Hello and welcome to another edition of our pub of the week feature, where we shine a spotlight on one of the many great venues in and around Ipswich.
This week, I went somewhere that I am sure so many of you reading this now will have been to - The Cricketers, Wetherspoon (Spoons).
If you haven't been to it, then you will have been to a different Wetherspoon somewhere in the country, I'm sure.
The Cricketers is not really any different to any other pub in the chain across the country, cheap drinks, cheap food, a historic building and a crazy carpet to fit.
I have spent many a night in The Cricketers with friends, or pre-match before Ipswich Town at Portman Road, and the pub is always packed.
It was no different on the day I went too, a Friday lunchtime.
There were plenty of people sitting in the outside smoking area and inside the pub, so I sat down in the upper outside bit, which is no smoking or vaping.
The great thing about Spoons is you know what you're going to get. Is it Michelin-star food? No. Is it good food for the price you pay? Absolutely.
Read more
-
Ipswich pub that has a pint for less than a fiver was a great experience
-
Ipswich pub that feels more like someone's living room was an incredible experience
-
Ipswich pub that’s welcoming to all with great food and community spirit
I ordered through the Wetherspoon app and got the all-day breakfast with a pint of Corona - setting me back £10.02 because of the food and drink deal they have going on a lot of their food.
Have to say, it was the hottest I have ever had it. The chips were only just cooked because they were piping hot inside, and the beans, egg, sausage and bacon were all warm.
They brought everything out really quickly, which was excellent, there was no waiting around for things to be brought out to me and the staff in the pub were friendly and were always doing something.
Now, the prices. Spoons is famous for its cheap drinks, a pub chain that offers low prices, probably why it is such a popular and well-established business.
In Ipswich, the cheapest drink that I could find was £1.99, with a few drinks costing this little, including Worthington's and Ruddles best.
It's rare to be charged more than £4.50 for a single drink in The Cricketers, excluding cocktails.
There is a wide range of food on offer, including burgers, pizzas and ramen bowls, so is a great choice for a cheaper meal out.
It's always a great place, Spoons, whether it's to meet up with friends for an evening drink, pre-drinks before going out clubbing, social groups getting together during the day for a coffee, using the brilliant refill machine for cheap, or even to do some work in.
Staff are quick at serving, the pub is brilliant on warmer days when you can sit outside in the vast pub garden and the pub is well-decorated, with flags of the Six Nations teams currently displayec in the pub.
Now for a bit of history. The pub was purpose-built in the 1930s as The Cricketers, with the pub initially being a Tollemache pub, with the style copied from Helmingham Hall, the home of the Tollemaches since 1510.
In 1957, Tollemache merged with another local brewery to form the company now known as Tolly Cobbold.
The pub was acquired by Wetherspoon in 1999 and has been part of the pub chain since.
I am a big fan of this pub, I am sure many of you reading this are the same. In a world which is getting more expensive, The Cricketers isn't, and you're still able to go to the pub and have a pint on the cheap.
Share