Series 7 - The Grosvenor Hotel, Rugby

To view this page ensure that Adobe Flash Player version 10.0.0 or greater is installed.

Entrepreneur Raman Bal believed the Grosvenor Hotel would become the foundation of his business empire. Raman invested £600,000 in elevating the 25 bedrooms to executive standard, gave the dining room a wash and brush up, and put a bit of sparkle into the bar. But his ambitions have not been matched by reservations.

Next

Previous

All episodes 

Comments (62)

  • john Smitdh

    9 months ago

    john Smitdh

    This hotel is local to me ..the food is great BUT 4 bookings for sunday lunch they have cancelled .They have no wine list and the wait staff are on planet zog...lets hope it looks up .....

  • This comment was removed by a moderator

  • Alan

    9 months ago

    Alan

    Would the problem be that it's located in Rugby? Just a thought, from a former resident...

  • shelly

    9 months ago

    shelly

    The grosvenor used to be a beautiful hotel with lots of character. We had our wedding reception there six years ago and it was wonderful. What has this man done to it???

  • Karen

    9 months ago

    Karen

    We stayed here after our works party. The food was ok but the room was so hot and the radiator would not turn down or off. We slept naked on top of the bed all night even tho there was 2 feet of snow outside it was that hot. We did ask for it to be sorted but nobody bothered to do it. The room really needed updating too.

  • Adam

    9 months ago

    Adam

    I simply love this programme...! Very unique. More series please... Oh and Alex... You ROCK!

  • lala

    9 months ago

    lala

    come on channel 5 - the show finished almost an hour ago - why can't we watch online - very poor service compared to the bbc!

  • Alan

    9 months ago

    Alan

    We were told there were no twins in the hotel despite having booked five rooms almost a year earlier and having it confirmed in an email. That was quite a shock to a group of nine men on a corporate weekend for the British Grand Prix.

  • Callianne

    9 months ago

    Callianne

    why ccant we watch the latest showing, ? unusual for channel 5.

  • pkm

    9 months ago

    pkm

    come on get it on,,!!

  • A.P

    9 months ago

    A.P

    quite simply darling if you can't deliver the on demand service you advertise then you can't expect customers to return here - this business is all about keeping customers happy is it not ? When I come back I really hope they get their act together as I think there is potential here but only if they buck up their ideas and stop dilly dallying

  • carl

    9 months ago

    carl

    This service is soooooo slow at getting programs on! i was born and raised in rugby but no longer live there, i love this program but cant watch cause channel 5 are rubbish at getting it on fast!!!

  • comment is awaiting moderation

  • Peter

    9 months ago

    Peter

    Again? 5 can you reply a bit quicker this time and just tell us why. Last time you said it was a technical problem surely a technical problem wont happen twice on the same show? ow come everything else seems to be working straight away all the time. Can you reply to us please and try and get this on? Don't you get complaints from virgin media customers who pay for this service!? Just tell us why then you wont get as many angry comments. Moderator please pass this on..?

  • Ant

    9 months ago

    Ant

    come on channel five please put this on! how come you take so long to upload things compared to other channels! :(

  • William

    9 months ago

    William

    I agree this service is aweful. What is taking so long? I enjoy watching this program and was looking forward to watching it tonight. Please reply, and tell us about the technical problam, convince us it's true.

  • jimbob

    9 months ago

    jimbob

    jst plain rubbish if u ask me chan 5 shuld no longer be on tv is jst pure rubbish tbh!

  • dan

    9 months ago

    dan

    you would think a site that has to compete with the likes of 4od and bbc iplayer would step up their game, clearly chanel5 is not doing so.

  • Tom W

    9 months ago

    Tom W

    I must say it seems odd that channel 5 do an awful lot of programs promoting improvement of service i.e the program we are all wanting to watch, come on 5 on demand this episode is in demand get it posted, i don't think alex would be to pleased with you either.

  • Craig Nunn

    9 months ago

    Craig Nunn

    What a shocker... Come on C5 "On demand" pull your finger out and start delivering. Not a good idea to promote your programmes as available to watch, when clearly, yet again, "The Hotel Inspector" is not. Perhaps this great show should be approached by a rival TV company for the next series... I do not have problems with their services. Yur are unique tho, the on channel that does not do what it sais on the tin!

