The Bankers Draft (JD Wetherspoon), Sheffield

Official site of The Bankers Draft (JD Wetherspoon) - www.jdwetherspoon.com

Official site of The Bankers Draft (JD Wetherspoon) - www.jdwetherspoon.com

The Bankers Draft is a large Wetherspoons over two floors, unsurprisingly, in a converted bank. There are high tables under the front windows and there’s a mix of standard and high tables up the carpeted right to the rear. The balcony of the large mezzanine overlooks the entrance and front seating. The serving counter runs from mid-way along the left-hand wall to the rear and a flight of stairs to the right leads up to the aforementioned mezzanine where open plan standard seating is faced by a counter up the left, which is above the one downstairs. There are 14 hand pumps across the two bars, the usual three were available alongside Canada’s Central City Brewer’s Red Racer, Massachusetts, Salem Brew Co’s Session IPA, Titanic’s Saphire Spoon, Exmoor’s Phoenix, Brewster’s Saing By and Tennessee’s Yazoo Brewing’s All Dog Alert Oatmeal Stout. I went for the Red Racer which was OK, but not sure I’d order it again. This pub is as good as it’s going to get in a city centre Spoons.

As the name suggests, this is a large bank converted Wetherspoons pub with a prime location on Castle Square. You enter into a very large front seating space with high tables and stools around the perimeter, tables and chairs through the middle and plenty of standing room to the front. The space is carpeted and has a double height ceiling, as a mezzanine further back overlooks this part of the pub. The servery is midway down the left-hand wall and has a typical dark wood counter and uninteresting bar back. Plenty more high tables and stools fill the space opposite before giving way to tables and chairs and some comfier options in the rear part of the pub. Low wood panelling with neutral shaded uppers can be found throughout, along with old portraits and black and white photos of the bank on the walls, slot machines in every available nook and a fair few TV screens showing muted Wimbledon coverage. Stairs lead up to the aforementioned mezzanine where loads of extra seating can be found with some decent views across Castle Square to the front and the courtyard at the rear of the pub. This is essentially a small patio seating area which acts as a de facto beer garden and allows you to approach the pub from both sides. The three regular ales were all present and correct, but there were also five guests, from which I chose a pint of Thornbridge Jaipur at a very reasonable £3.05. My mid-week, post lunchtime visit found the staff flagging a bit and not exactly at their friendliest whilst the customers seemed a bit nuts - this is clearly one of those 'Spoons that attracts a few 'characters'. I visited this pub many years ago on my first visit to the city and remember it as a smart, well laid out pub with a good atmosphere, but I found a very different place this time, with a less comfortable feel and an edgy atmosphere. The beer is probably the main draw here and even that pales compared to some of the great ale houses that can be found within a relatively short distance. It's not a bad 'Spoons as such, but in a city with so many great pubs, it doesn't do enough to merit repeat visits. Date of visit - 9th July 2024

A really depressing Wetherspoons full of typical spoons clientele, went in on a Friday afternoon for some food as my hotel was just a five minute walk from here. Two level's found a table upstairs, you no what your gonna get with the food in Wetherspoons, you cant knock it that's why I went there but after my meal and a drink I left, how'ever later that evening I did go back in for a quick G&T on my way back to my hotel and found it even more depressing.

An average sort of city centre Spoons in a great building but feeling a bit cluttered inside, at least on the downstairs level. I know that guest ales can be disappointingly bland and boring but there is the other extreme: having only a vanilla stout, a chocolate stout and a raspberry wheat beer is pretty extreme (even if I like them all!). Perhaps there were more upstairs. They seemed to be in good condition though and the place is a good choice if you are in that part of the centre.