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why are there no J D Wetherspoon pubs in ROI?

dd972

You'd think with the boozing culture we have they'd have colonised our town and cities some time ago, plus costwise they'd annihilate the opposition paying through the nose for their Guinness and Heineken.

Only heard bit and bobs of rumour as to why there's no Spoon pubs here ranging from the fact that it's in the Eurozone and it doesn't fit in with their business plan and the Victuallers Association here are keeping them out by some means or other, anybody heard anything more substantial?

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joeguevara

collie0708 wrote: »

Ive been to quite a few wetherspoons in the uk and the all had tellys and where great value for money. Dont get why people seem to think they are rough our attract a dodgy clientele in my times there never noticed this or maybe I just lucky...

When I was there wetherspoons had no TVs. Wetherspoons lloyds did. Maybe it's changed now. Clientele was always mixed for us from businessmen and women to the biggest scobes going. Majority were working class English and students!

Biggins

joeguevara wrote: »

Their quality is unquestionable from an alcohol point of view. Heard all about the urban myths of slops being reused or kegs being bought out of date. All untrue. All bought from the same brewery's as everyone else but with bigger buying power got a bigger discount. Also very strict on spillages, breakages etc. with people losing bonuses if they were out of line!

I won't speak for the whole of Wetherspoon's operation but there was one in Bolton (formally known as the Pack Horse Hotel) that operated with questionable procedures - seen it myself, sometimes with shock as regards slops.
I'm NOT saying the whole of Wetherspoon's operated in the same vein but as we often find, a few rotten apples in a barrel sometimes ruin the reputation of the rest sadly.
Generally the standard of Wetherspoon's was indeed good (cleanliness especially) - some customers however just questioned/commented on the quality of their beer in regards taste, etc.

Biggins

joeguevara wrote: »

...Diageo control the pub industry in Ireland. Wetherspoons don't like being held to ransom by anybody!

Understandable - and sadly still that way to some extent, that Diageo has such an (unfair I consider) influence over drink in Ireland.

harney

joeguevara wrote: »

Wether spoons attracts people who like cheap and cheerful. It is a policy of wether spoons that music, TVs and pool tables are not allowed. The Irish uk drinking culture is vastly different. I think wether spoons would have had a place in Ireland but would not have an effect on most bars around it.

Btw the truth doesn't lie in between both factors!

The weatherspoons I have been drinking in this afternoon has TV's and were happily playing the 6 nations on them. Some of them even have music.

http://www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk/home/pubs/find/Greater+London/_/_/music-in-the-evening,tv-screens

Terrontress

collie0708 wrote: »

Ive been to quite a few wetherspoons in the uk and the all had tellys and where great value for money. Dont get why people seem to think they are rough our attract a dodgy clientele in my times there never noticed this or maybe I just lucky...

It's a range. I've been to the Wetherspoons overlooking the Tower of London and it is outstanding. Gracechurch, round the corner, is a beautiful old banking hall with high ceilings, marble and is populated with City types. The one in Brixton, 3 or 4 miles down the road, is like a lunatic asylum with people pissing in the sinks, fruit machine addicts and fights.

There is no single type of pub, clientele or price. The only constant is the food offered.

joeguevara

harney wrote: »

The weatherspoons I have been drinking in this afternoon has TV's and were happily playing the 6 nations on them. Some of them even have music.

http://www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk/home/pubs/find/Greater+London/_/_/music-in-the-evening,tv-screens[/QUOTE]

Brilliant. They have obviously changed since i worked there. At that time, the noise on the fruit machine was even muted. I remember when Ireland were playing Spain in the 2002 world cup we had a tv at the back in the staff area and when the penalty shoot-out was on, there were people shouting for drinks and I refused to serve them until it was over.

