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Romford Dog Track (Greyhound Racing)

Entertainment
in/near Romford, Essex,
England South East

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Review added: 07/05/2006 21:08
By: Darkangel (£0.00 earned from reviews) Earn £££'s

"I recently attended this venue with my partners and a few of his work colleagues as a night out. We booked a Minibus as there were so many of us attending, but it is also within walking distance of many bus stops and Romford town centre and Romford railway station.
Firstly we arrived at the Coral Stadium around 6.30 pm when the doors were just opening. On entering (even though we had pre booked the restaurant) we had to pay £6 per person entrance fee. On payment we received a racing programme with the races all laid out.
The booklets or “race card” as it is known, has all the information needed on the races for the night and even if you are unsure of how the betting system works, there is a complete guide in the first few pages to help you out, so it may be an idea to read through this section before placing any bets.

After we got through the turnstiles and into the main ground we made our way upstairs to the bar area, we stayed there a while to wait for other members of our party. Drinks are varied but prices can be steep it cost around £2 for a pint of coke, and around £3 for spirit's.

When our party arrived we moved into “The Chase Restaurant” (this must be pre-booked with party numbers) and bar. This is where we spent the rest of our evening; the seating is designed so it slopes downwards towards the track side, allowing a good view for all occupants.

At a cost of £20 per person we all had a 3 course meal from a set menu (supplement required for some of the larger meals i.e. steaks) the meal consisted of Appetisers, Main Course, and Dessert, and there were vegetarian options available. It was full waitress service, and the food was well prepared. Drinks were available from the bar or a waitress service is available, but this is not included in the price.

Betting is the main attraction of the Coral Greyhound racetrack. Members of the Tote staff came round to the tables and took your bets from there. It was very pleasant for me, as I had never been there before and worried about how I would be able to place wagers. The nice staff explained everything and you can bet from as little a £1 stakes which was great for me as I all but one of the dogs I backed actually won. In the racing guide there are explanations of the different types of bets available to aid you with your decisions.

The track is laid out in a oval shape and races are run at either 225m, 400m, 575m, 750m, 925m or 1100m, the standard race length at the Romford track is 400m so races were very quick, which added to the excitement.
Alongside the normal bets they also run a Pick 6 Jackpot Tote, where by you purchase a ticket either your own picks or a pre stamped ticket with the six different greyhounds from each of the last 6 races. If you are very lucky and all six of the dogs on you ticket come first in their respective race, you win the jackpot amount, which was around £2000 when I attended.
Just outside the restaurant in the main bar area are Toilet facilities and also ATM's and other machines. My advice would be although there are cash machine's on site keep a total in your head of the amount you want to spend and do not go over it, after all it's supposed to be a fun night, and although I lost having spent around £10 in total on bet's I felt very pleased with myself.

The first race started around 7:30pm and the last race finished around 10:45pm so a great night out.

Race Days are Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday evenings also Thursday afternoons and Saturday mornings.
Admission varies in price from when I attended so I have listed below all the relevant prices. I attended the Main Stand where the restaurant is but the millennium stand is cheaper.
Monday and Wednesday Millennium Stand £1.50 - Main Stand £3.50.
Friday and Saturday Millennium Stand £4 - Main Stand £6.
All including Racecard.(programme)
Thursday afternoon and Saturday morning - free.
Directions situated on the A118 London Road, Romford. 12 minutes from M25, junction 28 via A12.
Rail: Romford Station, 5 minutes by taxi
ENQUIRIES:
01708 762345 - General
01708 725213 - Restaurant
01708 738647 - Racing
E-MAIL ADDRESS:
romford.stadium@coral.co.uk
ADDRESS:
Coral Romford Greyhound Stadium,
London Road,
Romford,
Essex RM7 9DU"

Comments

Firstly, the original "review" by Darkangel has so blatantly been written by someone linked to the venue it's comical.
Yes, some of the information given is useful but the section on the "food being well prepared" is laughable. Our party of 12 all had possibly the worst quality meal ever. Two of our party actually got food poisoning from the Iceland quality dim sums and reheated chicken mains.
The racing part of the night, which is obviously the main draw, was good fun with no major complaints.
But if you value your friends and families lives then DO NOT dine in the Chase restaurant.

I FOUND THE REVIEW VERY HELPFUL AS IT COVERED MOST OF THE POINTS YOU WOULD WANT TO KNOW

I've been to Romford Dog Stadium many times and always have a great time. I usually organise for a group of us to go, last time there were 24 of us. We ate in the Pavilion Restaurant which cost us £20 each, although I think this may be a special offer. For this price we recieved entry into the restaurant along with our race card and a three course carvery meal which I must say no one complained about. The Pavilion Restaurant is located right next to the track and there is a patio area that you can go and stand on to watch the racing if you don't want to watch it on the tv screens. The bar staff come to your table so there's no need to go to the bar itself. You can either pay them straight away or get a "tab". There are other staff to take your bets and will explain all if you're a newbie.

I would definitely recommend Romford Stadium for a good night out with friends. There's a group of us going tonight but we'll only be visiting the stands.

Enjoy!

Very useful! Thanks - I'm going to the 'dogs' tonight!
Can't wait! :)

You do realise i do not work for the Romford Coral Dog Track. I only wrote the review on it.

If you have any Questions you will need to ask the Stadium themselves by the following means.
ENQUIRIES:
01708 762345 - General
01708 725213 - Restaurant
01708 738647 - Racing
E-MAIL ADDRESS:
romford.stadium@coral.co.uk
ADDRESS:
Coral Romford Greyhound Stadium,
London Road,
Romford,
Essex RM7 9DU

we have a tble booked for saturday evening for 7 people for my daughters 21st we would like to bring some balloons for our table during the day wot time would be best thankyou

what time do races finish on saturday mornings

For more information please contact the dog track.

ENQUIRIES:
01708 762345 - General
01708 725213 - Restaurant
01708 738647 - Racing
E-MAIL ADDRESS:
romford.stadium@coral.co.uk
ADDRESS:
Coral Romford Greyhound Stadium,
London Road,
Romford,
Essex RM7 9DU

what are the opening times for the saturday morning races

Great feedback from Darkangel. Would be interested in a party booking myself - please send up to date information and prices for restaurant and bar etc for a booking later this year. Are children allowed on the premises if the restaurant is for a private function? Thanks

thankyou

please send details of restaurant and price

I adore 'going to the dogs' - our local greyhound stadium serves the best jacket potatoes and cheapest lager in Birmingham!

The buzz of winning the huge amount of £2 is great too!