It looked to me, from my position as an “Arm-Chair Rugby International”, that there was a degree of complacency, bordering on arrogance about the England set up.
As the tournament progressed I found myself with a feeling of actual dislike for several players regarding their conduct, on and off the pitch. I found I wasn’t actually bothered if they were successful or not, mainly as it seemed they weren’t bothered themselves.
How different from the Welsh. They knew it was a privilege and a once in a life time opportunity for many of them. They trained unbelievably hard, played to their strengths and played for each other. They cared and had passion.
So what has this to do with running a pub?
I recently had a night away with my wife to celebrate our 14th wedding anniversary. We picked a small inn/pub for dinner, bed and breakfast, one that was listed in several guides. Our hopes and expectations were high. We all know it takes a lot of organising to get away; the kids, the animals, the staff and as it happens, the pay run as well on this particular day!
Now I’m not saying we had a bad time; rather that the pub failed to deliver to its potential and our expectations. A small amount of extra effort would have made for a huge improvement. Little things like seasoning the food, tasting it and portion size. Larger rarely means better.
A table check is imperative. For example, I asked our waitress when she cleared the main courses as to where one of the listed ingredients in my wife’s dish was, as, it appeared to have been omitted. I was given an answer of sorts, but was told that I could have had more if we had asked. Had there been a table check I most certainly would have.
I’m not saying the staff didn’t care or were arrogant but that’s missing the point. They failed to deliver on their potential and our expectations. Here at the Anchor our customer expectations have increased markedly as we have just been awarded a Bib Gourmand by the Michelin Guide.
Our biggest challenge is to marry our potential with our customer’s expectations; to deliver with care and passion and go that extra yard for you are only as good as your last “try”! Lucky I’m quarter Welsh then?