From the https://www.kentonline.co.uk By Secret Drinker, 6 November 2025.

Secret Drinker reviews Wetherspoon’s Belle and Lion pub in Sheerness High Street.

Wetherspoon pubs have always been Marmite. Those who hate them will lump the whole lot together and dismiss them en masse; those who love them accept that there are both good and bad examples and will rank them accordingly.

I will now describe my visit to the Belle and Lion on Sheerness High Street, so you can decide where it should be placed on the Spoon’s sliding scale?

Even the most anti-Wetherspoon moaner can't deny this pub chain offers its punters an incredibly wide selection of drinks.

The menu may be homogenised and the drinks selection very similar across the various outlets but the staff, the ambience and the clientele can be as chalk and cheese as it’s possible to be.

This was a late lunch Friday and the hi-vis brigade had already arrived in big numbers, unusually though several women were also sporting bright orange and luminous lemon.

By Spoons’ standards, this is a relatively thin establishment but it extends a long way back – and as I’m currently carrying a disability we took a table at the front. In hindsight, this was a rookie error, not because the table was still covered in old, used dishes and glasses, but because the punters around us had already invested much of their Friday - and money - here.

I know this is the season for dressing up but it wasn’t clear why the barmaid going off-shift had modelled herself as Mr Incredible, she hadn’t bothered with the mask but the giant black underpants were definitely in place, so I spared us both and resisted the urge to take a pic.

A relatively normally dressed barmaid took my order for a pepperoni pizza, along with an alcoholic drink, for £10.58 plus a southern fried chicken wrap, along with an alcoholic drink, for £8.43.

There are no games, no pool, no darts etc but there was a bank of four giant fruit machines opposite the bar and, just for good measure, two more front left of the pub.

Equally, as is the custom in Wetherspoon establishments, there is no place here for background music, which allows the ‘dulcet’ tones of the punters to flow freely above the hubbub, uninterrupted by other melodies. Mrs SD isn’t a shrinking violet but when I got back to our table she said the level, and ferocity, of the obscenities being exchanged was off the scale.

As I sat down, the woman on the next table first asked me if I’d like to go to the bingo and when I politely declined she followed up with: “Do you know anywhere round here where I can buy an eyeliner?”

There is a large outside seating area to the back right of the pub with a stack of chairs and tables. Only faggers were venturing out but I did notice the back gate was open, so this may serve as an alternative entrance/exit for those who live nearby.

The outside seating area at the back, right of the pub is a good size.

The pub may be relatively narrow, but there's no denying it extends back a very long way.

Having climbed a mountain of stairs with my gammy leg, I was both surprised, and pleased, in equal measure to find the best thing about this place is the state of the toilets. Maybe that’s why we witnessed a fairly steady stream of folk walk in off the street and up to the first floor facilities before descending again and wandering out without so much as a by your leave.

The food started arriving eight minutes after the order was placed, I say started as Mrs SD’s wrap and slightly cool chips were delivered and the previous customer’s dirty plates removed. However, our waiter informed me he’d returned my pepperoni pizza to the kitchen on the basis that he didn’t feel it was big enough but the replacement shouldn’t be long.

When it did arrive it was piping hot, tasty and just what I was after – for the price I’d have to say I thought it was excellent.

By 3.30pm things were livening up decidedly but it seemed good-natured at this early stage, although when someone new sat at the noisy group’s adjoining table the exchange was forthright to say the least.

‘Who the f*** are you?’ ‘No, who the f*** are you?’ ‘Well, how f****** old are you?’ ‘F*** you’ve had a hard f****** life’ ‘What the f***, you f*****, just f*** off’.

But, introductions suitably conducted, it all settled down again and the chat moved on to dressing up for Halloween parties. In the end they decided they all looked enough like zombies anyway, so no fancy dress would be required – I decided it wouldn’t be wise to share my opinion on this one!

I was carrying quite a severe disability but the disabled toilet was permanently engaged, in the main by able-bodied folk, so I tackled the stairs. However, I have to say it was worth the effort as the toilets were by far the best thing about this pub.

Presumably saved from the previous life of this pub, the motif mounted on the front of the building combines the head of a lion and the upper body of a belle.It’s safe to say this isn’t one of Wetherspoon’s more glamorous venues but it does do exactly what it says on the tin.

The food was absolutely fine, the drink very pleasant and no-one can argue about the price.

After this, it really comes down to your view about the behaviour and demeanour of the drinkers attracted here by the good value on offer. Those who consider this type of performance harmless and entertaining will not be put off, those who find such language and actions as abhorrent and abusive will need to walk on by and find a more genteel establishment.

Mrs SD kindly took this shot inside the ladies loos and, for once, she was in total agreement with me, the toilets are the best part of the Belle and Lion.

Décor: Exactly what you’d expect in a more downmarket Spoons - sticky wooden tables, an equally sticky carpet but a very well-ordered dining area. Top-end Wetherspoons (old churches/theatres etc) are much better I think. **

Drink: The 3.9% Red Ale from Mad Cat Brewery was very pleasant with a rich, caramel flavour. Mrs SD reckoned the wine was a little sweet but I liked it. No-one can say there isn’t a huge variety of drinks available. *****

Food: My pizza was pretty darned good and Mrs SD enjoyed her wrap, which she said was plenty tangy. The mix-up over ordering chips was a shame, as they were lukewarm and we really didn’t need them. ***

Price: Two reasonable meals and two drinks (a decent pint of red ale and, what I thought, was an okay wine) for what would have been £19.01, excluding the chips, has got to be a good deal. *****

Staff: The bar staff felt like they were simply going through the motions but our waiter was worthy of more mention, as at least he made an effort to check on us and got me a bigger pizza. **

The back gate was left open, so I presume locals can use this as an alternative entrance and exit.