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Food & Beverage: The Aramark Era begins

havaska said:
The prices will have to come down because people will simply stop paying them. Supply and demand and all that.
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It’s possible that they have already priced according to demand. Don’t forget there used to be massive queues for food at all times on even half-busy days.

Yes, service and capacity was poor, but either way the queues have largely gone. They might have hit the optimum price, or possibly gone a little too far, as you suggest.

The corner coffee shop could still double its prices though, queues there are hideous as so many people aim for the caffeine fixes.
 
At some point they will realise it's better to sell more food at a lower price than selling small amounts at inflated prices. If Pleasurebeech can do a hotdog for £4-5 then Towers should be able to do the same. Over £9 for a hotdog is a joke.
 
rob666 said:
My food and beverage contribution was a single pound coin (hard cash!) for fish and duck/bird food.
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Have you just revealed a hack for reasonably priced, edible food options on park?

Relife said:
At some point they will realise it's better to sell more food at a lower price than selling small amounts at inflated prices.
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And a major reason why it's better is because they're operating a complimentary food and beverage business inside a theme park.

This isn't a food court, they're not selling burgers, or hot dogs - they're selling little pieces of guest experience, a part of a whole package, and people deciding the place isn't value for money before they arrive, picnic packed, isn't a great start.

As a complete experience, from your front door and back again, Alton Towers will struggle if "remaining reasonably fed" starts to feel like something they can't offer.

They need to rediscover the mindset of F&B being a requirement for any business expecting customers to be on their property for over a few hours.

Can every wallet, taste & diet find something to eat here?
Will it add positively to overall guest experience?
Can we make lots of money from it?

In that order.
 
The problem families have is AT dont advertise food prices online so most of the GP will go expecting to pay a lil more but then when they see the prices they have no choice but to pay it so AT will always do well out of food.

Its a clever strategy on AT part.
 
lee2804 said:
The problem families have is AT dont advertise food prices online so most of the GP will go expecting to pay a lil more but then when they see the prices they have no choice but to pay it so AT will always do well out of food.

Its a clever strategy on AT part.
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It's a clever short term strategy. But "saving money on days out" and "making the most of your theme park trip" discourse is RIFE in the UK.

Word will spread. Blogs will be written. Facebook groups will start.

The 'trick' won't last long.
 
Crazy prices. Only thing we purchased on our recent visit was the black ice cream cone being sold outside Curse - novelty factor really, it was £3 with MAP discount so reasonable value (for AT) considering the thing was actually quite big.

If I can buy a pack of 12 Rollover hot dog sausages for £8.99 then Aramark/AT must be getting them cheaper than that. I know there are additional overheads but the hot dogs should be under £5
 
Today we had lunch at the Grill place just outside of Hex. I was pleasantly surprised and will say it's the best food we've had at a Merlin park! Low bar i know but credit where it's due.
 
Now that the Smokehouse at Chessington has been re-rated as a 5 I was able to gain the 0 rating December food safety report via a FOI request.

On 14th December, some of the findings were:
  • Rat and mice droppings in food cupboards
  • Gnawed sauce containers and crisp containers/packaging
  • Poor cleaning of food equipment
  • Droppings on the water heater for the hand basins in the customer area
  • Rat droppings in electrical cupboard, on conduits and uniforms in this cupboard
  • Poor cleaning in food room, poor lighting and draining in washing up area
  • Poor cleaning in many areas. Very poor standards especially in dishwashing areas, not pest proofed
  • Poor date labelling and records
  • Poor level of pest checks
Compliance with Good Hygiene & Safety Procedures: 20
Compliance with Structural Requirements: 15
Confidence in Management: 20
Total score: >50 = 0 "Urgent Improvement Necessary"

However on the re-evaluation in March, signficant changes were observed throughout. Compliance with food and safety procedures was found to be satisfactory, structural issues were resolved ("very good standards observed"), and now there is a confidence in management as the restaurant management has changed.

Compliance with Good Hygiene & Safety Procedures: 0
Compliance with Structural Requirements: 0
Confidence in Management: 0
Total score: 0-15 = 5 "Very Good"
 
Alsty said:
Now that the Smokehouse at Chessington has been re-rated as a 5 I was able to gain the 0 rating December food safety report via a FOI request.

On 14th December, some of the findings were:
  • Rat and mice droppings in food cupboards
  • Gnawed sauce containers and crisp containers/packaging
  • Poor cleaning of food equipment
  • Droppings on the water heater for the hand basins in the customer area
  • Rat droppings in electrical cupboard, on conduits and uniforms in this cupboard
  • Poor cleaning in food room, poor lighting and draining in washing up area
  • Poor cleaning in many areas. Very poor standards especially in dishwashing areas, not pest proofed
  • Poor date labelling and records
  • Poor level of pest checks
Compliance with Good Hygiene & Safety Procedures: 20
Compliance with Structural Requirements: 15
Confidence in Management: 20
Total score: >50 = 0 "Urgent Improvement Necessary"

However on the re-evaluation in March, signficant changes were observed throughout. Compliance with food and safety procedures was found to be satisfactory, structural issues were resolved ("very good standards observed"), and now there is a confidence in management as the restaurant management has changed.

Compliance with Good Hygiene & Safety Procedures: 0
Compliance with Structural Requirements: 0
Confidence in Management: 0
Total score: 0-15 = 5 "Very Good"
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Wowzers! Did they provide any pictures?
 
Yikes, that is bad. So much for the “it was probably just the paperwork not being filled in properly” discourse that often happens when establishments get low ratings (not necessarily on here but I saw comments like that on other platforms).

Good that they managed to turn it around, sounds like the place was a true health hazard, just hope they can keep it up.
 
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