Geuze

There will be soon, in Blackrock, Co. Dublin.

http://www.irishtimes.com/business/sectors/retail-and-services/british-pub-chain-wetherspoon-set-to-acquire-dublin-bar-1.1511162

LordSutch

IRISH TIMES ARTICLE - 14/sEPT/2013

Real cask Ale 'ON TAP' in Dublin with cheaper food, finally 'HURRAY'

British pub chain JD Wetherspoon is set to open 30 pubs in the Republic. Group chairman and founder Tim Martin says the company intends to open between three and four pubs this fiscal year with a view to eventually expanding this up to 30 in the longer term.

Wetherspoon is already set to buy the Tonic House in Blackrock, Co Dublin. Mr Martin said that the improved performance in their nine Northern Ireland pubs influenced the decision to enter the Republic.

In addition to Dublin, it is also expected that the group will open in Cork over the coming months.

FULL ARTICLE > http://www.irishtimes.com/business/sectors/agribusiness-and-food/british-chain-wetherspoon-set-to-open-up-to-30-pubs-in-ireland-1.1527271

Deedsie

I just hope they don't have those horrible "fruity machines"... Not sure how well a chain of pubs would work here. They are kinda horrid in the UK. I have been to five different walkabout pubs throughout the UK over the years and every time it's the exact same, 50 TV screens screaming at you, a hose to spray soft drinks is a bit manky. The novelty fruity/punching machines. It would def have a niche here but not for me. If they bring down the price of a pint throughout the city they would have to be welcomed. €5.20 for a pint where I live. That's mental stuff.

They are not pubs though, franchise sports bars. About as satisfying or enjoyable as a trip to McDonalds or Pizza Hut

cloud493

If they can do me a £2 full English breakfast like in the UK, I'm sold

MurdyWurdy

Apparently they have also bought the 40 foot in Dun Laoghaire. I'm not sure yet whether it's a good thing or a bad thing

WesternZulu

I can imagine that for most they will be an alternative for a cheaper pint, but for me, if I am looking for somewhere with a bit of atmosphere or character on a night out I won't be setting foot in the place.

Atmosphere draws me to a pub.
If I was to save some money I'll have a few bottles or cans before going to a pub rather than stay in somewhere like Wetherspoons for the night.

murpho999

cloud493 wrote: »

If they can do me a £2 full English breakfast like in the UK, I'm sold

£2 for a full breakfast would make me not want to eat it. Something that cheap cannot be good.

razorblunt

Lads they're awful. The only ones busy in Edinbhrgh are mostly those with stags and hens filling them out. I don't know anyone that lists one as their "local" or favoured watering hole.

Links234

The food in Wetherspoons is muck tbh

karma_

If I saw a Wetherspoons on fire I wouldn't even call the Fire Brigade.

Feisar

sock puppet wrote: »

Screw Wetherspoons, lets petition Fullers to open up an Irish establishment.

Fullers London Porter, rich dark and complex. Quite unlike myself.

It's one of my all time favs. It'd be a toss up between it and Trouble Brewing's Dark Arts as my fav porter.

cloud493

Links234 wrote: »

The food in Wetherspoons is muck tbh

Lies. For the price it is anyway.

Sunglasses Ron

So what would be the guessing as to the price of a pint?

Like every foreign chain operating here I am guessing not quite as cheap as the UK and the excuse will be hidden behind excuses regarding rent and the height of our minimum wage.

Links234

cloud493 wrote: »

Lies. For the price it is anyway.

It really isn't.

I'm often over in the UK, had a long stay there in London a few months ago because herself was staying in hospital and I had more than my fair share of pub grub that trip alone. Pretty much any chain has better food, Nicholsons, Greene King, Fullers. Compared to those pubs, Wetherspoons wasn't much cheaper either and they were more expensive for some things.

Fratton Fred

Links234 wrote: »

It really isn't.

I'm often over in the UK, had a long stay there in London a few months ago because herself was staying in hospital and I had more than my fair share of pub grub that trip alone. Pretty much any chain has better food, Nicholsons, Greene King, Fullers. Compared to those pubs, Wetherspoons wasn't much cheaper either and they were more expensive for some things.

