The New Cross Turnpike (JD Wetherspoon), Welling

I managed to get in here well before 9pm and the subsequent new early closing times. It was strange to see a couple of bouncers guarding the doors of this Wetherspoon's branch on a Thursday evening. They directed me to the track and trace system, where I had to resort to pen and paper, as the NHS App failed. Use of the Wetherspoon's app is encouraged. But you can also order at the table, assuming you can get somebody's attention. Staff don't actively look for somebody trying to order, which is a problem if you want to use CAMRA 50p off vouchers (as they're not accepted on the app). The ale range was uninspiring. One bank of pumps had the usual Greene King Abbot, Ruddles Best & Sharp's Doom Bar. Another bank had the guest ales - Hook Norton Old Hooky, Sambrook's Pale & Wychwood Hobgoblin, alongside 2 ciders - Old Rosie & Black Dragon. It's a fairly typical 'spoon's layout with a raised area at the rear and more steps up to the toilets from there. As I was getting to the end of my session, I had to make a couple of uphill treks before the train journey home.

Another day, another' spoons. I was in too late for the traditional breakfast, so went for the healthy option of 10oz gammon steak with chips and peas. At £8.55, and including a pint of excellent real, not too bad a deal. Guest ales in here were £2.15 a pint, which is about the cheapest I've seen in a 'spoons recently when they weren't having a festival. I failed to note all the beers, but as I recall there was a decent selection of guest ales available, which seems to have been an improvement on that experienced by the previous reviewer. But the pub has all the usual 'spoond characteristics. They have a raised area at the back, and then it's up a another couple of flights of stairs to reach the toilets. It's a bit of a hike if you're sitting at the front of the pub, as we were. It's a standard conversion 'spoons, which did the job it was supposed to do when we were looking for a bite to eat in the middle of the afternoon.