The Oyster Rooms - London, Fulham

Visited 3rd October 2009.

Our second pub today that is inside a shopping centre. Clean and bright but with a limited ale selection. So limited in fact that I was forced to go for a double Buffalo Trace.
Nothing to do with Wetherspoons but while taking the photos a security guard asked me not to take any more while he was present . However he was completely unable to give me a reason why. I complied with his request but as the shopping centre itself was completely "camera'd" up I felt a certain double standard was operating. I try to be careful while taking my photos. I don't want to upset anyone by intruding upon their privacy, after all we should be able to have a drink without being molested by the paparazzi. But... maybe it's something about the friendliness of Wetherspoon patrons that makes them jump in front of the camera, it's happened on several occasions now!

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The Plough & Harrow - London, Hammersmith

Visited 3rd October 2009.

Hammersmith tries to redeem itself with The Plough & Harrow and if you like large, bright, modern pubs then it largely succeeds. I thought I would try the Marcle Hill still cider as it felt like the right sort of drink for the pub. Ultimately I was disappointed with both, nothing wrong with the cider or the pub, just not to my taste.

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The William Morris - London, Hammersmith

Visited 3rd October 2009.

Our London adventure continues. Let me get one thing straight, just so you're clear. This blog was never intended to be a guide or critique of Wetherspoon pubs. That would be far to grand. It is basically a reminder of where I have been so I don't accidentally visit any twice. I may jot down a little information on parking, or what I drank because if I do decide to revisit one I don't want to spend hours looking for a space or find they have no beer!
But, this one I will definitely avoid. Which is a shame as the pub itself is fine, large and with a dark interior theme which I like. The girl who served us at the bar was pleasant and service was relatively quick. So where did it all go wrong. Two things really. The loos and the food. I (and I know I'm not alone this) will often judge a place on it's loos. Wetherspoon pubs have very good loos but why would whoever put the paper in the stalls put all of the toilet rolls on the floor. They didn't do it in the ladies so why do it in the gents where it's almost certainly going to become unusable!
Secondly, the food. We were all hungry so ordered as soon as we arrived. One of the things I like about Wetherspoon is the consistency of the food quality. It has been pretty much the same in all of the pubs visited so far. You order a burger, you know what you are going to get. Not at the William Morris. I was very hungry and ordered a Gourmet Burger with an extra burger. Both burgers were burnt, very burnt, charcoaled even. The cheese sauce was missing entirely as was a rasher of bacon (the menu states bacon slices - plural). Everywhere else I've eaten I've always received two slices of bacon... consistency you see. And did I mention the burgers were burnt!!! I got chatting to a chap who said he was in there most days and that he wouldn't touch the food they served and especially not the breakfasts. I must also mention the steak and kidney pudding on the new menu. It looks very nice. A member of our little dinning group ordered one. When it arrived it had about half a tea spoon of gravy in it and a lot of air. She sent it back and had a curry instead. To be fair on this it may be that we were unlucky on the pudding and just got a duff one. We will be trying out the steak and kidney pudding again but definitely not at the William Morris.

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The Central Bar - London, Shepherds Bush

Visited 3rd October 2009.

Mr and Mrs Sinner have decided to go visit some friends in London. Maybe it's because they like a beer or maybe it's because they have bought into "the Wetherspoons Challenge" idea but they thought it would be a good idea to spend the day with us visiting a few Wetherspoon watering holes. The Central Bar is the first Wetherspoon pub I have visited in a shopping centre. Not quite my idea of a pub but I can get on board with the idea. I thought it would be busy, filled with men waiting for their wives to finish shopping. It was busy but not a full as I was expecting, maybe not all men have my aversion to retail therapy. I sipped on a pint of Dark Island as I sat looking out over Shepherds Bush Green and contemplated the day ahead. With around seventy Wetherspoon pubs in London only one of which I had already visited it was obvious we couldn't get to them all today. Between us we worked out a route based on what was closest to where we were and as we were getting a little peckish made the decision to eat at the next location. In retrospect this was not the best plan in the world!

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The Lord Moon of the Mall - London, West End

Visited 14th September 2009.

It's busy at work and I find myself on one of my rare trips out of the office. Today I've been sent to see some clients in Central London to perform a little troubleshooting. The train and tube is running with no problems, I get the client sorted in a couple of hours and now it's lunch time. I have a couple of hours before my next appointment to I decide to take a walk and see a few of the sights London has to offer. My walk takes me past the Houses of Parliament and along Whitehall towards Trafalgar Square. Just before I reach Nelson's Column over on the left I spot my target (more on targets later). First problem is getting a photo, it's busy and I wait several minutes for a gap in the traffic. Done. Now to find somebody to photograph me. I spot a tourist laden with their own cameras and home in. My attempts at mime pay off and then I enter into a "traditional English pub". Wetherspoon's words not mine. OK, so they were fairly right. I waited a while to be served although the bar staff did not appear to be to busy, there was no sense of urgency even though I was attempting to look as thirsty as possible. Eventually I had my pint of "Bear Ass" and was able to spend a few minutes relaxing and decor. I generally like old style pubs and I did feel comfortable but for a real traditional English pub feel it needed to be just a little darker. Cheers and toodle-pip!

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The Moon and Spoon - Slough

Visited 31st August 2009.

It's taken a while but I have finally managed to get back to Slough. You may remember that the last time I tried to have a drink in Slough it was closed, the pub, not Slough. As it was a bank holiday free parking was available right outside, always a bonus! It was a warm, sunny day so it was reasonably busy but I just cannot find anything exciting to say about "The moon and Spoon". The bar staff were friendly and efficient. The kitchen staff got the order right. I passed away several hours in there. In fact it was all very pleasant... just not... exciting! I think I have been spoilt by my recent visit to Cambridge.

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The Regal - Cambridge

Visited 29th August 2009.

A friend of mine asked if I could help him out by collecting two arcade games machines that he had purchased on eBay. I would like to say that I immediately offered to help but memories of the last time I helped him to move a very large, heavy sofa from the fourth floor of a block of flats where the lifts were to small for it came flooding back, along with an instant backache!
"I'll buy you lunch", he said, "at a Wetherspoons, if there's one nearby".
So, into the van and off to Cambridge where he acquired two linked racing machines without to much sweating and then a short ride into town. And back out again as we couldn't find anywhere to park. About a mile and a half away we found a side street to park in (pay and display) that would let us stay for more than an hour. As you can probably guess from the photos I'm not big on walking, but needs must and all that...
What can I say, it was worth it. The picture house frontage, the doors and film posters, I loved it. As with many Wetherspoon pubs it is a lot, lot bigger on the inside than it appears on the outside. Inside we have a DJ box, high ceilings, sweeping staircases, nice toilets and a lot of people. I had a long look around the place, even out the back and really like it. The bar staff were well trained and very efficient with just the right amount of friendliness and humour thrown in. I noticed a few people seemed to be oddly dressed (grass skirts) and found that there was going to be a Hawaiian beach party that evening. I'm sorry to say we had to leave before it started but if I had known before hand I may have been tempted into dusting off my own, somewhat tatty grass skirt and coconuts.
For me the place is not "just around the corner" but even so I could easily be talked into a return visit.

© John Sinner. None of the material contained in this post, or this blog as a whole, may be reproduced without the express and written permission of John Sinner. All rights reserved.