As flowers come into full bloom and temperatures start to rise, it can only mean summer is upon us, and these months present a different set of challenges for us. The most prevalent of these, and a key theme of this edition, were the scorching temperatures of the ‘Heatwave’. Whereas this bout of tropical temperatures (more fitting for the Mediterranean!) didn’t quite reach the 300-400 degree temperatures of our fantastic Josper oven, they certainly felt close.
Warm temperatures are much appreciated at The Red Lion as we welcome many guests into our garden during sunny weather. Our small army of benches is regularly packed. Footfall however, has been inconsistent in July. Perhaps the incredibly high temperatures peaking 37 degrees turned the beer garden from picturesque and quaint riverside dwelling into something resembling more of a fiery hellscape. It is important during such searing temperatures to take care of our health, and here at The Red Lion the wellbeing of our staff is of upmost importance. Standing next the aforementioned Josper oven in these temperatures is a risk for some health issues. The Kitchen hours were decreased in order to look after our brilliant Kitchen staff, who continued to work in similar conditions whilst always maintaining the high standard of food, which we are known for. Worry no longer as opening hours are now back to normal!
In the front of house, many new faces have joined the team this month, all of which are learning lots and working hard to provide excellent service to you all. They all seem to have hit the ground running, as our reviews show. Our staff have been described as “lovely”, “really attentive”, “friendly”, “helpful” and “brilliant” in Tripadvisor and Google reviews. An average review score for July of 4.14 is a very respectable but increasable number. We will endeavor to maintain these standards and strive to achieve a higher score than this in August. Finally, many fantastic changes and fabulous new additions to our products have debuted this month. Our ciabatta, starters and mains offerings have all been changed. Highlights include Crispy Gnocchi, Swordfish, Pork Tomahawk and many more! Please check out our menu online for all new additions. We hope to see you all in The Red lion next month!
Written by Michael Thomas