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Disappointment of the week with Real Ale Ray
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The William Morris (JD Wetherspoon), Cowley, Oxford
Cowley
Oxford
OX4 3LR
Pub Type
J D WetherspoonReviews (Current Rating Average: 5½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The William Morris (JD Wetherspoon)
I can add little to the previous reviews. This ‘spoons was named after the William Morris of MG (Morris Garages) car fame, later Lord Nuffield, founder of Nuffield College Oxford and not he of pretty wallpaper.
This sits on the edge of the depressing Cowley Centre which I visited once before in 1999 to buy a cheap camera from Curry’s, with this outlet – the first in Oxford – opening in 2003. At 9.30 on a Saturday night, it was only about 15% full, the customers overwhelmingly being quite a bit older than me and almost all male.
Ales on offer amounted to Doom, Abbot, Ruddles Best, Summerskills Tamar and Chadlington Oxford IPA (£1.00 a half) and fine, served by a friendly barman.
This isn’t the best ‘spoons I’ve been in, but it’s not the worst either; I’d prefer to take the short(ish) walk to the Jolly Postboys though.
On 4th September 2022
- rating: 4
[User has posted 1983 recommendations about 1949 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Graham Coombs left this review about The William Morris (JD Wetherspoon)
On the edge of the bleak Cowley shopping centre, this seems to be an attempt to create a striking modern building, but is already looking dated. The Z-shaped subterranean interior snakes between the main road and the shopping centre behind and does not benefit from the intrusive industrial ducting throughout, but otherwise is acceptably average. Still just the one guest ale, which in this case was a creditable Vale Black Swan mild.
On 1st June 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 3339 recommendations about 3276 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Quinno _ left this review about The William Morris (JD Wetherspoon)
A grim and utilitarian building houses a single storey modern Spoons. Given the area I wasn't expecting much but actually it was a pretty genteel affair inside on a Thursday afternoon. There's a pleasant seating area at the front with jumbo plate glass windows (the only natural light source). Just the one guest ale on at the bar, a decent white Horse Bitter (NBSS 3). Not bad, in context.
On 26th September 2021
- rating: 6
[User has posted 5072 recommendations about 5055 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The William Morris (JD Wetherspoon)
Dull, 'L'-shaped 'spoons on the edge of the Templars Square shopping centre, with no real effort made with the furniture or decor to add any interest. Nothing much doing on the two banks of duplicated handpumps either, with just Swift One from Bowman (£1.99) and Burton Bridge's Stairway to Heaven in addition to the usual trio of Ruddles, Doom Bar and Abbot.
On 29th September 2019
- rating: 6
[User has posted 8086 recommendations about 8086 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Aqualung . left this review about The William Morris (JD Wetherspoon)
I was certainly glad to learn that this place wasn't named after the bloke who designed wallpaper but the other one who set up the local motor vehicle company. It looks like some sort of shop conversion with the bar on the left, a raised area at the front and extending back where there are a couple of sofas and a dog leg leading to the ground level toilets. Like many shop conversions it gets darker the further away you are from the front windows.
Although the bar has two sets of five hand pumps I was told that the bottom five weren't in use after ordering the clipped Vale beer from them. This meant that the only beers available were the two GK beers, White Horse Village Idiot & Blowing Stone and North Cotswold Shagweaver. I looked to the fridges and saw a carboard box which was Wild Wood cider so had a pint of that (£3.05). The standard guest ale price here is £2.15.
I found the situation with five unused hand pumps a bit bizarre but apart from that this one didn't seem too bad so I've only knocked a point off the score.
On 27th June 2016
- rating: 4
[User has posted 2143 recommendations about 2143 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve C left this review about The William Morris (JD Wetherspoon)
The William Morris is a large Wetherspoons pub on the periphery of a shopping centre. The usual drink and food promotions are available throughout the week. As my visit was on a Wednesday evening I went for a chicken dish which set me back £6.50 and came with a pint. I thought it very good value and not that bad to be honest. It was just a shame the fork I was given had remnants of the last diner’s meal on it.
There are a couple of plasma screens that were both showing muted build up to the following days independence elections in Scotland. I noted the presence of a couple of gaming machines and unsurprisingly there was no background music.
The bar is stocked with standard draught products and there are two banks of five hand pumps. These were drawing a mix of regulars and guests including White Horse Brewery’s Wayland Smithy and Village Idiot alongside Ruddles and Fullers’ London Pride. There were also a couple of real ciders available in the form of Westons’ Marcle Hill and Old Rosie.
I suppose it is always handy to have a local Spoons because you know what you are going to get, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to revisit this pub or the surrounding area.
On 26th September 2014
- rating: 6
[User has posted 5228 recommendations about 5196 pubs]