The Halfway House
The Halfway House is a short golf blog post that looks at what snacks are on offer to the on-course golfers.
As a golfer with over 30 years of experience, I have come across my fair share of midway breaks on the course, Many moons ago I was completely against the idea of a halfway house but now I have come to embrace them.
Unfortunately, many of them, I come across are very disappointing. I mean by their choice of menu, which is limited to the usual suspects.
The Halfway House
The Drinks
It is usually a choice of Tea, Coffee, a fizzy drink or even a beer, All of which are not great to consume whilst playing golf.
All of the above contain caffeine which dehydrates the body and will have an effect on your concentration.
Occasionally, there is also bottled water on offer, but that is where it ends, as far as consuming something healthy is concerned. I really feel that they should buck their ideas up and come up with something new & refreshing.
Drinks Suggestions
I have, in the past, come across freshly squeezed orange juice before. Even a mixed berry smoothie, which was delicious.
There was one Halfway House in Spain that offered free tap water in jugs served with either fresh mint or a slice of lemon. They saw this as an added bonus to the golfers for choosing to play at their course.
Several courses have let the junior section take over the on-course refreshments trade to help raise funds for their section. Team training or purchasing logo shirts etc can be expensive and this helps the juniors fund what they need. Some of the members are more prone to purchase something if it is for a good cause. Even if they don’t necessarily need it.
The Food
This usually depends on which country you are playing in. The food that is on offer will usually be unhealthy. Most places will offer hot food such as burgers, hot dogs, meat pies & sausage rolls. This is fine if that is what you wish to eat. But it should be at least good quality and not done as cheap as possible.
The cold options are cold, soggy sandwiches that are made with cheap bread cut up into triangles or horrid cold pies etc.
The rest is cheap snacks like crisps, chocolate & sweets.
Food Suggestions
A good cup of soup with a soft, oven-fresh Grissini is delicious on a chilly day. I had this in Germany and it was lovely.
There was a course that offered my group hot porridge with cinnamon on the 10th tee as it was so cold. Some courses just go that extra mile to improve their customer relations. Sadly, some don’t seem to be bothered at all.
I have also come across a delicious fruit bowl, full of mixed fruit and berries that was topped with bio yoghurt.
A golf course in Austria offered Grilled chicken strips on a bowl of salad leaves with a light dressing, amazing.
Where are the cold snacks, such as homemade granola bars or flapjacks for example? Sandwiches in sourdough rolls or even tasty, Asian flavoured chicken wraps.
The list is endless, but lots of courses still insist on just buying in the industrial, ready-made snacks that cost a fortune.
Having lots of experience in the catering world I know for a fact that this is a very lucrative business if it is done correctly.
Food for thought
There are so many courses missing out on the action. Even if they supplied a golf cart that drove around collecting food orders and selling drinks. Again, this is ideal for the junior section to take on.
Golf clubs are missing out on this extra income. There are many players that would eat something quick on the course. Some of these will often finish their round of golf and jump into the car and head off to the drive-thru. But if there is something tempting them to do otherwise… Who knows?
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Title image from Kira Hoffmann