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The Monks Retreat, Reading
Reading
RG1 1HE
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 6½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Graham Coombs left this review about The Monks Retreat
Large split level pub with two bars - the lower one is not always open. Still feels like a Wetherspoon's, but it has now received the full Stonegate treatment of TVs and speakers throughout the pub, but retaining a good range of beers (and food) at reasonable prices and those sampled were in good nick. Definitely improving.
On 22nd January 2018
- rating: 8
[User has posted 3339 recommendations about 3276 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Quinno _ left this review about The Monks Retreat
Has just re-opened after a thorough refurb.
April 2017
Now owned and re-opened by Stonegate. Almost no change at all inside and the only reason you know it is no longer a Spoons is that it's less busy! Three or four guest ales on and my Liberation the other day was excellent.
September 2016
Up for sale and the beer lately has been low in choice and quality. Seems to be seeing out its last days.
October 2015
The awned exterior is usually thronged by smokers, who as noted below are quite harmless. The interior décor follows the usual Spoons mid-90's format, although with this one you get the novelty of two bars - one to the left as you enter and another (larger) bar up the steps and to the right which both stock different ales, so worth having a walk round first (though usually the lower has the more bog-standard offerings). Ale quality varies depending on the management in place. Downsides are that the toilets are often ropey and that the rear of the pub is a mobile phone blackspot, so don't arrange to meet friends there.
On 25th August 2017
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 5072 recommendations about 5055 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Moby Duck left this review about The Monks Retreat (JD Wetherspoon)
Due to cease trading as a JDW on 27/11/16,re-opening under the ownership of the Stonegate Pub Company on the evening of 2/12/16.
On 26th November 2016
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 1871 recommendations about 1844 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Aqualung . left this review about The Monks Retreat (JD Wetherspoon)
This is another old school Spoons consisting of a long room with a small bar on the left as you enter and the main bar on the right up a few steps.
Although there are fourteen hand pumps in total the beer choice was poor with one unused, one available soon, doubling up, the IPA variant on the JDW Trio Of Doom, the pathetic One Is 90, Loddon's Ferryman's Gold & Reading Dark and Caledonian First Dawn. I went for the Ferryman's Gold (£2.19) which was in good nick.
This one is for the chop and the reason is almost certainly because it's cheaper than the other two in Reading. Once again I thought it was a fairly average JDW.
On 24th May 2016
- rating: 5
[User has posted 2143 recommendations about 2143 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about The Monks Retreat (JD Wetherspoon)
My god - a single Road with not 1 but two Wetherspoons. Suppose you cannot argue about £1.99 for a decent pint of Doom Bar. I have my CAMRA 50p vouchers but cannot bring myself to use them.
I suppose there is the lack of atmosphere. And strange mixture of tourists and tramps. But you know what you are getting.
On 23rd May 2015
- rating: 5
[User has posted 1337 recommendations about 1323 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about The Monks Retreat (JD Wetherspoon)
A more upmarket Spoons compared to the Hope Tap Spoons further along the High St. Easy to find and was only a 5 min walk from the station. Nice choice of ales for our PG starting position, I went for the Blindmans Golden Spring and Mrs A tried the Three Castle's Barbury Castle.
On 22nd July 2013
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3382 recommendations about 3381 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve C left this review about The Monks Retreat (JD Wetherspoon)
All of the tables under the awnings on the path outside the entrance were full of smokers at 11:30 on Saturday morning last week and the occupants looked as though they had settled in for the day. The usual Wetherspoons posters are in situ advertising cheap beer and food and there were no complaints from the members of the Pubs Galore shed dwellers who had decided to tuck into an assortment of grilled meat with chips. I had a pint of boring brown beer which slid down a treat.
At the front of the pub is some seating that is bookended by a small bar on the left hand wall and some booths on the right. Beyond are some steps that lead up to a larger L shaped bar and more seating. Standard draught products are available and there are four hand pumps on the front bar and ten on the rear.
Unsurprisingly there was no background music and the two plasma screens were showing muted rolling news.
I thought that the barmaid could do with cheering up a little, but all-in-all this is a pub worthy of a visit if passing.
On 21st July 2013
- rating: 7
[User has posted 5228 recommendations about 5196 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Soup Dragon left this review about The Monks Retreat (JD Wetherspoon)
This is a terraced 'Spoons chain pub/eatery. The place sits at the foot of a plain brick building, in Georgian style, with a stone string course and the odd keystone. The frontage is of stone and mainly glass, with a patio area in front. The interior is on split levels. A bar greets you to the left - where the foolish go before checking out the bar at the rear. Needless to say, i got my drink at the front bar. Anyhow, the room goes up and round to the right. It is in heavy wood panel, with a few info boards on the walls - Archbishop Laud being one celebrity (not from the X-factor) that is displayed. The place is laid out for food of course. The most interesting feature is surely the monk that is pulling on his bell-rope (ooh err) - you will find him blocking the light from the skylight. The service was fine and the clientele the usual mix really (PG Group aside). Beer; usual tap stuff with the handpulls listed by the Captain below - just can add GK IPA to that. It is, all-in-all, a typical spoons - this was a place chosen as a PG tour meet-up point by Quinno
ME: Hi Quinno
Q: Hi Soupy
ME: This place has two bars - that's different
Q: Aaaah! had you read my review, you would have known that
ME: That is the one [below] that said don't use this place as a meet-up point, as you can't get a mobile signal?
Q: Yes, that's the one
ME: Hmmmmm....... when do we get to the Nags Head?
On 15th July 2013
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3067 recommendations about 3062 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about The Monks Retreat (JD Wetherspoon)
The different levels helps to break up the interior of this 'spoons,and there is a dog leg at the rear on the way to the loos.The lower level bar has four handpumps,but it is worth wondering around the upper bar as there are two further banks of five handpumps.Besides two real ciders,Ruddles Best and London Pride doubled up,the other nine handpumps were dispensing a variety of microbrewery output including Three Castle's Barbury Castle,Blindmans Golden Spring,Rebellion Mutiny,Loddon Forbury Lion and Salopian Darwins Origin among others.The decor is classic 'spoons apart from the model of a punter trying to escape through a skylight.This would be a good place to sample some Locales at the usual very reasonable prices.It competes well with the other pubs in the immediate viscinity.
On 14th July 2013
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2727 recommendations about 2727 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Monks Retreat (JD Wetherspoon)
A bit of an odd setup, with a small bar (with four handpumps) near the front doors and a much larger counter (with eight handpumps) further back up a few steps). 'L'-shaped layout overall, but a very dark interior. A few patio tables out front too. Didn't appear to be very well staffed (but perhaps I just caught it at a bad time?). Having said that, once served, I had a very good pint of Edwin Taylor's Extra Stout (£2.09).
On 19th November 2012
- rating: 6
[User has posted 8086 recommendations about 8086 pubs]