Well the queues seemed pretty small and manageable even at HT for beers ( JHL Mather bar ) so good start .
Haffners pies a huge plus though £5 ish? and the mash is gonna be a tough gig . Sadly rock hard crust and no peas .

The pièce de résistance was however the new “ BFC official premier league beer” …. Favela ! At a very un-favela like £6.20 a pop, evidently evoking the “sights and flavours of the Brazilian Favelas” So dogsh1t, weed , raw sewage , drugs , prostitutes and violent street gangs in a bottle !
Alas it’s a generic hoppy below average marketing dream about as authentic as a Tenerife Rolex .

Joking aside things seemed MUCH smoother operationally , though not sure about the other stands ?

That Beers about as Brazilian as Madri is Spanish

Do they not have to use the get out of "style" anymore. Wonder if that's a standard that slipped since you know what?

ŽižkovClaret wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 5:30 pm

That Beers about as Brazilian as Madri is Spanish

Do they not have to use the get out of "style" anymore. Wonder if that's a standard that slipped since you know what?

“ inspired by” has been the goto for a while with Madri being a classic case of a very successful “ fake” Mediterranean beer .

Went for our traditional Bene & Hot pre match to find what was £2.75 is now £3.30, quite a hike IMO, as a result it will be this seasons last, which given two of us leave the pub a bit earlier to enjoy this we will now have an extra drink in the Oxford and go straight on. The cost to BFC, 2 people having 2 Bene`s each was £11 for the club x 19 matches is over £200 lost to BFC, you greedy B*******S

I thought it all ran a lot smoother than usual, barely queued at all which made a nice change, and even managed to grab a pint without missing anything. Tried the new “Favela” just out of curiosity and honestly it wasn’t for me, a bit too generic and not worth the price, so I’ll probably stick to the usual stuff next time. Food wise, the pies were fine but could definitely do with a bit of work, hopefully they improve that as the season goes on.

Mornto wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 6:42 pm

I thought it all ran a lot smoother than usual, barely queued at all which made a nice change, and even managed to grab a pint without missing anything. Tried the new “Favela” just out of curiosity and honestly it wasn’t for me, a bit too generic and not worth the price, so I’ll probably stick to the usual stuff next time. Food wise, the pies were fine but could definitely do with a bit of work, hopefully they improve that as the season goes on.

I've never had a hafners pie, but people seem to rave about them on here previously, but read quite a few complaints about the ones on the ground, are they different to the ones in shops?

Wow the world must be coming to an end if Haffners are getting grief about their pies...

claretgimmer wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 6:09 pm

Went for our traditional Bene & Hot pre match to find what was £2.75 is now £3.30, quite a hike IMO, as a result it will be this seasons last, which given two of us leave the pub a bit earlier to enjoy this we will now have an extra drink in the Oxford and go straight on. The cost to BFC, 2 people having 2 Bene`s each was £11 for the club x 19 matches is over £200 lost to BFC, you greedy B*******S

I walk past the Oxford every home match and I’ve never been in!
Am I missing something good?

Row x wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 6:50 pm

I've never had a hafners pie, but people seem to rave about them on here previously, but read quite a few complaints about the ones on the ground, are they different to the ones in shops?

Definitely improvement on the Hollands soup pies we use to have.
Got one pre match and they seem as deep or upto the usual shop standard to me

wilks_bfc wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 7:03 pm

Definitely improvement on the Hollands soup pies we use to have.
Got one pre match and they seem as deep or upto the usual shop standard to me

Hollands are like that everywhere unfortunately

Might be worth researching which team has the best in-ground food & supporting them.

I can't think of any public events where the food & drinks aren't overpriced & of poor quality.

I went to an LAFC game recently....$68 to park... $20 Bud draught & $12 hot dog.

Agreed the 20% rise for a Bene is hard to justify and I’m sure they will lose sales. Haffners pies a definite plus and I tried a pint of the Favela and thought it was decent. It seemed far more organised and an improvement on last season.

jjclaret wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 7:00 pm

I walk past the Oxford every home match and I’ve never been in!
Am I missing something good?

