Severn Valley Venturer

This is the area of the Severn Valley Railway in which I do volunteer work. I act as a , the visible part of this is serving food on the trains listed below.

As we are usually the first departure of the day from Bridgnorth, we don't have time to stop and chat. The food is prepared in the kitchen section of a RB (Restaurant Buffet which, for number collectors, is 1682). This is a cosy part of the coach where two people cook the food during the trip from our base in Bridgnorth. Next to the kitchen is the pantry. An even cosier place where the washing up is done. And believe me there is a lot of it! In the centre of the coach next to the pantry is the bar. Would you believe me if I said it is even smaller than the pantry? Facing the bar is a passenger service area, this is where we stand during lulls in serving. The rest of the coach is take up by 23 places which are used as an overflow from the FO (First Open, 3103) The FO is where we can serve the food to up to 42 diners. Then again, a really big party can push the numbers over the 65 possible if we use the RB. So a TSO (Tourist Second Open) which has 64 seats can shunted onto the other end of the RB from the FO. E G. For the Haggis Special on New Year's Day.

If we have a "full house" once all the diners are aboard, we start to serve the starter course. Then again, if we have ample staff and some empty seats we wait until the train begins to pull away from the platform before the serving starts. This is usually soup, with the options of fruit juice cocktail or mackerel pâté. Depending on the number of diners, we either have one of those rare moments where we stand around and admire the view OR we collect up the soup bowls etc. and set the scene for the next course. This is the one that they have been waiting for - the main course. The hot plates are taken out of the warmer in the kitchen and balanced upon your forearm. This is the point where one has a "waiter's cloth" strategically placed! The steward then using their "fighting irons" (serving spoon and fork) places the plates in front of the diners warning people that the plates are very hot! Then a couple of stewards (usually THE Chief and another, we've got more than one (Chief) but you can only have one acting on the day) follow with the meats. Then the potatoes, followed by the veg then sauces and gravy. And when they've finished, we clear away the dirty dishes. Taking care to only clear away from tables upon which everyone has finished that course.

What can happen at this part of the day is that no sooner have one lot of dishes been washed, there are the ones from the next course to be done. And if you're very unlucky, the dishes come in FASTER than you can do them! I've seen them stacked on the bar, and on the tables in the RB.

Next course is the dessert followed by the coffee with an after-dinner mint. Hopefully all this is done before we get into Bridgnorth. Sometimes we have a pre-booked party which can take us over the capacity of the FO. When this happens we have to clear the tables while we are standing in the platform at Bridgnorth.

During our second departure from Bridgnorth we used to prepare for a cream tea service. But for various reasons we no longer do. So the second trip is taken up by our (subsidised) staff meal which is not only limited to the Venturer staff as sometimes we are joined by the TTI's (Travelling Ticket Inspectors), the guard and if they feel like it, the loco crew. After that there is the finishing off of our house-keeping chores such as counting the linen for the laundry contractor.

The trip back to Bridgnorth is a repeat of the trip up (in railway terms) to Kiddey. Hopefully it passes uneventfully and we bail out, back at base, with the rubbish and any alcohol stock which is NOT left on the train.

Evening trips are a set menu with the service being done from Bridgnorth to Kiddey. This helps in so much as you don't need quite so many staff. But see the above mention of the TSO.

During the Gala Weekends, the RB may be providing Mixed Grills. If you miss 1682, you could always try the all-day breakfast on another BR Buffet Car Fund vehicle, 1883, which happens to be based at Kidderminster. This is a one-off unique bar car known as "Elmo's" named after the bar of the TV character of the same name. If you've seen it's interior you would know why!

And I go to the University on Monday mornings for a rest!!

P.S. Of course since I first wrote this article we have become victims of our own success... We now regularly fill the FO and the RB. The upshot of this is that if you wish to dine with us, book it well in advance. If you turn up "on-spec" the chances are that you will be disppointed. More diners and a greater number of special party bookings means that there is an increasing demand on the staff. Would you like to join us?

P.P.S. One thing I haven't mentioned before was for some time the number 1 chef was also a member of the paid staff. Part of his time was allocated to mid-week duties concerned with the Venturer, which was funded from the Venturer takings. When he laft for pastures new there was no longer this financial commitment, as his duties were taken up by volunteers. Since then we no longer need to fill the 23 seats in the RB. So we don't.

The Severn Valley Venturer runs on Sundays, Bank Holiday Mondays and Saturday Evenings during Gala Weekends. During the Autumn Gala we also provide an in much demand walk-on breakfast.

During Timetable "B" the Severn Valley Venturer provides a full dining service available from Kidderminster on the 1.00pm departure.
During Timetable "D" a full dining service is available from Kidderminster on the 12.45pm departure.

Created on by: Dave Rowley, September 1996
Last modified by Dave Rowley on April 4^th 2003