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British Airways and Avios Change
As another one of my random posts, I can’t say that I’m entirely thrilled at the below statement from British Airways today and it doesn’t seem to have gone down entirely well on Flyertalk either. My flights with BA are generally cheap ones (obviously) which means that my Avios collection opportunities will be going down. I just have to hope that they don’t do a similar revenue based policy with tier points, as devaluing those would be entirely sub-optimal….. To be fair though, they probably want to reward their higher spending customers rather than my rather frugal flight purchasing arrangements.

PRESS RELEASE
- The way British Airways Executive Club Members collect Avios is transforming from 18 October 2023, offering Members a transparent, consistent and simplified way to collect Avios
- Under the new collection model, Members can earn up to nine Avios per £1 spent, depending on their Tier status
- From the same date, additional enhancements will allow Members to collect Avios on ancillary purchases, such as upgrades and pre-paid seat selection
British Airways has announced that the way customers collect Avios will be updated from 18 October 2023, including the ability to collect Avios on ancillary purchases for the first time.

It means that customers will soon be able to collect Avios when purchasing additional items such as upgrades, pre-paid seat selection and excess baggage, either in advance or at the airport. The amount of Avios collected per flight will be based on the amount paid rather than distance travelled, in a more consistent and clearer approach.

Members booking flights from 18 October 2023 will collect the following Avios depending on their Tier status:
- Blue members will receive 6 Avios per qualifying £1 spent
- Bronze members will receive 7 Avios per qualifying £1 spent
- Silver members will receive 8 Avios per qualifying £1 spent
- Gold members will receive 9 Avios per qualifying £1 spent
This new model will also apply to flights marketed by Iberia.

Ian Romanis, British Airways’ Director of Retail and Customer Relationship Management, said: “We continue to listen to our customers’ feedback and ideas to evolve our Executive Club. This is a simpler and more transparent system offering more opportunities to collect Avios than ever before and rewarding loyalty based on customers’ cash spend. It’s a tried and tested model already used by a number of global airlines, including our sister airline Iberia.”

The update to the new collection model is the latest change to the Executive Club this year to keep improving the loyalty programme for Members. Most recently, the airline revealed a series of Avios-Only flights, with 100% of seats made exclusively available to Members as Reward Seats. The first Avios-Only flight to Sharm El Sheikh sold out within 24 hours.”
July 18, 2023
Hike Norfolk – Dine with Des and the Blackhorse Beer Mile

Fearing nothing, I thought that it would be a marvellous idea to lead a group of Hike Norfolk members to London to take part in a ‘Dine with Des’ event which consisted of a walk hosted by the wonderful Des Garrahan and then several bars in the evening. There were 11 of us on the train and we managed to dodge rail delays, cancellations and strikes so what else could possibly go wrong? I was confident of the weather, despite the naysayers of the group.

We successfully obtained four table seats on the Greater Anglia Thunderbolt to London, so our expedition started positively with no-one missing the train either. It all made me really quite proud. Here are Bev and Steve excited about the day ahead.

Safely at London Liverpool Street, I used my Pret subscription to quickly get a delightful decaff coconut latte whilst waiting for everyone to return to the meeting point. Everyone was early other than Richard and Laurence who went on a large food shop and only just made it back in time. I didn’t say anything.

Still without any issue such as someone falling on the tracks or some other disaster, we waited for the Central Line train to Epping where our walking expedition was starting from.

I noted that some of the group had started eating their lunches, but I didn’t say anything or suggest that they were like a group of kids.

Here’s a plan for another day.

The group assembles at Epping station and we waited for Des, who swept in at 11:01, fortunately only one minute later than expected. It meant that our big trek into Walthamstow could begin, set at 11 miles although that situation was to change when I had one of my good ideas.

Our first stopping point so that Des could give us some history about Epping Forest and how it evolved. One new thing that I learned is that a forest might today mean a collection of trees, but in the medieval period it more referred to a Royal Forest which the King used for hunting. The forest was in danger of destruction in the Victorian period as developers kept pinching bits of it to build houses on, but fortunately an ecological movement formed to stop the trees being entirely swept away. Epping Forest is today managed by the City of London Corporation who appear to be looking after it well, although Des noted that they’re not that keen on putting up much signage around the area. He regretted saying that as every time anyone saw a sign they mentioned it quite loudly to Des.

