Kirkstall Bridge Inn beer garden opens for April bookings as 'mental demand' crashes website within an hour

The Bridge Road venue in Kirkstall has 'the pints ready' as it announced on Monday that it will be opening its pub outdoors on April 12, 'if everything goes to plan with Boris'.

The pub took to social media to tell its customers that bookings for the main beer garden will be available on its website for a maximum of six people, or two households only to comply with coronavirus restrictions.

It suggested that people book as 'tables will go fast' and it has limited walk-in space, but high demand halted the website within just one hour of bookings being live.

The pub posted on Facebook that its website was 'crashing just due to the amount of people that are trying to get on'.

The team assured people that there were 'a good few tables left' on Monday evening following the website disaster, but a spokesperson for the pub has since told the YEP today that they had such 'mental demand' that they have now got 'fully booked weekends until June'.

One customer said she was trying to book a table in the beer garden for three hours on Monday evening before she was eventually let into the website.

The beer garden is set to open from 12.00pm to 11.00pm every day from April 12, with food being served outdoors from 12.00pm to 9.00pm Monday to Friday and 12.00pm to 5.00pm on Sundays.

Bookings are for three hour slots.

Under the Government's roadmap out of lockdown, hospitality venues are permitted to open from April 12 for outdoor-only service to groups of six or a mixture of two households.

Kirkstall Bridge's social media announcement on Monday said: "LESS THAN AN HOUR TO GO BEFORE OUR BOOKINGS ARE OPEN

"We’re very excited to say, that if everything goes to plan with Boris, we will be opening our beer garden on the 12th April!

"Bookings for the Main Beer Garden are available from 6pm at Kirkstallbridge.co.uk

"Please remember... 6 people maximum; 2 households only; 3 hour booking slots

"Open 12-11pm everyday

"Food served 12-9pm Monday-Friday / 12-5pm Sunday (We will not be serving our roasts until Mid May)

"Tables will go fast and we will have very limited walk in space so we do suggest to book!

"See you all soon, we’ll have the pints ready."

The pub then gave an update on Facebook an hour later: "Hey all!

"The website is crashing just due to the amount of people that are trying to get on.

"If you watch our story it shows you a way to open the website with no problem!

"I’ve just done it so it definitely works!

"Don’t worry there’s plenty of tables left!"

Did you manage to book one of the so highly sought after tables?

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