Ram Jam services
A1 northbound between Stamford and Colsterworth
(also accessible to traffic on the B668)
Signposted from the road.
LE15 7QX
map and directions
Single site located between junctions on one side of the road.
The old inn has been demolished but the Ram Jam's neat name lives on, with new food units planned.
Facilities
Catering: Brightside, Wendy's Drive Thru Forecourt: Texaco, Pop-In Daily, Smokin' Bean Coffee
Parking Prices
Short stay customer parking is available. No HGV parking is available.
This information is provided to us by third parties. You should always check with staff on site.
Contact Details
🏢 Address:
Ram Jam Service Station
Great North Road
Stretton
Oakham
Rutland
LE15 7QX
Trivia and History
There was a pub here called the Winchelsea Arms, built in the 18th century. Shortly afterwards, it changed to its much more remembered name: The Ram Jam Inn.
Theories as to what the name means are varied, but generally involve a confidence trick where the landlord had her thumb jammed in a barrel. The pub was frequented by Dick Turpin who is the suspected culprit of any such tricks. It's not named after the '70s rock band known for the single Black Betty, but it has leant its name to a different Ram Jam Band featuring Geno Washington.
A garage was built next to the pub in the early 1900s and became known as the Ram Jam Garage. This eventually gained fuel facilities, turning the site into a full service area. Access was available from the service station or from the B668.
The fuel facilities were upgraded to a forecourt with canopy and shop facilities in 1988, with Texaco providing the fuel. The site rebranded to Esso at some point during the 2000s before rebranding back to Texaco with a SPAR store in the early 2010s. The garage facilities were upgraded in 2011, with Greetham Garage acquiring the workshop in 2015, relocating from their original garage in Greetham village.
The Ram Jam Inn continued as a pub-restaurant, an inn and a conference centre until August 2013, when it was closed and put up for sale.
New Services
When the government announced a plan to replace the A1 with a motorway in 1989, the then-owner of the Ram Jam Inn spoke highly of the idea, suggesting that the inn could transform into a full motorway service area. In the event that motorway wasn't built, and the extended closure of the building left it in a poor state of repair.
Godwin Developments demolished the Ram Jam Inn in November 2022. They will replace it with two drive thru units and two standard units. These would be arranged around a car park, with Greetham Road becoming the main access point.
The developer argued that the Ram Jam Inn was in a poor state of repair and could not be adapted into the plan, although it not being the shape and style most fast-food vendors would want was also a factor.
Wendy's opened a drive-thru store in one of the new units on 21 November 2024. The following day, Brightside, the new Loungers restaurant that was heavily inspired by Little Chef and Happy Eater, opened their Rutland branch in the stand-alone unit. Costa has been named as the third occupier in the other drive-thru unit.
Meanwhile, MPK Garages have requested permission to demolish the existing forecourt shop and reposition the shop from the west of the site (adjacent to Greetham Garage) to the south of the site adjacent with the A1. The proposal means that the forecourt shop would be exceptionally larger and could offer more produce. Ahead of this, the shop was re-branded from SPAR to Londis in 2021 and to Nisa Local's new Pop-In Daily brand in 2023.
Greetham Garage permanently closed in September 2021 with the owner, Julian Carlew, retiring after 45 years. The workshop has since been sold to a national recovery firm.
Alternatives
| Previous: | Next: | |
| Bloody Oaks (northbound, 12 miles) Stibbington (14 miles) | Services on the A1 | Colsterworth (5 miles) |
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