The Maltsters

[YnysMon]

Good news, hopefully. I guess you never know until they do open.As always, ‘the proof is in the pudding’. Good luck to whoever is taking over. 

[socrates]

On 29/11/2023 at 21:30, OldBerkshireBoy said:

My understanding is that it will soon reopen.

Hope so. I assume it will be under new management, and trust the new landlord will be as hospitable as Terry was.  

[NorfolkNog]

Light on in the Maltsters, no notice outside or any indication that it's closed 

[Tess10]

Just had lunch at the Granary Ranworth & speaking with the owner he said that the Masters has closed permanently & the landlord has moved out. 

[CeePee1952]

10 minutes ago, Tess10 said:

Just had lunch at the Granary Ranworth & speaking with the owner he said that the Masters has closed permanently & the landlord has moved out. 

Their website is no longer available either

Chris

[Gracie]

How awful, another pub closed. I do hope someone can take it over and keep it as a pub and not turn it into housing. Ranworth used to be a lovely place to stop for lunch and a drink or two

Our pubs are an institution and part of our History we seem to be losing x

[dom]

It will be really sad if it does get turned into housing. I can remember sitting outside with a drink on warm summer evenings going back something like 40 years - and also cold winter evenings, inside by the old bar before it all changed, when it always seemed to be rammed with people.

There's always been a bit of a battle for customers between the pub and the Granary. Supposedly, introduction of mooring charges has increased footfall, but I find it incredibly hard to believe. When there was no charge, you could pop in for a short while, grab a drink or two, then leave. If you've paid a significant charge, you're surely more likely to stick around for a substantial percentage of the time you've paid for. The net effect is inevitably less footfall, rather than the more BA claim.

[CambridgeCabby]

Last time it closed was before Roy took it over (ex landladies former husband) and it was shut for 18months then , it’s one of the few properties not owned by the Cators .

[LondonRascal]

I amazes me that any business in 2023 would no be 'all over' Social Media - as part of the business plan! Just as you would take time out to do stock check, do your finances, take an hour to check your reviews left by customers - and reply to and learn from them. Update your opening hours on Google (it takes under 30 seconds) and the same adding a post to your Facebook.

Not doing it, means people like myself won't just understand and be patient - I just won't go use the business again. Happened with a local Pub I'd wanted to try their food at, after 3 attempts and finding it closed, or open but not doing food, I gave up - it should not be this hard.

[dom]

43 minutes ago, LondonRascal said:

I amazes me that any business in 2023 would no be 'all over' Social Media - as part of the business plan!

A lot of that is the fact that pub owners (and small business owners in general) often aren't especially technically savvy, so steer clear, often out of fear. It's also extremely hard to find good 3rd party social media managers. In my last role, I worked for a £50m multi-national and had huge budgets for things like PPC and SEO. Even with the type of budgets we had available, it was difficult to find competent social media marketers. Unfortunately, digital marketing is becoming the academic equivalent now to what travel and tourism was in the last few decades. Half the people in it think that being able to create a TikTok video makes them a marketing expert, but don't remotely grasp the nuance and detail.

[Smoggy]

1 hour ago, LondonRascal said:

take an hour to check your reviews left by customers

Most reviews are from people that whinged to get a discount or freebie and didn't get away with it and there was very little wrong in the first place, for a pub they are not worth pandering to and anyone with half a brain ignores them and gives it a go anyway. 

I've seen too many places giving away free meals or drinks to keep bad reviews off trip advisor and the like when it was clear they had a good evening. 

I don't read reviews for that reason. 

[CambridgeCabby]

The last couple of seasons staffing etc has been lacking at The Maltsters ,  as well as a falling out with the village regulars perhaps a fresh approach and face at the helm is what was/is needed to bring the Maltsters back to being a must visit 

[RS2021]

1 hour ago, LondonRascal said:

I amazes me that any business in 2023 would no be 'all over' Social Media - as part of the business plan! Just as you would take time out to do stock check, do your finances, take an hour to check your reviews left by customers - and reply to and learn from them. Update your opening hours on Google (it takes under 30 seconds) and the same adding a post to your Facebook.

Opening hours yes, but reviews... that's a minefield and I fully understand a business that doesn't engage. Most businesses don't stand a chance and many a good business has been destroyed by a rogue influencer/reviews. I do look at reviews for businesses, but sometimes I wonder why I bother.

[kpnut]

I could take it or leave it at the Maltsters over the past year or so , especially because of the erratic opening hours. I think that was a consequence of covid and lack of staff etc, as with many hospitality venues. 
But I also thought it overpriced for the offer. 
But I gave it another go twice recently and was pleasantly surprised. Nice and warm, nice tasty food and friendly. So am disappointed and hope someone makes a go of it again soon. Personally I’d rather sit in a pub on a dreary afternoon after a walk than a cafe. 
Why don’t pubs supply newspapers any longer?
When I’m on my own, I’d love to sit reading the paper rather than having my nose stuck in my phone. One looks the sort of thing you traditionally do in a pub, the other just looks antisocial!

The former would keep me in there longer, spending more money. The other just makes me embarrassed that I’m on my own with no-one to talk to. Ha ha. 

[dom]

8 minutes ago, kpnut said:

Why don’t pubs supply newspapers any longer?

I suspect it's just a net effect of the rapidly dying newspaper industry.

