Pros
- Family-style batch cooked meals supplied on shift
- One of the few places I have worked where the tronc system doesn't leave you on a noticeably sub-par wage (however, base rate was minimum wage)
- Very simple drinks menu, so there is not much prior skill required and no overly complicated drinks to serve during busy services
- Friendly team trying to create a welcoming environment
- Bar manager at the time I joined was super friendly and accommodating
Cons
- Breaks were denied across the board during service, you were made to take it on arrival (4pm start, break until 16.20, then on with service until you leave at 23.30/00.00). Management were unsympathetic when I informed them that this practice was in fact illegal.
- Severe micro-management problem
- Lack of regard for health and safety in cellar storage (not enough space afforded to bar storage, due to the increasing encroachment of kitchen stock - this quickly resulted in workplace injury due to the lack of space to work in whilst lifting heavy kegs of beer).
- Head chef was foul to you if you so much as breathed in her presence, but this was routinely brushed off as 'chefs being chefs'.
- Difficult to get any time off at the weekend
- Management put too much emphasis on sales targets and not enough on providing warm and enjoyable service
- I felt a little on edge when the owners were around due to widespread rumours of them (one in particular) berating staff over minor indiscretions.