WHY SO QUIET ?

[bluemoon]

Hello all assoiciated with Sam Smiths
Managers and customers alike , Ex managers like myself.

ARE WE ALL HAPPY ?
ARE YOU MANAGERS PAID WELL ?
CUSTOMERS ARE YOU HAPPY WITH NO TV NO MUSIC, SH1T FOOD ?

WHY HAS THIS SITE GONE SO QUITE , ONLY A FEW POST FOR THE PAST 3/4 WEEKS.
HAS HUMP THREATENED EVERYONE AGAIN WITH GROSS MISCONDUCT???
WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON IN ROCHDALE ?
HUMP THE ONLY AREA MANAGER?
ANOTHER JOB ADVERT FOR AREA MANAGER THAT WILL NOT BE FILLED,
LET HIM RUN IT AND SEE HIM RUN HIMSELF RAGGED,

COME ON TO EVERYONE WHOS NOT SCARRED OF HIM GET YOUR STORYS AND POSTS ON HERE ......

[Coriolanus]

It makes one wonder if there are any managers or customers left. Maybe everyone is waiting for the outcome of the tribunals? What about admin? You've been remarkably quiet too, hope everything is ok. Please keep up the good work on this site, my local Sams manager says he finds more about what is happening at the brewery from here than anywhere and he once said that even though everything is going pear shaped, it at least gives him some comfort that he is not alone in his suffering. At times he feels as though he is being singled out personally for the huge drop in food trade, and he has been told that 'other pubs are doing really well' with the pie menu. At least on here he can determine that everywhere else is dying the same uneccessary death, catering wise and that it is indeed not 'all his fault'.
From my point of view as a customer my regular afternoon 2 pints has now been moved entirely from my local Sams pub. I have tried the food on several occasions (as I have documented elsewhere on this site) and I feel justified in saying it that, in my opinion, it is of poor quality and not even remotely good value for money. All round the country pubs and pub chains are moving to home made, fresh meals and yet Sams blindly ploughs on, despite the rising tide of evidence against it, with low standard microwave fare. The afternoons in my beloved old Sams local were vibrant, busy days, always full of diners and that in turn attracted a few afternoon drinkers in because there was always someone to talk to. It has taken a while to gradually erode that customer base, but slowly they have all drifted away because like me, they have become tired of being the only ones in the place. I know all this has been said before, but I feel it is important to keep saying it. Sams was a great British institution with some of the last few authentic British pubs left. They are becoming poorly kept museums of days gone by, and though it is true that you dont hear of any Sams pubs closing, it is more a testament to Humphreys vast wealth that he can afford to keep unprofitable houses going. If only he would realise that making the pubs more profitable would be so easy. Give control back to people who know what they are doing and abandon this ridiculous pie menu at once. Let the managers have responsibility for building trade up and employ area managers that know what a pub is all about.

[MOLLYCAT]

Has any body mentioned the Cross Keys in Stillingfleet.You used to have to book 3 Day's in advance not so long ago for a Sunday Lunch. Now it is not uncommon for no lunches to be served on Sundays at all.
The only time there is more than a dozen people at one time in the pub, is Friday about 9.30pm is when the Quiz is about to start. And then your sat looking at posters telling you that you have to be off the premises by 11.30pm with no thanks for your custom.

[gulper]

well our pub the white horse spalding what can i say it beggars belief to see a thriving pub become a shadow of its self ...
i bet humph will soon get a call from gordon brown to join him they have so much in common both have no sense of how to run a buisness, no man managment skills  ,and totally no interest in what their punters want .
the straw that broke the camels back was not the food ,the music [ i do miss the crack of watching sports on telly  with a few mates its just not the same is it sat at home with er indoors nagging ] it was the taking away of the alpine lager and giving us taddy what a load of rubbish this liquid is so we have now taken to drinking in a nice pleasant bar witha good pint of lager and  to be honest a better atmosphere so hopefully steve and jill moore will return to spalding and finally drive that wooden cross into the heart of his buisness and rid the dark destroyer of more of his precious pennies .

[Coriolanus]

Is there any news about the tribunals? When are their verdicts due?
Something has to happen soon, things are getting ridiculously dire at my local and it is all a direct result of Humphrey's misguided rule. Last weekend I decided to repeat a little trip round the Sams locals that I last took just after the food fiasco started. Things were pretty poor even then, but around 12 months later, the sight was quite shocking.
Including my local there are 4 Sams pubs in my vicinity, 3 of which were very busy food houses, 1 company run and 2 franchised. Trade had dipped alarmingly last time I was there, but it was literally non existant now. In one place the person behind the bar said that since the end of proper Sunday lunches they had hardly sold any food at all. Another place commented that if they did any food at all, it was always for strangers 'passing through', and whoever did come in for a meal never ever returns. An old regular in one places tap room commented about the lack of telly (this was while the England game was on) and said that it suited him, no telly, no music, because 'this place used to be packed out on a saturday afternoon', but now hardly anyone used the place. The old guy laughed and said 'Mind you it would be nice to have a few people to talk to sometimes' , and we looked round at an otherwise deserted tap room. I looked through to the other side, which used to be full of afternoon diners....empty. Two people in the pub when it was once packed. Same story elsewhere. One regular told me of other Sams pubs he had been to which were screaming for help but not getting it. In fact I heard that several managers are being blamed for the downturn in trade, despite all their protestations about company policy, and warnings that this would happen if Humphreys mad course was followed. Add to this the comments on this page about other pubs, and one wonders if there are any Sams pubs thriving or at least operating to potential? Does he really want to drive trade right down, deliberately? He is showing absolutely no compassion for the local communities that he is slowly killing, or for his workforce who in my experiance are now totally demoralised.

