Wetherspoons was among the thousands of businesses which opened its doors again this month following England’s second national lockdown.
Under Liverpool’s Tier 2 restrictions, in order to open bars and pubs must provide a ‘substantial meal’ alongside alcohol, meaning they must essentially operate as a restaurant.
While this has proven difficult for many pubs, which must now remain closed, pub chain Wetherspoons was able to take the step fairly easily.
This week, Wetherspoons cleared up any confusion about what it considered a ‘substantial meal’ so we headed out to a Liverpool Wetherspoons to see what it was like.
What is a substantial meal?
According to a spokesperson for the chain, “virtually every meal” on the Wetherspoons menu could be considered a substantial meal.
However, they added, “people’s appetites can vary considerably” but the “general principle is that if you need a knife and fork to eat the meal then it’s substantial”.
For example, a side order of onion rings or chips would not be considered substantial, but a pannini could be, providing the manager agrees with this.
What did we order?
The Wetherspoons we visited, The John Brodie on Allerton Road, had a relatively extensive menu, allowing us to choose from almost anything.
The menu featured everything from pub classics like fish and chips and beef and ale pies, to small plates including scampi, chicken wings, mini nachos and even cheesy garlic bread.
We ordered a range of different meals, including the Beef and Ale pie with chips, the Grilled Gammon, the Coated Chicken Burger.
There was a good selection of children’s meals to choose from too, including Fish Fingers and Chips and Chicken Goujons and chips.
What was it like?
The food, unfortunately, wasn’t anything special.
The Beef and Ale pie was fairly standard, though hearty and warm, and arrived with chips and peas.
The Chicken Burger was tasteless and arrived with limp lettuce and just a tiny bit of barbecue sauce haphazardly splashed across the top of the chicken.
The gammon was definitely the highlight of the food, with chips, fried egg and pineapple.
Could we get a pint?
After a long time away from the pub, it felt great to be able to order an alcoholic drink.
There was no fuss about ordering drinks, though the food order was taken first.
Were other restrictions being followed?
All other restrictions were being followed to the letter, as far as we could see. There was a waiting area for visitors wanting to enter, with hand sanitising stations and reminders to wear face masks positioned in the entryway.
Staff kept their distance and wore face coverings, offering table service across the restaurant, where tables were spaced evenly apart so customers were not too close together.
Would we go again?
We’d definitely visit again, as the trip was the definition of cheap and cheerful.
The staff were friendly and the atmosphere wasn’t uncomfortable despite the restrictions meaning it very well could have been.
