North Stand Lower today - left our seats after 40 mins to get a drink - had to wait 15 minutes before I got a beer - there were 5 in the queue before me.
There is no feeling of urgency at all from the bar staff. The club could be taking loads more money if they do some simple things.
Pre pour drinks at half time. have one person on the till and one getting the order.
Introduce some feeling of urgency - competition between the tills with a decent prize for who takes the most money / serves most customers.
It’s pretty simple
It’s only simple if you employ people who have common sense and they are given training and advice on how to multitask and move fast However the club seem only to select staff that cannot think for themselves, probably on a piss poor wage
Stick me behind a bar with no training and I wouldn't have a clue.. no matter how many times I was talked to like a dickhead. If it's really that bad, stop going and walk round the corner to a actual pub.
When we went to Old Trafford they poured our beer from a bottle. Slightly less than a pint I recall but only £3. Maybe if the staff aren't up to it we should consider that. Speed is surely what it is all about in a football match situation.
North Stand Lower today - left our seats after 40 mins to get a drink - had to wait 15 minutes before I got a beer - there were 5 in the queue before me.
There is no feeling of urgency at all from the bar staff. The club could be taking loads more money if they do some simple things.
Pre pour drinks at half time. have one person on the till and one getting the order.
Introduce some feeling of urgency - competition between the tills with a decent prize for who takes the most money / serves most customers.
It’s pretty simple
It’s only simple if you employ people who have common sense and they are given training and advice on how to multitask and move fast However the club seem only to select staff that cannot think for themselves, probably on a piss poor wage
I don’t think the people working in crossbars (and the kiosks) are selected or employed by the club. They’ll be employed by an agency engaged by the company we’ve outsourced the catering to, and they probably work in various locations every other week so never get the chance to build up their experience of working in a particular place, learning the systems and how to be as efficient as possible. I don’t think they are all “thick” or lacking in common sense (some may be, but that’s society in general).
Seeing as we hardly ever play on the same day as Millwall, I have often wondered why the club doesn't work with them on the catering side. I hate them as much as the next man, but I think it would be good business and provide economies and efficiencies for both clubs.
North Stand Lower today - left our seats after 40 mins to get a drink - had to wait 15 minutes before I got a beer - there were 5 in the queue before me.
There is no feeling of urgency at all from the bar staff. The club could be taking loads more money if they do some simple things.
Pre pour drinks at half time. have one person on the till and one getting the order.
Introduce some feeling of urgency - competition between the tills with a decent prize for who takes the most money / serves most customers.
It’s pretty simple
It’s only simple if you employ people who have common sense and they are given training and advice on how to multitask and move fast However the club seem only to select staff that cannot think for themselves, probably on a piss poor wage
I don’t think the people working in crossbars (and the kiosks) are selected or employed by the club. They’ll be employed by an agency engaged by the company we’ve outsourced the catering to, and they probably work in various locations every other week so never get the chance to build up their experience of working in a particular place, learning the systems and how to be as efficient as possible. I don’t think they are all “thick” or lacking in common sense (some may be, but that’s society in general).
I also suspect that many of them aren't even drinkers, certainly not in pubs.
went to the oak at 10.30 bought pint of fosters and a pint Guinness zero £9.40. Then went to crossbars and bought two Peroni zeros £9.40. I know we’re I’m drinking from now on.
It always amazes me how the club have not worked out how to increase their revenues by organising the half time drinks better. Everything should be lined up like a rugby Twick set-up, a queue for beers only another for food as well.. incentive and bonus for the staff that cover the most drinks… not rocket science.. just basic good business
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
North Stand Lower today - left our seats after 40 mins to get a drink - had to wait 15 minutes before I got a beer - there were 5 in the queue before me.
There is no feeling of urgency at all from the bar staff. The club could be taking loads more money if they do some simple things.
Pre pour drinks at half time. have one person on the till and one getting the order.
