please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
I made a return visit to the William Morris yesterday morning for a breakfast and a pint. There were a number of Welsh rugby fans in, amidst a typical Wetherspoon's morning crowd. Service was reasonably quick, despite only one barman. The choice was reasonable - Greene King Abbot, Sharp's Doom Bar, Sambrook's Powerhouse Porter, Fuller's London Pride, Shepherd Neame Bishop's Finger, Wimbledon Pitbull, Yeovil Posh IPA, Morland Old Speckled Hen & Kirkstall Dissolution. There was no real cider. It's a bit dark inside. But my visit fulfilled a purpose.
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The service in here is never great; but last Sunday, it was awful...I waited 5 minutes, whilst the ignorant male barstaff continuously served the first person in front of them to rock up. No sense of a 'queue' was noticed by them, whatsoever. I made my moan & left for The Plough & Harrow, which is marginally better. Also, the toilets are still the disgrace that they've always been; not that I need them on this occasion, being drinkless!
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Popped in here for a pint or two of the 'Spoons festival beers before a gig at the good old Hammy Odeon. The beers were pretty well looked after, but served in a shocking fashion by the staff, who treated pulling pints as a race to get the glass filled in record time. All that resulted was a beer with a massive head and me asking them to top it up. Other customers seemed to accept this as the norm. Come on people - a British pint is 95% liquid and 5% head. That is there to protect us from this kind thing. You're losing money every time!!
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Massive beer warehouse, packed before a gig, but cheap and service was efficient enough
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This pub carries mixed sentiments for me however, recent visits have left me disappointed.
Used to quite like going here when I was bit younger for the cheap drink. This is even the place where I first got with my other half and after nearly 6 years and 2 kids we are still together (just about). This is perhaps why I have persisted with this place due to having fond memories however, nothing is pursuading me to continue using the gaff.
Firstly, I only really tend to visit this place now on a saturday afternoon before a Fulham game as I find it convenient being right outside the station. I know that there are better places to go for a pre-match drink however, when you are on a bit of a shoestring like myself I opt for the cost-effective option . However, the last couple of times I have been in they always seem to have the same very uninspiring range of ales. I even went in a few weeks apart and I am sure that the guest ales were exactly the same as my previous visit. Now I dont mind sometimes sacrificing a good atmosphere to drink in a spoons however if they cannot even get their ales right then there is not really anything to attract me in there.
Secondly, when I went there in the evening just before Christmas I noticed some old soak being evicted very roughly from the pub by the bouncers even knocking into me in the process causing my mate to spill a bit of his beer on me. Now don't get me wrong, this bloke did look like an exceptionally obnoxious old git but the truth is is that the bouncer could have probably farted next to him and blown him over so was the rough tactics really necessary. I also noticed a lot of signs warning of a spate of bag thefts recently which does not lend a nice undercurrent to the place.
Finally, I have to agree with a lot of other poster in regards to the toilets here. Now I only ever empty my bladder in pubs but I feel sorry for anyone who is caught short here as these are quite possibly one of the most disgusing pub toilets I have seen and trust me when I say that I have been to some shit pits.
Overall, I wouldn't say to anyone to not drink here as even though my review has been fairly scathing, it is generally an OK place. Just don't expect anything and you won't be disappointed! ! !
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Dreadful place. Awful staff, a khazi of the highest order. Full of chavs stuffing themselves full of microwaved shite.
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i've visited many JDW pubs on my travels around England but this pub definately IMO has the most useless and ignorant bunch of bar staff i have probably ever come across. Wimbledon ladies final was on the TV when we visited and the Eastern European guy serving me stopped pulling my pint to watch the tennis! He and his friend hardly spoke English and many customers where clearly fed up with the way in which they were treated when they eventually got served. I don't normally give out gloom and doom summaries but this place is one to miss!
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When this first opened, it appeared aimed at the discerning local customer. However, it seems to have suffered something of an identity crisis since then, ultimately settling for their current target of aiming for the grubby end of the market.
Something of a magnet for different genres of people that you probably wouldn�t want to share a pub with, a trip to the William Morris leaves you constantly just waiting with trepidation for something to happen which will ruin your evening. I�ve seen a fight break out outside this pub on Christmas Eve, on two different years.
It�s amazing that somewhere as gentrified as Hammersmith still attracts a clientele like this, but whilst this keeps them out of other local pubs I guess this can only be a good thing. As for Wetherspoon�s, well, they just went and opened the Plough and Harrow down the road, and any former customer with an ounce of class now just drinks there instead.
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This was recently re-branded as a regular Wetherspoon, so no longer the Lloyds No 1 version. Had a small amount of re-furb done, but still caters to same clientele ie. cash strapped customers. (It stopped doing the clubbing nights some time ago). Its stablemate, the Plough and Harrow up the road, does a much better job at real ales than the William Morris. Which is a shame because the Nicholson next door goes all barrels blazing in great real ales. And staff are still being told to advertise unavailable beers which is bad practice.
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Absolute shit hole.
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expensive for a spoons �3-20 for a pint of fullers esb and a great pint for that price.if in london again will look for spoons than this one
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I find this place really depressing - it's dingy, grubby and needs a bloody good clean and is probably one of the gloomiest 'spoons I've ever visited. On the good side, of course, is the normal decent range of well-kept ales of the chain. Overall, however, well below average.
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Desperate for a beer, bite and pee, I popped into this Spoons last week whilst on a business trip to Hammersmith and in a hurry. Several good looking beers on the bar but all bar one off! Settled on a Ringwood 49er which was cloudy but drinkable. Ordered a cheese burger which arrived almost before I got back to my seat. The food was hot and tasty but nothing special. The final part of the mission was also about average for a spoons and having downed the pint, stuffed my face and emptied my bladder, I left, never to return.
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Last Saturday I found myself in Hammersmith town centre and in need of a pub. Not knowing the area that well I thought there might be a Wetherspoon's, and so there was but the William Morris is a 'Lloyd's Bar', which is not quite the same as a normal Wetherspoon.
Despite it not look promising I decided to give it a go, in preference to the Nicholson's pub next door. I wish I hadn't. The interior is dark, apparently in an attempt to make it appear more like a bar or nightclub in atmosphere, and there are music videos blasting out on umpteen screens (completely pointlessly, in my opinion, as most patrons appeared to be ignoring the screens and either talking to their friends or staring into space).
Beerwise there were a fair few cask ales on offer. I opted for Brain's SA, but was informed by a slightly surly barman it had just become unavailable. I chose Brain's Reverend James instead, which I've had before and liked, but on this occasion it tasted bad. Not blatantly off, but not pleasant to the taste - heavy and unsatisfying. I suspect it of being responsible for the slight stomach upset I suffered the next day as well.
I am a big fan of Wetherspoon's normally but I'll be avoiding these Lloyd's Bar ones from now on.
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Well said "localboozer" I have suffered too seeing one of my favorite ales only to be told it was off.
Service is also poor here sometimes only one person on.
I was given a pint yesterday that looked like mud but when I complained I was told "its only a bit cloudy!!" I instised I wasn't drinking that as I would be ill next day so they begrugingly gave me a pint of something else.
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Real ales are popular with the customers here. Sadly, the manager believes in the practice of displaying pump clips of ales that are not available. Come on Wetherspoon, please end that pointless practice. Tonight only 2 of the 6 ales were actually available.
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After my last less than memorable trip there, I decided to give it a wide berth for a while. Since then, I was assaulted outside, nearly slipped in the urine slicks in the gents and was accosted by various drunks cadging ciggies.
There's nothing "toff" in hankering after a pleasant boozer where you don't risk the chance of leaving battered, as opposed to lagered.
Having said that, kudos as always to the staff who do an excellent job under somewhat trying circumstances. And to be fair; the majority of punters there are just out for a few beers and a decent evening. It's the minority of idiots who behave as if it's their first night out in a pub who tend to spoil things.
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Maybe be cheap but not the best 'spoons i've ever been to, Flat pints & dirty glasses seemed to be the order of the day.
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When I worked in Hammersmith in the late 90�s all of our work leaving dos were in here as it was cheap. Not a lot has changed in all these years except that the staff seem to be a lot better at their jobs.
This place used to be the pits, but I think that it is now one of the better spoons pubs that I have been in.
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Previous comment is spot on about if you want classy don't go to spoons. It is very cheap but that does atract a certian type of customer.
If you want somewhere nice don't go here if you just want to get smashed and pull a little girly this is your heaven.
The choice is yours
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A good 'Spoons.
Cheap, well set out, plenty of seating. Sometimes takes far to long to get a drink and some of the staff are not that helpful.
But it terms of a 'spoons a good location, set up and range of drinks.
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Forget all you toff lot...it's cheap, and on a Friday or Saturdya has some lovely girls in it and the music ain't bad! If you want somewhere classy and nice don't go to a weatherspoon!
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The decor of a lap dancing club and the clientele of a Wetherspoons - what could be wrong with that.
Desperately bad even compared to some of the other dumps around Hammersmith
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Lookin a bit rough round the edges on visit last week, but still a decent location 4 pre-appolo drinx, 6/10
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Not sure if I was drinking in here or in the ornate Victorian pub which appeared to be next door but which didn't have a name. Are they the same place?
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Named after the 19th Century writer and artist who set up a printing business nearby, this is one of the most depressing, dark, gloomy and claustrophobic places I have ever associated with the Wetherspoons chain. The rambling interior has all the appeal of a run down amusement arcade and totally lacks any character. The service was pretty awful; I seemed to wait an eternity without so much as an acknowledgement before being served and it wasn�t exactly heaving at the bar. The only salvation to be found here is the beers � Pride and Abbott are commonplace but the Damson Porter I (eventually) had was excellent and there the rather potent Old Rosie is available for the cider drinkers. If the gloomy interior is too much, there are some seats outside in the equally unattractive modern square but should you choose to emerge into the daylight after half an hour inside, you will get a bit of a pit pony effect. Not a place that carries any great recommendation.
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In the first (proper) Star Wars film, Obi Wan describes a bar as a wretched hive of scum and villany. I'm almost certain he was referring to the William Morris.
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Not too bad if it is a sunny day and you can get a table in the square outside the side doors. Otherwise, avoid this dingy hole and try the Plough & Harrow further down King Street if you want a reasonable pint at Wetherspoons prices.
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There was a fight while i was at this pub and i got hit with a barstool on the head. After coming around, covered in blood i saw the bouncers holding the door open for the people who done it. Something well dodgy about this place.
Another thing: you cant smoke inside the pub so alot of the girls leave there drinks on the table and go outside to smoke. they wont let you keep hold of your drink. Hello Date rape
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Having read most of the other reviews I would agree that your opinion of this pub does depend on WHEN you're there. I've been twice - both during the day (I think at the weekend) and on both occasions it's not been too bad. I can't comment on the bouncers...cos there weren't any at 1pm on a saturday afternoon. The food is reasonable, the drinks are cheap and the atmosphere on both occasions was pretty darn good. I would definitely go back, but would probably avoid it in the evenings.
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This must be one of the worst pubs I have ever been to in my entire life! The security people were extremely rude. I went to the dance floor with my drink when the bouncer told me off as drinks are not allowed there. I put my drink away and I came back to the dance floor with a cigarette not knowing smoking was not permitted too. The bouncer pointed out the finger at me and threatened: �This is your last warning, if you don�t put your cigarette away I will have to kick you out from the pub!�
They were also very rude to my friends. I cannot believe how someone would treat customers like that. I wouldn�t even bring my dog to this place again!
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Used to drink here around the turn of the century. It had a rep then and it does now. Still, I always found it to be functionable if you were after a quick, cheap pint.
Sadly, the place has slipped further into the abyss and now it's the company who are quick and cheap. It's not down to the Polish who congregate there - why shouldn't they?
It's mostly the surly attitude from the bouncers, I was told to remove my flat cap when I popped in last week, for old times sake. I doff my cap to no-one! Sigh. It was never like that in the old days. Not to mention the wretchedness of the beer. Most disappointing.
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I said a while ago I thought this was one of the better pubs in the area.
It isn't.
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I worked there in 2000 with a really decent bunch of people - since it became a Lloyds bar however, it's gone hugely downhill.
Serves cheap brahma which is something I suppose. It's just a weatherspoons with a new name.
anonymous - 23 Aug 2006 13:53 |
still a grotty hole - slightly less grotty than the other holes in Hammersmith ? Beers passable, but some staff training required maybe - A Duvel please ? "do you want a glass?" "Of course I *ucking do" Idiot then proceded to fill said glass up with ice cubes before trying to pour my beer. (I must try this in Brussels sometime) I'll be back - if like this visit i'm totally desparate and no other place to go.
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I think this must be the only pub in London that hires bouncers to keep the punters in! It's a hole. Full of winos, kids and home to the most filthy toilets you will ever have the misfortune to see.
anonymous - 26 May 2006 07:17 |
How good this pub is depends on when you're in it I think. During the day it's pretty nice and spacious, not bad at all for a couple of pints. On Friday and Saturday nights however the place transforms, it's usually packed (with plenty of the pre-School Disco crowd) which leads to it taking an age to get served and trying to find a table. I'd give it a miss at these times but if you're at Hammersmith Broadway with some time to kill during the day then it's not a bad option.
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Nice LN1 pub.
Had a good pint of ale here b4 going to the apollo 4 a show. well priced food and drinks, and a nicely lit interia.
My Rating 7/10
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lets face it this part of london is the last place you'd look for a decent pub, my second visit here - the beers were better kept, the toilets were in a disgusting state - full and over flowing, some guy started to set up what looked like a karaoke machine or disco equipment - i made a very sharp exit probably never to return. If anyone knows a good local plumber maybe they could let the managment know ?
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the boooze is cheap as F**K! so there its good...the bouncer could calm down abit tho
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Really bucked it's ideas up over the last few years.
Not that bad at all - but it's still a Wetherspoons :(
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I agree with the last comment - used to think this place was pretty terrible but now it's a nice place for a drink with nice decour. Decent size non-smoking section too.
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Having been to this pub last night I must say that it is much better than it used to be. The music wasn't too loud, the staff were friendly and the atmosphere was good. I thoroughly enjoyed my night there.
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This is most certainly not THE pub of Hammersmith. The music past about 6 o'clock is so loud and atrocious you can't hear anything. It used to be cheap and sleazy but that was bearable. It served a purpose. Now its more expensive, just as sleazy, packed full of chav's especially on school disco nights and is basically one of the worst places, let alone pubs in Hammersmith.
anonymous - 4 Sep 2005 18:56 |
Poor pub. It's got more expensive recently which will probably kid the usual clientelle there (see below) that they're getting more sophisticated. This place is a hell hole on Saturday nights when School Disco is on, don't even bother trying to get served. Charmless and tactless doormen coupled with the under-staffed bar makes this place bad. I just feel sorry for the bar staff who can't leave after a drink and go elsewhere.
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Surprisingly enough I think this is one of the better pubs in the area but still not worth going out of your way for.
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Hard to imagine that this pub came from a motley collection of old shops. Great blend of all ages and appealing to both sexes. Good prices and pretty decent beers and lagers. Its THE pub in Hammersmith. Gets a bit raucous when the football supporters pour in on late Saturday afternoons. Do we really need the black suited security goons on the doors in the evenings? Music can be a bit loud but then who cares!!
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Not that bad as Wetherspoons pubs go but it's still...Wetherspoons. Takes ages to get served in the evenings and the beer's not too good. Not awful though which is more than can be said for most Wetherspoons pubs.
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Went there for lunch and after being brought the wrong meal and explaining that am vegetarian they promptly picked out the chicken pieces of my meal and returned it to me - leaving me to find the chicken at the bottom of my plate. Nice.
Charlotte - 18 Sep 2004 19:12 |
Full of old Hammersmith drunks that go there for the cheap beer... No atmosphere whatsoever... No redeeming features whatsoever. Avoid
Hammersmith Max - 20 Aug 2004 05:58 |
Typical Wetherspoons pub: big, cheap, and not enough staff. So what if the beer is cheaper than everywhere else around if it takes ten minutes to get served! I'd rather pay more and enjoy myself. (The beer's usually rubbish at Wetherspoon's anyway.)
Having said that, the place is always packed so some people must like it!
Johnno - 16 Jun 2004 10:16 |
i'd like to say i agree with the rest of the comments...........and i most probably wud of if u had asked me last week.........but only the other day i was there and a fight broke out....not only did the bouncers not do any thing i ended up getting hurt even wen i wasnt invovled......extremly dissapointed in the organisation
jessica - 23 May 2004 18:57 |
nice place, cheap beer
Zaheer - 3 Mar 2004 14:02 |
Very nice place. Good service. I'm gonna go there more often.
Olga - 2 Mar 2004 19:41 |
a great place to have a beer.steaks rated more than 10.apparently the chef is scottish.knows the job!bar staff?excellent!to my surprise the nicest people behind the bar turned out to be polish.the only thing that annoyed me was italian phrases that I could not understand.somebody please teach them how to serve customers!!!apart from that A+ for the whole teamwork! I will definetely be back soon...
michel - 24 Feb 2004 23:27 |
all these comments could be meaningless. think about British Airway and Ryanair. Though Everybody complain about Ryanair's ridiculous service, they are choosing Ryanair, in fact British airway are losing their market. why...? because it's so cheap and efficient. I'd love to see and compare their business result, cuz I think this bar is always full..without many staffs. (exploitation..? )
how much can you pay extra for personal, beautifully traditional service..?
Since this bar has refurbished, pubs around has started their promotion about drinks and food.
I think all of that are ridiculously cheap.. I wonder thery are really making money and how...
Anyway, one thing is clearly true. really cheap and not bad ambience. (I like their music video,though I don't like their commercial, boring music.)
but do not expect to see smartly-dressed, good-looking, cool people or clean table or soulful food (like KFC).
would you expect to get the same thing in Mcdonald..?
neoping - 23 Feb 2004 18:36 |
Since the refurbishment of this fine establishment this pub is 110% better than any of the wanna be pubs in Hammersmith, I visit frequently on business with my collegues and we enjoy a few bottles of fine wine a night. We had our Xmas party there and it was brilliant they even gave us a camera and a game of twister to play!!!! Maybe the other pubs in Hammersmith should take a leaf out of Wetherspoon's book.
Carole - 18 Feb 2004 18:50 |
Not what it used to be, impersonal, too crowded and trying to be the same as the weatherspoons a few minutes walk away, Why?
James - 4 Jan 2004 18:35 |
This place is great for going to on a Friday Night and getting pissed in cheaply; then you can move on to a better pub for the rest of your night without spending all your money.
Ted - 23 Dec 2003 20:19 |
went in for a quick drink,but turned out to be a long one(wait anyway)the staff were rude,speaking polish to each other,and didn't even understand what i had asked for.apart from the staff,a nice pub
chris - 23 Dec 2003 18:15 |
this bar has come along way since i first came it wasn't brilliant a few months ago and now its a quality place to start cheap for food and drinks plenty of talent on the people side recommended to go on a friday saturday time look out for charlies angels
alex - 21 Dec 2003 14:44 |
This pub has recently become a Lloyds (having been a related Wetherspoons place). It is dark and I had some difficulty reading the paper in it. Staff aren't too bad - after I'd been in a few times they remembered what I was drinking. Quite a lot of drunken old men in it but it attracts a mixed crowd.
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Spent about half an hour waiting to be served at this bar last Thursday. I bet they do it on purpose so that you get three drinks at the same time. Otherwise not a bad pub. And cheap.
Briony - 8 Dec 2003 16:35 |
This is the same as the William Morris but has obviously had a makeover.
chrisa - 25 Nov 2003 13:44 |
this is a great place to start your drinking session,
it has everything from shots,spirits, pints, and jugs of your
favourite cocktails, vodka red bull for cheap prices. has music tv
and does great food for reasonable price as well.
leidav - 24 Nov 2003 10:50 |
This place is listed as smoke free? Is that correct?
MILTON - 21 Nov 2003 00:18 |
I completely agree with Julia who posted below. It's cheap, staff aren't particulary great, and some of the clientele (a much older harmless bunch) have been drinking all day.
Basically, it's fine to hop into for a quick pint or two.
Actually, I was on business in the area a couple of months ago and there must have been at least 20 people impatiently waiting there at 10.55 on a Tuesday (I was across the road having a coffee - was tempted though).
anthony2 - 26 Sep 2003 01:46 |
depends whether youre interesting enough to make ur own fun. for years has been a pre-drinking stop for me and my friends to get drunk for cheap before moving on. weve had great fun over the years despite the drunken old men and lack of music!!!
WM - 15 Aug 2003 12:15 |
some interesting older clientele - watching them almost enough to make you give up the evil drink! well almost. cheap, always busy whatever the hour or day. must do a roaring trade cashing in pension cheques. but not bad for a swift half.
millym - 26 Jul 2003 21:09 |
Unfair. The excellent range of beer is indeed ridiculously cheap. Yes, it's scruffy. You'd have to be desperate to try eating there. The staff are offhand and there are a few oddballs in residence, but I've never seen a fight.
BUT it's a genuine, untrendy, down at heel London pub with clientele of all ages and nationalities, wood-panelled walls, fake Victorian decor, wooden and cubicle seating, book-lined walls and no music. It's the standard Wetherspoons no-nonsense formula, and I think it's fine for a swift pint.
anonymous - 29 Jun 2003 20:35 |
Ridiculously cheap and interesting beer which almost makes up for the nasty congealed food, disinterested bar staff, and sticky carpets. A good location by the tube stations and constant supply cheap booze draws a fine selection of local red faced sweary tramps and the casual voyeur can witness a raucous bar fight there almost every night. I'm sure William Morris is spining in his grave at the desecration of his name.
Agnes - 21 May 2003 17:10 |