Richard kept pestering Des to know when lunch was, so we found a suitable spot and I had my lunch which consisted of a Pret sandwich as I didn’t want to overdo it. There was a bit of excitement here when one of the London walkers, which I specify to show it wasn’t one of my lot, managed to get a bit lost. 45 minutes later the matter was resolved, although that gave us a timing issue that I think was in our favour in terms of the bars, but more on that later. There was another issue with regards to Steve, one which makes him a hero, but more also on that in a bit. I don’t want to put too much excitement into this post too early on.

Here’s Des posing by a tree. I should at this point mention the bravery of Bev who wasn’t going to take part in the walking element as she’s got a broken back or something, but she took part and complained only rarely. So very brave.

There was a tree that had fallen across one of the paths and Des made the immediate decision to move it. I moved a significant part of the foliage myself and then worried about getting a splinter, so I then just photographed the action.

I can’t quite recollect which part of the shrubbery I help moved, but I think it’s the little twig at the front of the photo.

No it isn’t.

Can you get much cooler than this? I mentioned earlier that Steve had been particularly brave during the lunchtime period. During the lunchtime missing person debacle, a girl came into view who was distressed and who had become separated from her family. She knew where she needed to go but wasn’t sure how to get there, with Steve working out that it was a 20 minute walk there and 20 minute walk back, meaning he’d be far behind our group. I put my live tracking on, Steve did the same, and then for the next part of the day he was playing catch-up with the rest of us. But look how suave he looks when he came back into sight. What a modern day hero.

Some ferocious bulls that we sneaked by. Richard identified them as cows but we all agreed they were dangerous bulls. Well, Laurence and I agreed that.

I didn’t feel the need to have an ice cream, but the rest of the group did. I think they were more exhausted than I was, since I forget what a natural athlete I am what with my squash, football and bar billiards action. Especially bar billiards.

I went to look at the lake whilst the others were binge eating their ice creams. I didn’t say anything. I did though announce my good plan, which was to shorten the walk, a plan I’m sure I’ve had before. We had bars to visit.

This is Queen Elizabeth’s Hunting Lodge, a sixteenth century building which was once used to watch all the animals that were about to be massacred by the Monarch. Next door is a mock Tudor building which is home to a Premier Inn, perhaps one of the most attractive one of their buildings in the chain.

It was then a quick walk to Chingford bus station where we boarded a bus towards the main focal point of the day, the Blackhorse Beer Mile. We had to switch to another bus en route, but we arrived before 17:00 and I was pleased with my excellent decision to peel off from the rest of the walk to ensure the Norfolk people got their complete experience of the bars. Unfortunately, Hackney Brewery was closed for a wedding, but everything else was in full flow and we started at Wild Card Brewery.

And then Beerblefish.

And Exale. That’s an insanely good Jazz Dragon from the brewery floating under the cloud, a double IPA with a beautiful tropical flavour and one of the best beers of the evening.

Pretty Decent Beer was a new venue to me and one of my favourites of the day, not least as they had a pizza food truck parked outside. The beer menu was extensive and the service was polite and helpful.

Food at last, the It’s Not Big Dough pizza offering.

The N’Duja sausage pizza, which was suitably delicious.

Yay! Be nice people 🙂

I had to toast my Morning Steve! beer in front of Steve, as I’m thoughtful like that.

I didn’t want to miss anyone else, so here’s the rest of the group being toasted with my decadent 5.5M2 raspberry sour. This venue was certainly surprising and delighting me.

Then off to Signature Brewing and I opted for the outside bar rather than waiting inside.

Toasting Richard and Laurence with my Summer in the City watermelon sour, another standout beer.

London beers are some of my favourites 🙂

I went up to the roof garden and my two loyal readers might want to see if they can pick out the by now heavily wrapped up Norfolk group. They don’t have my resilience to the cold.

The Studio Lager which I was gifted by someone who wasn’t entirely surprised and delighted by it, so it felt right to toast the group. Again. They were a very tolerant bunch to be fair.

Our final bar was Big Penny Social, which was one of the more popular venues with a chunk of the group.

Des had been unfortunate with his food options as pizza wasn’t available by the time he ordered at the previous two bars. A banana was found for him, but he decided to order a pizza at Big Penny Social. I have to say that I think he might the right decision.

