The Society Rooms (JD Wetherspoon), Macclesfield

Pub SignMan left this review about The Society Rooms (JD Wetherspoon)

This pub will probably forever remain the quietest branch of Wetherspoons that I have ever visited, with less than a dozen customers in attendance on a cold January evening. That's not ideal in such a large open plan pub, which manages only a small degree of partitioning thanks to a row of huge pillars which separate the upper and lower levels and some of the rear bar area. The whole room is carpeted and has low wood panelled walls with plain and neutral shaded uppers that have been decorated with large paintings and some local information boards. Tables and chairs in a raised space to the front and in a side area to the left of the bar, make up the majority of the seating options, with high tables and chairs in rows opposite the servery, across the lower, rear level. A side room to the front left has tidy full height panelling and offers comfy banquettes beneath some arty design prints on the walls. The servery, which runs along the back wall, has an unusual back-lit, marble effect, panelled counter with a polished stone top, offset by a very dull modern bar back. There's a sizable patio seating area out the front and a car park too, although it might possibly be a paid one. A trip to the toilet saw a feature I'd not encountered in all my years of pub-going, namely CCTV cameras in the gents.
On the bar there were the three regular 'Spoons ales and no less than five guests, from which I tried a decent pint of Small World Twin Falls. The service was pleasant and prompt, but the 'you only had one job' award has to go to the microwave operative in the kitchen, who somehow managed to spectacularly undercook my chips.
It felt, on approach, that this was going to be quite a spectacular 'Spoons conversion but it ended up being a bit bland and with no other customers in, I felt like I was rattling around a pub far too big for its own good. I popped in again the following night, which was marginally busier, but with so many good pubs around town, maybe this place isn't particularly needed, other than to flesh out a crawl.

Date of visit - 16th January 2024

On 12^th May 2024 - rating: 5
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