Cost and coldness are in inverse proportions
David Rosam on Aug 10 2003 at 9:56 pm | Filed under: Food & drink
A little experimentation over the past few days when good old Blighty has had some nice weather for a change has shown how the posher the establishment, the worse its ability to deliver cold drinks - be it alcoholic or soft.
Take the Crowne Plaza Hotel, London St James, in Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1, just around the corner from our good Queen’s central London pied a terre, for example. On Friday afternoon, Mark Pruul of MarkOne Creative Consultancy and myself found ourselves in the hotel’s rather beautiful courtyard, complete with fountain and assorted flunkies.
The Kingfisher beers we ordered were cold (just), but nowhere near the tonsil-freezing level the ambient temperatures demanded. We asked if they had any other beers that were colder. ‘No’, was the response. So we asked for a Vodka and Tonic and Rum and Coke with lots of ice. They thought lots of ice meant four tiny ice cubes. We scrounged some more from another bar, paid our bill and left.
The pub around the corner solved nice cold drinks at a fraction of the price and had a wonderful dog (a kind of white Alsatian-like creature) to stroke, too. Must go back there - unfortunately, the name of the establishment escapes me.
And pubs have been on the ball all weekend, too. Maybe they can start freezing the glasses like they do in the States…
