Following criticism last season, the bar service in the Riverside has improved dramatically
Swansea City. The club that listens. Following an exasperated rant last season (after our win over Aston Villa - link) about the speed of service in the food and drink outlets, it seemed I struck a nerve amongst fans who got in touch to say that they too had grown disillusioned with trying to get a pint at half time, and had long since stopped bothering. What happened next I didn't expect though - I received an email inviting me to the stadium to discuss the issues - an offer I was all too happy to accept.
It was explained to me that logistically and legally, it is very hard to improve the situation with the current layout in the East Stand concourse. Nevertheless, the company in charge of running the bars in the stadium were very, very keen to improve the situation and asked if I'd organise a Q&A with fans to answer their most-repeated questions. This took place over the summer and here was their response to that: link.
I'm writing this now because against Southampton I didn't leave my seat early to get a pint, and despite that I waited no more than two minutes for a pint of Doombar in the Riverside Bar. That's a great effort by the barstaff, and they must now be pre-pouring a large number of pints, as well as going about their business in a more brisk manner. What's more, I kept an eye on the bar (in the interests of science, obviously), and I can honestly say that at no point did any kind of "throng" develop, which as anyone who frequents the Riverside regularly will attest truly is a rare occurrence.
I write this because I criticised the service in the bar and they've responded. If and when expansion happens facilities will improve so that'd further help congestion, but for now I think it was worth mentioning the improvement in service at the stadium in what is, realistically, a short space of time. Southampton was only the fifth home game to take place following my rant, so it really has turned around very quickly.
As I said at the time, I can't imagine many Premier League clubs would invite some random blogger into the fold if he was annoyed about not being able to get a pint. I'll be in the West Stand this weekend so I won't be able to get to the Riverside myself but if you've stopped going because of the wait to get a pint it's worth another look. You may be quenching your thirst sooner than you think.