The Purvis Suite

East End Park

My second visit to East End Park but this time without Tony. Another free hospitality session through one of Tony’s mates and I have my father and brother in-law and my brother in-laws mate joining me. On our first visit to East End Park, we scored them fairly low in a variety of areas, with the half time steak pie the only saving grace. On reflection, we may have been a little harsh. I’m approaching this experience with an open mind and without bias. Another Friday evening match and another Fife derby.

Rather than my usual minute by minute recap of the hospitality experience, I’ll compare this time with the previous and adjust any scores if necessary. I felt like I was cheating on Tony, experiencing a hospitality lounge without him, so it would be wrong to go into too much detail about the evening. Apart from the guy that spewed over himself at the table next to me, there wasn’t much to report on anyway.

Read how Dunfermline compare to Kelty Hearts, 15 minutes down the B912.

The Purvis Suite’s Hospitality Ratings #2

Hosting 3

Previous score was a 1. Nobody seemed to talk to us at all. Tonight, the host talked the room through the evening, spoke with us at the table and sold the half time 50/50 tickets. He also interviewed a current Dunfermline player as well as former player of both clubs, Joe Cardle prior to the match. Nice, friendly host and a step up from the non-existent host of 2 years ago. Although he wasn’t hosting, we also had a visit from Mr Dunfermline, Jim Leishman, who welcomed us to the ground.

Entertainment 3

A low 2 from season 24/25. This time around, we had two player interviews pre match as well as a raffle and the standard 50/50 halftime draw. Live football was also on the TVs. On our last visit, the 2 seemed generous as the 50/50 draw was the only entertainment and the club was slated for no question and answer session before hand. We turned up at 5:20 this time round and caught the last question of an interview with a current player. Previously we turned up at 5:45. Turns out that if you’re not seated sharpish by 5:00, chances are you won’t witness any question and answer session at all. My bad! Team sheet supplied which is always handy. The entertainment this time round, seemed even sweeter with my brother in laws mate, claiming the £700 50/50 prize money and I can confirm it was wired into his account on the Monday.

Meal 4

Last visit, I called the food a 3-course meal of pub grub. This time, the menu read like a Michelin Star restaurant but to help, I’ll translate into pub grub terms.

Pea and chorizo velouté with a selection of house breads = Pea and ham soup and different bread rolls.

Braised beef blade, smoked mash potatoes, roasted roots & bone marrow jus = Beef, mashed potato and carrots with gravy.

White chocolate and berry panna cotta = There’s no way of translating white chocolate and berry panna cotta but it did come in an arsey wee jar that made it tricky to scoop out every last bit.

Food was great and only just missed out on a 5 with the silly wee dessert jar and the velouté which was nice but more of a soup than a velouté. Just saying!

Seating 4

I don’t know how we missed it before but the seats had padding on them. I don’t know if it was because we turned right this time instead of left but both the backing and the seat itself were slightly padded. Same pole as last time which was just blocking our view from a different angle than before.

Half time 4

Same as last time. The steak pie didn’t seem as memorable but still very good. Sausage rolls were also on offer along with tea and coffee if needed. Before kick-off we were able to put an order in for an alcoholic beverage so a beer Moretti, pint of Guinness and a morgans and coke along with a soda and lime was waiting for us. The only problem is you only have 15 minutes to drink it. Factor in a trip to the toilet and the time to walk up and down to your seat, you’re talking a quick 6-minute drink!

Drinks 3

Plenty of selection when it comes to the drinks. A full bar and a range of beers to pick from. My father in-law was on the soft drinks and again plenty to pick from for that. Tea and coffee at half time was fine, just a standard tea and coffee.

Value for money 3

I feel this is a tough one to call as we don’t pay for hospitality at East End. I just ken a guy that kens a guy. £95 for the occasion but that doesn’t include drink. The 3-course meal was good and the service was better than our first experience. Although we had to pay for drink, it was reasonably priced. I paid £20 for my share of the rounds and that was at least 4 drinks. You’d struggle to find cheaper in a pub in town.

Total 24

Where do Dunfermline fair in The Hospitality League Table?