The Jolie Brise (JD Wetherspoon), Teignmouth

This is a good sized Wetherspoons with a great location just a minute or so from the town’s train station. The pub occupies a large, open plan premises with the servery down the right-hand side and a large staircase towards the rear left, which breaks up this part of the room nicely and creates a pleasant seating space in behind it. You enter to a wide seating area with lots of tables and chairs divided by Covid screens and a few small pillars. An open kitchen can be found to the right, next to a wood panelled wall decorated with various traditional pub paintings. Meanwhile, over to the left, the bare brick walls have been covered with images of a nautical theme, which then give way to copious slot machines. The bar has an unusual, pattered counter front and smart modern bar back with a metal frame gantry decorated with a series of boat shaped cut-outs. High tables and stools fill the ample space opposite, running as far as the aforementioned staircase. The area hidden behind the stairs is by far the nicest part of the pub, with some plush padded banquette booths and comfy chairs arranged beneath a herringbone brickwork fireplace with various large portraits on display. The stairs lead up to a smaller first floor seating area with its own servery to the right of the entrance and rows of tables and chairs filling the simple, rectangular room. There’s also a decent first floor patio garden up here, offering high quality garden furniture and some reasonable views – a better option than the cramped pavement-side seating area out the front of the pub. A trek upstairs to the second floor is required for anyone wanting to use the toilet facilities – give yourself plenty of time before setting off. Nothing of great interest or surprise at the bar, with just six active handpulls offering three ‘Spoons regulars and three guest ales. The staff all seemed very friendly, but I ended up with a sub-par pint of Roosters Capability Brown and one of the worst meals this chain has ever managed to serve me – a chicken and bacon panini with so little chicken or bacon that I think about 80-90% of the bites I took contained nothing but bread. The pub was heaving on a Thursday evening and seemed to have a higher loon ratio than the average ‘Spoons. This place was a big disappointment and possibly the worst of the ten ‘Spoons I visited during my time in Devon. Plus points for the friendly staff and cool balcony garden, but just about everything else was below par, with an identikit interior, sub-standard beer and ridiculously bad food combining to ensure this is one I won’t be heading back to any time soon.

This is a conversion of a 1970s supermarket. Inside it's a large square room with an upstairs area and a most odd interior that includes a ceiling of wooden planks painted pale blue. As it only opened last summer the fixtures and fittings are somewhat better than average. Most of the people at the bar were a bit the worse for wear after a football match. The beer choice included the JDW Trio Of Doom, Hanlon's Yellowhammer, Dartmoor Legend, St Austell George and Dragon and some Euro 2016 rubbish from Teignworthy. I looked to the fridges which had a few boxes of cider and went for the Thatcher's Cheddar Valley (£2.59) which was tasty and good value. I'm not sure what to make of this one with the odd decor but the choice of Locale beers was OK even though they didn't appeal.