The Full Story
Crown & Bear
The Crown & Bear is on a mission to serve you top quaility food
Serving you from the oldest house in Brading the Rectory Mansion
About the Business
The Crown & Bear is the latest venture from partners Stuart & Dayna who created the Hungry Bear restaurant.
Stuart Downes is a respected Island chef and graduate Dayna have both showcased their entrepreneurial spirit over the years. They have both worked to build the business into a trailblazing restaurant the Hungry Bear that started out the back of a hired van in 2017.
The vision has always been the same to create a place where people enjoy tasty food in a relaxing atmosphere.
Before the Hungry Bear came to the Rectory Mansion in 2020 it had already had residencies at the old Isle of Wight Lavender Farm (Newport) 2017-2018 and at Fakenham Farm, St Helens 2018-2020.
The business quickly adapted during the lockdowns, when the couple quickly changed their business model to the home delivery of Roast Dinners. This led to the launch of their sister company "Roast Runner" with their business partner Dean Stewart. The Roast Runner delivers heat & eat Sunday Roast platters each week, across the whole Island.
When the Hungry Bear moved into the Rectory Mansion in Brading in 2020 the business really raised its game. Putting on weekly live music and hosting large events in the courtyard. The food had always been fantastic but they now had the venue to match.
New Era
Coming into 2024, Stuart and Dayna felt it was time for change. The couple felt ready to try something they had been wanting to do for a long time, run a pub. They both felt very passionate about the Rectory Mansion, so they decided to create their own pub at their current location.
The couple felt a name change for the business was appropriate as their new ideas required such a large amount of change they did not want to lose the Hungry Bear brand, but rather create something new. A venture that was the evolution of their experience.
The history of their current building came to the forefront of their research and they were amazed to learn that the building had already been a pub several times throughout history, this gave the couple confidence that this was the right decision, because of its authentic creditals.
It is reported that there has been a pub here at the Rectory Mansion since the 15th Century.; it is said to have been a Tudor pub called the "Crown".
The new name "Crown & Bear" was born.
