75ZT Community

A few of us have been to see the pub landlord Nigel earlier tonight to discuss the Saturday evening meal that we normally have at the Four Ashes weekend Nano Meets which has not been working out due to some poor meals and slow service.

The original deal we had with the pub was that we would have an evening meal as a group as a way to put money behind the bar and as payback for free use of the venue and free camping facilities. I have always taken the orders in advance, but we have gone from having almost every table at the pub full to now only a couple and will probably be even less next time.

Nigel is perfectly ok with the dwindling food orders on Saturday evening as a number of us still go in for a drink on Saturday evening , and people from the meet do wander in during the day on either Saturday and/or Sunday and buy a drink, have a meal or use the burger hut, some of which we were not fully aware of as it happens whilst we are working on the cars

So at the next Midlands Nano Meet there will be no organised evening meal and I will not be asking for advance orders or posting up the menu , but hopefully we can still gather socially after the first day for a drink and chat together in the pub.

The pub will still be open for food orders until 8pm and those of you who want a meal can still have one and order at the bar but there is no obligation to do so any longer for any of us.

So feel free to do your own thing whatever that may be, the campers amongst us will need food of some sort and you can either bring your own, or we have plenty of local knowledge and know where other pubs are if you want to drive out, or there are a number of local food outlets for fish and chips etc.( and we may have a volunteer teetotaller to drive there and back )

Feel free to comment on this thread if you wish

Disappointing Rob, Nice to know the meet is not dependent on eating in the pub but the evening meal is as much a part of the Nano as is the gathering around the fire after. Sad to find out the landlord is not prepared to do anything and loose trade rather than improve. I sincerely hope it is not the start of a fragmentation of the group on an evening, people will do their own thing, in their own place and not return for the socialising that takes place later on

Pity Nigel isn't interested but, I don't think it will stop any of the usual culprits meeting around the camp fire in the evening. It might even work out better with a mass fish and chip run for example. If I'm there I'm happy help with the run as I can't drink alcohol.

Thanks for the offer Mick, fish and chips 25 times please !

Dave, I agree about the social aspect but hopefully we can all still do that in the pub for a drink and a chat at a given time when we have had enough of the cars for the day, and around the fire later, even though I agree with you that the meal was the ideal scenario to bring all that together.

I looked around the pub room last night and we did have almost every table occupied at some meets, including the bits around the corner past where they hold the karaoke, and down where they serve the carvery on a Sunday, but now we are down to a few tables and given the experiences at the last meet, some people are saying they will never eat in there again so if we leave things as they are it will only get worse.

We had similar problems before but the landlords son in law, Jim, was up from the smoke with some catering experience and it did get better, but he has now gone back home and all the kitchen staff have changed and appear to lack experience in catering so I cant imagine that service or food quality will improve much in the short term although us locals will keep an eye on things just in case.

As a fellow camper I may well still order a meal and take my chances on the night but now left to individuals rather than anything organised, which from an admin point of view is better as even though I had published the menu and compiled a list in advance and handed it in , I still had members cancelling on the day, and the pub staff not appearing to be able to follow the list, which was all typed and straightforward.

I think for the next meet we will have to see how it goes and maybe whilst we are all together can have a good discussion about it

Maybe in the late afternoon it would be a good time for the BBQ? The late night BBQ last time has been a good idea. So if this would replace the dinner, then it should take place a bit earlier of course. And those who like freshly tapped beer can get it from the pub.

Rob, I think the meal was important only in as much as it was convenient. What I'm trying to say is that the nano-meets will evolve and the social aspects will continue in whatever form shows itself to be convenient from now on. The spiwit of the nano-meet transcends the catering as it were

I feel sure that an alternative focus of conviviality will soon develop for the modern day urban legend which is the West Midlands nano-Meet

Maybe if people wanted a meal in a restaurant we could find another venue locally especially if the weather is bad, soggy fish and chips are not very good and most fish n chip take away,s don,t cater very well for vegetarians,
I know we don,t attend every time, but our tent could still be used for eating in,when we are there,
Or we have 3 spaces in our car if people want to go to a restaurant elsewhere, the Spread Eagle is just up the road,its under 2 miles away,and caters for all diets,
Or as mentioned before ,maybe make the BBQ a much more focal part of the evening,with people bring food to grill, ie
someone bring steaks, someone else burgers etc,maybe have another grill for veggy kebabs etc,and do salads etc with it,to make it a meal, but with everyone contributing to it,rather than just 2 people doing all the work,?

i know the times i've been it has never been quick and that's with it pre ordered ....