[moggy]

You are right the site does seem to be quiet at the moment, and yes I do believe it is because people are waiting to see the outcome of the tribunals.
Our food has died a death since they took of the sunday roasts, people who come in and try the food just dont come back, so we lose the wet trade as well.
There is a problem with managers getting a day of together, and now we have the added burden of not being able to take the holidays you want if you dont have your own relief, as one of my barpersons said to me'' if I work 12 hours on the bar I get ?68.76, so why would I want to take on the responsibility of running the bar, cellar, kitchen and admin for less than that, its ludicrous.
This was a fantastic company to work for, the incentives to do well were great, now all we have is one man who thinks he can run a company breaking it to pieces bit by bit.
if SAMUEL SMITH is out there reading this I hope I am still around to see you put things right that your father has destroyed, I hope you are able to save this great company, and look after the people who will work for you, and if it was my legacy that my father was destroying I would get together with your other family members and take legal advice, im afraid with all due respect your father needs help

[fletch]

Any one else received a poem today (The moon under water) by George Orwell. Think the poor mans lost the plot completely if he thinks this is how pubs should operate he's crackers and he would also have to give us some staff hours so our barmaids can earn there PIN money. and when it mentions food well I cannot comment. Also real fires that would be nice if we could have our chimneys swept . Cannot believe the man POTTY to say the least.

[BlackDog]

Ha ha, seen it Ducky - oops I mean Dear. The reference to food made me laugh too!

[Coriolanus]

Just seen a copy of it. Doesnt he realise that his very policies are by nature designed to destroy any chance of creating any pub running in the manner of 'The moon under the water'? The food references are, like Fletch & Blackdog say, laughable. He really is so deluded to put a document up in his own defence and also as a possible mission statement of where he wants Sams pubs to be going, which in fact argues in several places against his own policies. Plus of course, though the article is wonderful as an insight into the workings of a pub in 1946, it cannot as such be used as a blueprint for a pub in 2009. Times do change at least technologically and todays drinkers do yearn for elements of that pub in 1946, but ultimately they also demand TV's, and music even if it is in moderation. I totally agree that I dont want music blaring out at all times, TV adding to the chaos, but there is a happy medium when overseen by a responsible manager/landlord who knows when to tweak the volume up and when to keep it strictly as background noise. The reference to a slice of meat 'off the joint' is laughable. Can he be so blind as to realise what a fool he is making himself sound?
Doesnt he realise that a lot of his best managed houses actually were very close in description to Orwells 'Moon under the water' but only before he started meddling with them around 5 years ago when he destroyed the entertainment carte blanche, and culminating with his destruction of the food trade? Certainly 3 of the 4 pubs in my immediate area were like that, certainly not like the ghost towns they are now.
Sams had a unique place in the industry before he started his rule of tyranny in that they were essentially old fashioned, and no regular Sams drinker would want to change much, but they do want their TV's and other entertainment options in the modern age. Wish I could get a copy of the article to post on here, but my local manager didnt want to risk parting with it and I cant blame him. Its far too funny to part with.

[Jeremiah]

Orwell also penned Nineteen Eighty Four. Here is a passage from the book.

O'Brien:

"There will be no curiosity, no enjoyment of the process of life. All competing pleasures will be destroyed. But always?do not forget this, Winston?always there will be the intoxication of power, constantly increasing and constantly growing subtler. Always, at every moment, there will be the thrill of victory, the sensation of trampling on an enemy who is helpless. If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face ... for ever".

?Part III, Chapter III


O'Brien-Big Brother agent (FOB-Big Brother agent)

Big Brother-Dictator of Oceania (Humph-Dictator of SS Empire)

[beermaker]

I can't help but think that Humps empire is about to fall. He will have lost millions over the last few months and he is destroying his own brewery. As we all know, brewing is not the license to print money that it used to be, but if anybody WAS in a position to sail through it, it WAS Sams. Not any more though.

It does all go to prove one point, though. Money is no guarantee of happiness. He will die as he lived. Bitter, twisted and totally unaware of how good life can be.

[Harry S]

I was fortunate to visit the Cross Keys in Stillingfleet today after another day of renovating a property in York to find a lot of friendly people enjoying a drink with a good crack!
Nice for a Sunday pm out in the sun enjoying it,
Pity it couldnt be like it all week

[jboycott]

Apparently they are struggling to find a new management couple for the Cricketers in Selby, on our second reliefs now. Sam's have placed a tiny "classified" style ad in the Selby Times, with what looks like a mobile number to contact - seems a bit amatuerish for such a big concern. It describes the pub as "well maintained", that's stretching it a bit!

[fletch]

heard he just spent a fortune at a pub in Bradford red lion at girlington so much for having no money.

[BlackDog]

Mega refurb at Engineers Arms in Heywood inc new roof too I am told!