The Gatekeeper (JD Wetherspoon), Cardiff

Perfectly described below, situated on a street lined by rather grand Edwardian mansion blocks; we sat outside in the scorching sun, unusual for Cardiff. Given the beer choice, this is one of the better venues in the city, sadly.

Opposite the main gates to the Principality Stadium,this 'spoons is not the largest but does have tables outside on the pavement.The interior has a few seating booths to the right side,lots of high tables near the bar but overall all rather non descript.Besides the Trio of Doom the ale selection on my trip was Old Hooky,Glamongan Jemimas Pitchfork,Wainwright Gold,Stonehenge Great Bustard,Hanlons Yellow Hammer, Stewart Copper Cascade all at £1.99 and Thornbridge Jaipur at £2.29 and in good nick ,NBSS 3.5. Given the cheap ale pricing policy and some decent guests this 'spoons seems to deserve its 2025 GBG entry and is worth a crawl stop.

A decent sized Spoons located next to the stadium. On entering you are greeted with 3 levels. As always toilets are at the top. Seemed very modern in here. Two bars to choose from on the top and bottom levels. Could of stayed longer however was eager to tick off some of the other pubs nearby.

Seems to have become the default first pub when I arrive in Cardiff. Five guest ales plus loads of cider (must have been about 10 in all?). My Mumbles Oyster Stout was in good nick. We all ate breakfast here and the food was fine. Rated 7 October 2014 Revisit. Not much change to the large and cavernous interior bar - some wear and tear as well as some of the furnishings becoming shot. The bar area is decent but was less keen on the dingy window seats at the rear. As noted below, layout is Lloyds-esque and there are few tables available for groups of 4 or over. Loads of cider (evidently more than the usual Spoons standards) and also a good selection of local ales at the bar - my Celt was in extremely good nick. Still just about a 7. June 2009 Large JDW with an entrance on either side of the building and close to the Millennium Stadium. The split-level interior is a bit more contemporary than their usual city centre offerings. A good range of ale with a distinctly Welsh slant. My early afternoon pint was in very good shape. Too cold inside, someone had been over-zealous with the aircon. I imagine this place gets rammed in the evenings and on match days, but it’s a bit better than the average Spoons and is worth a stop when quiet. Rated 7

A good sized Wetherspoon’s pub located just around the corner from the stadium and housed in what looks like an old warehouse unit of some sort from the back, although it does have rather more of a grander entrance at the front, perhaps being a cinema in a former life. Internally it’s split across two floors with a full height atrium at the centre. It’s instantly recognisable as a ‘Spoons, and whilst it might not have much in the way of character it looks freshy decorated and is not at all unpleasant. There’s not really much of any note, although the curved bar counter was perhaps a bit of a feature, and the glass balustrade around the edge of the upper floor looked as though it might be a good spot to sit, and there was also a smaller bar counter on this level. Paintwork was inoffensive, with a white ceiling, taupe on much of the walls with some maroon elsewhere, and grey on the supporting pillars. Some large and colourful local artwork was on the walls, and the usual Wetherspoon’s carpet covered much of the floor area, with some tiling around by the bar. Beers on tap were Greene King IPA, Doom Bar, Abbot Ale, Cardiff Arms 1876, Exmoor Exmas, Rudgate Evil Elf and Rhymney Xport. Ciders meanwhile were Black Dragon, Old Rosie, Strongbow in both the regular and Dark Fruit varieties, Stowford Press and Kopparberg Strawberry & Lime. I was disappointed not to see Thatcher’s Gold on which you tend to get more often than not in a Wetherspoon’s, but the friendly barman said they had taken that off in favour of Strongbow. He seemed just as disappointed as I was.