Thousands of meat-loving Wetherspoon customers left stunned after steak was suddenly pulled from all 900 pubs on Tuesday Steak Club
Notices said pubs could offer alternatives including quinoa & halloumi salad - much to the horror of red meat-loving customers
WETHERSPOONS yesterday suddenly pulled steak from its 900 pubs - leaving fans of its Tuesday Steak Club reeling.
Managers reacted quickly to a memo from HQ - and some customers even had the special Steak Club menus taken away from them as they got ready to order at lunchtime.
Notices put up on on doors and on bars said there were “quality issues” - a message echoed by staff when quizzed by diners.
All rump, sirloin and gammon steaks were off the menu. Notices said pubs could offer alternatives including quinoa & halloumi salad - much to the horror of red meat-loving customers.
One barmen told a customer: “It’s to do with a supplier issue and the steaks have all been recalled. They’ve not told us what it is.”
The recall prompted fears among some customers of a potential health scare with the meat. Fears were fuelled by reports that Wetherspoon’s steak supplier Russell Hume had temporarily shut some of its sites.
Pub fridges were full of meat ready to be grilled but pub managers were emailed yesterday morning by head office telling them “to chuck” the steak and gammon.
The chain is thought to normally sell around 90,000 steaks on Tuesdays alone as punters flock for the popular Steak Club - a special all-day menu of steak and other meats plus side from the grill at bargain prices.
The highlight dish is steak, chips, peas, tomato, mushroom and a drink - which varies depending on what part of the UK but is as cheap as £7 and even in central London is around a tenner.
Wetherspoons says all its steaks - sourced from meat producers Russell Hume - are from Ireland and Britain.
A surge in profits for Wetherspoons
TODAY Weatherspoons reported a surge in profits after "better-than-expected sales".
It said like-for-like sales rose 6 per cent in the 25 weeks to January 21, with total sales climbing by 4.3 per cent.
"As a result of better-than-expected sales, year-to-date underlying profit before tax is slightly ahead of our expectations," the company said, but warned that growth was likely to slow.
Chairman Tim Martin said: "There will also be some uncertainty as to the effects on our business of the World Cup.”
Mr Martin also hit out at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and the British Retail Consortium (BRC) after they claimed that food prices are likely to rise thanks to Brexit.
He said that they were "refusing to acknowledge the fact that food prices will be reduced" and that they were "trying to fool the public."
A Russell Hume spokesman said: “We fully support Wetherspoon’s. We are carrying out a product recall on some products across our client base. As stated in our recall letter to our clients this has been down to a mislabelling issue. We have no reason to believe that the product is unsafe to eat, however we are undertaking this as a precautionary action as you would expect us to do.
“Whilst we address this - we have ceased supply from some of our sites. We are amending internal procedures to ensure that controls are in place to stop this re-occuring.”
Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: “We have had a supply issue with our pubs.
“Currently rump steak, sirloin steak and gammon steak are not available, but we hope to resolve this soon.
“We apologise to our customers for the inconvenience.”
The problem hit all 900-odd Wetherspoons and Lloyds No1 pubs - up and down the country.
At the Briar Rose branch of Wetherspoon in BIRMINGHAM city centre staff had put notices on the door saying: “Due to quality issues with our meat supplier we are unable to sell any of the following products. 14oz Rump steak. Mixed grill. Sirloin steak. Gammon steak. We are sorry for any inconvenience this has caused.”
A manager at the bar explained they had been ordered to bin the steak and gammon by head office on Tuesday morning.
The staff member said: “We don’t have any steaks or gammon at the moment. Apparently there’s an issue with the supplier.
"We were told to chuck them this morning, but we have no idea why.
“Everything that was delivered had to go.
“It’s going to cause a few problems because it is steak night tonight, but we won’t be able to serve people any. I can’t wait until we’re told to throw out curry on curry night!
“Everything else in the menu is still available. It’s the steak and the gammon we don’t have.”
At the Lord Rosebery in SCARBOROUGH one annoyed customer, James Jarvis, 27, said: “When they told me they had it but could not sell it to me I just walked out. They told me they had an issue with the supplier. I told them I couldn’t give a f----. I just want something to eat. One of the suggestions was a quinoa salad with grilled halloumi. I came in for a hearty steak - do they think I want a poncy salad?!”
AFFECTED FOOD
8oz and 14oz Aberdeen Angus rump steak
8oz sirloin steak
5oz gammon steak
Mixed grill - served with a grilled chicken instead of usual rump steak
At the Pommelers Rest near Tower Bridge in south-east LONDON, staff removed the steak menus from tables - and told customers they had had an email from head office saying they couldn’t sell any steak.
The landlord there told a customer at lunchtime: “I’ve got a freezer full of meat in the back. I’m just waiting to hear if I have to bin it.
They found some problem with it but I’m not sure what.”
At the pub, accountant Bob Williams, 50, said:’’I come in most Tuesdays for the steak offer - it’s a bargain as they throw in a beer and you get a good side order of chips.
‘I went for the chicken wrap in the end - it was ok but not as tasty as the steak. I’ll just have to wait until next Tuesday.
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Aussie tourist Frances James, 29, said:’’’When I asked why he said they had found a problem - it’s a bit worrying really as if it’s a quality control health problem then customers should be told.”
A regular, aged in his 50s, who had been in The Hope Tap, in READING over lunch, said: “You won’t get a steak today. They’ve said it’s down to their supplier.”
A barman at The Moon and Starfish in Clacton in ESSEX, said: “We had an e-mail through from head office telling us that we couldn’t sell steaks.
“It’s to do with a supplier issue and the steaks have all been recalled.
“They’ve not told us what it is. We just follow the orders from head office.
“If you want a steak, you’ll have to go across the road. I wouldn’t normally be saying that.”
At the pub, Emma Marshall, 18, a student from Colchester, said: “I’ve had to go for a burger instead.
“It’s a bit worrying that they’re not telling us what is wrong with the steaks.”
A barmaid at the Swatter’s Carr in MIDDLESBROUGH, said: “They have been recalled and we were told not to serve them.”
Meanwhile, The Dragon Inn in Weston Super Mare in SOMERSET had a notice saying steaks and gammon were “unavailable” due to a “supplier failure”. It said that it was still selling its mixed grill but “they will be served with a grilled chicken breast instead of the advertised Aberdeen Angus rump steak”.
At the nearby Wetherspoons Cabot Court Hotel on the town’s seafront, one angry customer, Michael Rouselll, 62, from Weston, accused Wetherspoons of letting their customers down.
He said “I always like the steak at Wetherspoons because it is just great value for money.
“I can’t believe a multi-million pound organisation like Wetherspoons can’t sort this out - it beggars belief.
“Pubs offering food should be able to have a ready supply of steaks even if it means going round the corner to the local butchers.”
Pete Godfrey, 63, from Weston added: “I suppose they are being responsible by taking food off the menu if there’s a problem with the suppliers.”
Another customer, George Richards, 66, from Weston, added: “I’ve never heard of anything like this before - I should imagine that they’ve lost a lot of custom by not offering a full menu.
“But I don’t suppose they had much choice if there’s a problem with their supplier.
“It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
The duty manager said: “We can only say sorry to our customers but we can’t go round the corner and buy steak locally as it is all centrally bought.”