Gets busy but the beers good, prices fair, shows football and is five minutes walk to the ground, what`s not to like

£6.20 a pint, £5 for a pie and £3.30 for a Bene and hot?
Alan, its Burnley mate. We are paying £2.50 a pint before and after the game. No wonder "things ran smoother". People are not prepared to pay those prices.

I always get a coffee before games but didn’t yesterday. To slap such a big increase on a coffee is just ridiculous and out of touch. A small increase, fine, but this year’s hike makes it absolutely not worth it. Will get a drink from the hole in the wall outside the Park View

Was really pleased when they announced that Haffners had got the contract for the pie supply.
Bought one pre-match and no problems with queue in the JHU. Sadly, was really disappointed. Pie was a bit overdone (not Haffners fault), but it really didn’t taste great. Very under-seasoned and just a bit dry and bland. Shame really

claretgimmer wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 6:09 pm

Went for our traditional Bene & Hot pre match to find what was £2.75 is now £3.30, quite a hike IMO, as a result it will be this seasons last, which given two of us leave the pub a bit earlier to enjoy this we will now have an extra drink in the Oxford and go straight on. The cost to BFC, 2 people having 2 Bene`s each was £11 for the club x 19 matches is over £200 lost to BFC, you greedy B*******S

I thought prices had gone up for everything everywhere ? Buses, supermarkets, cinema etc etc ? Not just the club

Had a couple of pints of ‘Favela’ in the fanzone, thought it tasted like generic, overpriced swill, exacerbated by being served in paper cups. The pop up Guinness bar wasn’t working, either.

Didn’t have a Haffner’s pie on the Turf (picked some up from the shop on the way past) but if they can heat them correctly they should be a huge upgrade on Holland’s and Clayton Park.

Last season Haffners pies were served out of a hatch in the FanZone with optional peas and gravy. Really good set-up and offer, with minimal queues. The hatch was closed yesterday with the promise of pizza by the slice...coming soon. I bought a perfectly decent minced beef and onion pie from the concourse for £5 (without pea/gravy option).

No problem using the ordering points inside the FanZone but no apple Sowerbys, paper cups, and long queues to get served.

I felt the atmosphere was slightly compromised by splitting the loudest 2 singing sections (but at least it will have sounded better in the Bob Lord).

The PA system was fine, if a bit loud, but the pronunciation of Ugochukwu was embarrassing. One effin job (and the announcer generally does not bother me/register with me).

The exit point by the club shop wasn't great but it was better than I feared and at no point did it feel unsafe. That said, I am not elderly or disabled.

Stopped bothering with the food as trying to lose weight but really used to enjoy the peppered steak pie.
Had a pie yesterday as a bit hung over and very disappointed - very dry and not very warm. Won't bother again.

Stopped bothering with the food as trying to lose weight but really used to enjoy the peppered steak pie.
Had a pie yesterday as a bit hung over and very disappointed - very dry and not very warm. Won't bother again.

Row x wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 6:50 pm

I've never had a hafners pie, but people seem to rave about them on here previously, but read quite a few complaints about the ones on the ground, are they different to the ones in shops?

Haffner's Pies have always been outstanding. It's changed ownership but I believe the quality is just as good. But our football club don't seem to have the ability to heat up and serve pies very well and they also charge far too much for them. You'd get one outside the ground, served better and cheaper. The Bridge Bier Huis serve Haffner's as does the cricket club.

Taffy on the wing wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 7:07 pm

Might be worth researching which team has the best in-ground food & supporting them.

I can't think of any public events where the food & drinks aren't overpriced & of poor quality.

I went to an LAFC game recently....$68 to park... $20 Bud draught & $12 hot dog.

On the flip side, Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga - free public transport with your match ticket, season ticket starts at around 140€ for 17 matches, and it's 4,50€ for a beer in the ground, and similar for a Bratwurst

ChrisG wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 25, 2025 8:22 am

On the flip side, Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga - free public transport with your match ticket, season ticket starts at around 140€ for 17 matches, and it's 4,50€ for a beer in the ground, and similar for a Bratwurst

Surely it’ll be Frankfurters that they sell?!

