Portsmouth's historic Keppel's Head Hotel on The Hard gets involved with Business Awards action

Keppel’s Head Hotel will sponsor the Employer of the Year category at The News’ Business Excellence Awards, which are taking place at Portsmouth Guildhall on Friday, February 21.

Tring Lim, who co-owns the hotel, said: 'It is a really great opportunity to sponsor and to know that in Portsmouth we are supporting the local businesses. We are especially excited to be sponsoring the category that we are. It is a great category to support so it is really good for us.'

The hotel, in The Hard, Portsea, was taken over at the beginning of 2019 and has been going from strength to strength since, having undergone an extensive refurbishment.

A lot of changes are still being done to further improve and update certain areas of the hotel, while keeping the hotel’s character and history.

The pub underwent a recent renovation which saw the return of an old haunt for navy sailors, the Nut Bar, a popular fixture of the venue from the 1950’s to the 1990’s.

More than £700,000 was spent on the refurbishment, which included redecorating the rooms including the popular Victory Suite, replacing the beds, and maintenance on the building’s wiring and plumbing.

The new bar officially opened yesterday and is now available to hire for functions and private parties.

They have recently hired an experienced chef who is heading the new restaurant, Captain’s Table.

The hotel, which was built in 1779, welcomed a variety of guests during the sixties, ranging from The Beatles to covert officers from MI6 and the KGB.

Co-owner Tring Lim, who acquired the venue with her husband and a group of friends in April 2019, hopes to preserve the hotel’s history throughout any restoration processes to update the hotel’s facilities.

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They have kept some of the decor and artefacts that date back to as far as 1881, including a mysterious 18th century Royal Navy uniform that may have been worn by a decorated admiral.

In 2016, Mrs Lim bought the 300-year-old pub The Lady Hamilton, on The Hard, bringing it back into business after it had closed three years earlier.

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