Following is a letter that i was going to send to the brewery. I still think that what i wrote is correct but now i dont think that having 1 person behind the bar at very busy times is entirely the manageress`s fault (which is why i never sent the letter) It does highlight the problem of HS cutting staff hours.


Dear Sir,
 I feel I have to write to complain about the way my local pub is been run.
The pub in question is the Valley Inn on Whitehall Road, Drighlington.
 I am a regular at this pub and frequent it about 4/5 times a week. On Saturday the 7th January i visited the pub and was faced with a long queue at the bar. (The pub was busy as usual)and found the problem to be that the was only  person serving was the tempory landlady. At 7:45 her son came onto work and she went with her husband upstairs still leaving only one behind the bar.
Everyone had to wait a while to be served but worse than that was the state of the tables. Because there was only one serving and the pub been busy, as it is on a Saturday no glasses were been collected so most of the tables had lots of empties on them.
When the landlady came back down at 9:55 she had to collect the empty glasses then wash them (still leaving only one serving).
The lager was then served in newly washed glasses which were warm and the lager went flat immediately.
I thought that this was a one off but unfortunately it wasn`t. I have taken 3 pints of lager back this week because it has been flat, and drunk quite a few that should have been returned but didn’t want the hassle. The excuses that i and other people that have returned flat lager range from, the head keeper has stopped working because that glass has got a film of detergent on it from the glass washer to “their old glasses”. 
I personally think that the lager is been served flat  because they only have one serving (usually the landlady, her husband doesn’t work behind the bar) the glasses don’t get collected often enough and when they have been collected lager is served in warm glasses killing the lagers fizz (head keeper not working) but whatever the reason if the lager isn’t right then it shouldn’t be given to the customer and the problem should be rectified.
After visiting the pub again on Saturday 14th) it was the same scenario as last week except the only person working last night was a young woman (20ish and she did collect some glasses whenever she got chance and worked her butt off). Surely the landlord and landlady should be present to greet the customers on a weekend when such a varied clientele visit the pub. I have visited the pub a few times now since and the service has not improved at all and they have started keeping one room closed so that they don’t have to light the fire or clean the room which makes the other rooms uncomfortable.
I am sorry that i have felt the need to complain but i don’t think that it is right that i have to wait so long to be served in the first instance but then have to wait again to take the lager back because it is flat (i may be the only one that writes to complain but please believe me I’m not the only one complaining and I’m sure that custom will be lost).
The head keepers haven’t all of a sudden stopped working because we have new management.

On Sunday afternoon we, and the rest of the pub, had the misfortune to witness a husband and wife being bullied and threatened by 3 of the landladys cronies (names available if required) on her instruction.  This is not the first time she has made threats.  Do Sam Smith's condone this sort of behaviour because she seems to be able to get away with it.  What is the policy here?  If it was a customer making threats to staff or management they would be barred, surely, so why can she and her mindless thugs get away with it?

Dear Mr H Smith,

I know you hate this forum and would love to see it shut down, but....


... have you considered that we could be your best customers?

Not only do we like drinking your products, and enjoy drinking 'em in your pubs, but we also take the trouble to contribute to an online forum to talk about it.

Think about it.

What you have here is free market research and free customer feed-back.

If, instead of trying to wipe us off t'internet, you listened to what we're saying, and perhaps took positive action on our suggestions, I could guarantee that your profits would increase, and that is what matters to you in the end, isn't it? Increased profits?

I can also guarantee that if you ignore us you are on a hiding to nothing. We do reflect public opinion, and if you disregard that, you alienate the custom base.

So why not start viewing this site as a positive thing for the SS Brewery, instead of regarding it as your enemy?

You make decisions and do things that we don't understand, but if you explained why, here, we might.

Dialogue is important twixt manufacturer and customer. The days of forelock tugging are long over in this modern competitive world. The point being brewing is not a monopoly. It is a very competitive market, especially with all the excellent micro-breweries coming into play.

Not only could we be your best customers, but we could also be your best friends, if you'd let us.

Let bygones be bygones eh? On both sides. Can we start again please, as a team, brewer and drinkers, to keep Sam Smiths competitive before it all falls apart?

I hope so.

Tone

The time was when some of Sam Smith's pubs were renowned for their food, both in quality and variety.
Unfortunately, we are now stuck not only with an insipid standard menu but also some very poor quality food.  A tiny piece of fish in batter that tasted like cardboard, rock-hard scampi and some particularly vile vegetables. This wasn't just in one pub, but several, so it's not the manager's fault, it's the brewery's.

Come on, start 2012 by getting this sorted.

John Whitaker.