The Ralph Fitz Randal (JD Wetherspoon), Richmond

This large Wetherspoons is just off the central market square and is named in honour of the founder of the nearby 13th Century friary. The L-shaped interior is huge with a high front bar and a lower rear section. It has the cavernous feel of an ex-cinema but was actually built as a Post office with ‘Spoons taking it on in 2002. Its size does mean grabbing a seat is easy, even during the busiest periods, although the surroundings are quite dull and there is none of the municipal building grandeur that you would probably expect, in fact there was little for me to note that is worthy of reporting beyond the normal ‘Spoons waffle. The beers were a let down with 5 of the 10 pumps bearing “available soon clips” and with just 2 guests among the remainder which I feel for a pub of this size in one of the area’s major towns was quite poor. For a town with several pubs to chose from, many of them being quite ordinary, I was disappointed with the RF and it doesn’t seem to function anywhere beyond its basic chain commitments.