Lime Kiln (JD Wetherspoon), Liverpool

Drops in and out of the Good Beer Guide - I think the local CAMRA have an issue with 'spoons. One year there's several, next none. 2026 a couple are back in. Everything you would expect from a modern Lloyds/Spoons - multi level, huge bars, some comfy seats if you are lucky/prepared to look. Interesting, I found some booths on the upper floor. The back wall was curved and it meant the conversations from the next booth were massively amplified. Like a whispering gallery in a cathedral. Hats off to the multi-coloured haired student who could fight an army of gorillas after being on the spliff. Bell-ends (the gorillas, not the students and his words, not mine). What saves this is the extraordinary beer range and price. Some great LocALE options and I went for a perfect full whack from Peerless brewery. 6%. £1.89. You simply cannot knock it.

Lime Kiln is a large Lloyds No 1 with a serving counter across the rear wall that faces some open plan seating as well as raised seating to the front and right. A large flight of stairs climbs to a mezzanine bar overhead with another smaller counter across the rear and booth seating up the left-hand wall and across the long and thin rear to the right of the counter. There’s also a row of tables next to a long balcony that overlooks the open plan seating below. There’s no cask up here, but amongst the sea of keg on the main bar there are two banks of six hand pumps that were drawing Beartown’s Skinful and Lit, Otter Ale, Higson’s Best, Saltaire’s Blonde, Conwy Brewery’s Rampart, Jaipur, Ringwood’s Forty-Niner, Peerless Little Eye and the usual three suspects. A great line up and my Saltaire was very good. It was busy during my bank holiday Monday early evening visit, including on the raised patio out the front, but there was a good atmosphere, even though a couple of older gents had maybe had a little too much.

The Lime Kiln is still arguably Liverpool city centre's best branch of Wetherspoon's. It's located in one of the main nightlife areas of the city. So, it invariably gets busy and lively in the evenings, especially at weekends. Our Saturday lunchtime visit was an altogether quieter affair. Although I was surprised to see them have the live football on with audible volume, but not too obtrusive. Set over a couple of floors, there are plenty of tables and its easy to get away from the TVs, if you choose. The real ale choice is generally good here. The usual ales were present - Greene King Abbot, Ruddles Best & Sharp's Doom Bar. Guest beers were Portobello APA, Coach House Coachman's Winter Ale, Peerless Oatmeal Stout & Full Whack, Titanic White Star, Phoenix Black Bee, Purple Moose Glaslyn & Pheasantry Black Pheasant. Ciders were Old Rosie & Black Dragon. With 4 dark beers and 2 ciders, the Lime Kiln (despite all of its Wetherspoon failings) succeeded where our previous pub (the Red Lion) had disappointed. Indeed, my pint of Black Bee was very enjoyable. Being a Lloyds No. 1 establishment, the interior is fairly modern and unlike the more traditional Wetherspoon's. That does at least give it a bit of variety. Service was good too. Still a solid 7/10 from me.

great beer range as others have detailed. besides that, I don't like the place at all. dark and seedy feeling in the day time and just seems like it is waiting for the big crowds later on. file under: Lloyds circuit barns

Being a Lloyds No 1 bar in the heart of Liverpool's drinking barn quarter, visiting this huge Wetherspoons pub on a Saturday evening might not have been the wisest move, but the place pleasingly had a varied mix of customers all on their best behaviour, creating a nice atmosphere. A front patio with limited seating allows you to have a drink outside overlooking Concert Square, which probably makes for good people watching, but on a cold February evening, I was keen to get inside. The pub has a large ground floor area which is carpeted for the main part and has a long bar along the back wall. The bar counter has back-lit frontage and a mirrored bar back whilst high tables and stools have been arranged in the space opposite. There is a raised seating area to the right under the large windows, offering plenty of standard seating options, whilst over to the left, a series of bare brick banquette booths under various modern artworks provide a comfier spot to settle down. The pub is built on the site of a former warehouse and the pub ha retained something of an industrial feel thanks to the various exposed pipes and wires running around the ceiling and the steel framed kitchen serving hatch to the left of the bar. Stairs in the centre of the room lead up to a first floor bar with a similar servery along the back wall and loads of additional seating running front to back along the left hand side and left to right in the area past the right hand end of the bar. The decor up here includes floral wallpaper, more modern art and even a dartboard, making it feel a lot more pub-like than the contemporary bar feel of the ground floor. A large pull down screen in the main bar area was showing live Six Nations rugby to an appreciative crowd. The big surprise here was the ale range - not always a strong point in Lloyds branded pubs - but I think I counted nine guest ales in total, with just two 'Spoons regulars and one turned clip. That struck me as one of the best guest ale ratios I can remember in a Wetherspoons and I decided to try the Peerless Oatmeal Stout which was in great shape and absolutely flew out of the glass. This was a bit of a last minute addition to my crawl, so expectations weren't particularly high, but I found the place to be a strong Wetherspoons venue despite the underwhelming ground floor area. The good beer range and excellent conditioning would be the main reasons for me to revisit, perhaps making use of the 'pubbier' upstairs bar next time.

This JDW has a very good range of guest beers available, especially for a Lloyds. On the negative side, it's in a very bland building and it's also near Concert Square, so it's full of idiots later at night. We called in just before 9 p.m. and over the next 30 minutes everything in the area got slowly louder and the dipstick level doubled. My pint was in very good condition and Ms CAMRA enjoyed her single malt. The staff were efficient and friendly, despite the provocation from some of the clientele. I'd happily call in again, but we'd visit during the day next time around.

Beer wise the best of the Wethers in town. Hidden away off Bold St this place, though in testosterone central that is Concert Square it is the one that's least bothered by all the posing knobheads who prance around the area. Look out for sad bloke playing video games on his tablet.