The Kings Tun (JD Wetherspoon), Kingston Town, Kingston Upon Thames

Official site of The Kings Tun (JD Wetherspoon) - www.jdwetherspoon.com

Official site of The Kings Tun (JD Wetherspoon) - www.jdwetherspoon.com

After a lengthy bus journey from Carshalton, I was desperate for a wee and being near the bus stop, this branch of Wetherspoon's was an ideal stopping point before meeting friends in a nearby hostelry. Indeed, there was also just about time for a swift half before moving on. The King's Tun is a typical branch of the chain with the usual mix of alcoholic old blokes and a handful of shoppers. I'm not a shopper, so I guess I must fit into the former category. The usual Greene King Abbot, Ruddles Best & Sharp's Doom Bar were all on. 6 Guest beers were Pheasantry Black Pheasant, Thornbridge Jaipur, Oakham Citra, Loddon Dragon Fly, Adnams Ghost Ship & Hook Norton Old Hooky. There was no real cider that I could see. I stayed on the ground floor of this former music hall/cinema. As you would expect, it's quite spacious. With its central location and plenty of real ales, this will always be a popular option for the Kingston drinker.

Just a short walk from Kingston station, this large Wetherspoons started life as a music hall called the Kingston Empire, before going through a variety of uses and eventually ending up part of the ubiquitous pub chain. The place essentially has a two room layout, connected at the rear by the bar area. The right hand side has a split level seating area comprising, for the most part, standard tables and chairs with a row of nice banquette booths along the left hand wall. The area is smartly appointed and seemed quite calm and quiet, despite being packed out, with not a single spare table to be found. The servery runs along the rear wall and has a few limited seating options opposite. The bar has the usual marble counter and dark wood bar back hidden under a vast quantity of tinsel. The left hand side of the pub is larger than the right and therefore offers a fair bit more seating in a bare boarded room which has a nice tile floor strip running around the front section. More banquette booths run along the right hand wall and standard tables and chairs fill up the bulk of the remaining space but there are also some very comfy looking tub chairs here and there which are worth grabbing if you get the chance. The decor is fairly plain with a few portraits on the walls and several TV screens showing rolling news coverage acting as the main visual distraction, although the smart ceiling lamps are hung from some rather attractive roses. Stairs to the rear lead up to a first floor seating area and second bar, although I didn't get round to exploring properly. I think I counted twelve hand pumps on the bar which had six guest ales, four 'Spoons regulars and a cider or two. The service was a little slow, but I eventually managed to get hold of one of their overseas guest ales which poured a little cloudy but cleared eventually and was a decent enough drop. I also enjoyed one of their half-decent curries as it was curry night and as usual it came nice and quickly and was perfectly passable. This fairly run of the mill 'Spoons outlet doesn't really stand out from their countless other pubs but arguably offers the best ale range in central Kingston. This, combined with it's convenient location near the shops and station, makes it a pretty safe bet and certainly worth a look when in Kingston.