I used to meet a couple of mates in my local JD's for the £5 curry and a pint night. Ok, it was similar to a tikka masala from a jar, but it was ok for the price.

To me, a JD Weaterspoons is a typical town centre pub, you make your own atmosphere and would only meet up there, not spend a night out in the place.

The one in Dun Laoghaire will be a huge success with people going for a walk on the sea front and then nipping in for a bite to eat and a pint. It is what DL seafront has been crying out for.

Sir Humphrey Appleby

Sunglasses Ron wrote: »

So what would be the guessing as to the price of a pint?

Like every foreign chain operating here I am guessing not quite as cheap as the UK and the excuse will be hidden behind excuses regarding rent and the height of our minimum wage.

Well rent is higher here that is a fact, as are many other operating costs for business including insurance, and of course our vat rate is higher. Furthermore the biggest determining factor in alcohol prices here is government taxes and excise duties.

Seaneh

Sunglasses Ron wrote: »

So what would be the guessing as to the price of a pint?

Like every foreign chain operating here I am guessing not quite as cheap as the UK and the excuse will be hidden behind excuses regarding rent and the height of our minimum wage.

I'd expect €3-3.50 a pint at the most. Maybe even a little less for some beers.

They will be using their UK supply chain via the north so their buying power in the UK (890 pubs) means their costs are a lot lower than anywhere Ireland.

Seaneh

Links234 wrote: »

It really isn't.

I'm often over in the UK, had a long stay there in London a few months ago because herself was staying in hospital and I had more than my fair share of pub grub that trip alone. Pretty much any chain has better food, Nicholsons, Greene King, Fullers. Compared to those pubs, Wetherspoons wasn't much cheaper either and they were more expensive for some things.

It's no worse than 99% of the ****ty pub grub in Ireland to be honest and a lot cheaper.

For the price, aprox €10 for a steak and a pint, it's good value.

Links234

Seaneh wrote: »

It's no worse than 99% of the ****ty pub grub in Ireland to be honest and a lot cheaper.

For the price, aprox €10 for a steak and a pint, it's good value.

I'm not saying it's any worse than your average Irish pub mind you

cloud493

I'm from the UK and I don't mind it at all. At £2 a pop, I'm not expecting a gourmet breakfast :P I think it's gotten better since the smoking ban anyway.

MJ23

Pints of slop, and fat sweaty lads in football jerseys eating greasey pies.
NO THANKS.

Seaneh

What I do likes about 'spoons is that the owner, Tim, is a Real Ale fanatic and makes sure that all his managers and assistant managers are good cellarmen by making sure they get proper training, so their cask ale tends to be excellently looked after.
His love of real ale also means that he tends to support lots of small craft breweries and you can get some great stuff from all over the UK that would be very hard to find otherwise.

It's not somewhere you'd go for a night out with the lads, but as a meeting point got a beer and some grub before heading on somewhere else, it's not bad.

P_1

Didn't people have a very similar attitude to the likes of Lidl and Aldi about 10 years ago?

To me it's fairly simple, the world won't end because a discount chain of pubs decide to open up here. Some people will enjoy them, others won't. Like nobody forces people to shop in an Aldi or a Lidl, nobody is going to force you to drink in a Weatherspoons if they open up.

Cienciano

Deedsie wrote: »

...a hose to spray soft drinks is a bit manky.

A hose to spray the soft drinks is brilliant! You can get a splash, or if you get a coke it's cold and fills a big glass. You can keep your warm 180ml bottle of coke that costs €2.90

MJ23 wrote: »

Pints of slop, and fat sweaty lads in football jerseys eating greasey pies.
NO THANKS.

TBH, that sounds like a typical irish pub. Beer in Wetherspoons if far better than an irish pub, unless you go to a specialty pub.