SU pub meets mixed reviews

After the disappointing delay in the opening of the new Students’ Union venue, The Copper Rooms, it was hardly surprising that students flocked to last Monday’s opening of the Dirty Duck pub.

On the whole, the feedback about the new venue has been positive, according to Stuart Thomson, President of Warwick’s Students’ Union. “At any new opening on campus, we always make sure to ask students for their opinions on the venture and, so far, reactions to the Dirty Duck have been very encouraging.”

Thomson told the Boar that he and his fellow sabbatical officers were not even sure that the pub would be able to open so early in the term, so the fact that it did manage to make its debut on Monday was very pleasing for him and his team.

Despite some criticism over the lack of food in the pub, Thomson feels that the right decision was made. “This is very much a phase project. The truth is that the kit for running the kitchen is not fully in place, but meals will be available within the next few weeks, as well a snug area which will come on board at the Duck sooner rather than later.”

One third-year engineering student agreed with Thomson about the lack of food, “I don’t think it’s a problem at all. I – and all of my peers – completely understand that the Union needed to open the pub as soon as possible.”

The general student feedback on the Dirty Duck as a venue has been complimentary and the new pub is seen as superior to its predecessor, the Graduate.

A second year Drama student commented, “It’s such a nice place to be. It has so much space and an excellent ambience. It seems more like an up-market bar than a student pub, which is definitely not a bad thing!”

Another Drama student agreed, “It’s just so much more inviting than the Grad ever was.”

However, the Dirty Duck has been cited by some as having a somewhat pretentious atmosphere.

A first year History student’s initial impression of the pub was exactly this, “Rather than being edgy and cool as it’s so patently trying to be, rather like an up-market London wine bar, it seems to me to be dingy and dull. It has none of the real pub feel the Graduate had – that place didn’t ever try to be anything it wasn’t.”

A second year English student said, “I think its definitely nicer than the grad@cholo, and its certainly nice that there’s more seating, but its not a pub, it looks like a room at Ikea. It’s not what a pub should be, it’s very sterile. And the beer’s still terribly cold. They changed the surroundings but they still don’t properly serve their beer.”

Events held outside the University have proved unpopular with the student population. While Top Banana – held in Leamington Spa’s Assembly – has attracted both positive and negative comments (Thomson told the Boar that the attendance was very similar to the event when it was held on campus, which is particularly impressive for an exam term), Score at Evolve has attracted far more criticism.

One first year Maths student described the night as “horrible. The turnout was ridiculously small and so it was an incredibly boring event. The most annoying thing about it, though, is the fact that it costs so much to get there. Transport is much more than the entry and drinks.”

It is true that the off-campus events are far more convenient for those who live off-campus; Thomson told the Boar, “It just gives students who live in Leamington Spa and Coventry a great opportunity to experience some of the University social life without having to remain on campus. Transport is definitely not an issue for them.”

Other benefits to these nights are the availability of cheap drink deals, similar to those found in the former campus-based SU.

Mike Pidgeon, the Students’ Union Communications Officer, said that the Union made sure that they only chose venues which were able to offer these deals, although “it is definitely not in the University’s financial interest to send students to competitors’ venues. But it was very much a case of making a situation which was admittedly not great as good as it can possibly be.”

He assured the Boar, “These measures are just a temporary fixture and will be resolved as soon as they can be.”

One thing which cannot be changed – and does seem to be an issue for students living on campus – is the cost and inconvenience of using buses to get to The Assembly and Evolve, especially considering the still-raging argument regarding high fares.

With the exception of last Friday’s one-off free “party bus,” Thomson said that it was simply not financially viable to have buses running for free every night there is an event on outside the University. “It costs around £500 to hire a single bus for an evening and so the cost to get hundreds of students to Leamington Spa or Coventry would be astronomical.”

Despite the lack of money in the Union, Thomson has met with a group of first years who have set up a Facebook group asking for a free event for freshers, many of whom feel let down that their own freshers’ week was not up to standard. Thomson assured the Boar that he was definitely looking in to the possibility of such an event taking place on campus.

Despite the various complaints, the new Union arrangements have been – on the whole – well received, something which greatly pleases Thomson.

“It really is my job to apologise for the delay. It really is a case of making the best of a bad situation, but I’m looking forward to said situation being resolved as soon as possible.”