  • Rugby123

    9 months ago

    Rugby123

    Come on I missed part of this due to weather interference and would love to see the end. The BBC are much better than you.

  • BryanG

    9 months ago

    BryanG

    My concerns are regarding the bank advance of £600K to finance this business. The owner says he has no idea how much the gross profit yield is on food sales! No lender would support this loan without a written business plan and monitoring his profit and loss updates.

  • Kthom

    9 months ago

    Kthom

    id like to watch it hurry up five demand

  • tom

    9 months ago

    tom

    Hello demand5 where is the prog? Bit rubbish that, whats the point in this service when you dont show the prog. I wont be waiting around for this service anymore crap!!

  • sandra

    9 months ago

    sandra

    Hello? Anybody there?? Can you please release the programme Channel 5 or offer an explanation as to its delay? My mum says manners cost nothing.

  • sandra

    9 months ago

    sandra

    Hello? Anybody there?? Can you please release the programme Channel 5 or offer an explanation as to its delay? My mum says manners cost nothing.

  • Richard

    9 months ago

    Richard

    This isn't the only programme they are constantly late in putting up. There is no Gadget Show either and for some reason they are only showing the first two episodes of Impossible. Is it really that hard - anybody would think it was Impossible

  • leslel

    9 months ago

    leslel

    where is last nights prog? whats the point in demand 5 if you dont put it up I demand to see it 5

  • Rich

    9 months ago

    Rich

    Hmmm, so how many progs that should currently be on Demand 5 are we still waiting for? Why don't we shame Channel 5 by listing ALL the progs that we are still waiting for Channel 5 to show us?

  • This comment was removed by a moderator

  • kevin sheehan

    9 months ago

    kevin sheehan

    How long does it take to get this program on demand 5? I have been trying all morning

  • rosie kite

    9 months ago

    rosie kite

    The food is horrific there!

  • Channel5

    9 months ago

    Channel5

    Woooo!

  • Miffed

    9 months ago

    Miffed

    WTF why is Demand Five not working at all tonight 31/05/11 Fix this you pratss!

  • prey

    9 months ago

    prey

    I pay for this service - so sort it out

  • jac

    9 months ago

    jac

    answers please c5????

  • wayne

    9 months ago

    wayne

    no play button and no way to start playing this show... not the best online service there is!!!

  • JimmyB

    9 months ago

    JimmyB

    Playing fine - wayne there's a big play button in the middle of Alex's face. Better late than never I suppose

  • neil

    9 months ago

    neil

    Alex, you ROCK!!!!

  • Sophie

    9 months ago

    Sophie

    "Look darling"

  • Debbie

    9 months ago

    Debbie

    We stayed in the hotel after this program was filmed and yet my room was still a disgrace. The refurbishment clearly had no affect on my room as there was no kettle, the television did not work and the net curtains were in need of a good clean. In the bathroom, I discovered wires hanging from the extractor fan which had no cover on it. Still some work needing done, but on the plus side, the food in the restaurant was fantastic.

  • This comment was removed by a moderator

  • sandra

    9 months ago

    sandra

    I thought you wanted comments on the hotel-have people forgotten this

  • Tess

    9 months ago

    Tess

    I know, I always think I'm going to see some juicy opinions when I see the number of comments and it's a load of stuff about ch 5 and I get disappointed. I still read'em though, cos I'm a bit sad.

  • Mr Bob Slater

    9 months ago

    Mr Bob Slater

    Alex will you marry Me ?

  • Pip

    9 months ago

    Pip

    Poor guy, its obvious he isnt confident to sell or speak in public so why hang him out to dry. That hotel needs a manager who has the skills to promote...problem solved...but yet she didnt suggest that?

