Wetherspoons

[Iskra]

I'm just glad I checked before "dropping anchor"!

One thing about Spoons is that if you're in an unfamiliar place you know what you'll get there. For example if you were doing the Trans-Pennine ale trail and reached Batley, there's the Cellar Bar by the station (good beer but a bit of a hostile atmosphere) and a 6-7min walk into Batley proper. Once there, there's a half-decent Wetherspoon's and two other pubs within spitting distance. One is the Tap Room, a fine establishment with plenty of nice local real ales on. The other is The Wellington, a pub where you should wipe your feet as you leave, which serves Carling or John Smith's or Guinness. If you didn't know the place, the Wetherspoon's is the safe bet!

What’s hostile about Cellar Bar? I’ve always found it a safe bet, I spent a lot of time in there when I was 18-21, which I wouldn’t have done if it was dodgy.

Batley spoons is in a cracking building, but was looking internally tired when I used to go. Has it been refurbished yet?

I’d put Cellar Bar above Spoons in terms of being less likely to end up in any hot water with the locals.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

What’s hostile about Cellar Bar? I’ve always found it a safe bet, I spent a lot of time in there when I was 18-21, which I wouldn’t have done if it was dodgy.

Batley spoons is in a cracking building, but was looking internally tired when I used to go. Has it been refurbished yet?

I’d put Cellar Bar above Spoons in terms of being less likely to end up in any hot water with the locals.

Because when you enter, it's kinda like being in a Western and you're the stranger in town who's just entered the saloon. Everyone stops and looks round, even the piano player! Agree the Wetherspoon's can get some of the unpleasant locals:- presumably the ones that Jacques in the "Taps" kicks out!

 

[Iskra]

Because when you enter, it's kinda like being in a Western and you're the stranger in town who's just entered the saloon. Everyone stops and looks round, even the piano player! Agree the Wetherspoon's can get some of the unpleasant locals:- presumably the ones that Jacques in the "Taps" kicks out!

Yes, I can understand that, it draws a very regular crowd. I think it’s a good little bar. It does look a bit suspect from the outside and is in a fairly run down part of town too. I do prefer the West Riding/Wessie at Dewsbury, which used to be run by the same guy and is more welcoming to strangers. That one certainly beats the local Spoons hands down.

 

[CaptainHaddock]

My take on Wetherspoons;

Plus points

1. Cheap prices.
2. A wide selection of real ale
3. A wide variety of other drink choices, such as real cider.
4. Wetherspoon's do a very good job of sensitively refurbishing old and architecturally-interesting buildings.
5. Basic good value food.
6. A good venue for group meetings (many local CAMRA groups hold branch meetings in Spoons)
7. If you find yourself in a strange town and see a Wetherspoons, you know what you're going to get.

Minus points

1. Cheap prices tend to attract a...er...lower class of person, which can lead to an intimidating atmosphere.
2. Real ales aren't always as well kept as they could be and are often served too cold.
3. The "generic" Wetherspoons design means that most of their pubs end up looking the same.
4. Food is not (as far as I know) freshly prepared and availability can be unreliable.
5. It takes ages to get served, and sometimes customer service can be poor.
6. Their market dominance is killing off other more individual pubs.
7. If you find yourself in a strange town and see a Wetherspoons, you know what you're going to get.

 

[Spamcan81]

Really the app is more intended for ordering food and things with food, so a common use-case is to go to the bar, choose your pint, then sit down and order food from the app rather than going back up once you've picked.

I suspect if it ended up getting to the point where everyone was having drinks table service they'd require a food item to be added as well, because it'd be too costly on staff.

I rarely go to a Spoons without ordering anything to eat so my criticism of the lack of beer choice on the app still stands. And as IanD has already stated, if the meal includes a drink then the app is as much use as a chocolate fireguard if you wish to order a guest ale with your meal.

 

[Spamcan81]

It's the whole ethos of creating large drinking barns / feeding stations. Martin isn't interested in creating pubs or atmosphere only on size, capacity and throughput. A neighbour suggested the local defunct Woolworth store as a potential site but 'it just wasn't big enough'. The cost has been the loss of a lot of decent local friendly alehouses being driven out of the market to be replaced by the vast turnover drinking barns that Martin and the other pubcos are inflicting on us. The only glimmer of hope that is stemming this trend is the current vogue for micropubs - from a garden shed in Pewsey to the old coal office on Wellingborough platform they are a beacon of individuality opposing the corporate blandness.

