the central square will also create a visible place for customers to drink outside and make more of the pub’s prominent location.
The trading offer will be drinks-led, supported by a full beer range and a strong focus on events throughout the week. The concept recommendation includes signature cocktails, premium spirits, craft and draught beer, live music on selected nights, DJs from Thursday to Saturday, bookable booths, private area hire upstairs and a strong seasonal events calendar. The operator will be expected to turn this into a coherent premium late-night experience, with quality drinks, music and atmosphere as the key reasons to visit.
The investment is designed to give Moat House a clear point of difference in a competitive town-centre market. The local demographics create an opportunity for new positioning, while the current building and layout do not meet the expectations of the audience the business wants to attract. Reworking the interior, exterior, signage and outside space will allow the pub to relaunch with a more modern, premium identity and make better use of its location and two-floor trading format.
Based on the briefing, the refurbishment is anticipated to increase turnover by around £12,100 per week. This growth is expected to come from attracting a broader customer base, building after-work and early-evening trade, extending customer stays into the late evening and creating a stronger events-led reason to visit throughout the week.
If you’ve benefited from running or owning a pub business, the landlords would love to hear what experience you can bring. The right operator for Moat House Taunton will have extensive experience in late-night, wet-led and circuit bar hospitality businesses. They will have a clear vision for the drinks menu, entertainment calendar and marketing strategy, and can create a memorable experience for their customers.
The successful operator will understand how to build a premium late-night venue around a full drinks range and a strong programme of events. They will be able to create clear differentiation in a competitive town-centre market, balancing relaxed social occasions upstairs with a more energetic late-night experience downstairs.
If this sounds like the incredible pub opportunity you’ve been waiting for, apply today and tell the landlords what you can bring to this pub’s next chapter.
Moat House is in your basket
Complete your applicationSimilar pubs
Crown & Sceptre, Taunton Somerset
Fontygary Inn, Barry Cardiff
Cowick Barton, Exeter Devon
Phoenix, Exmouth Devon
Bush Inn, Cowbridge Vale of Glamorgan
MISREPRESENTATION ACT 1967
FindMyPub.com gives notice that the contents of these particulars are believed to be correct but are given without responsibility and intending purchasers or lessees should satisfy themselves by inspection or otherwise to their correctness. These particulars do not form any part of any offer or contract and no person in the employment of the company has any authority to make or give representation of warranty to this property.
The information and images displayed about this property comprises a property advertisement. FindMyPub.com makes no warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of the advertisement or any linked or associated information, and FindMyPub.com has no control over the content.
