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Every one has them................
Everyone has them and here are some of mine, rude supermarket check out staff, now I do think that sainsbury is better than Tesco but I do hate being served by someone who is too busy chatting to a colleague on tha next aisle about last night to even notice me, it is me they are supposed to be serving and me that helps pay their wages. Another is people who use the wrong lane at roundabouts and then cut you up and look at you as if it was your fault, times like those I wish I still had my old battered landrover(but then they wouldn't do it would they?).
I could go on and on but I have to be open soon, so what are yours? |
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Georges Pet Hates Dear George
My first thought on reading your comment was how mean spirited it was especially the last comment "A buy back from the brewery would be very welcome."…..we are talking peoples livelihoods here. My second thought was "what an a**e", then i realised that this was not productive, grown up, or civilised and it is a free society and you are perfectly entitled to your opinion. So i apologise for thinking you are an a**e, and whole heartedly aplogise for almost putting that you are an a**e in print.
I am sorry the Royal Oak is no longer for you......I have drunk in the Royal Oak for a number of years and enjoyed the hospitality of four landlords there now. All were different characters, and all brought something different to the pub. I may be looking at it through rose tinted glasses (but rather this than your rather beige outlook maybe) but i think the pub is at its most vibrant for a long time and is really part of the local community.
Sara is turning what was a tenanted unloved pub about to become a second home for a London banker into a good local. A pub means different things to different people and we all have differing requirements. A pub seldom meets all of them and we have to make allowances - or not in your case…but
It now serves a wide range of great beer
is winning real ale regional and national titles
has raised tens of thousands of pounds for the local hospice
has a wide range of events
despite "locals leaving in droves" there does seem to be lots of old locals left and a new set of locals being created
I am surprised you have experienced "a rude manner and a foul tongue" as i have never experienced this or seen it....now the previous bar staff had cornered the market in a foul tongue which i am sure you experienced. Sara has a robust character and does not suffer fools gladly - maybe in your book this is a a rude manner and a foul tongue and maybe why you feel set upon. I guess it depends on our expectation of what we deem service. Some people require abject deference. As you are a local you probable know the rude mannered landlord delivered milk and groceries to those people who could not get out during the cold/snowy snap....not an act normally associate with rude and foul mouthed landlords.
The Royal Oak is not a gastro pub, nor does it want to be i suspect. Food is always an issue in a small pub with few covers, where the landlord wants to make a living so there is no full time chef but The Royal Oak serves good simple food, freshly cooked and and not an authentic pub food boil in the bag in sight…
How about this for an idea....if we want the Royal Oak to server food on a regular basis and always have hot food available immediately maybe we should all eat there more often so that they know they will always have a certain amount of covers each night.....instead of eating there on an ad hoc basis once every three months - that's a guess by the way not an indication that i know the secret identity of George.....it's a conundrum though getting that virtuous circle of diners - food - diners - food going
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beerbiker & beerbabe Of course I have missed you. I miss all my regulars when they are missing for a day or two........that is why I can't understand my problem in identifying George (I won't be childish and deliberately spell his name wrong........it probably isn't George anyway!) |
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Mr Grumpys mate George Sara,
We were both worried that it would be a little quiet while we were away,what with the refurb & the World Cup & then along comes another Royal Oak expert who nobody knows or has met to liven things up! If he was hoping that the pub was going to be part of a buy back,it means he must like Badgers,good riddance I say.
Anyway back soon as BeerBabes winebox has just run out!!! Any chance of getting me in some Sagres or Super Bock as I've developed quite a taste for them both in this hot Portugesse weather,similar to your forecast for the next few days.
Back before you've missed us,what do you mean you didn't know we'd gone anywhere. |
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george Only 20 years! That is a relief, I thought by the way you spoke you were one of the old locals, we still have many customers that have been drinking here much longer than you. I would still like to meet you to find out what it was that I did to offend, obviously not here as I doubt you will step foot over the threshold again but perhaps a good pub like The Surrey Oaks? |
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Pet hates Sarah
No to both your questions whatever they are supposed to mean! |
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Pet hates Absolutely positive I have the right pub. I've been visiting it for 20 years so I am very sure. |
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George George - are you sure you have the correct pub? |
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george p.s. George
Do you hear voices in your head..........perhaps of dogs barking? |
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George George, fortunatly this part of the country, at least, is open to free speach which is why I have left your comments on my website.I would, however, welcome the opportunity to speak to you face to face to help me understand where we have gone wrong and to explain the reasons behind some of the decisions we have made.
I would like to point out that we never were publicans(as you may say shows!)and the potentially wonderful pub that we took over sold 52 casks of ale in the year previous to our purchase as oppose to the 20 - 25 per week that we are now selling. You might also remember Anita, a rough diamond with a heart of gold but as for a foul tounge........well, if you did use this place you will know what I mean.
As you will also remember there were very few regular customers when we took over, if Peter had had a particularly tiring day he might not even have bothered to open, the brewery sold it because it was dying on its feet, they were probably right as were the two property developers who were the only two other people interested in it when our offer was accepted.