I think it varies from town to town. Three towns local to me all have a Spoons yet other watering holes seem to be going strong still. In fact in Letchworth there is now a micropub and a brewpub both opened for trade relatively recently and both are within a few yards of the long established 'Spoons. Both serve an excellent selection of ales and both would appear to be doing well so the choice of outlets has increased in spite of the presence of a JDW and another large pubco establishment.

 

[Spamcan81]

Yes, I can understand that, it draws a very regular crowd. I think it’s a good little bar. It does look a bit suspect from the outside and is in a fairly run down part of town too. I do prefer the West Riding/Wessie at Dewsbury, which used to be run by the same guy and is more welcoming to strangers. That one certainly beats the local Spoons hands down.

A friend of mine lives in Dewsbury but rarely frequents the West Riding due to the high prices. He's not a great fan of the local 'Spoons either.

 

[Spamcan81]

My take on Wetherspoons;

Plus points

1. Cheap prices.
2. A wide selection of real ale
3. A wide variety of other drink choices, such as real cider.
4. Wetherspoon's do a very good job of sensitively refurbishing old and architecturally-interesting buildings.
5. Basic good value food.
6. A good venue for group meetings (many local CAMRA groups hold branch meetings in Spoons)
7. If you find yourself in a strange town and see a Wetherspoons, you know what you're going to get.

Minus points

1. Cheap prices tend to attract a...er...lower class of person, which can lead to an intimidating atmosphere.
2. Real ales aren't always as well kept as they could be and are often served too cold.
3. The "generic" Wetherspoons design means that most of their pubs end up looking the same.
4. Food is not (as far as I know) freshly prepared and availability can be unreliable.
5. It takes ages to get served, and sometimes customer service can be poor.
6. Their market dominance is killing off other more individual pubs.
7. If you find yourself in a strange town and see a Wetherspoons, you know what you're going to get.

Steaks are cooked fresh and almost always to a high standard.

 

[Mag_seven]

Steaks are cooked fresh and almost always to a high standard.

As well as being "cut of meat" dependent that is also chef dependent. I have had a couple of rotten steaks in Spoons due to the chef not cooking it properly (e.g. being served "well done" when the request was for it to be cooked "medium rare").

 

[Mutant Lemming]

As a tourist to the UK, going to a Wetherspoons is a safe bet: they can be found everywhere, the pubs are clean and have a generally nice ambiance, the food is decent and the prices are kind to the wallet. So far I've never been let down by a Wetherspoons.

I like how they take old/defunct buildings and reuse them, giving each place its own character.

I was across the road from the one in Newport as the bouncers ejected a woman trailing a small child through dog ends from the knocked over ashtray thing outside. Watched a rather nasty fight break out in the one in Barking, found it impossible to find somewhere to sit or perch that wasn't covered in sticky spillage in the Barnstaple one - though it probably depends on the management and clientele I generally find them downmarket akin to shopping at Lidl or Aldi.

 

[Puffing Devil]

I generally find them downmarket akin to shopping at Lidl or Aldi.

I shop in Aldi and Lidl - neither of the stores I use are "downmarket". You should give them a go.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I shop in Aldi and Lidl - neither of the stores I use are "downmarket". You should give them a go.

Indeed. Aldi these days in the UK is somewhat middle-class - but still cheap and superb quality. The staff are great, too. And if you don't like "unexpected item" machines, you're sorted - there aren't any.

 

[IanD]

I was across the road from the one in Newport as the bouncers ejected a woman trailing a small child through dog ends from the knocked over ashtray thing outside. Watched a rather nasty fight break out in the one in Barking, found it impossible to find somewhere to sit or perch that wasn't covered in sticky spillage in the Barnstaple one - though it probably depends on the management and clientele I generally find them downmarket akin to shopping at Lidl or Aldi.

There are two Wetherspoons in both Newport (Wales) and Barnstaple. In fact there are 3 in Newport but there used to be four.

 

[johntea]

A friend of mine lives in Dewsbury but rarely frequents the West Riding due to the high prices. He's not a great fan of the local 'Spoons either.

Why not? It even has a drive through service now!

Having said that, the Dewsbury Spoons does feel weirdly like a 'locals' pub rather than a Spoons, and the strong smell that emits from the disabled toilets isn't very appealing either!

 

[Bletchleyite]

Having said that, the Dewsbury Spoons does feel weirdly like a 'locals' pub rather than a Spoons, and the strong smell that emits from the disabled toilets isn't very appealing either!

One of the downsides of the smoking ban (or upsides, depending on how you think about it) is that the smell of smoke used to mask other bad smells, so poor cleaning and the likes are now very noticeable in pubs and clubs.

