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Disappointment of the week with Gann
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The Defectors Weld, Shepherds Bush, W12
W12
W12 8AA
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 5½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about The Defectors Weld
Youngs pub, in the Good Beer Guide 2022. At least one guest on - a chosen Proper Job - where I managed to negotiate getting a proper glass now the QPR fans have belatedly made their way to the ground.
Cavernous open plan room around a central bar.
The only thing to stay in the memory will be your ears rattling from music played at filling rattling volumes.
On 20th September 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1337 recommendations about 1323 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malden man left this review about The Defectors Weld
I have no recollection of this place in a former guise when I lived very close by in the mid 1980s, pretty sure I never went in. Many pubs around here back then were hard drinking Irish pubs with no real ale so that might be why. A large street corner pub, tapering with the road layout to the side, on the edge of the green.The strange and almost certainly unique pub name has its origins in the spy within network of Burgess and McLean if the Whatpub write up is correct. The very large ground floor area has an almost island bar, boarded flooring, banquettes and mismatched chairs to the front blending into sofas and armchairs towards the rear. Lots of exposed brickwork of varying age and visual quality, a couple of possibly original fireplaces remain, the high ceiling has a textured finish painted green. Stairs lead up to an unvisited by me "Snug Bar" and to one side red neon lighting advertises "The Small Disco".
Quiet of an afternoon but I expect it is rammed on a gig night or a match day at QPR. Beers were Young's Bitter, Special was reversed, Purity Mad Goose and Signature Session, one unclipped. The 20% CAMRA discount is generous and worth taking up as without it the prices are well above the £4 mark. I didn't see it advertised but the barman was honourable in asking me if I was a member.
Food served, didn't look and there is a Sunday quiz.
On 23rd June 2017
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1707 recommendations about 1681 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Defectors Weld
I've never spent long in this place, just calling in on the way to or from the nearby Empire, but it has quite a nice modern look to the various seating areas around the central bar area. Always very busy, but seems to be getting a bit more relaxed and better organised over the years. The beer range and selection improved when it was taken on by Geronimo, although on this visit I five handpumps mostly dispensing Young's / Wells (or is that now Marston's) beers, but the Life on Mars red ale from Hamerton's was a decent guest.
On 3rd June 2017
- rating: 6
[User has posted 8092 recommendations about 8092 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Defectors Weld
Once The Beaumont Arms, this is a large corner pub which has been done to death and looks more like a style bar than pub. Farrow & Ball colour scheme, some bare brick walls, copper-clad bar top, a mirrored bar back with fake burr walnut veneer and lampshades that resemble old gramophone horns...eughhh!!
Furniture at front is fairly conventional, but to the rear it's all leatherette sofas and banquettes. The place also has one of those increasing and infuriating deals whereby tables are reserved with notes reading the likes of 'Reserved for Dave from 7.45'. Well it was nearly 8.30 and Dave (or whoever it was) wasn't in evidence. We couldn't sit down and get comfy at 'his' table in case he turned up, but he'd clearly overstayed his welcome. If people don't turn up, take away the bloody reservation sign!
The barmaid was casual enough and presided over two Young's ales, two others barely worthy of mention and Twickenham's Sundancer at £2.20 a half which was fine.
I can't see myself coming here again. I'd far rather the 10-minute walk to The Queens Head in Brook Green.
On 10th June 2016
- rating: 3
[User has posted 1983 recommendations about 1949 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john gray left this review about The Defectors Weld
I liked this pub a lot.Big and busy on the night but easy to get served.5 real ales on and the Redemption -hopspur was in good nick.Reasonable priced beer.
On 8th June 2013
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Roger Button left this review about The Defectors Weld
My first experiences of this place was as a down to earth boozer called the Beaumont Arms where punk & New Wave used to flow from the jukebox in my pre-Empire gig visits, it then became part of the Edwards Bar chain before being its current guise as the Defector’s Weld (the meaning or origin of which is totally lost on me).
There has been a pub on site since at least 1826 but the present building dates from the mid 1880’s. From memory the interior has been expanded since its Beaumont Arms days and now wraps itself around a central bar. There is a much more upmarket feel with various lounge sections, candlelit tables, modern artworks and a pretentiousness that has become so common with today’s pub scene that it now fails to raise any eyebrows. There are a couple of original fireplaces that have survived the various refurbishments but on the whole much of the interior is the product of the modern interior designer fraternity. There is an additional upstairs “snug bar” but I have not visited this. The music ranges from tolerable to clubby and the presence of a DJ stand suggests that it is a place where you need to pick your time to visit depending on what you’re looking for ambiance wise.
