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[Drinking] The Pub Debate - Weatherspoons







keaton

Big heart, hot blood and balls. Big balls
Nov 18, 2004
9,972
Goodness me we have some precious snob types on here, who'd have thunk it?

Each one on its own merits, from travelling here and there I feel that the of the pub, food and drink varies from place to place. To put them all under one critique umbrella is ridiculously short-sighted.
And yet no one has been able to respond to Springal's request for someone to name a decent one.
 


hart's shirt

Well-known member
Jul 8, 2003
11,076
Kitbag in Dubai
Nobody seems to have mentioned timbo:s attitude during covid
The owner's political slant or response to a situation of 4 years ago really isn't a defining factor when I want a cheap beer today.

Price over principles? No, just no interest in an arbitrary moral crusade that has undertones of spending superiority.

Anyway, @Whitechapel has explained this far better earlier in the thread. And @jcdenton08 continues to explode myths.

In the midst of a cost of living crisis, I wouldn't begrudge anyone in the UK the chance to have an affordable round of drinks.

Encouraging people to mix with mixers supports mental health with less individual isolated introspection. There's friends out there.

Lifting spirits in community, both figuratively and literally, is something joyful. And the UK could probably use a few shots of joy.

So let's not get into which pubs are more equal than others. Each has their place, including Spoons. Support them all.

Besides, it all goes down the same way, irrespective of how much it costs.

Cheers! :drink:
 








WATFORD zero

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jul 10, 2003
27,755
Hipsters hate 'Spoons despite it being the exact same bottles and cans and maybe even pints at a reasonable price. What the hipsters are actually doing is sneering at the 'Spoons clientele. Which is not very nice

I don't believe I'm a hipster and I certainly wouldn't sneer at 'Spoons clientele as I have no idea who they are because I've never been in one. This is as a result of deciding to stop doing business with complete c****s nearly 40 years ago, a decision which has served me well ever since :wink:
 
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Algernon

Well-known member
Sep 9, 2012
3,190
Newmarket.
Which ones are really good out of interest ?
Bury St Edmunds Corn Exchange is pretty good.
However that's purely aesthetically.
I have been there twice in 18 years and have no idea how to judge whether any pub is "good" or otherwise.
IMG_3022.jpeg

IMG_3024.jpeg
 




Springal

Well-known member
Feb 12, 2005
24,779
GOSBTS
So we have an OK in London (because it’s cheap), a decent in London and one that looks nice in Bury St Edmunds. Ill keep an eye out on my travels
 


Skuller

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jun 3, 2017
340
The Boot Inn, Burnley had a decent range on yesterday. Wainwright (x2) and some from Yorkshire.

I don't mind Wetherspoon's - they cater for a clientele, and if you're not in the target market, there are other choices.
Yup, I was there in Burnley. I had a 5% local ale at £2.63 a pint.
 


SeagullinExile

Well-known member
Sep 10, 2010
6,190
London
Not much of a debate.

Yes - they are the cheapest in the business.
The cheapest. But not the best value. Most of the time you have to sit in a shithole surrounded by alcoholics.

The best value crown goes to Craft Union pubs, good prices and good atmospheres on the whole, bringing back community locals on a weekly basis. Just how pubs should be, and one of the only brands making money at the moment.
 




Wardy's twin

Well-known member
Oct 21, 2014
8,866
Doubt that 98% of the punters even know - or give the tiniest shit about - who the owner is. All they know and care about is that they're getting food n drink at a fair price - even in the Red Lion airside in LGW North Terminal. Maybe even especially there :cheers:
It's the non punters who give a shit about him and don't go in them. I don't drink much outside football games but given the choice at Sheffield for example I went into the non-Weatherspoon's pub. I have been in them and , have no issues with the clientele , sticky carpets, staff or indeed the cheap beer but given the choice I would prefer not to boost his business especially at the expense of a local pub.
 


stewart12

Well-known member
Jan 16, 2019
1,920
i'm absolutely fine with an occasional spoons.

Would I have one as a regular jaunt? Probably not

Would I spend an entire night there? Probably not

Would I have a quick 1 or 2 cheap pints as part of a general night out? Definitely

Not every weatherspoons is the same. There was a huge difference between the George Street one (RIP) and Brighton Marina

Don't like them? Don't go! But for some it's the only place that is within their budget. Not everyone can afford £9 for 2/3rds of a pint of 12% Jizz Face IPA
 


bazbha

Active member
Mar 18, 2011
308
Hailsham
Love Spoons. Cheap beer & food for us working class types. The Bexhill one is lovely on a sunny day (roof garden if you don't know it). There's one overlooking the Tower of London too which is great. Some of them are a bit rough but so were many pubs back in the day before most of them closed. I get the snobbery around this subject though. Some people just think they're morally & intellectually superior to the rest of us & enjoy looking down on the riff-raff!
 




durrington gull

Well-known member
Aug 29, 2004
2,330
Worthing
I don’t think thats true Tom. Hipsters drink a different type of beer that Wetherspoons rarely stock. Maybe Punk or some crappy pale that no one can keep down. Doom bar and Abbots ? Jesus wept. Their beer is never in good nick and often stale as HT says. Saying that I’ve drank plenty in the one outside Victoria on the way to games.
they sell loads of hipster drinks - check out their cans
 




Herr Tubthumper

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jul 11, 2003
62,683
The Fatherland
Love Spoons. Cheap beer & food for us working class types. The Bexhill one is lovely on a sunny day (roof garden if you don't know it). There's one overlooking the Tower of London too which is great. Some of them are a bit rough but so were many pubs back in the day before most of them closed. I get the snobbery around this subject though. Some people just think they're morally & intellectually superior to the rest of us & enjoy looking down on the riff-raff!
Why does this have to turn into class war? I gave a reasonably good explanation why I don’t like ‘spoons, as others have done, and we get comments like this.
 






dazzer6666

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Mar 27, 2013
55,518
Burgess Hill
The owner's political slant or response to a situation of 4 years ago really isn't a defining factor when I want a cheap beer today.

Price over principles? No, just no interest in an arbitrary moral crusade that has undertones of spending superiority.

Anyway, @Whitechapel has explained this far better earlier in the thread. And @jcdenton08 continues to explode myths.

In the midst of a cost of living crisis, I wouldn't begrudge anyone in the UK the chance to have an affordable round of drinks.

Encouraging people to mix with mixers supports mental health with less individual isolated introspection. There's friends out there.

Lifting spirits in community, both figuratively and literally, is something joyful. And the UK could probably use a few shots of joy.

So let's not get into which pubs are more equal than others. Each has their place, including Spoons. Support them all.

Besides, it all goes down the same way, irrespective of how much it costs.

Cheers! :drink:
All of that……I don’t like their food much, but can’t say I’ve noticed the beer tasting any different from any other pub, they’re great value and some of their buildings/locations are fantastic. Service to your table using the app is usually rapid too.

Thread title is doing my head in though :laugh:
 


TomandJerry

Well-known member
Oct 1, 2013
12,323
All of that……I don’t like their food much, but can’t say I’ve noticed the beer tasting any different from any other pub, they’re great value and some of their buildings/locations are fantastic. Service to your table using the app is usually rapid too.

Thread title is doing my head in though :laugh:
I apologize for the thread title, it was made after a few pints of Doombar :moo:
 


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