17 replies to this topic

[Liam13th]

Hello, i've been hearing a lot about real ale at glasto and the name The Red Flag has been mentioned on countless times, problem is on any map i cant seem to find it, i think its a must for this year.

Could anybody enlighten me towards its where abouts on the site?

Much Appreciated

Edited by Liam13th, 17 March 2011 - 12:01 PM.

[crashnburn]

the red flag bar is in the same field as the acoustic stage at the top left side of the site. If you like your real ale - most of the bars have a choice of 2/3 ales (otter ale and gem being very good) The pub in the Fields of avalon and the bimble inn  at the bottom of the park are well worth a visit

[Liam13th]

I have payed many a visit to the bimble inn in recent years. Its just always been a huge walk away from our pitch. Are there any other real ale places?

Also anybody had any experiences buying the litres of cider that are on offer as you're driving through the country roads to the fest? I seem to remember Black Cat Cider being the most heavily advertised.

[Wilson19]

Liam13th, on 17 March 2011 - 12:28 PM, said:

I have payed many a visit to the bimble inn in recent years. Its just always been a huge walk away from our pitch. Are there any other real ale places?

Also anybody had any experiences buying the litres of cider that are on offer as you're driving through the country roads to the fest? I seem to remember Black Cat Cider being the most heavily advertised.

The Bimble Inn is a pain to find even when your stood 10 yards away staring at it

[crashnburn]

no not tried the litres of cider not sure if theres an other real ale places but most of bars do have a variety and most seem different to each other although many of the bar staff did look non plussed when i asked for a bitter, ale, best etc said they didnt have any untill i pointed at the pump

[MrHew]

Liam13th, on 17 March 2011 - 12:28 PM, said:

Also anybody had any experiences buying the litres of cider that are on offer as you're driving through the country roads to the fest? I seem to remember Black Cat Cider being the most heavily advertised.

I've never forked out on one of those bottles but can heartily recommend Black Rat. Very tasty and you don't need a lot to get the desired effect.  

[Liam13th]

"Wilson, were at the bimble inn"

"Where?"

"The tent with the blue lights and the big sign saying 'The Bimble Inn'"

10 mins later

"Turn around!"

"Ohhhh"

To be fair though, that was after the jazz field session..

[glasto-worker]

crashnburn, on 17 March 2011 - 12:06 PM, said:

the red flag bar is in the same field as the acoustic stage at the top left side of the site.

while you are correct about the location it was not called the Red Flag last year { due to it no longer being run by the WBC } but anyone who walks into the acoustic field cant miss it. { its on the far right as you enter that field }

[jameshunt]

glasto-worker, on 17 March 2011 - 01:10 PM, said:

while you are correct about the location it was not called the Red Flag last year { due to it no longer being run by the WBC } but anyone who walks into the acoustic field cant miss it. { its on the far right as you enter that field }

Indeed, it was renamed last year to The Cockmill.  The Acoustic Field is a great place for food and drink.  The Cockmill bar had a fine supply of ales, and other drinks now, and The Common Ground cafe serves good inexpensive food 24 hours a day.

[Staberinde]

glasto-worker, on 17 March 2011 - 01:10 PM, said:

while you are correct about the location it was not called the Red Flag last year { due to it no longer being run by the WBC } but anyone who walks into the acoustic field cant miss it. { its on the far right as you enter that field }

I knew it had changed it's name (and set up) but I never knew why.

Crikey, they were so slow in there.... who runs it now G-W? The guy would get your beer give it to you, then go to a hatch and pass the money there and wait for your change. I was a little disappointed

I reckon the Bimble Inn will be taken up a notch from my second favorite beer tent now, with the Avalon bar moving to it's place. I wonder what's third on my list?

[5co77ie]

Liam13th, on 17 March 2011 - 12:28 PM, said:

I have payed many a visit to the bimble inn in recent years. Its just always been a huge walk away from our pitch. Are there any other real ale places?

The Avalon Bar selling Otter and others (the big wooden pub), First Of May in West Holts sells ale, St Austell Brewery had a bar selling ale last year - hopefully it'll be back... actually I think every bar has a couple of barrels in it these days (different ones available in different bars)

[rexclark]

Drank some of the ale from the main bars but never found any of the smaller ale bars. Must make an effort this year.

[Neville Street]

The Cornish Arms was good, on the main drag from the Other Stage to the Pyramid, on the right just after the bridge.  Quick service everytime we went there, and several ales

[glasto-worker]

Staberinde, on 18 March 2011 - 04:49 PM, said:

I knew it had changed it's name (and set up) but I never knew why.

Crikey, they were so slow in there.... who runs it now G-W? The guy would get your beer give it to you, then go to a hatch and pass the money there and wait for your change. I was a little disappointed

That bar is now run by ' Avalon Bars and Events Ltd ' and the change in procedure with regards payment was due to the fact that most of the servers were new { they were working for their ticket } so to prevent fraud and counterfeit notes they were running a cash register system.

I have to be fair and say that when I was in there chatting to the Tent Manager { the Boss in that bar } the servers were doing a good job but clearly the busier it gets the cash register system will slow down the servers as they have to queue up to get change.

The people behind Avalon Bars are all very experienced and I have worked with all of them over the years { with the WBC }  and they will know this is not the best system to use but if they recruit the same servers they had last year they may switch to the more efficient bucket system.

I was impressed of the design of the bar and it looked a lot better than what it looked when it was the Red Flag.

