There was a busy, hurried and rushed atmosphere in Leeds’s newest Wetherspoon pub, which opened earlier this week.
It was frankly hard to get a table at The Scribbling Mill at the White Rose Shopping Centre in Beeston, the place was heaving with customers, all clustered into the central dining area which was crammed with tables and chairs.
Not only was each table and booth taken but there were customers pacing across the dining hall. Their eyes wandering across the venue, ready to pounce on the first available spot.
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I was one of them and even had to race other diners to a table once it became available. Fortunately, another table freed up just moments later.
There seemed to be a real excitement in the air about the new Spoons, and who can fault the local community? The prices are considerably more reasonable than other restaurants with a range of meals going for a below a tenner, with a drink included, and unlimited coffee and tea refills.
I was surrounded by a mix of more elderly people and families, all chattering away beneath the ambient halogen hanging lights. The venue appeared clean, each wooded table was practically gleaming, the dark blue dreamlike cascading carpet was sparse and whenever I saw food left, staff members from all directions almost ran across for a quick clean up.
I noticed there was an open kitchen, I like being able to peer over and see where my food is coming from. Plus it adds a touch of sophistication to your bog-standard Spoons, just a touch.
I decided to order my food on the app just because it was so busy and I didn’t want risk losing my table. I went in hoping to get a steak or a mixed grill, that’s what I was really in the mood for but I was told there was “no grill” so they didn’t make steaks at this JD Wetherspoon. The app is quite straight forward and I managed to order without any issues.
The long distance of the toilets from the bar at Wetherspoon pubs is a topic which has been widely mocked so I decided to count my steps from the bar to the men’s room. My journey across the bar, through a side door, up two flights of stairs and through a corridor came to an almighty 37 steps.
Back to the food, I ordered the halloumi-style fries (£4.30), roasted vegetables (70p) and the hot and spicy chicken meal with spicy rice and gravy, plus a free drink which was a raspberry lemonade Kombucha (£10.20).
The food was impressive in the sense that I was given massive portions, it looked presentable, and it all came at such a low price. Try crossing over to any of the surrounding food venues in the White Rose and you’d be paying a lot more for much less food.
The halloumi itself wasn’t very flavoursome but it was cooked perfectly and not oily at all. I was taken aback by how large my piece of chicken was, which consisted of the breast and leg on bone.
The meat had been cooked really delicately, coming apart from the bone very easily. The sauce was about as spicy as expected, as in it wasn’t very spicy, it was a medium heat going by the Nando’s Richter scale. I was also given a generous helping of roast vegetables.
The staff were attentive, I believe I was asked by three members of staff how my meal was. Due to sheer busyness of the pub, it didn’t make for a relaxing meal but hopefully over time, people’s excitement will ease and visiting there will become a more relaxing affair.
The bill
- Halloumi-style fries - £4.30
- Hot and spicy chicken with gravy and free drink - £10.20
- Roasted vegetables - 70p
- Total - £15.20
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