Popular pub Four Seasons at the Aber Hotel has been forced to close suddenly due to ongoing staff shortages.

The pub has been open since 2020, originally situated downstairs at the Aber Hotel in the village of Abertridwr, just outside Caerphilly.

It moved upstairs in the hotel in May 2021 amid the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns and pub restrictions and had remained there ever since.

The food has consistently been a hit with locals and foodies from around the UK alike, often selling out of Sunday dinners, and regularly serving over 60 guests a week.

This is reflected in the pub’s numerous awards, including runner up at the 2021 Welsh Business Awards, Pub of the Year at the 2022 ceremony, and not to mention securing a five-star hygiene rating in September this year.

Owner Clive D’Angelo Smith also runs a catering business of the same name, and a fine-dining business called Fine Dine with Clive, which has customers including Jaguar Land Rover.

However, staff shortages began to be a problem in late September, with advertisements for a new chef being put out on the pub’s social media.

They were forced to close due to staff shortages on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 October, with Mr D’Angelo-Smith announcing the news on Facebook on the Friday morning.

The pub has since been forced to reveal its sudden closure on the official Facebook page on Monday, October 23.

Mr D’Angelo-Smith announced the news, with an official statement posted to the page just before 1pm.

The statement read: “It is regret that I'm having to close the restaurant for the foreseeable future.

“I've been trying to find a chef for many, many months but have had no applications at all.

“I will continue to try to find someone suitable but, in the meantime, I will be unable to open up sorry due to other commitments.

“We've had some amazing events at The Aber Hotel over the years, here’s hoping I can solve the problem. If not, I will help find an alternative solution with The Aber and the Facebook page may change hands.

“Thank you to everyone for their amazing support over the years. I absolutely love this pub, the owners and all the customers. It's a massive community hub and just wish I could continue my journey there.”

The restaurant may reopen again in the future, but for now the doors are permanently closed.