The main bars are still run by the WBC but some of the smaller ones are now controlled by Avalon Bars  { that name will appear on the price list } and there may be another operator although I have no information if they will be allocated any bars this year.

They recruited 340 volunteers and 30 bar managers and this application procedure has now been closed so they will be going though the forms to see how many they have who has enough experience so they will plot out what method to use for the best.

[beodeejay]

Agree the bar looked superb - wood built booths with wicker panels and a  really nice vibe.

We spent A LOT of time moving between the Acoustic field and Avalon last year...stopping by Jazz West holts on the way there / back, with the odd mission to the park, pyramid, JP and elsewhere.

Marvelous.      :               

I thought the bar closed a bit too early last year - as I recall it was shutting up shop within a few minutes of the last act on the acoustic stage.  This is a shame as its a great space and would be great if they stuck on a few solo acoustic acts - a bit like the Chai Waller / Avalon Cafe set ups....to continue the vibe into the wee hours.


I hope the Acoustic Bar returns in the same form in 2011 - great beer, and a top design - like something from The Shire !!!

Edited by beodeejay, 19 March 2011 - 07:04 AM.

[glasto-worker]

beodeejay, on 19 March 2011 - 07:03 AM, said:

Agree the bar looked superb - wood built booths with wicker panels and a  really nice vibe.
      
I thought the bar closed a bit too early last year - as I recall it was shutting up shop within a few minutes of the last act on the acoustic stage.  I hope the Acoustic Bar returns in the same form in 2011 - great beer, and a top design - like something from The Shire !!!

The Red Flag { when it was called the Red Flag } would always close early { well compared to the other bars }

So while other bars would run on until 3 am the Red Flag would close at Midnight.

Bars can vary their time depending on demand so if it looks quiet they may pull the plug early as its not worth the hassle - if they see there is a large demand then they may extend the time if they have the staff numbers.

Its always worth asking for the Tent Manager { the guy in charge } and pointing out that you have x amount of Mates who are all wanting to continue in that bar - they may listen but if its been a long shift they may not.

[Staberinde]

glasto-worker, on 19 March 2011 - 03:49 AM, said:

That bar is now run by ' Avalon Bars and Events Ltd '<snipped>

Thanks for taking the time to explain all of that G-W, it's always  fascinating to hear how things are run behind the scenes. I'll be there  again this year with a lot more patients now I understand why they (if  they do) use that system.

beodeejay, on 19 March 2011 - 07:03 AM, said:

Agree the bar looked superb - wood built booths with wicker panels and a  really nice vibe.

We spent A LOT of time moving between the Acoustic field and Avalon last year...stopping by Jazz West holts on the way there / back, with the odd mission to the park, pyramid, JP and elsewhere.

Marvelous.      :               

I thought the bar closed a bit too early last year - as I recall it was shutting up shop within a few minutes of the last act on the acoustic stage.  This is a shame as its a great space and would be great if they stuck on a few solo acoustic acts - a bit like the Chai Waller / Avalon Cafe set ups....to continue the vibe into the wee hours.


I hope the Acoustic Bar returns in the same form in 2011 - great beer, and a top design - like something from The Shire !!!

I'll be there as well

[glasto-worker]

Staberinde, on 19 March 2011 - 10:52 AM, said:

Thanks for taking the time to explain all of that G-W, it's always  fascinating to hear how things are run behind the scenes. I'll be there  again this year with a lot more patients now I understand why they (if  they do) use that system.

I'll be there as well

No problem - I am sure that most people don't spot who is actually the specific bar operators although this does impact on the procedures they use.

At least they have not tried token payments { which can create two queues }

Now there is something that you can do to improve attracting service.

You have to look at the bar from the staff side - staff look out and with a very busy bar its difficult to work out who is waiting to be served and who is actually being served so rather than standing there thinking you will get served next its always best to wave a note in the air as its clear you would not be doing that if you had already placed your order.

Even picking the right spot at a bar can be important so try to avoid friends chatting to each other as they will take longer to walk away - in general customers tend to go to the middle of the bar when the best spot is the far left/right of the bar - it has to be some where staff can spot you waving your note - avoid shouting out as there is nothing worse being distracted from a large order and it will not do you any good as personally I would make a personal note that the shouter would be the last person I served.

All the staff want to so is get rid of all the orders so we can have a smoke out the back so we will pick off customers ' who look as if they will not delay things ' - if you are on a  mobile then you can forget it as staff are not going to wait until you finish the call - By having your note out this shows you don't have to hunt in a pocket or bag - if you look under age be sure to wave your ID as staff don't have time to wait until a Customer hunts though all their pockets.

its all dead simple things

If you are after a large order ' don't wave three £ 20 notes in the air ' as staff will avoid you.

I recall one Glastonbury when we were closing the Guest bar { and had given a count down that we were closing } and the Tent Manager was calling me out the back when I made a mistake as I had said ' who has a quick order ? - and I shouted  I will just do one more quick order - that order transpired into a bill of £ 140 and was the largest order of the weekend - I pulled the guy up as I wanted to know why he waited until the last minute and he said he though the bar was open 24 hours per day - anyway he gave a £ 70 tip { four £ 50 notes and a £ 10 note } and I passed it on to charity as I don't keep tips.

That was in the old days when £ 70 was a lot of money.

Of course if he had the brass neck to give a large order so late and not leave a tip I may have strung him up to the rafters.

Now older - when the Tent Manager calls me out I vanish as while that was a good order it did prevent the staff in the back from clearing the tent so they were not happy bunnies.