Newcombe Arms!

On Wednesday I started a new job at the Newcombe Arms in Fratton, near Portsmouth. The Newcombe is a traditional back street pub, located in the heart of the City. My family have used this bar for many years and regard it as their local. I was a little bit anxious about what to expect when I started working, but I need not have worried; I had a fantastic evening, meeting many of the locals on my first day!

This place is unlike anything I am used to; bars in Spain are very different. The Manager of the Newcombe is a professional through and through, rather different to some of the establishment owners in Spain, who are mainly Brits, wanting to venture into the hospitality game, for no other reason than they like having a drink themselves. They may well be professional drinkers, they are certainly not professional publicans.

Equally when you look at the successful bars, clubs and restaurants on the Costa Blanca, you can immediately see the disparity. The Newcombe is a success because it caters for the local community, who live near it, in contrast to an owner with their own personal agenda. I think I will be very happy there. The patrons are a fantastic bunch of characters, who have welcomed me with open arms.

My first couple of shifts have been an eye opener into the British way of doing things; very different to that of Spain. 'Weights and Measures' play the biggest role, with drinks accurately measured and all wastage recorded, a very different process to that practiced back home. With prices in the UK three times higher and measures a sixth of their Spanish counterparts, you immediately notice the difference. Once again us Brits get the raw end of the deal. Having said that, I have missed the old fashioned British Alehouse and it's good to be back working in one.  Backstreet pubs like the Newcombe are a dying breed, however this venue remains the lifeblood of the local community and that makes it special; without establishments like this, the community that exists would all but disappear.