The Desi pub owned by the same family for 45 years that's popular with football fans
As pubs continue to battle the cost of living crisis, the Express & Star continues its Love Your Local series which celebrates our local inns.
The Vine in West Bromwich is a pub owned by a family that have amassed over 45 years of ownership.
Bharat Patel runs it with his sister Hema Masaun, as the two took over from their parents who became owners of The Vine in 1978.
The story began as Suresh Patel, known as Suki, came over to England from Kenya in the late 1950s. He then got married to Bhanu Patel in the 70s, and the two took ownership of the establishment on 152 Roebuck Street in 1978.
Since then, the family have run the pub, and as the parents have now taken a step back, Bharat and Hema deal with the day-to-day running.
Speaking about this, Bharat says: "I think my dad was one of the very first people that started off the Desi pub in the Black Country.
"I now run it alongside my sister, and I've been here since 2001, Hema joined a few years after me.
"We chose to keep it within the family, and it is what sums up the whole place, there is a family-feel to the whole establishment, including the staff, of which we have around 37, and some members have been with us for 25 years.
"We all work so well together here, there's no fighting between myself and Hema.
"As I mentioned, some of our staff have been here for a while. One lady has been here for 27 years, and another 35 years!
"Our chefs have been with us since around 2005, there is a great sense of loyalty here, and it is a big great family, a truly great story."
The Vine is one of an array of Desi pubs in the Black Country. The Black Country is the heart of where Desi pubs reside in the whole of the UK.
