Refresher: 21st August, 2023. Since writing this piece there has been a cull of some of the Houses of Horror in the 'Spoons estate. I am delighted to say that The Pear Tree in Kings Heath, Birmingham, has gone. It was undoubtedly the worst from my own personal experience. The almost-as-bad Rising Sun has set in Redditch, and West Brom's Billiard Hall has been potted too.
To be fair, the vile Kings Heath hell-hole has been replaced with The Navigation in Kings Norton which, so far, is a cut above (pun intended).
However, I did have the misfortune of visiting the ghastly White Swan in Solihull on Saturday. This appalling pub was rammed at lunchtime but my companion and I found it so depressing we beat a hasty retreat after one pint.
Here's the original post. Anymore I should add to the list?
It is easy to mock Wetherspoons and so I should start with bouquets before brickbats. Like most drinkers I use the chain from time to time where I cannot find a suitable "independent" alternative. In the years before the plague, I enjoyed The High Constable of England on Gloucester Docks, Goodman's Field near the Tower of London and, for exceptional service in a busy environment, The Sir John Hackshaw at Cannon Street Station - again in London (although my judgement of the latter may have been clouded by the stunning beauty of the serving staff!)
However, most drinkers have suffered the interminable wait for service prevalent throughout the chain only to be presented with a badly-kept, undrinkable, ale from what had appeared to be a mouth-watering range. And the usual vertiginous climb to the lavatory is the stuff of legend.
Sometimes the chain manages to present both good and bad in the same town. In Redditch (the apex of North Worcestershire's Bore-muda Triangle) the Mulleted One presents the relatively civilised The Royal Enfield on the one hand, and the dire mouth of Hades The Rising Sun on the other!
Yesterday I opinied on social media that The Pear Tree in the Kings Heath suburb of Birmingham must surely me the worst Spoons in Britain. Respected commentators on the pub scene soon suggested alternatives for the tarnished crown with the two stand-outs being The Dragon Inn, Weston-super-Mare (described as "beyond grim") and The George Hotel, Whittlesey (near Peterborough.)
Bubbling under the top three are The Old Swanne Inn, Evesham and the unimaginatively named, er, Wetherspoons at Piccadilly, Manchester (surely destined to soon become the Saint Marcus Rashford.)
The Billiard Hall, West Bromwich surprisingly escaped condemnation although the state of the Gents leaves a lot to be desired!
 |
| Image - City A.M. |
Please email with any thoughts for other entrants to the Hall of Shame or with comments generally!
To follow the thoughts of erudite pub-lovers on Twitter do try:
@oldmudgie
@WestBromEL
@RogerProtzBeer
@NHS_Martin
iancrowmultimedia@gmail.com
