ReviewOn the airside of Stansted Airport, this is a typical airport restaurant/bar hybrid that fails to offer a satisfying version of either. One immediately obvious plus point is that the venue occupies its own relatively enclosed space and doesn't spill out onto the concourse like most airport bars tend to. Inside, there's a tile floored room with the servery down the left-hand side and a huge, open plan seating area opposite. The bar has a rough timber fronted counter and tiled bar back with modern metal frame shelving adorned with Camden themed road and tube signs and some large TV screens showing promotional guff. Seating is a mix of tables and chairs, mid-height and high stools and a couple of banquette booths under the stairs, whilst the walls have a brick effect design and some have graffiti style murals and colourful posters, plus another rather stange mural showing the airport's shops and restaurants, several large neon arrows and a large pub logo on the back wall.
There's an open kitchen to the rear right and stairs to the front right head up to more a formal looking mezzanine dining area with views down into the front of the pub.
The bar doesnt stock and cask ale, so I tried the ubiquitous Beavertown Neck Oil on keg, which at £7.49 a pint, seemed eye-wateringly expensive until my plane touched down in Norway and I learnt what an expensive pint really costs! There was also one other Beavertown beer and a Camden option alongside the usual mega-keg brands. The place was packed, mainly with diners, and the service was beyond stupid, with loads of bored looking staff shuffling about doing nothing and a lone barman working at rapid pace to keep up with the long queue that staff insisted was formed along the length of the bar.
No-one goes to an airport expecting to find a mind-blowing pub experience, but we do all hope for a decent pint to send us off on our way. I found this a dispiriting place to spend your final hour on British soil, although the pointless pettiness, lack of planning and low value for money are perhaps fitting ways to remember your stay in the UK. The 'Spoons is just a short walk from this bar and offers a far better experience, so I suspect this will be my first and last visit to this place.
Date of visit - 17th August 2024
