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The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon), Otley
Otley
LS21 3AB
Pub Type
J D WetherspoonReviews (Current Rating Average: 6½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Aqualung . left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
This is an original old Pennine stone pub that is quite small for a JDW and as it's a listed building I suspect they may not have been able to extend it as much as they would have liked. It was packed on my Wednesday afternoon visit which meant I had to retreat to the smokers area. It's been well described below but it's basically an open plan room with a stone floor.
Being a smaller JDW there are only eight hand pumps which had one unused, the two GK beers, a cider, Bradfield Farmers Factory Site & Farmers Northern Soul, Saltaire Blonde and Bridgehouse Cherry Choc Stout. I went for the Cherry Choc Stout (£2.19) which was in good nick.
Despite being so busy I thought this was a good Spoons.
On 2nd October 2017
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2143 recommendations about 2143 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
Nothing really exciting on the selection of eight handpumps on our visit, so we settled for a Lincolnshire Red Ale. The bar area was situated at the back of building and was very poorly lit. It felt as though it had been just shoved there out of the way and was a bit awkward navigating around people. The middle glass roofed section was the part where everyone tended to eat. So the best part of the bar was the traditional front lounge, still it was an awkward place to return to the bar for a replenish, so couldn't wait to move on to a proper pub.
On 5th April 2015
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3382 recommendations about 3381 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
Attractive stone façade, with the comfortably-furnished main building joined by a low glazed atrium with a flagstone floor to smaller ones at the rear (housing the bar) and to one side. Small courtyard to the other side, and a patio beer garden at the front. Eight handpumps, dispensing a decent selection of real ales including three local ones from Saltaire - Pride (£2.05), South Island Pale and New World Red.
On 21st February 2015
- rating: 7
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Alan Winfield left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
The Bowling Green is a stone built Spoons which was converted from an older pub.
Once inside the front area is quite comfortable being carpeted and having normal tables and chairs,there was a very large open fire roaring away to the right,so i had to sit near that once i had got my drink,the middle area looks more like a covered courtyard with a glass ceiling,the bar is to the rear and runs the width of the pub,the seating in this area is tall tables and chairs.
There was a good choice of real ales on the bar,i had a drink of Moorhouse White Witch which went down very well sat next to the now really roaring fire,the other beers that i noted were Moorhouse Blonde Witch,Springhead Moustache Meg,Marstons Oyster Stout,there was one more beer from Springhead plus the usuall Spoons regulars,Ruddles Best and Doom Bar.
I thought this Spoons was much better than most i have been in.
Pub visited 8/11/2014
On 8th November 2014
- rating: 8
[User has posted 6113 recommendations about 6113 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
Built in 1767, originally as a court house, before converting to pub use in 1866, this is now Otley's branch of the Wetherspoons chain, having been converted in 2010. Previous landlord Trevor Wallis ran the pub for over 30 years and seems to have been an interesting character, wearing fancy dress behind the bar and filling the pub with all manner of crazy items including a stuffed crocodile. Inevitably, that has all been consigned to the rubbish dump, and we now find an smartly presented pub with an interesting layout. You enter into what I presume was the original extent of the pub - a carpeted room broken up slightly by a few pillars with plenty of seating throughout, a few old pictures on the walls and that essence of 'pubiness' lacking in so many 'Spoons houses. There are nice fireplaces at either end of these room, which weren't lit on my visit, which was a shame as it would be a very appealing spot to congregate around in the winter months. The pub extends into a most unusual covered courtyard with a glass roof and stone floor, filled with standard tables and chairs and in turn leading into an open ended second building to the rear. The servery is located in this rather dark and gloomy space, boasting a 'Bowling Green' mirror on the bar back which I assume is a survivor from the pub's previous incarnation. To the right of the courtyard there is another opened ended room with bench seating and a large photo montage on the wall, whilst to the left, a door leads out to the remainder of the courtyard, now the refuge of smokers and al fresco drinkers. There is a particularly large seating area outside the front of the pub as well.
I noted three hand pumps set aside for 'Spoons regulars such as Ruddles, although all three were off on my visit. Five more pumps were used for guest ales, although one of these was also out of action. I plumped for the Saltaire Hazelnut Coffee Porter which was sublime. Each operational handpull had a small glass jar in front of it full of a sample of the corresponding beer, allowing customers to gauge the beer's style from its colour. I also had a bite to eat here and whilst the food was the typical Wetherspoons pre-prepared fayre, I at least found the service to be very prompt and friendly.
I thought this was a pretty good Wetherspoons which has clearly been carefully thought out so as to fit nicely into this charming town. Whilst it's a shame that the eccentric pub that preceded it has now been lost, at least the place has reopened as a pub, which was apparently far from certain at one point. A good start to a crawl around town.
On 7th January 2014
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
david hammill left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
not as good as it used to be called in last week to find the beer to be not well kept and found the staff uninterested our food was of poor standard
On 2nd June 2013
- rating: 4
[User has posted 96 recommendations about 86 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Old Boots left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
A smallish JDW made from two buildings with a glass and steel roofed edifice joining them together. The bar counter is in the rearmost building and has five handpumps with Deuchars but no Greene King ales, the others being from smaller breweries near and far. Amongst them was Leed's celebration, very cloudy but still drinkable and not bad. There is a big front yard which is well patronised and not just by smokers. The staff were more on the ball than most JDWs but there weren't that many customers indoors, just a few fat women resting from shopping. It's more upmarket than some market town 'spoons but still popular with the usual spoons demographic.
On 1st May 2011
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3269 recommendations about 2978 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Chris 87 left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
This was the first stop during an afternoon in Otley with a mate of mine. It is one of the smaller JDW pubs I've visited, and features an unusual sort of conservatory-type arrangement in the middle, connecting the bar area and the front lounge. As to be expected, it was busy, and there were seven handpumps displaying festival ales. Pints of Flying Dutchman and Moorhouses Pendle Witches Brew were extremely welcome. I don't go in a lot of spoons pubs, but this struck me as one of the more sympathetic examples of their recent development and I particularly liked the collage of the local area on one of the walls.
On 7th November 2010
- rating: 6
[User has posted 179 recommendations about 179 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
pint please left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
This is a new Wetherspoons pub, opened on 9th July 2010.
I called in on the evening after the opening day and found it packed.
The customers were overflowing onto the area outside the pub on a nice warm summers evening. Due to the crowd in the pub it was difficult to have a good look round but it appears to be a good sized pub with the usual Wetherspoons good range of well kept ales at reasonable prices.
I think this pub will take a lot of trade from the other local pubs in this small town of Otley which tend to be overpriced and many in need of a good smarten up.
On 11th July 2010
- rating: 8
[User has posted 25 recommendations about 25 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malcolm Glaister left this review about The Bowling Green (JD Wetherspoon)
Refurbishment of the Bowling Green proceeds apace with opening now June 24th 2010.
Other town pubs await with trepidation.
On 11th May 2010
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 18 recommendations about 17 pubs]