  • sm

    9 months ago

    sm

    he has no people skills at all.... i feel sorry for the staff... apart from the receptionist they all look about 12. you can tell he's the sort of person who hides away and lets everyone else take the fall. i bet he's always in trouble in business and with his 'personal skills' and money ...he thinks he's the bee's knees so that made me laugh a lot.. running a shop and runnng a hotel are two very different things. i hope he takes a long hard look at himself. if he does and can get rid of that arrogance things may change for the better for him..at the moment he's just a joke. I'm 'visiting' there in the next week so am looking forward to speaking to him and the kindergarden (sorry - staff). I will post my findings.. i am looking forward to the food though (as long as he doesnt cook it..ha ha)

  • sm

    9 months ago

    sm

    @ pip... your right... he needs a couple of older/more mature staff who have been in this industry for at least 10 years... AND LISTEN TO THEM... then he would be sat on a goldmine......... looking at his staff though... and the state of the hotel... he like cheap... you cant sell quality when you have cheap foundations. he probably doesnt even realise his rooms are his biggest earner

  • JLinden

    9 months ago

    JLinden

    'sm' hit the nail on the head! His speech impediment is a mirror of his confidence. The owner needs to employ a HOTEL MANAGER. Somebody who is qualified and has real experience in hotel and people management. It would seem he just doesn't have the ability to run this establishment. Having visited this hotel under previous management I believe it really was better off. Also what happened to Sunday Lunch? The only good thing about the hotel was the Sunday Lunch, he has even managed to ruin that. Speaks volumes about this 28 year old 'entrepreneur'. Resident of Rugby.

  • PColledge

    9 months ago

    PColledge

    Booking for Sunday Lunch 5th June CANCELLED by the hotel without advising. Found out on arrival. Can this man really expect to succeed?

  • Hotelbooker

    9 months ago

    Hotelbooker

    I'm not surprised, booked our MD in there, they moved him from a fairly decent room to the worst in the hotel!! How not to get booked again! And to top it all failed to supply copy invoice even after 3 requests! How hard can that be! Lets just say the new Travelodge has got to be better!!

  • This comment was removed by a moderator

  • This comment was removed by a moderator

  • :-)

    9 months ago

    :-)

    TO HOTELBOOKER... If he gets some decent front desk staff like he used to have that wouldnt of happened... i feel ashamed to of even worked there after reading all the comments on here and on facebook. I truly feel bad for him. His family must be worried about what they have done/bought

  • :-)

    9 months ago

    :-)

    the hotel has a facebook page if you want to 'like' it.... dont go by the website.... apart from the bar the photos on there are NOT from the hotel... i had a meeting there and guests staying so i know..... im not going to be petty and call trading standards... but a bit miffed alex didnt pick up on that.... when i complained to the AA (cause he's got a certificate up saying the hotel is 3*) the AA said that they took his stars off him long ago...... what a manager/owner! look out rugby!

  • spoon

    9 months ago

    spoon

    Can't the owner be grateful of What Alex done for him. 6 years is a long time & he didn't make it so please don't be so big headed.

  • Peter

    8 months ago

    Peter

    Yet again Alex delivers her amazing skill. Not the most riveting of episodes. Was nice to see a spic and span hotel for a change, although I admit it's hilariously funny when she turns up at a dump to transform

  • Martin

    8 months ago

    Martin

    I'm hoping to start a boat hotel & find this programme so useful! Alex is the best!

  • This comment was removed by a moderator

  • S S

    5 months ago

    S S

    By the looks of things, Channel 5's visit has not improved matters. are they going back for a 1 year on' follow-up?

  • Al Rennie

    3 months ago

    Al Rennie

    Did they make a movie of the Grosvenor Hotel in Rugby? I lived in room #4 for more than a year..1998-1999 Back then, It was owned by Jackie Hall whom I miss alot..Haven't talked to her for years. Quite a special woman. I must say, back then...this was a great Hotel and I have nothing but fond memories of it.. If anyone has Jackie's number..Please let her know that "Pongo" from the U.S. wanted to say hello.

  • Al Rennie

    3 months ago

    Al Rennie

    Did they make a movie of the Grosvenor Hotel in Rugby? I lived in room #4 for more than a year..1998-1999 Back then, It was owned by Jackie Hall whom I miss alot..Haven't talked to her for years. Quite a special woman. I must say, back then...this was a great Hotel and I have nothing but fond memories of it.. If anyone has Jackie's number..Please let her know that "Pongo" from the U.S. wanted to say hello.

Blank_avatar