Watermill Beefeater Basildon new bosses celebrate trade boom

Peter Sherlock, restaurant manager of The Watermill Beefeater, has hailed his and general manager Andy Bamford’s first year a success, despite a "cosmetic" fire at the end of March forcing them to “rebuild the business”.

Peter, 45, said: “It’s come a long way, it’s definitely a place for families now. Our family trade is up by about 50 per cent and we are nearly fully booked for Christmas. 

Rebuilding - Peter said the business has gone from strength to strength after the fire (Image: Michael Robinson)

“We took over about a year ago now, it’s been a rollercoaster, from staff struggles to now being fully staffed and ready for Christmas.

“It’s going back to its traditional values of being around the family, from our Sunday lunches to our breakfasts”.

Peter described the fire on March 31 as a “kick in the teeth” for the business, despite the restaurant only being closed for three days. 

Cosy - Inside of the Watermill Beefeater (Image: Michael Robinson)

“Our trade was really starting to come up," he said.

“The actual fire was very cosmetic, it impacted our business. It was almost like starting from scratch again to rebuild the business.”

Thankfully, the fire had affected the external cladding of the venue and there was not much damage to the inside of the building. 

Welcoming - Bar staff Angel loves working at the Watermill (Image: Michael Robinson)

Angel Taylor, who began working as bar staff at the steakhouse in September, praised the team and says working at the East Mayne restaurant has helped her come out of her shell.

The 24-year-old said: “I really enjoy it, I really like the people that I work with here. I find it hard to talk to people but this job has really helped me in that area.

“It’s really helped build my confidence. I would like to see where I could go in a few years in the company.

“I’m really looking forward to the future, to customers coming through the doors and the business growing more.”