Charlie Jenkins at the Goose and Cuckoo
A chat with Charlie reveals that he came from Cowbridge to live at Cefn Gornoeth in the early 2000s and went to our village school. As manager of the Goose and Cuckoo he admits to being happy to be back!
He moved on to Llandovery College for a while but finished with A levels at Tregyb in Llandeilo and then went to Cardiff Metropolitan to study Events Management. Before he came back here he was manager of the Boar's Head Hotel in Carmarthen. As one of his customers, you become aware that his experience of "management" shines through the way he works - he is obviously a conscientious cultivator of good relationships with his staff and we feel the benefit of that. Doesn't it make a difference when people smile and are eager (not too eager) to help with making choices from the menu and wine list?
In his youth Charlie was a keen sportsman, especially enjoying football but also, for a while, he was a fencer, motivated by the opportunity to have genuine sword fights without risks of injury. Now he admits that lots of walking around the pub is the only exercise he gets.
He is committed to tackling changes and improvements at the Goose and Cuckoo that will make it an even more enjoyable place to visit and spend money! Regulars notice the progressive adjustments to the variety of menus for different times of day and different times in the year. Right now (this is being written a few weeks before Christmas) he is preparing for the installation of a high-tech coffee machine that will be capable of responding to requests for all those tricky variations, including take-aways. And soon there will be take-away sandwiches on offer and more emphasis on real ales in the bar. And by the time that the village Christmas lights go on, there will be hot chocolate and mince pies.
The Goose and Cockoo is obviously an important piece in the jigsaw of our village and its life, a popular place to hold regular restaurant events for our various "societies", and good enough to draw in more and more people from wider afield in our special corner of Wales. It's evidently in good hands.
