Service in Fans Bar before the game and lower north bars at half time was shocking. But not a surprise either. Suspect it’s going to take a while for the commercial success of CAFC hospitality to recover from the likely awful state the current owners inherited.
Running out of Peroni is appalling. I do appreciate there’s an art to not ordering too many kegs of beer which could spoil if not used - but wouldn’t you have bottles as a fallback option? I mean it’s a hot day and football fans are a thirsty lot - hardly unexpected is it?
There were one or two staff who really got it and were working through their queues well. A lot of the other had no sense of urgency, but they may well not have a clue what to do either. What I didn’t understand was that there were some pre-poured pints at the back of the lower north at HT but no one seemed to be selecting them….
Rather disappointed to walk all the way over to The River to find they hadn't opened earlier for the early kick off! Served quickly in The Rose then made the mistake of going to the ground for one in the fans bar 🤦. I won't repeat what I already wrote about that elsewhere, suffice to say I'll definitely be taking the advice and not bothering again.
Mr F looking to buy his usual cup of tea in the Fans' Bar when we arrived around 10.40...
Met with " No tea bags, I'm afraid " ....WTF ???
I don't drink the stuff but my pal couldn't believe it!! Surely someone had the nous to get one of the staff to pop up to Sainsburys to buy a couple of packs of tea bags? Farcical.
I've honestly had enough now. I came to the stadium today naively thinking that they've had the whole summer to figure out the problems from last season. What an idiot I was. It was exactly the same, if not worse. Once again all the beer was coming out as pure foam in the bar nearest to NWB and the queue did not move for 20 minutes.
I've honestly had enough now. I came to the stadium today naively thinking that they've had the whole summer to figure out the problems from last season. What an idiot I was. It was exactly the same, if not worse. Once again all the beer was coming out as pure foam in the bar nearest to NWB and the queue did not move for 20 minutes.
What a great day .perfect result great performance and all you can do is moan .get a life.
I've honestly had enough now. I came to the stadium today naively thinking that they've had the whole summer to figure out the problems from last season. What an idiot I was. It was exactly the same, if not worse. Once again all the beer was coming out as pure foam in the bar nearest to NWB and the queue did not move for 20 minutes.
What a great day .perfect result great performance and all you can do is moan .get a life.
In fairness, it doesn't seem unreasonable to post comments about the Fans' Bar in the thread about the Fans' Bar. If he'd put this on the post-match thread, maybe you'd have a point.
It is genuinely luck of the draw as to which queue you're in, some extremely efficient, some helpful but naive, some ambivalent. But ultimately not their fault, though half an hour explaining what a football match is like and opening before the half time whistle could help
I've honestly had enough now. I came to the stadium today naively thinking that they've had the whole summer to figure out the problems from last season. What an idiot I was. It was exactly the same, if not worse. Once again all the beer was coming out as pure foam in the bar nearest to NWB and the queue did not move for 20 minutes.
What a great day .perfect result great performance and all you can do is moan .get a life.
Alright billy big bananas. PM me your number. Next time it's chaos in the NW I'll ring you so you can come down and tell everyone complaining about the wait to 'Get a life.'
I've honestly had enough now. I came to the stadium today naively thinking that they've had the whole summer to figure out the problems from last season. What an idiot I was. It was exactly the same, if not worse. Once again all the beer was coming out as pure foam in the bar nearest to NWB and the queue did not move for 20 minutes.
Surely the management have installed some sort of training on how to pour a pint to the staff before letting them loose on the great unwashed? Doesn't sound like it though 🍺🍺
I work in the contract catering industry and know Gather & Gather very well, having come up against them in numerous contract bids. They have a reputation for winning tenders by offering the most attractive financial package, especially now they are part of compass, but then fail to deliver on pretty much every other aspect of their bid.
I suspect this particular contract is no different. Hopefully, Charlton are already having conversations behind the scenes. I think they’re about halfway through a 5 year deal so there may well be scope to remove them which wouldn’t come as a surprise as it seems the club are trying to engage with supporters snd want to deliver the best experience possible.
I do have some sympathy for the young team working behind the bar. While they are frustrating and lack any form of common sense, I try not to get angry and remember they have probably been thrown behind the bar and told to get on with it. They appear to be extremely understaffed for the volumes they know they are going to face, and there’s rarely any sign of a supervisor / GM to lead the service.
We do a little bit of stadium catering and they are really tough accounts, but as with most things in life, you put plans in place and focus on the basics, (classic NJ quote) which ultimately is serving beer quickly. Do that any most will go home happy.
I stopped trying to buy a drink in the covered end about 3 years ago. Plenty of decent places to have a beer all within about 3 train stops from Charlton. Drink before and after the match and avoid the half time shambles
I've honestly had enough now. I came to the stadium today naively thinking that they've had the whole summer to figure out the problems from last season. What an idiot I was. It was exactly the same, if not worse. Once again all the beer was coming out as pure foam in the bar nearest to NWB and the queue did not move for 20 minutes.
Surely the management have installed some sort of training on how to pour a pint to the staff before letting them loose on the great unwashed? Doesn't sound like it though 🍺🍺
I’m guessing that the only “staff” are the managers/supervisors who will be the only people who have been near a training room.
The bar staff I suspect are temporary hires through an agency meeting the demand for clients like GG seeking “unskilled” workers commanding only minimum pay casual work.
GG should be asked directly to explain how they recruit and what training bar staff receive.
Comments
I take it that it was understaffed?
Do not bother using it again, find better options away from the ground and pop on a train in, there are good services in the surrounding areas.
Aha, you'd be late for the second half then
Met with " No tea bags, I'm afraid " ....WTF ???
Saved you a fiver, look on the bright side!
If this is the structure to raise and resolve issues I can understand why we have a poor offering and no resolution for such a long time !
How many Charlton forums does it take to change a lightbulb? 😉😆
It's worth noting that the club knew all along that it was going to be a big crowd yet the service was poor
Doesn't sound like it though 🍺🍺
I work in the contract catering industry and know Gather & Gather very well, having come up against them in numerous contract bids. They have a reputation for winning tenders by offering the most attractive financial package, especially now they are part of compass, but then fail to deliver on pretty much every other aspect of their bid.
I suspect this particular contract is no different. Hopefully, Charlton are already having conversations behind the scenes. I think they’re about halfway through a 5 year deal so there may well be scope to remove them which wouldn’t come as a surprise as it seems the club are trying to engage with supporters snd want to deliver the best experience possible.
I do have some sympathy for the young team working behind the bar. While they are frustrating and lack any form of common sense, I try not to get angry and remember they have probably been thrown behind the bar and told to get on with it. They appear to be extremely understaffed for the volumes they know they are going to face, and there’s rarely any sign of a supervisor / GM to lead the service.
We do a little bit of stadium catering and they are really tough accounts, but as with most things in life, you put plans in place and focus on the basics, (classic NJ quote) which ultimately is serving beer quickly. Do that any most will go home happy.
Plenty of decent places to have a beer all within about 3 train stops from Charlton.
Drink before and after the match and avoid the half time shambles
The bar staff I suspect are temporary hires through an agency meeting the demand for clients like GG seeking “unskilled” workers commanding only minimum pay casual work.
GG should be asked directly to explain how they recruit and what training bar staff receive.