Are free local papers a thing these days? I can't remember the last time I actually saw one. If they do still exist, it's probably worth suggesting to landlords that putting one out for customers might be a nice touch. I suspect most would be keen to hear any and every suggestion how they can keep customers around a bit longer.

[DAVIDH]

13 hours ago, kpnut said:

When I’m on my own, I’d love to sit reading the paper rather than having my nose stuck in my phone. One looks the sort of thing you traditionally do in a pub, the other just looks antisocial!

The former would keep me in there longer, spending more money. The other just makes me embarrassed that I’m on my own with no-one to talk to. Ha ha. 

Me too, but I always make a point of taking my own.

I think the biggest sin a business can make is to not be there when the customer expects you to be. If you advertise your opening times (Facebook and/or Google) then unless it's unavoidable you need to be open. It's so easy to put a quick notice on Facebook to say you're having to close early etc, and I'd wager a large proportion of customers will look there first when planning to visit....especially in the winter. I was one of them last year. I turned up at Ranworth one Thursday afternoon having seen a recent update of opening times on Facebook. Thought I should check so had a walk-over. No signs of life and just a note on the door of their SUMMER opening times. Not wanting to stay on Ranworth quay all night without hospitality, I tried telephoning...no answer.

I ended up using Facebook Messenger for clarity. To be fair, within an hour I had a message back saying the place was only open Friday to Monday during winter. What a rigmarole to find out though, and a wasted journey. 

[Meantime]

22 hours ago, Tess10 said:

Just had lunch at the Granary Ranworth & speaking with the owner he said that the Masters has closed permanently & the landlord has moved out. 

Another resounding success for the Broads Authorities policy of charging for moorings. Clearly the takings at the pub improved so much they decided they could retire early!! 

I do wonder though is it closed permanently or closed until another tenant takes it on? I suspect the latter.

[Tess10]

36 minutes ago, Meantime said:

Another resounding success for the Broads Authorities policy of charging for moorings. Clearly the takings at the pub improved so much they decided they could retire early!! 

I do wonder though is it closed permanently or closed until another tenant takes it on? I suspect the latter.

Closed until another tenant is found, the owner of the Granary said he was interested & has approached the owners. I also asked him if the mooring charges had affected his trade & he said not, whether it was the same for the pub I don't know.

Tess

[Chelsea14Ian]

We went in once in the summer. All we wanted for lunch. Was simple  sandwiches. None was available. And there were very  few people  there.

[Mouldy]

10 minutes ago, Chelsea14Ian said:

We went in once in the summer. All we wanted for lunch. Was simple  sandwiches. None was available. And there were very  few people  there.

The last time I tried The Maltsters was sometime during November 2022.  We were there with our son, his wife and three children.  Like Ian, we wanted something light for lunch, but they were only able to offer main meals, all of which were quite expensive.  Haven’t been in since.

1 hour ago, Meantime said:

Another resounding success for the Broads Authorities policy of charging for moorings. Clearly the takings at the pub improved so much they decided they could retire early!! 

Is it fair to blame the BA for this, bearing in mind that The Granary started to offer main meals this year and seems to have flourished?  Perhaps their success has been at the expense of the pub.

Without trade from the locals, surely any business there will struggle after the tourist season has finished.  The Bridge Inn at Acle and The White Horse at Neatishead must be prime examples of pubs not being dependent on tourism, as both appear to continue through the winter months quite successfully.

[Chelsea14Ian]

I've said many times.The most successful pubs ard those that offer good food, drink and keep people  entertained every day Have something  different  each day I'm  not talking about  just music.

[dom]

7 minutes ago, Mouldy said:

Is it fair to blame the BA for this, bearing in mind that The Granary started to offer main meals this year and seems to have flourished?  Perhaps their success has been at the expense of the pub.

Many, many years ago, The Granary was run by a really nice, slightly eccentric chap called Bernard. I think possibly Bernard managed front of house and his partner managed the kitchen. We frequented the place year round whenever it was open and got to know him very well. He always used to comment on the fact that very few people came into the village (hardly surprising, as it's quite remote and neighbouring villages have pubs and restaurants) and that it was always a bit of a fight with the pub for customers.

I suspect in reality, the issue is a combination of the above, charging on the moorings and the wider decline of pubs due to ban on smoking and general trend towards healthier lifestyles.

 

[Chelsea14Ian]

Sorry won't agree about smoking.Until 18 years ago I was  a heavy  smoker.Even then I hated smokey pubs.If anything more people  visit pubs in better air.Even fairly remote  pubs can been successful. It needs work and gaining a reputation. Not easy but can be done .

[YnysMon]

19 hours ago, Smoggy said:

Most reviews are from people that whinged to get a discount or freebie and didn't get away with it and there was very little wrong in the first place, for a pub they are not worth pandering to and anyone with half a brain ignores them and gives it a go anyway. 

I've seen too many places giving away free meals or drinks to keep bad reviews off trip advisor and the like when it was clear they had a good evening. 

I don't read reviews for that reason. 

I don't agree. I read reviews and there are lots of establishments that have glowing reviews, which invariably get my attention and custom. The negative reviewers who just diss a place because they were too fussy can be spotted a mile off. 

[MY littleboat]

I have been trying to highlight the plight of the Malsters for a number of weeks. The success of the Granary Restuarant is a partial reason, maybe, however, the landlord has found this year tough and many of the 'regulars' (On boats) have boycotted Ranworth and the holiday boats just do not seem to come in... This is indeed a very sad loss.