The Cape of Good Hope pub

[Laurie Booth]

4 hours ago, Goliath said:

Well, with a family bereavement, me plans have now been postponed. 

I would have got to the Cape this evening too!!
And had a pint at the Fusilier on the way. 

Hopefully try again in a week or so. 

 

 

Sorry to hear about your loss, 

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

27 minutes ago, Laurie Booth said:

Sorry to hear about your loss, 

Cheers Laurie. 
 

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

1 hour ago, IanD said:

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/oct/31/uk-hospitality-firms-pubs-restaurants-hotels-energy-food-inflation

 

"More than a third of UK hospitality businesses, including pubs, restaurants and hotels, could go bust by early next year as energy bills surge and bookings fall, according to a new survey.

 

The hospitality sector is still recovering from Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns and is being hit by rising inflation directly – through increased staff, energy, food and drink costs – and indirectly, as consumers have less money to spend on going out."

Well, I shall continue to make the most of ‘em as much as I can. 
 

Mind, I’m not so pessimistic…

There’s a lot of good pubs out there that’ll keep at it. 

Hopefully it’ll lead to a death of the gastro and back to some basics. 
 

 

 

[ditchcrawler]

2 hours ago, IanD said:

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/oct/31/uk-hospitality-firms-pubs-restaurants-hotels-energy-food-inflation

 

"More than a third of UK hospitality businesses, including pubs, restaurants and hotels, could go bust by early next year as energy bills surge and bookings fall, according to a new survey.

 

The hospitality sector is still recovering from Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns and is being hit by rising inflation directly – through increased staff, energy, food and drink costs – and indirectly, as consumers have less money to spend on going out."

And I just saw a posting for an establishment that plans to sell beer at £18 a pint as thats the type of customer they want

[MtB]

3 hours ago, IanD said:

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/oct/31/uk-hospitality-firms-pubs-restaurants-hotels-energy-food-inflation

 

"More than a third of UK hospitality businesses, including pubs, restaurants and hotels, could go bust by early next year as energy bills surge and bookings fall, according to a new survey.

 

The hospitality sector is still recovering from Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns and is being hit by rising inflation directly – through increased staff, energy, food and drink costs – and indirectly, as consumers have less money to spend on going out."

 

 

The current proliferation of eating holes has always struck me as an aberration. When I think back to the 70s when I was a teenager, going out to a restaurant was a rare thing and a very special occasion in the family in which I grew up. The parents of one of our mates used to go out to eat once a week and we all perceived them to be mega-rich because of this. (Looking back they probably were, owning a small chain of betting shops and a couple of racehorses. His dad was honestly the dead spitting image of Arthur Daly, in appearance, behaviour and attitudes, years before that telly programme was aired!) There certainly wasn't 20 restaurants in every town high street like there is now. 

 

 

[IanD]

3 hours ago, Goliath said:

Well, I shall continue to make the most of ‘em as much as I can. 
 

Mind, I’m not so pessimistic…

There’s a lot of good pubs out there that’ll keep at it. 

Hopefully it’ll lead to a death of the gastro and back to some basics. 
 

 

 

I think your hope is likely to be dashed though, gastropubs are more likely to survive than boozers. Wish it wasn't the case though... 😞

[ditchcrawler]

Well I am one of the people who go to a pub mainly to eat and have a drink with my meal, it may only be a pint or glass of wine. I am not interested in going to a pub and drinking beer all evening.

[IanD]

13 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

Well I am one of the people who go to a pub mainly to eat and have a drink with my meal, it may only be a pint or glass of wine. I am not interested in going to a pub and drinking beer all evening.

I like doing both. Either way, a lot of pubs of both types aren't likely to survive the winter unless something changes drastically... 😞

[Jerra]

27 minutes ago, IanD said:

I like doing both. Either way, a lot of pubs of both types aren't likely to survive the winter unless something changes drastically... 😞

There is a square in town that had 4 pubs, two wet and two food.  Three are closed two wet and one food.

[IanD]

5 minutes ago, Jerra said:

There is a square in town that had 4 pubs, two wet and two food.  Three are closed two wet and one food.

They're all in trouble, but wet-led pubs are worse off because their revenue per customer and profit margins are lower -- it's why so many have already closed or shifted the emphasis to food in recent years. You're lucky you've still got one of the food pubs open... 😞

[Jerra]

17 minutes ago, IanD said:

They're all in trouble, but wet-led pubs are worse off because their revenue per customer and profit margins are lower -- it's why so many have already closed or shifted the emphasis to food in recent years. You're lucky you've still got one of the food pubs open... 😞

Luckier still, the pub in the village (food pub) remains open and very active with live music on Sunday lunch/afternoons.

[noddyboater]

Don't you find that a lot of managers/landlords are their own worst enemy by still not opening regular hours after lockdown? 

We've just enjoyed a week at Alton Station (landmark trust owned) Staffordshire, despite it being busy locally with people attending the "After dark" stuff at the theme park, and also half term week,  only one of the 5 pubs we walked to was open at lunchtimes. 

Luckily it was the nearest,  and best.

[Captain Pegg]

9 minutes ago, noddyboater said:

Don't you find that a lot of managers/landlords are their own worst enemy by still not opening regular hours after lockdown? 

