|
From the
https://www.kentonline.co.uk By Secret Drinker, 7 April 2023.
Secret Drinker reviews Wetherspoon's Opera House pub in Tunbridge Wells.
A self-proclaimed Secret Drinker fan reminded me it’s been a little
while since I visited the venerable town of Royal Tunbridge Wells,
so that’s where I headed last Friday lunchtime.
Having ridden the iron horse I walked uphill towards the town centre
following my nose and wondering where I might end up.
The entrance to Wetherspoon’s monster pub in Tunbridge Wells is
impressively grand and has been well maintained.
The sun was shining and folks were out in force, either enjoying a
break from work or catching up on a spot of shopping.
I’ve always considered this popular commuter township extremely
upmarket so I was surprised to see just how many beggars there were
in doorways - mind you, where else do the vagrants have huskies?
I suppose Tunbridge Wells having an opera house isn’t so astonishing
and the fact it became a bingo hall before being taken on by JD
Wetherspoon not altogether surprising either.
Where else in the county would you find the folk sitting in shop
doorways have a well behaved husky as their dog of choice?
Spoons have a tradition of saving historic buildings and this Grade
II listed beauty must be one of the jewels in the company crown.
Though once you’re through the grand entrance, and having taken in
the impressive architecture, it’s not long before you’re reminded
this is a pub chain which operates a mass production line, whatever
the setting.
There were no smiles behind the bar, no time for pleasantries, just
make your order and move on.
Once inside this huge Grade II Listed building you can’t fail to be
impressed by the architecture which has been retained.
Between the bar near the entrance and the bar at the back of the
Opera House there is a central, lower area, which proved
particularly popular with diners.
Mind you, selecting a pint might take you a moment as I counted no
less than 24 drinks available on draught. And, in my haste to make a
decision, I committed a rookie error in settling for a pint of Cliff
Edge from Orkney Brewery.
Not that it was a bad beer, but as I was eating I should have
perused the menu and ordered food at the same time as this would
have saved me a few pennies.
I selected the table with the least number of empties left on it
and, once I’d worked out whether it was 6 or 9, went for a jacket
spud with tuna mayo for £6.34, noticing later that if I’d ordered it
with my pint the combo would have been £7.74, rather than the £8.69
I paid for the two separately.
After a very swift look round I placed my pint among the other used
glasses on what I now know was table 9 and popped to the loo while I
waited for my food to arrive.
Pub ceilings aren’t always worth looking up for, but this one
certainly is.
I chose table 9 as it was the clearest available and left my pint
while I had a quick look round. By the time I returned, three
minutes later, my food order had been delivered.
By the time I got back my potato was waiting for me and the dead
glasses had gone – my receipt showed the order time was 1.08 and it
was with me by 1.11, now that’s fast food delivery!
I realise it arrived speedily, but I have to report I was greatly
impressed by my three-minute baked potato with green salad and
dressing on the side – it was well presented, extremely fresh and
served at the perfect temperature. It’s strange, but I generally end
up feeling good about eating at a Spoons because I always seem to go
for a pretty healthy option and the fact this came without butter
and only a little mayo made it particularly good for me.
There were stacks of other folks in and a real mix of ages with some
eating, a number drinking several pints and more than a few just
having coffees.
Just a small selection of everything available, this run of six
ales, featured three which were included in Wetherspoon’s Real Ale
Festival
There seemed to be a gambling corner, with three huge fruit machines
but I only saw one woman prepared to make an investment while I was
in.
There was no music playing and there were only a few small screens
dotted about, which all seemed to be displaying the Wetherspoon logo
for some reason.
I mentioned earlier that I popped to the loo before my spud was
delivered and I should say I was a little disappointed by the gents
as the toilets were very ordinary, and more than a little smelly,
for such a grand building.
Hopefully I managed to capture the scale of this place with this
photograph, it really is a huge pub.
None of the upstairs areas were open the day I was in but it looks
as if you can reserve a box for dinner.
I thought I might have judged a little too quickly when I found a
second gents at the back of the pub, but this was equally pongy and,
with its broken mirror and missing tiles, also looked very uncared
for.
As with any boozer there are always going to be good points as well
as bad – there is an astonishingly varied choice of drinks and the
food, particularly for the price, is excellent.
The staff are lacklustre and the tables certainly aren’t cleared
quickly enough, but the real-ale festival that was running was a
real plus.
This is a view of the wall at the far end of the pub. The only
screens I saw were small and were being used to promote the company.
Above all, the setting is absolutely stunning and I certainly wasn’t
the only person impressed enough to be taking pictures.
Whatever else you might say about Wetherspoon, you can’t argue it
delivers excellent value for your money and is incredibly
convenient.
This large corner bar near the front of the pub had 24 different
drinks available on draught.
In keeping with the size of the venue, the three large, electronic
fruit machines were all group together at the front of the pub.
The toilets were okay, although they didn’t smell too fresh. I know
it’s too much to expect the loos to have been revamped from the
Opera House’s original facilities, but compared to the rest of the
place I found myself disappointed.
I later discovered there was a second gents at the back of the pub
but, with its cracked mirror and missing tiles, it looked as
disappointing as the one at the front and was equally smelly. |
