The Parkstone and Heatherlands (JD Wetherspoon), Winton, Bournemouth

This suburban 'spoons is housed in what might be mistaken for an Art Deco cinema but which was actually built as a Co-op store. The interior is dark, but a row of sturdy columns and a slightly raised side area help break up the space a bit, but the seats near the front windows are the pick of the bunch. Reasonable selection of real ales from a total of ten handpumps, and my pint of the festival Brouwerij 't Ij Flink (£2.35) was in good shape.

Despite not being one of their older outlets this one has an old school look about it inside. It's a square room with lots of dark wood used, bookcases and typical furnishings. The bar is on one side and there is a raised area on the other. Unusually there is no Steak Club or Fish Friday Club or similar daily offering on the menu so the kitchen must be fairly small. It was quite busy on my early Tuesday afternoon visit. The bar has sets of four and six hand pumps. The four had the JDW Trio Of Doom and Ringwood Fortyniner while the other had six festival ales one of which had gone off. I went for the Banks's Gold Ingot which was in good nick but fairly unexciting. I thought this was a reasonable Spoons but not as good as the Nightjar up the road.

A fairly standard JDW shop conversion, a former Co-op in a modernised building which was originally opened in 1903 but has had a block of flats built on top. It’s quite dingy and dark, and descending to the lavatories feels entering a Sarajevo torture chamber, a illusion exacerbated by the Eastern European accents of the staff. Accents aside, the staff were quite helpful, though the clientele were a bit unwilling to control their children. Eight ales and a cider on draft, I had a pint of Flacks’s Double Drop, which was in perfect condition and not over-chilled. Although the surroundings aren’t JDW’s best, the beer quality made this trip worthwhile.

Fairly typical 'spoons. Quite a mixed clientele; not a very varied range of real ales on, my Ringwood best was fine. A large pub where most people seemed to sit towards the front leaving plenty of spaces at the back of the pub.

Fairly typical Wetherspoons with usual good range of food and drink. Extends back under block of flats so a bit dark, but pleasant enough.

Official page of The Parkstone and Heatherlands - www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk

Official page of The Parkstone and Heatherlands - www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk