Fifteens of Swinley, Wiganback to pub details please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Great quirky Amsterdam bordello style pub, edge of town centre. ( on a nice little cobbled street )
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Didn't have any problem with the service and were even offered tasters of the beers - which sadly were very limited and we ended up with Thwaites Wainwright (nothing wrong with it but we expected a beer choice of more local micro beers).
The pub was rather empty this time round (last time it was heaving due to rugby league on the telly). Worth the walk from the town cente - the pub is in Wigan even though the Beer guide lists it under Swinley!
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Unfortunately I have to agree with the last post - good pub, decent beer, shame about the customer service - it appears new customers are simply an inconvenience.
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I'have been to this pub on four occasion now, Saturday (9th June 12) being my most recent.
Less quirky than the town centre "15's", it is more traditional in it's layout. It is basically one large L shaped room which has been individualised in to separate seating areas by the furniture and decor.
On my first visit a couple of years ago I found the beers to be OK, but always generic (multi nationals) on my last two visits however things have improved, with local micro beers now starting to appear.
The pub itself is bright & clean and for those that know me, the toilets were likewise.
The client�le on my visits (Sat PM) seem to be of the middle to older generation, although on match days (rugby or football) it can get very busy with a younger crowd. (the pub has a number of TV's)
OK, the negatives:
On my previous visit it was one of those of the latter, because of the noise I asked the bar maid to turn the volume up a touch on the TV, she duly obliged only to have the landlady come over and turn it back down again. This was not only embarrassing to the girl in question, but the manor in which it was done was rude. At the time, I just put it down to her having a bad day & so let it go.
On my last visit, it was just me & two other customers & the land lady, I stood at the bar for at least a minute while she was working something out on her laptop. She eventually came over and pleasantly asked what I wanted, my pint was quickly poured, money taken, then she hurried back to her laptop. (obviously something important) I waited a minute to let my beer settle to find it was well short (25mm) so I walked down the bar & politely asked her would she mind topping it up? To which I received an indignant look, she took my glass, went to the tap, gave the hand pump the briefest of pulls and that was it? She offered it back to me at virtually the same level?
At this point I knew I was wasting my time. Sadly, the beer was good, but the attitude of this women was my cue to drink up & go. Before I did though, I couldn't help but notice the importance of her laptop....Facebook!! I couldn't believe it, but that pretty much sums up everything, when a social media site takes priority of customers, it's time to leave.
Nice pub, good beer, friendly people, but the land lady needs a wake up call!
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Winston now called 15, has always been a favourite of mine, especially when it was Gems, the Staff have always been friendly, up till now, now they have taken it upon themselves to ask "Am I alright to have another drink", implying that I was drunk, which was very far from the truth. I still like the pub, but wont be going in for a while.
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Now called 15@ Swinley, or Swinley 15.
Three Allgates and Tetley Bitter on hand pull, pub very "Red", but overwhelming smell of pee on entering very off putting!
Bring back the old "Gems"
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Now taken over by the Yesteryear pub company and renamed Fifteen's. It's been done up and now has a distinctly 'red' feel, with attractive shaded lamps and wallpaper creating this. One big L-shaped room really with different levels. Almost every inch of wall space is covered by pictures of differing sizes, ranging from old Victorian advertisements to pictures of famous Hollywood actors. A mixture of traditional furnishings and cosy armchairs and sofas in the bay windows. Generally a cosy and interesting decor, although not emphatically traditional. Sky sports is shown here on several small, unobtrusivs screens. Other concessions include the inevitable gambling machine.
The beer front is much improved, with 2 beers from the local Allgates microbrewery plus Tetley Bitter and a guest- usually also from Tetley, Christmas Cracker on my last visit. The California from Allgates was kept well, a light hoppy ale that went down well.
It's just outside the town centre and is a circuit pub really, always packed with a mixed clientele heading into town. However it's much improved, with the interesting decor and wider beer range mean it's well worth popping into on the way to the nearby Royal Oak.
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Whilst a shadow of it's former self in it's 90s heyday, the pub that is still known to everybody as Gems isn't a bad place. It it usually quiet enough to watch the football or rugby and has recently expanded. Usually a couple of handpumps operational at any one time.
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