The Prince of Wales (JD Wetherspoon), Cardiff

Visited 10/04/26. Visited previously 05/04/18. Cask here comprised usual GK IPA, Abbot, Doom Bar and then Spring Hopper from Arkells, Old Rosie cider, Black Dragon cider from Gwynn Y Ddraig, Citra session IPA from Oakham, Top Dog stout from Burton Brewery. Keg offering was pretty standard, Worthington CF, Stella, Angelo Poretti, Bud Light, Budweiser, Leffe blonde, Corona, Coors, Carlsberg, Carling, Guinness, original and dark fruits SB, Ffresh juicy pale ale from Glamorgan Brewing, BrewDog Punk IPA, the Big Sea IPA and the Sumo APA both from Mad Squirrel, Shipyard Pale Ale, K1664, Stowford Press cider. Large two floor JDW near the Millennium stadium and Cardiff Central station and so not far from their other venue even nearer to the station. The bar counter on the ground floor is a right-angle affair sort of in the middle of the space, with a chessboard tile skirt and furiously busy on my visit. A good part of the ground floor is bare boarded but there are good sections of carpeted flooring albeit the JDW carpet design for this venue is subdued and quite drab. Loads of seating areas and plenty of regular tables, tall tables and booth tables and the odd banquette thrown into the seating options. The upstairs seating area has some sought affair tables in the front windows, but generally there are a lot of tables packed into this area. A bar at the opposite side of the top of the stairs has a good part of the beers available at the much larger bar on the ground floor. Again, upstairs a mixture of bare boarded and the same carpet as ground floor. Plenty of screens here all showing silent action and a large amount of fruit machines. The building is impressive with ultra-high ceilings and a good part of the old theatre retained in the high parts of the building including some of the pill box type booths, but offering sight and no function these days!

Housed in a substantial stone building that looks like a warehouse from the side but which has a grand frontage dating from its former life as a theatre and cinema. A mezzanine was added when converted by Wetherspoon, and this is now the best place to see the many interesting relics of its former uses. Plenty of seating on both levels, and in the adjoining building in a different style. Two banks of six handpumps on the main counter, with Oakham Inferno and the more local Flo Rider from Glamorgan (£1.99) in addition to Greene King IPA, Doom Bar and Abbot on one and five ciders on the other. A mostly duplicated selection was available on the smaller upstairs bar, although Vale's Red Kite was also on one of the pulls.