A genuinely very lovely evening. I had been looking for someone to complete the Blackhorse Beer Mile with me so I was delighted with the job lot of people that I got. Not that I had better call Hike Norfolk a job lot….

I’m very good at delegation and I appointed Steve as the responsible adult to get us back to the railway station. I was unimpressed at the raucousness of the group who kept cheering when they saw themselves on the bus CCTV. I didn’t say anything, I just pretended that I wasn’t with them.

Time for a final Pret of the day.

Ready to board our train.

As she had been so delighted by the professionalism of the day, Bev gave me half her Love Bar. We all agreed I had been an excellent walk leader, or at least the one person I asked agreed with that.

The great news about all of this is that there’s another Dine with Des rolled out already given the excitement of this evening. Further details are at https://www.meetup.com/hikenorfolk/events/294858685/. Expect a lot more London adventures as I’m on a roll and they’re one of my favourite things 🙂

July 17, 2023
Serengeti Bar Billiards Update – July 2023

I’ve just realised that this ‘riveting’ series of bar billiards posts has now overtaken my market posts as my popular collection of posts on this blog. I’m slightly worried who is reading it and that it’s not a legal company collecting evident for libel or something. Anyway, two matches in one go in this post as my blog was a bit out of action and I’ve got behind with these updates that I thought no-one was reading. Our next league match was at the Cottage, somewhere that I’ve only played in practice with tornado Emma from my team, the Serengeti.

We started the evening like this, somehow topping the table. Given our low practice rate this came as a surprise to I think it’s fair to say nearly all of us. I’m pleased that Emma and I have got a new regime going for our team of Indian meals and bar billiards, a beautiful combination if ever I heard it. What a genius it was that suggested it. I’d better thank all of my team members (Andrew, Eileen, Westley, David, Emma, Roy and Guy) for putting up my food demands, it’s much appreciated.

When I first signed up to bar billiards I was promised that there would be lots of beer and food, something which hasn’t disappointed me. I haven’t quite dared to do the pen portraits of the Serengeti team that I had planned for the Manes (my initial team before switching), but that’s likely all for the best as I would have likely pushed the matter too far with a formal complaint being made 🙂 Although the planned and cancelled photographic series of “Manes captain in victorious pose” after winning is something that I might see if Roy would consider taking over for our team…. Let’s see how we go, but that would make a wonderful calendar if we decide to sell Serengeti merchandise next year. And if we get promoted, we’re doing exactly that.

But, I digress, the pizza was from Brick and was delicious. As were the fries. Oscar, the formidable White Lion landlord who plays for the Manes, had told me that they had been given individually wrapped burgers the week before, another wonderful meal. I hope to play at the Cottage more often if I’m being honest. The table arrangement is a little blocked against the wall, but it does mean that there’s potential for some trick shots more from necessity than desire.

Beer. I can’t be doing commentary on the beer, I have an Untappd account for that.

David wasn’t there to comment (un)helpfully about my food intake which was handy, but we missed his observations and commentary during the game. I never listen to his food commentary, but he has a sound knowledge of bar billiards and indeed some other matters such as history. I like his fun facts.

And another two victories for Whirlwind White. This made it a 100% home record for singles at the White Lion and a 50% away record for me. And the team won 7-2, but I have to comment on how much fun the Cottage team were, they were clearly enjoying playing. Or they were good actors if not.

Back to this week and we were playing the Coach & Horses, who I think were second in the league, at home at the White Lion. And look, we’ve got a new sign!

And little name plates, how marvellous are these? I think I’m right in saying that Eileen gets the credit for these. Several of us agreed that this top of the table status was going to our heads and we would inevitably lose against the Coach and Horses. As a spoiler, we did.

Oops. That’s a 7-2 defeat and very sub-optimal. I managed to miss the final ball four times on the end part of the game, so destroying my 100% home record. Annoyingly I had practised it for the first time in ages as well as I thought it might be the first time I went to the end game in the league this year. I got over the loss quite quickly though by getting more food. Even the tornado Emma wasn’t victorious, this just wasn’t our night but there were some close games and some high scores gained and then lost when the pins fell over. Wes managed to win with a score of just 40, which secretly annoyed me as I got 1,000 and lost, but I don’t go on about these things. I wasn’t in the doubles this week, but that might have been for the best given the deluge of losses we faced.

I also got more beer to help cope with the defeat. There are some very good players on the Coach and Horses team, I can see them being promoted.

