A pub is so popular with patrons that it currently has a four-year waiting list for its Sunday roasts.
The Bank Tavern has been forced to stop taking reservations to contend with the backlog of requests caused by Covid-19 lockdowns and restrictions.
Landlord Sam Gregory says the Bristol city centre pub has 'created a massive rod for our back' with the high-demand for its Sunday lunches, the Mirror reports.
Sam has had to turn off the online booking system for the moment to honour all tables that have been in the diary since the beginning of the pandemic.
He is only just getting round to welcoming guests who were originally booked for January 2020, with the busy business having always had a significant waiting list.
Sam says: “It had got to a four-year waiting list until the pandemic but because we had a huge backlog of bookings for people who couldn’t eat here due to Covid or lockdowns, we made the decision to honour every booking.
“We’ve actually closed off the booking system so you can’t book online and if we get any cancellations, we are simply back-filling with people in the diary from two years ago. We are up to January 2020 now so it’s going to take a while to get through all the bookings.
"A lot of the tables of two have been easy to rebook but it’s the larger tables of eight or ten which are taking a bit harder to fit in.”
Sam says to speed up the rebookings, the pub now runs an extra fourth sitting on Sundays, from 5pm to 7pm.
He says that the pub does still suffer from the occasional "no show" even after sending reminder emails and phone calls.
Sam recommends people still check out the pub on Sundays in case a table is available last minute.
He said: "We always say to people if you are in town, stick your head around the door because sometimes tables come up if we get no-shows. It’s always worth checking just in case.”
Sam says it is "consistency" that has led to the continued success of the pub's Sunday roasts as well as the attention to detail.
He added: "We stick to the same meats all year round but add seasonal alternatives like lamb and venison, but our starters and desserts change every week.
"A lot of places doing Sunday roasts only release bookings for three-month slots and if we knew we were going to be this popular, we would have done that but it’s a nice problem to have!”
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