Introduce some feeling of urgency - competition between the tills with a decent prize for who takes the most money / serves most customers.
It’s pretty simple
It’s only simple if you employ people who have common sense and they are given training and advice on how to multitask and move fast However the club seem only to select staff that cannot think for themselves, probably on a piss poor wage
I don’t think the people working in crossbars (and the kiosks) are selected or employed by the club. They’ll be employed by an agency engaged by the company we’ve outsourced the catering to, and they probably work in various locations every other week so never get the chance to build up their experience of working in a particular place, learning the systems and how to be as efficient as possible. I don’t think they are all “thick” or lacking in common sense (some may be, but that’s society in general).
I also suspect that many of them aren't even drinkers, certainly not in pubs.
I was about to say the first question at the interview should be "Do you drink in pubs". A no and they are out.
While I get what Shine is saying, but - if you have a bit of common sense, and you actually drink in a pub - you could make a fair fist of jumping behind a bar and serving people. A quick lesson in pouring a pint and away you go.
Okay - changing barrels, how to adjust the sparkler etc would have to come later if you wanted to work regularly.
One of the things I have found irritating from staff who clearly have never set foot in a pub in their life is ignorance of what drinks actually are - "bottle of bitter please" to them is like someone asking me about the format of Love Island. When you point out what it is, they give you a bottle without a glass...
When we went to Old Trafford they poured our beer from a bottle. Slightly less than a pint I recall but only £3. Maybe if the staff aren't up to it we should consider that. Speed is surely what it is all about in a football match situation.
Bottled beers would certainly be a lot quicker to serve that's for sure. If they could do it for £3 a bottle like man. Utd then it would be great. But I believe we would be looking to charge about £4.50 or £5 a bottle which would not be very good.
I would point out that many of these young people working behind the bar, do not drink out of a plastic glass but straight from the bottle. one new boy in Bartrams had to be shown how to pour out a bottle of cider.
Went in Bartram's the other night, couple of people looking gormless behind the bar so gave up. Decided to try the beer in the North Stand. Had an awful pint of Grolsh whch they took £6.20 for the pleasure.
Both fans bar and the other hostelries within the stadium are just awful
See you down the Rad tomorrow mate ?
Went in after the game mate. Had a brekkie in the Picardy cafe then off to the old harry. Radical missed a trick yesterday.
Got up at 5.45 for the bus/train/train trip. Worth it in the end as i then cleared off to Gravesend for a few pints with my brother after being serenaded by a load of West Ham fans going off to their home match.
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
Apart from that you had a lovely time I presume. The old saying 'we can't all like the same things' very much applies, the food which you didn't try but label as 'appalling' has and continues to win awards.
Personally the fan zone seemed a success and will only improve with time, definitely needs more tables though for sitting and eating food.
I blame the outsourced company employing them but not training them rather than the teenagers
And email jon.blythe@cafc.co.uk and barry.higson@cafc.co.uk with any complaints or suggestions; moaning on here won't channge anything.
The fan zone was very busy when I went passed which is good, not sure how popular it will be on a November midweek game but it was popular and similar fan zones at other clubs ie Ipswich are popular albeit much bigger but we're an inner city club, not in a rural setting
Too early a KO for the Radical so hung around in the not very exclusive (they let me in) Colin Cameron lounge.
Free food and tea and coffee plus teamsheets. What's not to like
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
Apart from that you had a lovely time I presume. The old saying 'we can't all like the same things' very much applies, the food which you didn't try but label as 'appalling' has and continues to win awards.
Personally the fan zone seemed a success and will only improve with time, definitely needs more tables though for sitting and eating food.
Imagine the shock at finding out an award winning chicken shop doesn’t sell tofu 😴
North Stand Lower today - left our seats after 40 mins to get a drink - had to wait 15 minutes before I got a beer - there were 5 in the queue before me.
There is no feeling of urgency at all from the bar staff. The club could be taking loads more money if they do some simple things.
