Kmflett's Blog

I’ve visited Wetherspoons & here is why

I sometimes post that I don’t drink in Wetherspoons because of the anti-trade union attitude of Tim Martin, but I’m also careful to note that I’m not boycotting Wetherspoons pubs. Union members there are not calling for that, it makes no difference to Martin whether I go there or not (plenty do) and the company is hardly unique in the hospitality sector in not having good terms and conditions for employees (indeed there are worse operators).

The key point is that given the size of the Spoons estate they can and should recognise a union.

Any way it was the 2022 Good Beer Guide that prompted me to pay a couple of visits. I’m a member of the North London branch of CAMRA (and have been since 1975) and I was intrigued by the number of entries the Guide had for the area which were Spoons.

I’d be inclined in the GBG to note that more or less all Wetherspoons sell cask beer and in some places may well be one of the few pubs that does. On that basis you can always give them a try and the Spoons App allows you to check what cask beers are on before doing so (would that more pubs did that). The quality in my experience over the years varies. Its rarely dire but not great that often either.

Spoons and CAMRA do have a certain relationship-though the CAMRA discount is now much wider than Spoons. If you flick through Wetherspoons News (mostly but not entirely harmless) there is plenty of cask/CAMRA material. Given that Spoons is one of the largest cask sellers in the UK it can be understood.

So it was that on an early lunchtime a week last Friday I found myself in the Mossy Well, a vast, well appointed and comfortable Spoons at the top of Muswell Hill. They had 5 London cask beers on at the far too reasonable price of £1.99. I tried a half of Big Chief from Tottenham’s Redemption and it was indeed in top condition. Hence the pub is in the 2022 GBG and rightly so.

This Friday I stopped by the Central Bar, a 2022 GBG entry, which is in central Cardiff in the main shopping area. A little before midday it was busy. A half of Bowmans(Hants) darker shade of pale set me back £1.15. I’m not familiar with the beer so I cant say if it was in top condition but it was certainly perfectly drinkable. Much craft beer in Cardiff is keg only (not an issue for me) so again for a Guide focused on cask it makes sense to feature a bar that clearly sells a good deal of it.

My conclusion (not that its of great concern I’m sure) is that it seems fair enough to include specific Wetherspoons pubs in the 2022 Good Beer Guide but I do think the Guide should mention that inclusion is entirely related to the beer quality (which it rightly is) and not a wider judgement on bars included.

I still wont be making a habit of visiting Spoons though, except perhaps for the Mossy Well which was in fact a good deal more pleasant than some Indy bars I can think of…