The excellent food offered by Oscar and Chay, meaning it’s always a delight to play here.

That means half of the season is now over and although the league tables haven’t been updated this week, it’s fair to say that we’ve lost our top spot. Which means just one thing, there will have to be more Indian meals and practice sessions if we want to regain it. And if necessary, we’ll have to have them more regularly and I’m happy to plough through more food if it helps the team. Roy will steady the ship though, we needn’t panic yet about our recent poor run. Well, losing one league game. Lose another one and I’ll panic though as I obviously take this very seriously (well, something like that, but I take eating the food and photographing it seriously and I’m definite about that).

Anyway, it’s still all very exciting and I’m very grateful to Emma and David for keeping me in check with regards to the food 🙂 And for everyone else for having me along, although they might read this and be less impressed at my commentary.

July 14, 2023
Norwich – My Makan

I was surprised and delighted to hear that there was a new Malaysian restaurant in Norwich, located in the culinary quarter that once housed the Westlegate McDonald’s on the ground floor. My Makan opened earlier on in 2023 and they’re attempting to offer authentic Malaysian cuisine, so Bev, Gordon, Brian and I thought that it was only right that we paid it a visit.

The 50% off sale was for next door, although I did have a buy one get one free voucher for a free main for the table. There’s a five star food hygiene rating certificate there for those who require such reassurance.

The menu and it wasn’t bloated in size, which is always a positive first sign for me. When aiming for an authentic Malaysian experience, I don’t want to see chicken vindaloo or something which seems to be a cuisine mission creep that some restaurants fall into the trap of. My one free main meal was slightly undermined by Gordon ordering two main meals, although I pinched a chunk of that so all was well.

It wasn’t packed on our Thursday evening visit, but it did get busier later on. The atmosphere is quiet and inviting, the acoustics work well here so it’s not too loud. It was perhaps just a little hot, but they’ve got vertical fans going which resolved the issue.

The blue butterfly pea flower drink, which I didn’t quite understand from the menu, but as they don’t sell alcohol it seemed intriguing. Bev was going on about it turning green when lime is added and it does appear to be a drink that changes its colour depending on the acidity. It’s not visible in the photo, but I found the streams of blue going into the drink from straw really quite hypnotic. When it was served the drink looked as though it was a weak cordial, but this had a depth of taste to it and a flavour that I’ve never had before. It stayed resolutely blue, but this was one of the better soft drinks that I’ve had. I was also fortunate as I ordered first and when Brian tried to order they told him that they had run out.

The view over the Pig and Whistle pub. I mean, it’s not the Petronas Towers, but watching the denizens of Norwich meander by was suitably calming.

This is the Nasi Lemak with ayam rempah, or spiced fried chicken. Firstly, I’ve never had dried anchovies and they added texture, a salty fishy taste and no shortage of flavour. The peanuts added more flavour and the sambal was moreish and had a spicy edge to it. The rice was well cooked and the salad element added some extra colour to the plate. The chicken thigh was tender, moist and the coating was crispy and packed with various herbs and spices. Dipping that chicken into the sambal was evidence that simple things done well are all that is often needed. In some senses there were an awful lot of things on the plate, but it was a delight to work my way around the plate, and the pledge of authenticity that the restaurant made certainly seemed to have been honoured.

The dessert photos, although they’re listed in plain text on the main menu as well. Photos of desserts usually indicates that they’re bought in and the restaurant has pinched the stock photos, but here it’s more because they want to show what the food actually looks like. We can’t all be Malaysian food experts and I thought this was useful.

Rice pudding is one of my favourite things, particularly on long walks when I need some liquid and solid refreshment at the same time and am too tired to chew. Long distance walking isn’t all glamour, but I digress. This is black, and as the restaurant notes glutinous, rice pudding served with thick coconut milk and vanilla ice cream. The portion size wasn’t the most subtle, but I never complain about too much food. It was served warm, it was light but yet filling and the flavours once again worked beautifully. Bev, who complains about everything, was very quiet on that front and she muttered only that she had eaten too much. There is rarely much more praise than Bev can give than to only complain that she’s over indulged.

I tried to take a photo of Gordon’s banana fritters dessert, but he had eaten most of them before I had chance, so Brian’s meal was instead brought into play for the purpose.