Pre pour drinks at half time. have one person on the till and one getting the order.
Introduce some feeling of urgency - competition between the tills with a decent prize for who takes the most money / serves most customers.
It’s pretty simple
It’s only simple if you employ people who have common sense and they are given training and advice on how to multitask and move fast However the club seem only to select staff that cannot think for themselves, probably on a piss poor wage
I don’t think the people working in crossbars (and the kiosks) are selected or employed by the club. They’ll be employed by an agency engaged by the company we’ve outsourced the catering to, and they probably work in various locations every other week so never get the chance to build up their experience of working in a particular place, learning the systems and how to be as efficient as possible. I don’t think they are all “thick” or lacking in common sense (some may be, but that’s society in general).
I also suspect that many of them aren't even drinkers, certainly not in pubs.
I was about to say the first question at the interview should be "Do you drink in pubs". A no and they are out.
In which case you won't get any staff at all.
There isn't a vast pool of workers, willing to do these zero hours irregular hours. A lot of them will be local students I imagine.
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
Apart from that you had a lovely time I presume. The old saying 'we can't all like the same things' very much applies, the food which you didn't try but label as 'appalling' has and continues to win awards.
Personally the fan zone seemed a success and will only improve with time, definitely needs more tables though for sitting and eating food.
Imagine the shock at finding out an award winning chicken shop doesn’t sell tofu 😴
Terry Taylor's Tofu coming soon in Alan Curbishley Stand 😉
I blame the outsourced company employing them but not training them rather than the teenagers
And email jon.blythe@cafc.co.uk and barry.higson@cafc.co.uk with any complaints or suggestions; moaning on here won't channge anything.
The fan zone was very busy when I went passed which is good, not sure how popular it will be on a November midweek game but it was popular and similar fan zones at other clubs ie Ipswich are popular albeit much bigger but we're an inner city club, not in a rural setting
Too early a KO for the Radical so hung around in the not very exclusive (they let me in) Colin Cameron lounge.
Free food and tea and coffee plus teamsheets. What's not to like
I blame the outsourced company employing them but not training them rather than the teenagers
And email jon.blythe@cafc.co.uk and barry.higson@cafc.co.uk with any complaints or suggestions; moaning on here won't channge anything.
The fan zone was very busy when I went passed which is good, not sure how popular it will be on a November midweek game but it was popular and similar fan zones at other clubs ie Ipswich are popular albeit much bigger but we're an inner city club, not in a rural setting
Too early a KO for the Radical so hung around in the not very exclusive (they let me in) Colin Cameron lounge.
Free food and tea and coffee plus teamsheets. What's not to like
Portman Road is hardly rural ?
It's in the country, they have parking for tractors 😉
I blame the outsourced company employing them but not training them rather than the teenagers
And email jon.blythe@cafc.co.uk and barry.higson@cafc.co.uk with any complaints or suggestions; moaning on here won't channge anything.
The fan zone was very busy when I went passed which is good, not sure how popular it will be on a November midweek game but it was popular and similar fan zones at other clubs ie Ipswich are popular albeit much bigger but we're an inner city club, not in a rural setting
Too early a KO for the Radical so hung around in the not very exclusive (they let me in) Colin Cameron lounge.
Free food and tea and coffee plus teamsheets. What's not to like
Portman Road is hardly rural ?
It's in the country, they have parking restrictions for tractors 😉
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
I blame the outsourced company employing them but not training them rather than the teenagers
And email jon.blythe@cafc.co.uk and barry.higson@cafc.co.uk with any complaints or suggestions; moaning on here won't channge anything.
The fan zone was very busy when I went passed which is good, not sure how popular it will be on a November midweek game but it was popular and similar fan zones at other clubs ie Ipswich are popular albeit much bigger but we're an inner city club, not in a rural setting
Too early a KO for the Radical so hung around in the not very exclusive (they let me in) Colin Cameron lounge.