We've just enjoyed a week at Alton Station (landmark trust owned) Staffordshire, despite it being busy locally with people attending the "After dark" stuff at the theme park, and also half term week,  only one of the 5 pubs we walked to was open at lunchtimes. 

Luckily it was the nearest,  and best.

I think in many cases the overall number of opening hours in the week is limited by the number of available staff. Hence quieter times like lunchtimes and Mondays and Tuesdays often see pubs shut.

[noddyboater]

11 minutes ago, Captain Pegg said:

I think in many cases the overall number of opening hours in the week is limited by the number of available staff. Hence quieter times like lunchtimes and Mondays and Tuesdays often see pubs shut.

Yes I get that, but according to the landlord of the open pub it was the busiest time of the year. 

One at the next village down the railway line was closed on Saturday afternoon,  despite it being a popular spot with dog walkers,  cyclists etc. Obviously didn't need the money. 

 

[ditchcrawler]

58 minutes ago, noddyboater said:

Yes I get that, but according to the landlord of the open pub it was the busiest time of the year. 

One at the next village down the railway line was closed on Saturday afternoon,  despite it being a popular spot with dog walkers,  cyclists etc. Obviously didn't need the money. 

 

As Captain P said, they can't get the staff.

[noddyboater]

18 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

As Captain P said, they can't get the staff.

Not always the case. The pub I mentioned is a small village local,  the landlord has been there for years. The story from the people I spoke to said that he runs it himself,  and basically opens when it suits. 

I'm sure most of us know places like that,  and I don't know one that relies on staff being available to open up. 

I haven't got a problem with pubs like that,  in fact they're often my favourites,  but let's not get carried away with the "pubs can't make money anymore" thing. No business can if it isn't open. 

[tree monkey]

22 hours ago, MtB said:

 

 

The current proliferation of eating holes has always struck me as an aberration. When I think back to the 70s when I was a teenager, going out to a restaurant was a rare thing and a very special occasion in the family in which I grew up. The parents of one of our mates used to go out to eat once a week and we all perceived them to be mega-rich because of this. (Looking back they probably were, owning a small chain of betting shops and a couple of racehorses. His dad was honestly the dead spitting image of Arthur Daly, in appearance, behaviour and attitudes, years before that telly programme was aired!) There certainly wasn't 20 restaurants in every town high street like there is now. 

 

 

We certainly never ate out in my youf, well apart from Hignets chippy restaurant in Chester once in a very very blue moon and that was only because Dad absolutely refused to eat outside in the street, the first time I think I ever ate in a restaurant was a Chinese meal for my 18th and I thought that was dead posh.

 

[matty40s]

1 hour ago, tree monkey said:

We certainly never ate out in my youf, well apart from Hignets chippy restaurant in Chester once in a very very blue moon and that was only because Dad absolutely refused to eat outside in the street, the first time I think I ever ate in a restaurant was a Chinese meal for my 18th and I thought that was dead posh.

 

We only ever ate out on someones birthday, and it was upstairs in some Vegetarian restaurant called Goodness Foods, run by hippies, mushrooms and lentils 30 years ahead of it's time...my Mum cant even remember it now, or where it was.

Kathy's first meal out was a Chinese restaurant in Skegness on holiday, she and her sisters/brother werent impressed and refused to eat anything cos it was 'forin'.

She also remembers having to share a banana boat(with whipped cream and ice cream) at possibly a Wimpy, 2 between 4 kids.

[Rob-M]

If we were lucky we would get chicken in a basket in the beer garden of a canal side pub.

[matty40s]

6 minutes ago, Rob-M said:

If we were lucky we would get chicken in a basket in the beer garden of a canal side pub.

Chicken in a basket, phwooarr.

You were blessed.

When we were young we had to share a single crumpet between 6 of us, toasted over an open fire, and topped with grease from the points on the local rail sidings.

[ditchcrawler]

Our local pub sold pickled eggs and crisps. Hardly a meal. but then I didn't ride everywhere in a car or communicate with a computer 

[The Bearwood Boster]

2 hours ago, tree monkey said:

We certainly never ate out in my youf, well apart from Hignets chippy restaurant in Chester once in a very very blue moon and that was only because Dad absolutely refused to eat outside in the street, the first time I think I ever ate in a restaurant was a Chinese meal for my 18th and I thought that was dead posh.

 

Hignetts was the best Chippy in Chester when I was little.The second best was Les & Rita's,I've heard that their family run a chippy in Rhyl(I think).

[MtB]

1 hour ago, matty40s said:

Chicken in a basket, phwooarr.

You were blessed.

When we were young we had to share a single crumpet between 6 of us, toasted over an open fire, and topped with grease from the points on the local rail sidings.

 

Never mind that, we used to share one "soup in a basket" between 26 of us....

 

[matty40s]

24 minutes ago, MtB said:

 

Never mind that, we used to share one "soup in a basket" between 26 of us....

 

Living in a septic tank I suppose.......

Luxury..

[MtB]

5 minutes ago, matty40s said:

Living in a septic tank I suppose.......

Luxury..

 

We used to DREAM of having one of them....