With first hand experience of cooking three square meals a day for 120 squaddies, former army chef Chris Wittwer should be finding catering for pub customers a doddle.

But as he prepares to celebrate his twelve month anniversary running Punch pub the Royal Oak in Exminster with wife and business partner Alison, Chris is first to admit that the licensed trade is still extremely hard work.

“We’ve faced a big job here turning round an underperforming community pub and putting our own stamp on it,” he said.

“The first three months were particularly tough, with both of us working long hours, week in, week out. 

“But it’s been worth all the effort and I’m pleased to say we’re consistently hitting monthly targets as we complete our first year in charge.”

Chris, aged 30, worked in the army for seven years, spending time at home and abroad in counties including Kenya, Canada, Bosnia and Germany.  During another spell in Northern Ireland, he assumed responsibility for all the unit’s catering requirements.

He said: “The role included all the menu planning, ordering and cooking for up to 120 soldiers.  It was a good grounding for what I’m doing now in my own pub.”

While working in Cyprus, Chris was headhunted for an even more challenging and exciting position – personal chef for a general based on the island, which lasted eight months.

“I was constantly learning new things in the army.  It was very much on the job training but I managed to work my way up and gain promotion fairly quickly,” he added.

Chris left the army in 2002 and returned to the UK to work for logistics firm TNT.  It was at this time he met wife to be Alison Pilkington and started considering a new career in the licensed trade.

He said: “We both agreed it would be more rewarding if we worked for ourselves rather than someone else.  One of our friends was running a pub in Exeter and that got us thinking about the profession. 

“When we were visiting pubs socially we kept asking ourselves what would we do differently to this business and how could we improve it.  We just seemed to have loads of exciting ideas and started talking to the various pubcos to see what opportunities were available.”

They met with Punch’s business relationship manager Chet Greenslade and arranged a viewing at Exminster local the Royal Oak.

“The pub was a bit run down but we could tell instantly that it had bags of potential,” Chris said.

“We did lots of market research to understand the area and what potential customers would want from a local, community pub.  Looking back, it was quite a risk to take.  We sold our flat, left our jobs and took on a pub for the first time.

“But it paid off.  We are both strong, determined people who know what we want out of life and are prepared to work hard to achieve it.

“Pubs are like any other small business.  They require continual effort and fresh ideas to drive things forward every single day.  Only then are there real rewards to be had.”

The couple’s lease began in March 2005.  Top priority was to clean up the Royal Oak and refresh its customer offering.

Chris said: “We introduced a programme of entertainment, including live bands and singers, pool competitions, quizzes and karaoke.  Punch helped us advertise the events by producing posters and flyers and the response from customers was really encouraging.

“We also updated the food, creating new dishes and improving standards of presentation and service.”

The Oak only has a very small kitchen with somewhat limited facilities.  Yet, not surprisingly, Chris runs it with military precision, churning out up to 100 top quality meals every week.

The menu includes scampi, gammon, steak, burgers, filled jacked potatoes and baguettes.  Chris also prepares a wide range of pizzas using a support package from Punch Taverns called Food Solutions.

“They provide us with the oven, while the pizzas come from 3663.  The range is excellent and we offer customers eight varieties in sizes from seven to 14 inches,” he said.

“We also run a takeaway service, which has really taken off because there’s nothing similar available locally.  This is what we are constantly trying to do at the Royal Oak – tap into new markets and give customers more reasons to visit.”

As Chris and Alison’s first year draws to a close, there have been two extremely welcome pieces of news for the hard working couple.

First came a nomination for Punch’s internal reward and recognition scheme, the Shine awards, in the category Best Community Experience.  This was shortly followed by confirmation of an £80,000 investment scheme starting in September to improve facilities throughout the pub.

Chris said: “Running the Royal Oak has always felt like a partnership and we are grateful to Punch for all the support and advice received along the way.

“The forthcoming investment is just what we need to develop the business further still.  Punch will be landscaping our beer garden, adding a children’s play area, resurfacing the car park and decorating the pub inside and out.

“I’m even going to get a brand new, fully equipped kitchen, which can’t come soon enough,” he added.