Free food and tea and coffee plus teamsheets. What's not to like
Another issue is that fans have NO idea who to forward complaints/positive suggestions to at the club these days. It should not be in the remit of fans who are ITK ( as with HI & his involvement via The Museum) to convey such information.
I've mentioned several times recently that with no online contact details available, and with the advice to email the Fans' Adviser initially, there is little confidence that said enquiry will reach the relevant member of staffand hence, open dialogue.
THIS is one of the reasons why a group representing fans should meet with club staff/SMT on a regular basis to discuss issues & agree the way forward.Then it's essential that the minutes of said meetings are shared with fans via the OS and the matchday programme.
As a result, lines of communication are clarified & with reference to matchday catering, lessons are learned with solutions implemented.
A win win situation with the matchday experience at The Valley significantly improved....
Now, who can suggest a relevant name for this group ?
Got to the vista lounge at 11. Ordered two bottles of asahi but sent them back straight away as they were warm. Someone had forgotten to turn the fridge on. Had a below average gammon bap with stone cold tato tots at half time. The catering really is an absolute shambles.
North Stand Lower today - left our seats after 40 mins to get a drink - had to wait 15 minutes before I got a beer - there were 5 in the queue before me.
There is no feeling of urgency at all from the bar staff. The club could be taking loads more money if they do some simple things.
Pre pour drinks at half time. have one person on the till and one getting the order.
Introduce some feeling of urgency - competition between the tills with a decent prize for who takes the most money / serves most customers.
It’s pretty simple
Even easier, only serve bottles.
You can't do that at some idiot will throw them and even being hit by a plastic bottle from 30 meters is dangerous. We've had a few fans hit in the lower CE thrown from the upper CE.
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
Each to there own Seth but I gave Chicken George a try yesterday, you say the prices were very high, £10 got you 4 chicken strips and a portion of fries (seemed like more than 4 tbh), all of which were actually really nice and a generous sized portion too, certainly more value for money than the food that's usually knocked up in The Fans Bar which costs just as much. For anyone who hasn't tried yet i'd definitely recommend it. Way better value than the food inside the ground.
The only criticism i'd say of the fan zone was that it could have done with more seating especially for those who wanted to eat but other than that you really had to be a bit of a wet weekend to find much else fault with it really.
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
Apart from that you had a lovely time I presume. The old saying 'we can't all like the same things' very much applies, the food which you didn't try but label as 'appalling' has and continues to win awards.
Personally the fan zone seemed a success and will only improve with time, definitely needs more tables though for sitting and eating food.
Everybody is entitled to feedback or review as they see fit,
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
Apart from that you had a lovely time I presume. The old saying 'we can't all like the same things' very much applies, the food which you didn't try but label as 'appalling' has and continues to win awards.
Personally the fan zone seemed a success and will only improve with time, definitely needs more tables though for sitting and eating food.
Everybody is entitled to feedback or review as they see fit,
Exactly, we've both given our balanced reviews 👍. You don't generally critique food though without eating it.
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
I ended up getting a cappuccino for a rather expensive £3.80 in the fan’s bar.
Before that I checked the fan zone, for me it was alienating.
There was a staffer and a young boy on a turntable and the sound dominated, some youngsters were queueing to play in the caged area. The two food outlets were appalling.
For the ‘chicken’ thing people gave their order to a person in black standing in front, the prices were very high, nothing for non meat eaters anyway, and it stank around there, there was a burger van near it, equally rank, with no option for me and ‘chips’ at five pounds, also stinking the place out. In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price. The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed. The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked. The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there. A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option. The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
Adrian Mole: The Thermos Flask Years.
I read it in an Alan Bennett Talking Heads monologue style in my head.
