To be honest when I heard the Bar was going to be going back into being club run this season I was not optimistic.
However it is pleasing there seems to have been some sort of agreement with Pure to retain their bar staff (until 7pm), TVs and furniture.
The decision to get rid of Sky Sports makes sense as I believe it costs several thousand pounds a year. BT Sport of course the club receives for free which is handy with the Saturday lunchtime Premier League games and of course Champions League.
Will The Wings Bar be open for these Champions League games? With The Nags Head seeming to neglect football supporters with their new re-fit and expensive prices I believe there is real potential for the bar to attract new customers for these CL matches.
Finally would it be possible for the bar to only sell bottled drinks at half time on WUFC matchday? Quite simply it is not possible for the bar to sell to everybody whom wants a drink in the allotted 15 mins when people at the front of the queue are ordering several draught pints. I appreciate the bar staff are pretty quick but literally dozens every week are put off by the long queue and give up.
Anybody else have any thoughts on The Wings Bar and how it could improve?
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OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh When the Wingssssss
The Champions League is not part of the BT Sport package, it costs extra, I have no idea what the cost is for a club or pub to show it. If it's anything like what Sky charge then it's a non starter, nobody went last year to watch matches in the Bar and I can't see it be any different. Take in the cost of two bar staff and the CL package and I believe we would be losing money hand over fist.
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All postings lubricated by The Door Hinge Ale House 11 Welling High Street
Are you for real? Why would we give money to that mob on the other side of the pitch? They moaned that the Sports Bar was taking money from them on their match days. If that's was the case then why are the still opening their bar and food outlet when our bar is closed. What is their reasons now? I wouldn't give them the steam of my sh1t, all they are doing is taking money from our club now. Why would any Welling supporter want to do that. The club has little enough money without subsidising that mob. I walk past their bar and food outlet to use the van in the corner or to the one in the old club shop.
Also does that mean if a match is segregated Real Ale drinkers have to go without? Do you go to watch football or drink beer? Pre-ordering and paying for your drinks in advance as you do in theatres is a possible solution. They could start pouring pints 5 minutes before half-time and have them set up at one end of the bar, clearly marked with a name.
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All postings lubricated by The Door Hinge Ale House 11 Welling High Street
At the last home game, the Wings Bar had pre-poured pints behind the bar to speed up the service which walked very well. When the half time whistle went I managed to walk round to the bar, get in the queue and was served after a couple of minutes.
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Welling United FC. Banging on the walls of Woking dressing rooms since 1963..
Most theatre bars manage, you order and pay for your drinks before the performance, and they tell you which table the drinks will be on at the intermission. Needs trustworthy customers of course.
1. Sell bottled real ales - They wouldn't know the difference between pasteurised and 'live' ales
2. All draught sales to be pre ordered before the match - Used to be done in the old days until some went missing
3. Real Ale half time drinkers go to the E&B&Q bar - E&B&Q do not sell Real Ale, and would not get in a barrel just to sell a few at half time, even if we wanted to use their poor man's Winchester Club.
Davy has just come up with the simplest answser to the real-ale-half-time dilemma. The bar staff should just start pouring out an estimated number of pints of real ale 5 minutes before half time. Other than that only bottled beer should be served.
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Upstairs on Saturday, they had jugs full of it and poured it into glasses when someone wanted a pint. Bearing in mind the trouble they seem to have in pulling a pint, it made things very simple.
At no fault of the bar staff, the reason I would only sell bottles is because we have the worst cooling system ever and that's why they can't pour a pint!!! Just pouring hundreds of pounds into a bucket every game..bottles only means no queue and saves money. Oh and you get a bigger mark up price on bottles, and there are plenty of real ale bottles available.
-- Edited by Jamison on Thursday 17th of September 2015 01:29:37 AM
At no fault of the bar staff, the reason I would only sell bottles is because we have the worst cooling system ever and that's why they can't pour a pint!!! Just pouring hundreds of pounds into a bucket every game..bottles only means no queue and saves money. Oh and you get a bigger mark up price on bottles, and there are plenty of real ale bottles available.
-- Edited by Jamison on Thursday 17th of September 2015 01:29:37 AM
I know places like the Co-op do three bottles of ale for £5. The bar would sell them for say £3.50 each so there is a massive profit made plus if people don't drink them then you just store them until the next game and no money is lost
Tescos always sell boxes of lager cheap so again same process and massive profits
Has anyone actually had a pint in our bar without having the two bob bits afterwards..It sits there all week untouched then when you finally get one it tastes flat and usually smells terrible...I see no reason why they persist on selling it.
Has anyone actually had a pint in our bar without having the two bob bits afterwards..It sits there all week untouched then when you finally get one it tastes flat and usually smells terrible...I see no reason why they persist on selling it.
health and safety would probably have a field day with it....
I have put aside some of my valuable time to see if there is any other alternatives that have not yet been explored.
It seems to me that the problem is one of supply and demand within a very limited period of time (half time). The supply is there but it is the demand for the product that is the issue. So, we must first look at what we have to work with and be realistic with our options.
1. The bar
2. Access to bar
3. Exit from bar
4. Time to serve a customer
The bar
With limited space behind the bar there is only room for two bar tenders so having extra help here may not be a solution.
Access to the bar
The bar area does get crowded, so is there a way in which we can direct the flow of customers? Having a restricted space or a barrier which can control the flow of punters could assist.
Exit from bar
Customers that have been served need to be encouraged to vacate the bar area, could signs or stewards help?
Time to serve a customer
Carrying out a simple time and motion study would not take long and if a bonus system was introduced, the bartender will have an opportunity to earn a little extra as more drinks are sold.
In conclusion
The answer is staring us right in the face.........at half time, stop selling that flat, muddy brown stuff and just sell God's own beauty....lager. Those who want a drink that should be extinct could quite easily pop outside to the Rose & Crown or The Door Hinge, both of which will gladly sell Stone Age drinks fit for consumption by those that are unlucky not to have a delicate palette. On top of which, on exiting the ground, they could get an ink stamp put on their wrists allowing them back for the second half at a subsidised rate.
