Saturday 19 November 2011

Ring my bell

The ongoing decline of the pub trade inevitably leads to staffing reductions, so very often one person is left to look after a serving area which can’t all be seen from one vantage point. And, even if there is just a single bar counter, there are reasons such as toilet breaks and popping into the kitchen that mean the sole server is absent.

In these situations, it’s all too easy for staff to be distracted and fail to check regularly whether there are any customers waiting. I recall one occasion in a rural pub in Staffordshire, which had separate counters in the “dining” and “pub” sides, where I had to wait what seemed like an age before anyone noticed me, and less patient people might well have walked out.

So surely it makes sense to bring back the service bell, a staple of the old two-bar pubs, but rarely seen nowadays. At least that way you might stand a chance of actually getting served.

3 comments:

  1. Most pubs have cut back on staffing in the past 5 years,hardly
    surprising with the noticable down turn in footfall
    The big question which needs asking of those with blindfolds and earmuffs on
    The true cost of the anti tobacco
    frenzy
    14,000 venues shut,
    pubs,clubs,bingo halls,discos
    cafes,restaurants
    5500 up for sale,reduced staffing
    Jobs lost 110-130,000
    Loss of Income Tax and NIC
    Payment of benefit
    A deficit of £18 million PER WEEK
    Now we need to add the other
    government losses and outgoings

    Maybe some reader would like to suggest a round total figure for
    losses to the Exchequer


    The Ferryman

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anon: completely off topic as usual. Oh, and change the record while you're at it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anon,

    You can add on the gaming licences and taxes, and the taxes paid by supporting trades such as AWP/AWP manufacturers and distributers. food suppliers, etc.

    Then you have the bingo halls of course..

    ReplyDelete

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