{"id":514086,"date":"2025-10-20T10:02:11","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T10:02:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/514086\/"},"modified":"2025-10-20T10:02:11","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T10:02:11","slug":"birminghams-40-st-pauls-to-close","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/514086\/","title":{"rendered":"Birmingham\u2019s 40 St Pauls to close"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"standfirst u-standfirst\">40 St Pauls in Birmingham\u2019s Jewellery Quarter will close in December after 10 years in operation, with the demands of the business stopping its founder from starting a family.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Amanjot Johl opened 40 St Pauls in December 2015\" width=\"650\" height=\"410\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Amanjot-Johl-40-St-Pauls.jpg\" data- class=\"size-full wp-image-897947 lazyload\"\/>Amanjot Johl opened 40 St Pauls in December 2015<\/p>\n<p>The venue was previously a dedicated gin bar and was named Bar of the Year at the 2019 Icons of Gin Awards. However, post-Covid, it pivoted to become a cocktail bar.<\/p>\n<p>Owner Amanjot Johl said that despite the bar being \u201cthe best thing I\u2019ve done in my life so far\u201d, the demands of running 40 St Pauls have kept him from starting his own family.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur industry asks everything of us: the hours, the rhythm, the sacrifice. I know it\u2019s time to let go of one love so that I can find another,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>A survey by Celebrate Her earlier this year discovered that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thespiritsbusiness.com\/2025\/09\/career-roadblocks-threaten-the-future-of-the-on-trade\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">76% of parents in the on-trade<\/a> have had to turn down work opportunities because of family commitments.<\/p>\n<p>The bar\u2019s final service will be on 20 December.<\/p>\n<p>Johl posted the news on Instagram \u2013 see below for his full statement.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DP3espVDgjv\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\">\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>He said: \u201cThe time has come for me and the team to bid you all adieu, mon amore. At the end of this year, 40s \u2013 as you\u2019ve come to know and love it \u2013 will close its doors for the very last time. Ten years is a long time to do anything, especially to curate what has become, for us, one of the most beautiful drinking experiences in the city. All good things find their end, and we feel deeply grateful to share these final weeks with you.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been so fortunate to spend a decade working on one of my core obsessions: what hospitality can be when it\u2019s done with heart. Birmingham is blessed with a number of people who share this obsession, and I\u2019ve stood beside some of the finest to ever do it, all experts in curating small, perfect moments for others. Thank you for sharing your love, craft and dedication with me and the whole 40s community.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo the wonderful family who made 40s an extension of their homes, you have given this place its soul. To me, a true bar is a sanctuary: a place where the world outside fades, where laughter and conversation become a kind of communion, and where we remember how good it feels to be alive.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s been my honour to share with you the stories behind our drinks, the music we adore, and the love and fun that go into making the whole experience. Whether you came for one quiet drink or one of those fleeting, perfect evenings that stay in memory long after the glass is empty, thank you for letting us be part of your lives.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis little bar has been the best thing I\u2019ve done in my life so far. But love is a demanding teacher. The devotion this place required has also kept me from another calling \u2013 I want a family of my own. Our industry asks everything of us: the hours, the rhythm, the sacrifice. I know it\u2019s time to let go of one love so that I can find another.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s astonishing to think what an old newsagent on a quiet corner could blossom into. From our early days exploring the finest gins to that brief, shining moment where we were named the best in the world, and later, reborn as a seasonal cocktail bar \u2013 the journey has been extraordinary. I\u2019m proud of everyone and everything it took to get here. But, like they say, maybe the real triumph has been the community we built along the way.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ll be here, Wednesday to Saturday, for a few more weeks\u2026 pouring, laughing, remembering. Our final service will be on 20 December. Come raise a glass with us, share your stories, and help us bring these 10 remarkable years to a close worthy of the love that built them. Thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Related news<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\n                                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thespiritsbusiness.com\/2025\/10\/uk-licensing-reform-gets-lukewarm-response-from-on-trade\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n                                    UK licensing reform gets lukewarm response from on-trade<br \/>\n                                <\/a>\n                            <\/p>\n<p>\n                                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thespiritsbusiness.com\/2025\/10\/everleaf-thrives-in-uk-on-trade\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n                                    Everleaf thrives in UK on-trade<br \/>\n                                <\/a>\n                            <\/p>\n<p>\n                                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thespiritsbusiness.com\/2025\/09\/career-roadblocks-threaten-the-future-of-the-on-trade\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n                                    Career roadblocks threaten the future of the on-trade<br \/>\n                                <\/a>\n                            <\/p>\n<p>                <script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"40 St Pauls in Birmingham\u2019s Jewellery Quarter will close in December after 10 years in operation, with the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":514087,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7820],"tags":[46839,855,748,393,4884,5208,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-514086","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-birmingham","8":"tag-bar-closures","9":"tag-birmingham","10":"tag-britain","11":"tag-england","12":"tag-great-britain","13":"tag-on-trade","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115405923742236643","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/514086","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=514086"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/514086\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/514087"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=514086"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=514086"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=514086"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}