Bringing all things together, this was an exceptional meal. The service was attentive, polite and kind throughout the entire dine. The restaurant was clean, the surroundings comfortable and the prices reasonable. But, the food and drink continued to surprise and delight me, especially experiencing new flavours which I hadn’t had before. I am sure that I’ll be back and I hope that the restaurant continues to get busier through word of mouth, it certainly deserves to.

July 14, 2023
The Museum of Norwich at the Bridewell – Model of Norwich City’s Former Nest Stadium

This the museum’s model of the Nest, which was Norwich City’s football stadium between 1908 and 1935 after they had moved from their previous Newmarket Road site. It was squeezed into a former disused chalk mine site and despite the best efforts of the club at the time to modernise and expand the facilities, it wasn’t large enough and in 1935 they moved to their current Carrow Road ground. After 1935 the site returned to industrial, then became Bertram’s Books and is now a housing development called Bertram Way.

The rather hilly and bumpy area before Norwich City decided to build the Nest.

An excited crowd at the Nest in a photograph dating to 1924. The club’s move made a great deal of sense as there’s no way that the site would have been large enough as there was nowhere for them to expand into. If they had continued here they would have ended up with the situation that Luton Town have with their odd entrances in the middle of terraced housing. The Nest site today has a supporting wall on one side where the stand used to be, otherwise there’s no other trace of the site, but there is a statue remembering that the stadium was once here.

The museum’s model shows how the stadium would have looked in 1935, just before their move to Carrow Road. There are surprisingly few facilities, no such treats as the Gunn Club…..

July 13, 2023
Food from Every Stall on Norwich Market – Week 15 and Bodega

Week 15 was one of the stalls that I had most been looking forwards to visiting on my eating quest around Norwich market. I have eaten here once before and it has one of the best reputations for quality sandwiches, so a return visit was most agreeable for the purposes of this market food eating project.

The breakfast and lunch opening hours.

The menu with numerous tempting options, although I had already decided that in tribute to Katz’s deli in New York that I would go for the pastrami sandwich. The fish finger sandwich sounds delightful as well and that seemed to be the option most ordered whilst I was standing there.

I like the subtle humour dotted around the stall.

The stall uses the strategy of having a staff member outside taking orders so that the counter doesn’t become cluttered up. He was welcoming, engaging and knowledgeable, with the option to pay by card. Service was fast and customer names are taken so that they can shout the order out when it’s ready. The stall was busy, but it was all efficient and organised, with food orders taking around five minutes as they’re freshly made.

I very much like pastrami and so this suitably surprised and delighted me. The pickles and sauerkraut added texture, with the sauce ensuring that the sandwich wasn’t too dry. The pastrami was tender and very peppery, just as I like it to be, with the portion size being generous. It’s not necessary cheap at £7.50, but it is high quality and proved to be filling. James had the same pastrami sandwich and was also pleased, although pointed out that it does require some thought to work out how to eat to avoid any spilling incidents. As an aside, he was also keen to discover where on Norwich market they sold biltong, something we never really resolved.

The whole arrangement including signage, ordering, service and the food was all impeccable, so it will come as no surprise that I’d very happily recommend this stall to others. And I look forwards to returning and trying some of the other menu options. Definitely a contender for my favourite market stall and writing this has made me fancy another pastrami sandwich.

July 13, 2023
Food from Every Stall on Norwich Market – Week 14 and Jacket Spuds & More

Next in the little adventure of eating at every Norwich market stall was Jacket Spuds & More. This one was just a little challenging as it’s the only stall I’ve yet encountered, which the exception of Toby’s Beer which is a slightly different issue as it’s a bar, which has customers standing eating where I would usually expect to order.

The menu which doesn’t just have jacket potatoes, but also breakfasts, sandwiches and muffins.

And the drinks menu. The service was polite, but there was little opportunity for the engagement offered by other market stalls as orders have to be shouted over the top of other customers (or at least mine did). I understand it’s a market stall, but it just means that I can’t much comment more here, although they did take cards and everything was polite and welcoming.

I was pleased that they checked if I wanted butter or not, as I’m not keen on it on jacket potatoes. The potato was cooked well, had a crispy skin and there was a generous portion of beans, so everything was as expected. There was apparently black pepper available on the counter, but I couldn’t get to it and nearly every meal is improved with a generous sprinkling of it. James went for a similar menu option, although he went for cheese and beans, as well as having butter. He’s always been much more decadent than me though.

