After more than three years of the pub sitting empty, staff at The Star are welcoming back the community.

The pub in Chester Road, Highgate Newtown, reopened on April 20, with a celebratory barbecue party three days later.

In the intervening years a "substantial investment" by its owner at Stonegate Pub Partners has seen it given a polished interior and a new lease of life.

"We've got exciting things in the pipeline," said Roxanne Peterson, who co-manages the public house with Karl Evans.

"All the building work in the area is drumming up the business for us.

"We're planning early doors to get the mums in and the builders around the site hopefully serving hot food mornings as well."

Ham & High: Co-managers of The Star pub Karl Evans and Roxanne PetersonCo-managers of The Star pub Karl Evans and Roxanne Peterson (Image: Nathalie Raffray)

As well as a selection of lagers, pale ales and bitters, there are plans to grow the wine list and introduce guest wines.

Roxanne, who worked at the pub ahead of its closure in 2019, said the new menu which is coming in a few week "is a surprise" but will be "a little bit more affordable for people to come in and have a quick bite to eat".

"We're hoping to get a coffee machine so we can open at 9am and for any builders who may want breakfast.

"This is a community centre for people who like a drink," she said.

For those who enjoy dancing they have introduced a swing event in the function room upstairs and hope to resurrect the film club.

The room is available for parties and events, and the pub has a licence to play live music.

"We're bringing it back to its shiny glory days," said Roxanne.

"We're bringing everything back to the community. The locals are really happy to have us back."

"It's a nice change," Karl said.

"We'll be using small independent breweries and getting in local beers, ciders and wines."

He added: "It's hard to find kitchen staff at the moment. A lot of the chefs I know, because there aren't enough structure such as KPs (kitchen porters)and runners to help them, they're all going abroad."

The pub is open from 1pm to 11pm Monday to Thursday, until midnight on Friday and Saturday, and until 10pm on Sunday.