J.J. Moon's (JD Wetherspoon), Tooting, SW17

Sat on the busy junction opposite Tooting Broadway station, this is a long, narrow shop converted Wetherspoons pub of the type that can be found all over South London. Folding front doors lead into a long carpeted room with the servery running down the right hand side of the front section. Rows of high and standard tables are lined up opposite the bar and the walls have some dark wood panelling and a few old framed pictures hung up. A couple of TV screens are dotted around showing a news channel with the sound left on or Open golf coverage. The room narrows significantly once the bar ends, resulting in a long section stretching to the back of the building. High tables and stools are arranged down the right hand side of this space, with standard tables and chairs to the left. There are lots of shelves and cabinets here displaying books, jugs, tankards and the like with a fireplace midway down and some partitioning screens to break things up a bit. I thought this was quite a nice spot to relax, screened somewhat from the rest of the pub and, whilst unmistakably still a ‘Spoons, a little more pubby that your average shop conversion. There are ten hand pumps on the bar, three of which were dispensing ‘Spoons regulars, two more set aside for festival ciders, leaving five for guest ales. Three of these were from the Windsor and Eton Brewery, as the pub had hosted them in a ‘Meet the Brewer’ event the night before. I gave their Boatman a try and thought it was a pretty decent brew. The barman serving me was very friendly and keen, advising me to follow the pub on Twitter to ensure I didn’t miss any of their upcoming ‘Meet the Brewer’ events. As Wetherspoons pubs go, this one doesn’t really stand out much from the crowd, other than for its cramped (cosy?) interior. Having said that, I quite enjoyed settling down for a post-work pint and thought the bar staff made a real effort with their customers which would make me more than happy to return.

This is an older Spoons (1991) and is a typical shop conversion, long and narrow with wood panelling and the usual sort of Spoons furniture. It is most certainly rather cramped. There were 10 pumps but five of them were taken up by Ciders (at £2.85) plus the two GK usual suspects. At least there were no uninvited guests, but the three were all below 4% ABV. I went for the Phoenix Navvy (£2.29) which was in good condition. This is a fairly average Spoons but seemed to be fairly well run. I've no idea why it should be more expensive than some of my local Spoons or even the one in Brixton.

A very long and narrow Wetherspoons, obviously a single shop conversion, possibly then extended at the back. The front area with the bar along one side is very tight indeed, with the crammed in tables impinging on the bar waiting area. It gets a bit better towards the rear beyond the bar, until you find the "family area". Otherwise, its the usual formula, the side wall opposite the bar is full of mirrors, I assume to give the feel of space, wood panelled, and there are bookshelves, glass cases with malt whisky boxes etc. The usual brand potted biographies include one of snooker player Jimmy White. The usual suspects plus three guests but one of which was "coming soon"....tick, tock, tick, tock. There is a fireplace towards the back. Unusually they had the rugby on with the sound on too. Not the best 'spoons in their stable, but it was ok for a quick pint.

This is a narrow, cramped pub that stretches back a fair way. There is nothing to distinguish it from other Wetherspoons pubs, except that it seemed to have a greater number of all day drinkers in than most others of the chain that I have visited. There really is hardly room to move in here. It must have been hell on earth before the smoking ban, and even now it ranks as one of the poorest ‘spoons that I’ve ever been in. I’m unlikely to visit again – although on the plus side the pint of Welton’s Beach Babe Bitter I had was very good.

Randomness Guide to London - J J Moons entry

Randomness Guide to London - J J Moons entry