Overall, I felt that this stall offered decent food at reasonable prices, so I can’t imagine that anyone would be disappointed. I didn’t realise until later on that there was also the option of jacket potato with sausages which sounds suitably exciting. As a comment rather than as a complaint, this was the hardest stall yet to order at but everything looked clean and organised. I’d like to try one of their all day breakfasts next time, to see if they can surprise and delight me.

July 13, 2023
Two Julians – We’ve Got Our Own Place!

I’m aware that my blog has been a little slow recently and so partly as a combination of that (don’t worry, the new server is sorted and the problem should be fixed very soon) and wanting our own space I’ll like to announce that the Two Julians also now has its own website 🙂

The content will still be posted here, but have a look at our latest study tour at Beccles along with an archive of older posts at our new place.

We’re at www.norfolksuffolk.org.uk/.

July 6, 2023
Beccles Pub Day – Two Julians

This content is also available at our web-site at http://www.norfolksuffolk.org.uk/.

Another day, another study tour. This time to Beccles, to see what delights could be offered in this fine Suffolk metropolis. I boarded the X2 bus at the bus station, whilst Julian boarded a little further down the route and he marched magnificently down the aisle like a strutting peacock.

Safely in Beccles, we were starting our expedition at the Ingate. And the list of pubs that we visited were:

Ingate

Wine Vaults Bar and Restaurant

Bear & Bells

Waveney House Hotel

King’s Head Hotel

Unlike in Wymondham, where we completed all nine venues listed on Untappd, we had a little more difficulty completing Beccles. The Butchers Arms doesn’t open until later in the day and nor do two of the social clubs. We also missed out the Caxton Arms, partly because their lack of real ale meant it didn’t show up on the CAMRA map. However, we’re not amateurs at this, oh no. We’ll be back on another study tour and will also take in some nearby countryside pubs. We’re not one trick ponies who just do urban pubs, we’re two trick ponies who cover the countryside as well.

I would have much liked to have gone in the Ale of a Time shop which was selling a range of beers, but unfortunately they have limited opening hours. Good to see this sort of place opening though.

I make no comment.

We made time to pop into the town’s church.

And off we go at the end of the day. Julian made the ridiculous comment that I needed a new bag, but I ignored that. My McCain’s bag has been going strong for over a decade and it’s not going anywhere (well, technically, it goes loads of places, but you get the idea). Safely back into Norwich, we had enjoyed yet another marvellous day out.

The Ingate is a fine pub, which very much deserves to be in the Good Beer Guide, that was a surprise and delight. The Wine Vaults was more food focused but they were welcoming to drinkers, with the same being true of the Waveney House Hotel and its fine views of the river. The Bear & Bells wasn’t what I expected, but it was hard to fault the King’s Head, which is the JD Wetherspoon venue in Beccles. As mentioned, we’ll be back soon enough, but our next adventure is to Cromer, the pearl of North Norfolk, as well as a trip to Ipswich to add to the mix. And we’re not ruling out doing some even wider straddling and might perhaps treat ourselves to a London study tour at some stage.

July 6, 2023
Beccles – King’s Head Hotel

The final stop in our study tour of Beccles was the JD Wetherspoon operated King’s Head Hotel. For the purposes of these days out we try and avoid eating in Wetherspoons as we want to ideally experience some food in an independent pub, but the Bear & Bells finished food service early and we were left with no other options. I’ve been in this pub before JD Wetherspoon took it over in February 2013, but I can’t recall the previous layout internally as the renovation was quite extensive.

A little information board in the pub notes that the venue’s history dates back to at least the seventeenth century and there’s more about the heritage of the building at http://relicsofbeccleshistory.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-kings-head-hotel-re-opens.html. It’s a shame that so few photos of the interior of pubs exist, but as Julian mentioned, it was hard to take photos inside dark buildings which often had smoke and often had people moving around quite a lot. That means although there are generally plenty of exterior photos of venues, there are few photographic records of how it all looked inside.

The King’s Head was for a long period the main coaching inn of Beccles, with the building being substantial itself as well as having numerous outbuildings. There are likely few operators would could have coped with such a large building, but JD Wetherspoon have utilised nearly all of the ground floor for the pub, the toilets are inevitably upstairs and there’s direct access to their hotel rooms.

