Ritz (JD Wetherspoon), Lincoln

The Ritz is a Wetherspoons converted building that was a theatre and a cinema during its heyday, which has long past. To be honest I was expecting some extravagant pub with a vast expanse of seating like some of the other JDW theatre conversions, but only the foyer and the stalls have been converted here. Tables run along the windowed frontage and booths back onto the raised rear area that houses open plan seating and the long bar counter that runs across the rear wall. The original brown panelling is found around the pub and some signed photos of past performers are framed on the walls. The bar counter supports standard and premium keg and there are two banks of six hand pumps. These were drawing the usual Ruddles, Doom Bar and Abbot Ale alongside Beermats Brewing’s Summat Blonde, Rudgate’s Ruby, Frome Brewing’s Funky Monkey and Bateman’s XXXB. The service was polite, but I was expecting a little more from this pub.

A large two-tier Spoons with some nice Art Deco touches in the brown-on-brown curved interior (was a theatre/cinema in its original incarnation and there are numerous signed photos from those who performed there). Unusually, there’s a dart board and a quiz on Wednesdays. Truly awful toilets though. Went for a Wytham Shield FAB which was in very good shape. Also noted Elgoods Porter and Cheeky Imp. Enough to warrant a stop. 6.5

Sprawling Spoons with steps up to the main area and then down a few to the bar. Decent selection of ales and the toilets are on the same floor as the rest of the pub, thank God.