 

[jon0844]

Why not? It even has a drive through service now!

Having said that, the Dewsbury Spoons does feel weirdly like a 'locals' pub rather than a Spoons, and the strong smell that emits from the disabled toilets isn't very appealing either!

Click & Collect does seem like the logical progression for the app.

 

[Mutant Lemming]

I shop in Aldi and Lidl - neither of the stores I use are "downmarket". You should give them a go.

Apart from the limited choice and longer queue times it would mean driving to and parking the car in some dodgy areas like Cricklewood or Edgware. Besides, I prefer, if possible to support local or UK businesses.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Replied here: https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/german-supermarkets.177520/

 

[jon0844]

Apart from the limited choice and longer queue times it would mean driving to and parking the car in some dodgy areas like Cricklewood or Edgware. Besides, I prefer, if possible to support local or UK businesses.

Long queue times? They scan items as fast as technology allows because you pack later. Tesco etc deliberately scan slow to help you pack. Lidl and Aldi still open new tills if the queues do build up (remember Tesco saying they would if there was more than one person in front? They don't actively do that now).

You're right about less lines being carried though.

 

[cjp]

FWIW I would liken Wetherspoons to Tesco and Aldi to a pub belonging to one of the smaller breweries. I tend to avoid Tesco but find Aldi interesting.
This thread had made me want to try a Wetherspoons but the last few posts about unpleasantness has made me think again

 

[jon0844]

It all depends on the location and the time. I have to say the 'spoons in Blackpool was 'interesting' but McDonald's was even worse.

 

[xc170]

Wetherspoons above Baker Street underground has always been my 'go to' place to get a meal when in London, proper food at decent prices.

 

[gazthomas]

Wetherspoons above Baker Street underground has always been my 'go to' place to get a meal when in London, proper food at decent prices.

And a great interior with lots of history

 

[SteveP29]

I rarely go to a Spoons without ordering anything to eat so my criticism of the lack of beer choice on the app still stands. And as IanD has already stated, if the meal includes a drink then the app is as much use as a chocolate fireguard if you wish to order a guest ale with your meal.

That's the whole point of the meal with a drink, there's a range of drinks that come with the promotion

 

[IanD]

That's the whole point of the meal with a drink, there's a range of drinks that come with the promotion

Yes but if the drink you want that it comes with (eg a guest ale) isn't listed on the app, you can't order it on the app!

I had the misfortune to visit the Tooting JJ Moons again on Saturday and found another drawback to the app. As we wanted breakfasts that don't have an inclusive beer option (not sure why), we ordered from the app. When the food arrived there were no sausages because apparently they had run out and "they should have told you at the bar". More realistically, the kitchen should have seen that the order had been placed on the app and come over and told us. But no, they just sent out the breakfast with no sausages and nothing substituted for them. Finally got some extra bacon but one rasher of bacon does not make up for a missing sausage.

I was actually standing at the bar when I placed the order but used the app because the service was so poor (serving all the regulars first) and slow that we were in danger of missing the cut off time for breakfast.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Not substituting is downright rude, but I would say in the "rule of fry-up substitution" that substituting a meat item for another meat item, or a veg item for another veg item, is reasonably acceptable initiated from both sides. Bacon is more expensive than sausage, so you've come out up there.

 

[IanD]

It was the big breakfast so actually should have had 2 sausages which were initially replaced (once prompted) with one rasher of under cooked bacon. Had to argue to get the second. The idea of the big breakfast was to line the stomach for a crawl round some of the breweries in the area so on this occasion the bulk of the sausages was going to be an integral part of that. Also, the slices of bacon are generally so thin they must have been laser-cut so I believe the cost of each rasher would be less than the cost of each sausage

 

[Andrew S]

As well as being "cut of meat" dependent that is also chef dependent. I have had a couple of rotten steaks in Spoons due to the chef not cooking it properly

I agree. When I have ordered food from Wetherspoons I've tended to stick to the simpler meals like burgers or jacket potatoes, as it's harder to get them wrong.

I don't really expect them to train their "chefs" sufficiently to cook a steak expertly, and their supply arrangements probably don't allow for selecting the better cuts of meat.

 

[route101]

You gotta wonder the quality of the food at Spoons , had a few burgers and tasted ok but nothing to tempt me back .

 

[Bletchleyite]

You gotta wonder the quality of the food at Spoons , had a few burgers and tasted ok but nothing to tempt me back .

It's about the price, not the quality. It's basically in the same market as McD's.