I think the food is as good as it ever was it is just not available so often, this is due to the fact that it is all cooked from fresh so if no one comes in too much gets wasted, a point I will be happy to discuss with you if you come in, maybe you could suggest a way round this?
We still have a number of customers from previous years, there are a few from Paul and Karen's day(do you remember them?)although some of the old crowd have relocated to different parts of the country and some,sadly, have re-located more permanantly.
Pubs will always be constantly changing, people move in and out of areas and landlords change as well, bringing with them different thoughts and ideas, not everyone will like them, some will prefer them,I have been drinking in pubs for over 30 years and I can't name one pub that has stayed the same over that time.
I am truly sorry that our pub is no longer to your liking, if it is something you think we could change I would be happy to talk to you about it, if you think we are past redemption, well, there is no more to say, I hope you will be happy in your new watering hole and I hope it doesn't change too soon. |
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Pet Hates You ask for my pet hates? Here goes - publicans who take over a potentially wonderful pub and ruin it in a very short space of time by lack of customer service. This mainly consists of a rude manner and a foul tongue - incivility to people who originally came to the Royal Oak to support the new publican.Food was good to start with but went downhill fast.Special qualities are needed to create a friendly,welcoming atmosphere in a pub. These qualities are sadly lacking here.Regular customers from previous years have been turned away in droves. A buy back from the brewery would be very welcome. |
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thepubvisitor thepubvisitor
As you anticipated this, I feel I must not disappoint.
What is it about lager drinkers, they all seem so insecure & often quite febble, maybe even weak, often scared when faced with a REAL ALE pub. However, fill them with lager...well they can then make the Incredible Hulk look like a wimp!
Lager can be drunk in most pubs, most of which I would never cross their doorstep so whats your problem with us real ale & cider lovers having a pub we can call our own. If you or your friends must have lager well you know the answer...go elsewhere especially if you can't take the friendly banter as we try to convert you to a decent beer like Ranmore.
It's only a problem if your head is so stuck in your lager glass that you can't even consider trying something new, surely you try new food, a new holiday destination once in a while. So come on cross over from the dark side you never know you might actually like it and us.
I do feel that you may have been reading way to many 'Green Party' election leaflets by calling us "self-satisfied tree-hugging chumps".
I've never actually tried hugging a tree, maybe the odd hop vine but you'd be lucky if your lager has seen a hop let alone a brewer that knows how to brew a beer.
So less of the insults please.
Thank you & enjoy your lager because I'll enjoy my real ale.
Cheers |
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Pete Brown blog Beer Biker, I have just read the blog you suggested and me being a simpleton had never heard of Mr Brown the top beer writer, but now I know why he is in the number one slot. I applaud this chap!!! Well recommended bit of reading, and I can only agree with his conclusion!!! |
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Supermarkets slash beer prices This article appeared in the Independant;
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/news/supermarkets-slash-beer-prices-1963096.html
Asda sell a case of Boddingtons (24 cans) for £9 !!!
Yet another attack on Real Ale & Real Cider drinkers. Will the next government redress the tax balance, I hope so but in my heart of hearts I know they won't.
We will be left paying more and more enjoying our drinks in moderation while Sara struggles to keep the Royal Oak that we all know & love going.
What else is there to say?
Cheers |
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Pete Brown Blog This is an update on my last pet hate and is the article that Pete Brown has written on his blog. It's worth a read.
http://petebrown.blogspot.com/2010/05/camras-noxious-culture-of-entitlement.html
Incase you're not sure, Pete Brown is 2009 Beer Writer of the Year.
Cheers |
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CAMRA again! Famed beer writer Pete Brown was at a DO in Burton on Trent when he posted this Tweet on Twitter;
PeteBrownBeer CAMRA guys now refusing to try the beer recommendation for dessert cos it's not cask ale. Shall we just try and focus on the negatives?
Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.
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Pet Hates Anonoymous Critics of a great establishment. |
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Mr Darling & Co..... It would seem that the government have now had a second thought about their tax on cider and apparently it will be rescinded in June?
Does this mean that the present hike in tax on cider is, actually, illegal then?
I for one will be keeping a note of all the pints of cider I drink between now and when the tax is abolished and then applying for a refund. (That should be enough to get the wife a new car...lol!)
Actually, I must admit to never voting at a general election, so Mr Darling, you have actually provoked me to get of my bottom and make my vote count......
No prizes for guessing which party I WONT be voting for... |
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alistair darling I would like to piont out to Mr Grumpy that it is not me attacking him (even if I do agree with everything said)but my wonderful cherished friendly locals. I might also point out that Gorden and the badger of doom have been barred for some time now and I would be most grateful if you had the courage to introduce yourself on your next visit so that I could deceide on your future in my pub. |
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Alistair Darling Sara,
I think it's time you did something useful rather than attacking me all the time.
How about barring that Alistair Darling chap along with his puppet master Gordon Brown. I think most of your 'friendly locals' will agree they are far more malicious than myself.
Looking forward to my next visit even if it will cost me a little in the government coffers. |
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Pet Hates I see the little so and so has been in again. I would so like to shake him by the hand. And showm him the door. |
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