IT started on Twitter with people feeling happy. The Beerhouse we discovered was coming to operate under the elegant dome of Victoria Station .
It will not seize the opportunity to give the space the love it needs, it will not say, 'Right, here we do things differently'.
There were fantasies of a proper station buffet with a wide range of ales, decent wines and high quality food, something like the astonishingly fine Sheffield Tap at Sheffield Station, in a space as good if not better than the latter.
At last Manchester wouldn't be shamed in one of its showpiece stations, after years of gross mismanagement in the old refreshment room at Victoria.
This is what we wrote in March.
'Architects BDP in their station refurbishment have done a grand job with the old refreshment room. But they can do nothing about the odious rail caterer Pumpkin from SSP Group which has trodden on, abused and disgracefully treated for many years this area of the building. Mosiacs sit next to slot machines, the atmosphere of decline makes the worst motorway service station appear exotic. Pumpkin are the lowest common denominator of chain catering specialising in tawdry burgers, pasties to die for (literally) and a range of Fosters lagers.
'What Network Rail who own the site should do post FORTY FOUR MILLION POUNDS of refurbishment is ensure Manchester Victoria gets something akin to the Sheffield Tap at Sheffield Station. The latter is a work of art in terms of civilised ‘refreshment’. Given Victoria’s footfall and its captive Arena audience it’s a no-brainer.'
I didn't know much about The Beerhouse group which has outlets in several London stations, Glasgow Central and Newcastle Airport. There was no contact number on the website, which was odd, so I rang one of the London outlets.
"Hello, I'm calling from Manchester Confidential may I have a number for your head office I want to talk about your company's plans for Manchester Victoria?" I said to the man on the end of the phone.
"Er...er...we don't give out telephone numbers, you can email," he said.
"But I'd like to talk to someone today if possible," I said.
"We don't give out that information," he said.
"That's a bit sinister. Why not?" I said.
"It's the company rule," he replied gnomically.
Doubts rose in my mind about The Beerhouse's credentials. I turned to Twitter and after exchanging a few tweets, credit where credit's due, I got a call. By that time a few internet searches had revealed the truth.
The Beerhouse units were part of the same SSP Group as Pumpkin.
"We want to revamp the space a little bit," said the SSP woman on the phone. "There'll be boutique beers, an Icelandic beer and a couple of real ales. One from Weetwood Brewery I think. There's limited kitchen capability but we will provide hot snacks from breakfast on. We want to give the space more personality."
It didn't seem from our conversation much was going to change.
Confidential thinks this. The way to give the space more personality would have been to ditch SSP and get in an operator that would treat the old refreshment room with the respect it was due. To achieve this it would have to treat the Victoria Refreshment Room as an exceptional space.
You have to suspect a vast conglomerate such as SSP with its abysmal standards and terrible track record is simply not interested in treating, beyond a cosmetic level, Manchester Victoria in such a way. It will be more concerned about micro-managing costs based on its mighty purchasing power. It will not seize the opportunity to give the space the love it needs, it will not say, 'Right, here we do things differently'.
Some might ask why on earth should SSP go out of its way to put maybe ten hand pumps on the bar, buy in the finest artisan breads and so on - its first duty is to the shareholders after all? The answer is simple. If this place did focus on getting the best rather than settling for average or less than average, it would smash it, and make a fortune for the company.
I hope I'm wrong but unfortunately it seems very clear Manchester will not be getting a Sheffield Tap. SSP aren't capable of delivering such a thing. Comments from writers and the general public about the other Beerhouse operations make it very clear these are an example of jumping very late on to the craft and real ale bar bandwagon. All we can hope for is an improvement but not a step change.
SSP might break with form and decide this will be their flagship, a place with the character to match the decor. I sincerely hope they show me and this article up as tosh and prove me wrong. But I won't be holding my breath.
Victoria Station Refreshment Room re-opens as The Beerhouse on 23 June.