BurnleyFC wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 25, 2025 8:33 am

Surely it’ll be Frankfurters that they sell?!

Ha, you can usually get one of those too!

ClaretTony wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 9:42 pm

Haffner's Pies have always been outstanding. It's changed ownership but I believe the quality is just as good. But our football club don't seem to have the ability to heat up and serve pies very well and they also charge far too much for them. You'd get one outside the ground, served better and cheaper. The Bridge Bier Huis serve Haffner's as does the cricket club.

I never buy food or drink in the ground, but was thinking I might just try one of these pies, as I don't live near somewhere that sells them, but will give it a miss unless the reviews improve.

Row x wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 25, 2025 8:47 am

I never buy food or drink in the ground, but was thinking I might just try one of these pies, as I don't live near somewhere that sells them, but will give it a miss unless the reviews improve.

They are worth trying, outstanding pies. The shop isn't too far from the ground and there are a lot of places who sell them on a match day.

The food offering is quite appalling - especially when you compare it to other clubs. Why they can’t offer something as simple chips/french fries and big pizza slices, for example, is ridiculous.

The awkward 12pm-2pm kick off slots (of which there’ll be many this season) are surely the times when most people will be looking to pick something quick and easy up on the match. The night matches also present an opportunity with the food as quite a lot of people will go to the football without having had time to eat anything.

For a multi-million pound business, where thousands of people/customers come to them to use their facilities, it really is worse than basic and they don’t seem to care. If you’re not particularly a fan of pies or crap hot dogs then there’s nothing for you. It’s 2025 and our food kiosks don’t really offer anything different to when I started going in the 80’s.

As a family of 5 (3 generations), we go on early to watch the players warm up etc and generally end up getting hot drinks. It’s not often we get food in the ground due to the basic choice (and they’ve now taken away the chicken balti pie which some used to enjoy). It actually makes me think that whoever is in charge of catering on the concourses genuinely isn’t interested in improving things and can’t see the opportunity that’s in front of them.

They’d overcooked the Haffners pies a bit ( imo) bit dry tough crust which led to it being a touch tasteless .
As for the “ Favela” official BFC premier league made up beer. It was a below average generic lager that you’d expect to see on Tik Tok /Insta

I had a Favela but will be going back to Poretti next time - much nicer pint.

Haffners pie was better than the old Hollands option.

I tried one of the much-admired Haffners pies - it was less than 1cm thick with no discernible filling - just some thin savoury mush.

Easily the worst “pie” I’ve had - and at a price of £5 I’m back to joining the Turf Moor food boycott

the Haffners pies that are being sold on the Turf are smaller than the normal Haffners pies and at £5 per pie they wont be selling many, quite a few left in Jimmy Mac Lower after half time. It was £6.70 for a pie, peas and mash on Saturday
Hollands and also Clayton Park used to call these pies matchday pie's as they were smaller as well.
For cost comparison, you can get 4 normal sized Clayton park meat and potato pie's for £6.40 from the Spar, warm one up and take it with you. I believe normal size Haffners pies are around £2.75 to buy from the shop / bakery direct

Morecambe had the best pies, made on site, but someone stole their chef.

Then their club.

Got a pie which was ok but not exactly deep filled so won’t be bothering again especially given the price. Not as I remembered a Haffners pie although not had one for quite a while. Will try one from the Cricket Club next time I think. Beer was ok (Poretti in the fanzone) but the paper cups are crap. Much better last year in the reusable plastic ones (must have cost the club too much to rinse them out)?

There is a noticeable difference in quality in what the average joe gets served up on the concourses to what gets served out in the hospitality areas which I think is a disgrace in itself as it shows they just don't care what they offer us and expect us to lap it up.

I've been in my works private box in the JH and the food was outstanding. I had also been in there before the refurb many years ago and even then it was top quality. We had our works do in the new JM hospitality and the food that night was of good quality too. Some will disagree but the difference is stark.
Why does it have to be like this? You can only assume they just don't care or as is more likely..just don't get what the supporters want.

I have not bought inside the stadium for years now..mainly because of price and lack of value and options. I do buy the odd pint of Wainwrights in the fanzone but having it tipped out into a paper cup on Saturday even spoilt that.

