Brewhouse & Kitchen buys three JD Wetherspoon freeholds: Brewhouse & Kitchen, the expanding brewhouse concept led by Simon Bunn and Kris Gumbrell, is set to head north following the acquisition of the freeholds of the Forest House in Chester, The Bollin Fee in Wilmslow and the Bankers Draft in Bedford from JD Wetherspoon. The completion of the acquisitions in Bedford and Wilmslow will be on 13 May and in Chester on 20 May. Gumbrell said: “We are very excited to be bringing in our fully operational micro-breweries, craft beers, fresh food menu and beer and brewing experiences to these fantastic locations. JD Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: “We can confirm that Wetherspoon has exchanged contracts to sell The Forest House pub in Chester, The Bollin Fee at Wilmslow and the Bankers Draft at Bedford. The final day of trading as Wetherspoon pubs will be 9 May in Wilmslow and Bedford, and 15 May in Chester. All the staff will be transferred to the new owners. We would like to thank our customers for their loyalty towards the pubs.” Last month, Gumbrell said: “Our brand is going from strength to strength, but we remain focused on creating a unique pub experience and strong returns for investors, we see considerable scope not only to grow the number of pubs within the brand but also to further develop and innovate our offering, with, for example, our new gluten-free menu and the addition of our own brewed keg craft beer, alongside our existing cask range to every site.” The company currently has ten sites open – last month it reported two in development and three in legal which will take the company to 15 sites. At the start of 2016, Brewhouse & Kitchen reported a successful start to its financial year, with 79% like-for-like growth in its invested estate and 17% growth in its uninvested estate in its first quarter to December 2015. The company said the results demonstrated the continued shift in consumer attitudes to pubs that offered a “genuine and authentic experience of brewing on-site”. Each pub carries a range of 22 draught beers, of which at least six will have been brewed on-site. Brewhouse & Kitchen also revealed its own brewed volumes now account for 40% to 60% of all draught sales, while fresh food also continues to grow, with the sales mix moving from 32% to 36%.