Arabella Shisha Lounge, 181 Spon Street
| These premises have been known by different names during their history: | FROM | TO | NAME |
| 1756 | 1998 | RISING SUN INN, RISING SUN HOTEL, SUN | |
| 1998 | c2004 | FLARES | |
| c2004 | 2010 | GREEN ROOM | |
| 2010 | 2014 | RISING SUN | |
| 2014 | 2016 | SUAVE, IL PADRINO | |
| 2016 | 2019 | Arabella Shisha Lounge | |
| 2019 | Toro's Steakhouse | ||
The pub is said to have existed since 1750 and in 1756 three soldiers were billeted here. In 1774 it was used for auctions and in 1794 it was advertised to let. From 1831 to 1833 it was leased by Charles Rotherham. In 1833 it was owned by Henry Over's Charity and let to Charles Rotherham for 14 years. In 1865 it was owned by Bablake School in Spon Street and leased to John Barnwell for £29 14s 0d per annum. In 1896 Phillips and Marriott bought the pub for £700. In 1899 they valued it at £3,500, including the adjoining shop.
The present building replaced a two-storey one that was taken down in January 1896. From then on No 180 was a shop and the ground floor facade of the building was attractively panelled in wood. The shop became part of the public house in 1957.One of its best known landlords was Jimmy Winter, a keep-fit fanatic and member of Godiva Harriers, who was over 6 feet tall but weighed less than 9 stone. He installed a gym upstairs for boxing. Then in the 1980s, Jim Holton was landlord. He had played football for Manchester United, Coventry City and Scotland. A somewhat more impressive physique than Jimmy Winter, Jim was celebrated by the chant from the terraces 'six foot two, eyes of blue, big Jim Holton's after you'. £45,000 was spent on improvements to the pub in 1984. In 1998 the Rising Sun was renamed FLARES with a 70s theme. This included a brightly coloured exterior which did not go down well in medieval Spon Street. Eventually the colour scheme was toned down and by 2004 the pub was called GREEN ROOM. It had reverted to The RISING SUN by 2010 but in 2012 had closed. From 2016 it became the Arabella Shisha Lounge, but as of 2020 it is Toro's Steakhouse. | |||
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