Pizzas at Oakwell

I think we've had 2 pinters for a couple of seasons now, though I don't partake in them as I often drive on a match day.

It's the first time I've been in the East Lower for a few seasons, and it's much bigger under there than I remembered. There's so much scope for loads of different food and drinks stands under there. It'd be great if they invited small local independent eateries to have a stand on a rotation basis in either the East or Ponte end. There's certainly space for it.

One thing that struck me about Saturday was that the queues could have been managed much better if there were a couple of bottle bars. Someone told me there was one down the far end, but it wasn't until about 9pm that they set a second one up.

I appreciate staffing them might be an issue, however I don't think they deploy staff very well behind the kiosks. The bar to the Ponte end side of the East stand on Saturday had 2 staff working the tills, 2 pulling pints and 1 supervising. I can't comprehend how that's more efficient than having 5 people serving. If there's a large order, you've effectively got one person stood waiting until the last order is completed.

 

Could barely hear what was being said for Kooks playing over the top. Naive was an apt song choice because you'd have to be to think it was value for money. More choice but silly prices.

 

£5.50 I think last year. Same as the SALT ale in the Norman Rimmington Stand if I remember correctly.

 

£5.50, as someone in the queue for a pint at the weekend pointed out to me that it'd gone up a pound.

 

£4 a pint of what though? I'd happily pay the extra for something quality like Salt. Not for Madri though, it's awful.

 

It's a fair point. Madri is mass-produced, no matter what the label might tell you.

 

Madri is simply a recent Heineken invention; it has no "heritage" whatsoever - and has little or no taste. There are many excellent Spanish lager-style beers e.g. Estrella Galicia (not the crap they sell under this Label in the U.K.), 1906, Ambar Export, Voll-Damm Märzen, Mahou Cinco Estrellas, to name just a few. Maybe it's just that they don't want to sell the real thing to football fans because of excise duty and alcoholic strength. For example San Miguel is 5.4% abv in Spain, 5% in U.K. Estrella Galicia is 5.5% in Spain, 4.6% in U.K. and they just don't have the same flavour as the brewed-in-Spain originals. Carlsberg brew U.K. San Miguel and it's probably the nearest to the original from Málaga, though still some way off.

 

Madrid was £4.40 a pint at Wombwell Town on Saturday. Not my choice of ale but I had a couple anyway. How come they can sell it for way cheaper than Oakwell?

 

Madri is Molson Coors, not Heineken.

It’s essentially a Spanish style and over marketed Carling. Taken a huge market over the last couple of years.

But it’s still better than this year’s flavour of the month, Cruzcampo.

At least that is genuinely Spanish - but it’s absolutely vile.

Though to be fair I’m judging that on the version I had in Spain in April. Haven’t tried the English version (if it’s any different), and have no intention of doing so.

 

probably something for the fan group to take forward as well as media and club site lack of coverage

 

The club know we probably turn up to Oakwell with a set amount of cash in our pockets rather than a set number of pints we’re intending to drink (unless driving).
I imagine that the majority of people don’t drink more than two pints in Oakwell and if the price was the same as the pub I don’t think we’d sell any more.
Might as well make an extra couple of quid per pint, cos let’s be honest when you’re in there there’s no where else to go.