Shakespeare's Head - JD Wetherspoon Reviews Summary

Atmosphere

Pros:

• "Gr8 atmosphere in there with plenty of groups enjoying the evening."
• "Great vibe in here."
• "Atmosphere quite good for a quiet Monday night."
• "The spacious interior and classic pub atmosphere create a relaxed setting."
• "It's an ideal spot for a casual gathering with friends or a quick bite, making it a convenient choice in the heart of the city."
• "Always a genial atmosphere and plenty of room."
• "Lovely atmosphere and plenty of seating."

Cons:

• "It was very busy and noisy."
• "The vibe was not great."
• "Not a nice atmosphere. Packed with after-work drinking parties."
• "The noise was made worse by the fact that two or three hen nights were going on!"
• "I actually didn’t visit because I went at night and it was a mess, and too noisy."
• "This is not a surprise though as it’s situated in an extremely busy part of London & a college is also nearby."
• "Very busy pub on a Thursday after working hours.. although a little less busier at lunch time."

Service

Pros:

• "Really nice staff and amazing building."
• "Service was incredibly fast despite it being packed to the walls when we arrived."
• "Staff very polite and the facilities are clean."
• "Staff service is excellent and very efficient."
• "Staff and service first class."
• "Fastest service in any pub I've been in, loads of helpful staff."
• "Service and staff were just fine. Food was served quickly and good quality."

Cons:

• "No one cared about anything... cleaning tables, plates NOTHING and it wasn't busy."
• "But the service @ the bar was terrible when I stopped in there for an hour between 20:50 & 21:50."
• "Went here on a Friday night and the two ladies behind the bar clearly didn’t want to be there."
• "Staff on this visit seemed not concerned that there was a queue and no urgency to get the filter coffee out."
• "One of the worst spoons out there, the management is just rude, food often comes cold, it's often very crowded and the space isn't very nice looking compared to other Wetherspoons around the area."
• "Rude staff, care just about getting service fast but no customer service."
• "Standard Westherspoons affair - good prices and layout. The only thing is that when we visited the waitress was exceptionally rude and blunt, and I even felt rather intimidated!!"

Food & Drink

Pros:

• "Coffee £1.50 and refillable.. Brilliant price for London."
• "It does have adequate food at some of the most affordable prices in the city."
• "Food is fresh and amazing."
• "Cheap food and cheap drink."
• "Highly recommend the lavazza hot drinks!"
• "The Chicken breast bites are the best thing on the menu, they really are excellent."
• "Good cheap beer."

Cons:

• "The food is mediocre at best but the drinks are cheap and the atmosphere is okay."
• "Ordered some food which wasn't bad but unbeknownst to me, the butter had already melted so when I opened the sachet it the contents ended up over my shirt and jeans."
• "No mustard for sausages. No tomatoes on a brekkie that's supposed to come with tomatoes."
• "When my breakfast came, my hash browns were stone cold."
• "Food was alright, but we did not finish half of it due to it not being the best tasty."
• "The food was ok. Meat was tough."
• "Everything was almost cold and steak was mostly fat and gristle."

Location & Cleanliness

Pros:

• "One of my favourite haunts in central London!"
• "Great location just 5 minutes walk from Holborn station."
• "Close to transport hubs which was good."
• "Located within 100 yards of Holborn tube so very easy to get to."
• "Very good standard of cleanliness throughout and covid protocols well observed."
• "Bathrooms were big and immaculate clean, must commend the staff."
• "Very central and convenient location."

Cons:

• "Another Wetherspoons pub, that always seems to smell of stale beer."
• "The sticky carpet."
• "It's one of the weirdest decors ever. I am not sure if it was cleaned at some point."
• "We arrived at the side disabled entrance as I have mobility issues. We rang the bell and waited patiently for a member of staff to let us in. No one attended to us."
• "The big hairy man who is deputy manager of this pub is absolutely disgusting."
• "But what are the staff doing?! I shouldn’t have to argue, while in a Greene King pub, standing in front of the Greene King IPA pump that when I said 'IPA' I wanted a Greene King IPA? Should I?…"
• "The beers were awful (watery, flat, less choice..), the food (beef pie and chips) came 3 minutes after ordering...half reheated in the microwave."