The ale range has vastly improved since my initial visits with 5 generally available, 3 seemingkly regular (Adnams Bitter, Trumans Runner and Purity Ubu) plus 2 guests which on my visit were Stonehenge Danish Dynamite and Itchen Valley Russian Winter. Prices are pretty hefty and at times a little baffling – I paid £4 for the 5% Danish Dynamite which I suppose was expected but the £4.80 for the Russian Winter at just 0.3% stronger seemed an unnecessarily massive hike. I believe there is discount for CAMRA Members but this isn't advertised anywhere and I found out too late to take advantage. A range of top end lagers and craft beers is also available on tap at around £4/£4.80 a pint and there around 25/30 bottled beers listed on a menu on the bar at between £4/£6 a bottle.
The pub does get busy, especially on match days and when concerts are on at the nearby Empire and staff not always the most efficient at dealing with people in the right order. The service isn't helped by what appears to be customer choosing to pay credit card, especially if I'm next in line to be served.
It's not a place I would go out of the way for but the area isn't a hotbed of decent pubs and it is convenient and as such continues to serve its purpose until something else comes along that is more suited to my tastes.
On 20th February 2013
- rating: 5
[User has posted 1239 recommendations about 1233 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Defectors Weld
This large street corner pub situated between Shepherd’s Bush and Shepherd’s Bush Market stations, close to the Westfield Shopping Centre, markets itself as the area’s best freehouse for beer choice, catering mainly for a younger crowd in search of foreign lagers rather than the craft beer craze that has developed in other parts of London. As such, there is a pretty impressive keg range here, including the likes of Meantime London Pale Ale, Birra Moreti, Bitburger, Cotswold Lager, Konig Pilsner and Hogan’s Cider, but just the four hand pulls, although these were offering a decent selection of Adnams Southwold Bitter, Twickenham Original (£3.60), Purity Ubu and Sambrooks Junction. I gave the Twickenham a try and thought it was very tired, almost to the point of returning it, which was a real let-down. I visited on a Thursday evening and the place was so busy that it took an age to get served and the bar staff looked a little lost at times.
The pub is laid out in a square around a very large central servery. Seating in the main area at the front and either side of the bar is plentiful, with lots of leather banquettes and standard tables and chairs. Wooden floors and dark painted walls covered in endless numbers of posters for upcoming events gave the place a studenty feel, which was enhanced by the music selection playing just audibly under the din of so many customers. The rear of the pub has a number of curved banquettes separated by wooden slat partitions and lit by some nice low lamps. There is a nice lounge type area to the rear left with a fireplace above which hangs a painting entitled ‘The Knight and the Disillusioned Bear”, which makes about as much sense to me as the pub’s name. From the back of the pub you can access the upstairs Snug Bar and the beer garden. The stairway to the Snug Bar has a display of old recording equipment, which seemed a bit odd. Food was being served and a number of tables were reserved, meaning that it was standing room only by the time I arrived.
I think this pub has the potential to be a decent spot for a few drinks, but its flaws outweigh its qualities at present. I will no doubt be back here in the not too distant future thanks to its proximity to the Shepherd’s Bush Empire, and I would hope to see improvements in beer quality and service.
On 25th February 2012
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve C left this review about The Defectors Weld
There are four ale pumps in this pub; two of which are unused and the other two were being used for Young's Ordinary and Deuchars IPA (which was ok). There is also a selection of very expensive premium lagers that most of the young professionals seemed to be tucking into.
I'm not a fan of these places and even though I actually found the barmaid that served me to be very polite I would rather drink the cheaper more superior beer over the road.
On 11th March 2009
- rating: 5
[User has posted 5233 recommendations about 5201 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Philip Carter left this review about The Defectors Weld
Large pub in various shades of dark brown. Pride & Landlord on tap. Has an upstairs snug bar, available for hire. Serves lunch but not sure of evening meals. Has a real fire on the right hand side, so during cold weather, there will probably be fights for the seats. Back area looks cosy.
On 9th January 2009
- rating: 8
[User has posted 757 recommendations about 720 pubs]