Wetherspoon fan Adam Gale was gutted when he discovered his local pub the Rodboro Buildings in Guildford, Surrey, had axed tuna jacket potato from the menu
The boss of Wetherspoon has reinstated a menu item after receiving a letter from a punter, complaining about its disappearance.
Wetherspoon fan Adam Gale was gutted when he discovered his local pub the Rodboro Buildings in Guildford, Surrey, had axed tuna jacket potato from the menu.
Other toppings, including beans and cheese, were still available, he noted in a letter sent directly to Tim Martin, founder of Spoons. Wetherspoon prices do vary, but at the Rodboro Buildings, a jacket potato with a side salad and one filling costs £7.73 with a soft drink, or £9.26 with an alcoholic beverage.
Mr Gale, of Cranleigh, said: “I love visiting Wetherspoons pubs across the country. Yet I am disappointed to see, at my local Wetherspoon in Guildford – The Rodboro Buildings – that the tuna filling is no longer available for the wonderful jacket potato menu option.
“Your other filling options, such as cheese and baked beans, are lovely. But the tuna one was so nice. Can we please have the tuna filling back on the Guildford menu?”
In response to the letter, Mr Martin said: “For several decades, I was a tuna-and-jacket-potato guy. But I switched to a chicken wrap and salad for lunch a few years back. So, I hadn’t noticed that the tuna had vamoosed.
“No sooner is my back turned. Seriously, though, as we speak, tuna has been reinstated. Your wish is my command, as they say.”
It comes after Mr Martin recently revealed that Wetherspoon won’t increase the price of food and drink over the next few months. It comes after Wetherspoon increased prices on some drinks and meal deals by up to 30p back in January.
Sir Tim Martin told The Sun: “We intend to hold prices at least for the summer and autumn.” However, Sir Tim also slammed tax rules on pubs.
Pubs and restaurants pay standard rate of 20% VAT on food and drink, whereas supermarkets pay zero VAT on similar items. He said: “Pubs must have tax equality with supermarkets.”
Wetherspoon also revealed plans to open 30 new pubs over the year ahead, creating 1,800 jobs. Around half the 30 new pubs planned for the coming year will be managed by Wetherspoons itself, the other half will be run by franchisees.
Among the 15 directly-run pubs planned are in Edinburgh Old Town, Farnham in Surrey, Basildon in Essex, Manchester and Heathrow Airports, London Bridge and Paddington in the capital, and Glasgow.
Wetherspoon has 794 pubs after opening three in the past year and selling nine. The pub chain had as many as 955 sites in 2015.