Somethingfishy wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 26, 2025 4:05 pm

There is a noticeable difference in quality in what the average joe gets served up on the concourses to what gets served out in the hospitality areas which I think is a disgrace in itself as it shows they just don't care what they offer us and expect us to lap it up.

I've been in my works private box in the JH and the food was outstanding. I had also been in there before the refurb many years ago and even then it was top quality. We had our works do in the new JM hospitality and the food that night was of good quality too. Some will disagree but the difference is stark.
Why does it have to be like this? You can only assume they just don't care or as is more likely..just don't get what the supporters want.

I have not bought inside the stadium for years now..mainly because of price and lack of value and options. I do buy the odd pint of Wainwrights in the fanzone but having it tipped out into a paper cup on Saturday even spoilt that.

Punters paying 3 figures per game in receiving better service shocker.......

ŽižkovClaret wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 26, 2025 4:06 pm

Punters paying 3 figures per game in receiving better service shocker.......

Well indeed. It's not a shock in that sense but it's more the fact they can do it if they really wanted to do it. It's the lack of effort and imagination from the catering company they have in that is the issue and perhaps the facilities inside our kiosks are limited and affects our abilty to offer anything different or imaginative? Other clubs offer much better choice (although still pricey) than we do. Hull City are way ahead in this.

Somethingfishy wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 26, 2025 4:18 pm

Well indeed. It's not a shock in that sense but it's more the fact they can do it if they really wanted to do it. It's the lack of effort and imagination from the catering company they have in that is the issue and perhaps the facilities inside our kiosks are limited and affects our abilty to offer anything different or imaginative? Other clubs offer much better choice (although still pricey) than we do. Hull City are way ahead in this.

I guess its a risk as a commercial enterprise. Switching up to any great extent would involve investment, with no guarantee of return. Its one thing to change pie suppliers, but to introduce fryers, and associated venting in each kiosk...... you start to see costs spiral, and is there a guarantee that demand will increase to justify it? The ground is used, more or less, 18 or 23 times a season. That's not much use for what would need to be spent. other grounds will often have compaunds within the stadium footprint that fans can use at HT etc where they can hire in food vans, West Ham being one example, but we have very limited capacity to do so.

i suspect pie mash and peas is as close to haute cuisine as your average BFC punter will see anytime soon.

Only tangentially related (I think we use the same outsourced company) but at Spurs last week their offering was a bit rubbish for a supposedly flagship stadium.

Those bottom filling pint glasses are only used by the staff who then slowly pour it into a plastic glass for you and they seemed to have run out of a fair bit of the food by halftime.

Bring back Barry Kilby,and Chris Gibson,when you where both here,everything was spot on,knew the Fans and listened to their opinions,so much different to todays Present Lot,OUR WAY OR NO WAY,UTC.

I’ve just found out they’ve taken Dr Pepper off the menu

Gutted

If you dont like the prices, Dont pay for it.

Somethingfishy wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 26, 2025 4:05 pm

There is a noticeable difference in quality in what the average joe gets served up on the concourses to what gets served out in the hospitality areas which I think is a disgrace in itself as it shows they just don't care what they offer us and expect us to lap it up.

I've been in my works private box in the JH and the food was outstanding. I had also been in there before the refurb many years ago and even then it was top quality. We had our works do in the new JM hospitality and the food that night was of good quality too. Some will disagree but the difference is stark.
Why does it have to be like this? You can only assume they just don't care or as is more likely..just don't get what the supporters want.

I have not bought inside the stadium for years now..mainly because of price and lack of value and options. I do buy the odd pint of Wainwrights in the fanzone but having it tipped out into a paper cup on Saturday even spoilt that.

The food in JM Hospitality on Saturday was a starter portion of chilli, a hot dog & brownie and a veg samosa at half time. All yours for just 60 English pounds (and you can only have 1 of each). In addition the very nice girl supervisor from last season has left & been replaced by a gentleman who I am told is somewhat unpopular with the staff - maybe this has something to do with the fact that he supports a club down the road - and it's not Accrington.