Speaking as an ex-baldric who spent most of my time 'Down South' on the Mountains, on my rear trips into MPA I tried not to drink in the NAAFI
Yes Beags, the messes might have been OK if the rules were relaxed (and one of my SNCOs at the time complained about the antiquated rules in his mess too) but where were us pondlife to go? The advantage of the small bars is that they were all-rank, cheap, friendly and you could keep the Pongos out.
Unless you wanted to fight the RIC and pay outrageous prices for out of date drink in a part of the complex that was even more soulless that the rest of the Death star the NAAFI was a place to avoid.