The joy of a country pub

Saturday, 25 October 2025

Two rural pubs which have struggled to sell, are now in new hands, both selling to owners who already run country pubs in Canterbury. Reporters CARLY GOOCH and TAYLER MUTTON ask what they love about the rural publican lifestyle.

Auckland business owner Vick Singh had become sick of the city life when he decided to move to a small rural town in Canterbury.

He had left India for New Zealand in 2011 but soon became disillusioned with Auckland where he said everyone was busy with their own lives. “You go into town and no-one wants to know you.”

So in 2017 he left the big city for a lifestyle block near Dunsandel and soon after bought the Railways Tavern in Rakaia. The 1873 pub is a classic Kiwi establishment with its walls decorated in DB Export posters and rugby paraphernalia. But its sky blue exterior makes it stand out.

Vick Singh says the support he has had from the Rakaia community has been “amazing”.

Vick Singh says he loves the small town vibe. 'In country areas, people have time for you.“

And he loves being a publican so much he is in the process of buying a second country pub, the Springston Hotel. He hopes to take possession in November. Both pubs are only a 12-minute drive from his home.

He says country pubs are “easy to run”. “People are really friendly… even just bringing glasses and plates back.”

The locals have even supplied him with bags of onions or potatoes when he has needed them. He said country living was “all new for me … but it’s true love”.

The Railway Tavern in Rakaia is owned by Vick Singh, who loves the sense of community in rural Canterbury.

“The support I’ve gotten in Rakaia is amazing.”

Vick Singh has committed to the community, even investing in the local rugby club, and said he would like to do the same in Springston if he could. “I’m really looking forward to meeting everyone, hearing what they’d like to see, and making the hotel a place people are proud of.”

The Springston Hotel’s previous co-owner, Joanne Chapman, had been trying to sell the pub as long ago as 2015 and was finally bowing out after 27 years.

Vick Singh said she had “run a good ship” but he wanted to make a “couple of improvements” including opening later in the evening and offering meals during the week.

Harry Singh, with partner Liana Smith and their children, Milah, 4, and Bella, 2, pictured in the bar at the newly refurbished Springfield Hotel.

When asked why he decided to buy another pub, Vick Singh said “It’s my new chapter … it’s a great pub so why not?”

Historic pub’s difficult history

Forty minutes away on State Highway 73 is the Springfield Hotel, which has been reinvigorated by a couple who are no strangers to the industry.

Harry Singh, pictured outside the Springfield Hotel, says both he and his partner are from small towns and feel at home in rural Canterbury.

Harry Singh and Leiana Smith reopened the pub’s doors on October 12 following months of renovations including knocking out walls, new paint and restoring the “country vibe”, Smith said.

Harry Singh joked that he always seems to buy pubs that are “going downhill”.

It was formerly owned by Alpine 182 Ltd whose sole director was Blair Wallace. He was stripped of his liquor licence after pleading guilty to a string of drugs charges and for employment breaches, including humiliation of staff.

The Springfield Hotel is on the busy State Highway 73 at the foothills of the Southern Alps.

“It had a colourful history,” Smith said, which led the couple to carefully consider the move to buy the 120-year-old rural pub in Selwyn.

“After meeting the community and seeing how close-knit they are and what it meant to them to get it back open, it outweighed the bad,” said Smith.

The couple met at Harry Singh’s first venture in New Zealand, Southbridge Hotel, which he leases.

Good food is essential to a successful rural pub. Pictured is the lamb steak on the menu at the Springfield Hotel.

Harry Singh left India in 2010 for study and “just never left”, said Smith, becoming a New Zealand citizen and raising his family here.

Harry previously owned a bar in Papanui but said he found it hard to connect with his customers. This had not been an issue for him at the Springfield Hotel or the other two pubs he owns.

In 2023 the couple bought Coalgate Tavern, and it was there they met Springfield locals who told them they no longer had a community watering hole. “They were always harping on at Harry that he should open it so they don’t have to travel - so we thought: why not.” said Smith.

The Railway Tavern has a traditional, welcoming feel.

The “overwhelming” turnout at the hotel’s reopening confirmed to the couple they had done the right thing, she said. “The response was ”amazing.“

Many people shared memories of the hotel dating back 50 years, she said, ”so it’s nice to give that back to them“.

She said having a good group of locals was the key to a country pub. “And we’ve definitely got that.”

Harry Singh said he never felt like he was going to work. 'It feels like I'm going to meet my mates and have a good yarn.“

The country pub was a hub for the community. “We’re just wanting to get back all these country pubs, save them as much as we can.

“We’re both from small towns, I grew up in [hotels], to me it’s that feeling of home.”