There were six real ales which were priced between £1.71 and £2.68 per pint. Not only that but there were some interesting options that I haven’t seen before and a range of beer styles to choose from which included a dark beer.

Using two of my 50p off vouchers this was nearly the cheapest round of the day and we ordered pints here unlike in the other pubs….. The pricing for food may have gone up, but the price for drinks remains one of the lowest around. The service at the bar was polite and they’re operating a queueing system here. This seems to be the latest controversy for some people in this chain’s pubs, where now orderly queues form rather than there being something of a free for all at the bar. I must admit, I don’t much mind what a pub does, as long as it’s clear where I’m supposed to stand.

Tastefully decorated, the pub has plenty of nooks and crannies. The restoration of the venue by JD Wetherspoon feels as though it has been sensitive and they’ve also modernised the accommodation as well for those wanting to stay overnight, with twenty rooms available. I have stayed here before and I remember the rooms being well appointed, quiet and also the prices were reasonable. There’s a lot to be said about this historic venues, imagining the number of coroner investigations, birthdays, wedding parties, fights, drunken behaviour and mischief to think of just a few.

The Red Rocks from Peerless Brewing, a very agreeable and well kept ruby ale.

I went for a chicken and bacon salad which looked well presented and I was surprised and delighted to find a heap of bacon hidden at the bottom as well. For the price point, I felt that this was very acceptable and the service time was ferociously quick. There were also numerous craft beers available as well, I went for the Devils Bridge IPA from Kirkby Lonsdale Brewery, a nice citrus flavoured beer.

Julian was ready for his food. We were at this table as it was one which had a convenient power point for my phone, which once again needed quite a lot of attention as it was a bit worn out. Rather like me really.

And soon after it arrived. I think Julian was content with his food, with the staff offering check backs to ensure that all was well. The collection of empty plates and glasses was also efficient, the venue was well staffed.

What looks like part of the former stable area with the green doors is now used as the pub’s beer cellar. These stretch out further along the building into the large beer garden. It might not look it, but the pub was relatively busy even for a weekday afternoon, with a fair few families in where they’ve taken the kids after school.

The dessert cost £1.70. I’m not suggesting that it was Michelin quality, but it was a biscuity and ice cream mini treat.

And to finish off, the delicious and once again well kept Black Adder from Mauldons.

And some information about carpets in Wetherspoons, which are all unique. I had a little look at the on-line reviews and it’s reviewed about as well as any other outlet in the chain, so they’re clearly doing plenty right. This review amused me for reasons unknown….

“Staff member cleaning the table of plates from previous customers passed me the cloth and asked me to wipe the table myself. I explained I had just washed my hands to eat and would rather not. Staff member argued the cloth is clean enough. She wiped the table, said ‘you’re welcome’ sarcastically and walked off”

And then the endless dogs debate, as they’re banned entirely by the chain. It’s quite awkward at this pub as there’s plenty of external seating, so they have to advertise quite clearly the policy. But it annoys some of those people who love taking their dogs for a little drink.

“I am so very annoyed.Today we went in to Beccles town center with our little dog.We went to sit at the tables a long the side of weatherspoons on the pavement and all the tables said ‘no dogs at these tables’thats surely not right.firstly the tables are on the pavement area at the side of the weatherspoons so its not their private area.we was so looking forward to sitting outside there with our dog having a meal when the weather is nice,but now we will never go in their again.”

This review was posted two weeks ago, so certainly wasn’t a reference to us:

“Full of loud local drunks.”

In the bin 🙂

“We ordered our food from a table that had no number so used next table a long.which the people sitting there were very helpful. The wine came with in 5 min. We waited for our food for 45 minutes it did not arrive. Thought a bit strange so I went in and asked politely if there had been a mix up. The waitress replied ‘o yes it’s in the bin’.”

But, I mustn’t spend too long reading reviews, however tempting it might be.

I am aware that there are some in CAMRA, and indeed some not in CAMRA, who are not best pleased about this chain for various reasons. However, they offered us the widest choice of real ales in the day, they offered the widest choice of craft beers, they were the only pub serving food in the afternoon and their prices were the lowest. The service was efficient and attentive, the surroundings were clean, the atmosphere was inviting and this felt like a professionally run pub. There is far more to a pub than being the cheapest or even having the most beer options, but given everything combined this venue certainly surprised and delighted me.

July 6, 2023