*In soft Yorkshire accent *
"I said to mother that the fans bar catastrophe had taken it's toll and I needed a lie down so wouldn't be joining her for dinner. Mother was clearly displeased as she emptied the pan of corn beef hash into the bin muttering something about "that bloody football club". I decided not to respond as she was obviously in one of her moods so took my leave and went up to my room to ruminate about the days events."
Comments
The two food outlets were appalling.
In the fans bar there were kids events, and they had fast food on Charlton themed ‘plates’ including chips (that looked better than the ones in the fan zone) but on the menu list there was no price for chips shown and I didn’t want to queue up simply to ask the price.
The man with the coffee and muffin stall was very pleasant and all the (over) prices were clearly listed.
The cocktail stall had adverts in the toilets for sex on the beach and ‘pornstar’ cocktails, and I don’t know how I might have explained those terms to an inquisitive child if asked.
The whole experience (well the fan zone anyway) was from my point of view one of forced dreariness, only mitigated by the view of the stadium through the windows in the Fans bar and the general good nature of the Charlton supporters in there.
A portion of chips from the chip shop in Charlton Village, eaten whilst walking down the hill to the ground seems to me to be the better option.
The cappuccino was very ordinary, but the kick off time and hot weather made drinking something necessary.
While I get what Shine is saying, but - if you have a bit of common sense, and you actually drink in a pub - you could make a fair fist of jumping behind a bar and serving people. A quick lesson in pouring a pint and away you go.
Okay - changing barrels, how to adjust the sparkler etc would have to come later if you wanted to work regularly.
One of the things I have found irritating from staff who clearly have never set foot in a pub in their life is ignorance of what drinks actually are - "bottle of bitter please" to them is like someone asking me about the format of Love Island. When you point out what it is, they give you a bottle without a glass...
If they could do it for £3 a bottle like man. Utd then it would be great.
But I believe we would be looking to charge about £4.50 or £5 a bottle which would not be very good.
Got up at 5.45 for the bus/train/train trip. Worth it in the end as i then cleared off to Gravesend for a few pints with my brother after being serenaded by a load of West Ham fans going off to their home match.
Personally the fan zone seemed a success and will only improve with time, definitely needs more tables though for sitting and eating food.
And email jon.blythe@cafc.co.uk and barry.higson@cafc.co.uk with any complaints or suggestions; moaning on here won't channge anything.
The fan zone was very busy when I went passed which is good, not sure how popular it will be on a November midweek game but it was popular and similar fan zones at other clubs ie Ipswich are popular albeit much bigger but we're an inner city club, not in a rural setting
Too early a KO for the Radical so hung around in the not very exclusive (they let me in) Colin Cameron lounge.
Free food and tea and coffee plus teamsheets. What's not to like
There isn't a vast pool of workers, willing to do these zero hours irregular hours. A lot of them will be local students I imagine.
I've mentioned several times recently that with no online contact details available, and with the advice to email the Fans' Adviser initially, there is little confidence that said enquiry will reach the relevant member of staffand hence, open dialogue.
THIS is one of the reasons why a group representing fans should meet with club staff/SMT on a regular basis to discuss issues & agree the way forward.Then it's essential that the minutes of said meetings are shared with fans via the OS and the matchday programme.
As a result, lines of communication are clarified & with reference to matchday catering, lessons are learned with solutions implemented.
A win win situation with the matchday experience at The Valley significantly improved....
Now, who can suggest a relevant name for this group
The only criticism i'd say of the fan zone was that it could have done with more seating especially for those who wanted to eat but other than that you really had to be a bit of a wet weekend to find much else fault with it really.
I read it in an Alan Bennett Talking Heads monologue style in my head.
*In soft Yorkshire accent *
"I said to mother that the fans bar catastrophe had taken it's toll and I needed a lie down so wouldn't be joining her for dinner. Mother was clearly displeased as she emptied the pan of corn beef hash into the bin muttering something about "that bloody football club". I decided not to respond as she was obviously in one of her moods so took my leave and went up to my room to ruminate about the days events."