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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Amber O'Connor & Nathan Hyde

'I tried the worst Wetherspoons on TripAdvisor - the oddest thing was making a new friend'

A woman has been left wondering why a Wetherspoons restaurant is known as the worst in Yorkshire.

The Bankers Draft in Sheffield has a three-star rating on TripAdvisor, as dozens of people have complained about terrible food, poor service and inconsiderate punters.

The owners have also recently crackdown on punters who have been selling items in the venue.

Yorkshire Live reporter Amber O'Connor was not blown away by the restaurant when she had lunch there last week, but she believes it may have received some unfair criticism.

In her review, she wrote:

Approaching the city-centre venue, the grand building looks welcoming, as does the five star (very good) food hygiene rating displayed in the window.

'This is exactly the kind of place where I would like to eat,' I remember thinking to myself.

Although, I quickly built up reservations after noticing another notice warning customers it is forbidden to buy and sell from each other inside the pub.

What had people been selling that prompted the need for such a sign, I wondered.

Unperturbed, I headed in.

My first task, finding somewhere to sit, was easy enough. Despite being a busy Wednesday afternoon, there were enough tables, all of which were clean, to pick from.

Choosing a table near the bar, I then ordered my lunch - a pizza with chips - all without a fuss.

I did notice quite a few items on the menu weren't available, including nachos, much to my dismay, but there were plenty of things to choose from.

But what quickly became clear is that The Bankers Draft, at least when I was visiting, was not exactly a family-friendly location.

Among all the noise - and there was quite a bit - I did hear some choice words, including from a woman sat nearby, who appeared to be swearing down the phone at her child.

How do I know who she was speaking to, you ask; well, she had her call on speakerphone for the whole pub to hear.

But the oddest part of my visit came when an elderly lady politely tapped me on the shoulder, asking to share my table so she could watch the news playing on a nearby TV.

The woman - who was very kind, and perhaps just looking for someone to talk to - then asked if it was my phone ringing every couple of minutes when a different phone went off loudly around the pub.

I didn't have very long to make small talk though, because by then my food had arrived - just ten minutes after I had ordered it.

While I don't have anything amazing to say about my pizza - it tasted like every other pizza I've ever ordered at a Wetherspoons - I also have nothing bad to say.

Both my Margherita and my chips were nice and hot, and I was happy with the portion size (my apologies to any chip counters reading, as I don't know how many there were).

And the staff were friendly and polite, checking if I needed anything, quickly taking my plates away when I was done, and generally keeping busy around the pub.

So while several TripAdvisor reviews have criticised the pub before, claiming they received cold, stale, and disappointing meals, my experience was nothing of the sort.

It has to be said I didn't enjoy the atmosphere, and I wasn't blown away by my meal, but a Wetherspoons is a Wetherspoons.

Sure, this one attracts quite a variety of people - as you would expect in the city centre - but the staff and the service could not be faulted.

While I wasn't sold on the experience - like I have been before with other Wetherspoon pubs in nice areas or with good atmospheres - I had an alright lunch and nobody tried to sell me anything during it.

I would say me and my unexpected friend for the day had a nice time.

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