Latest reviews from Milton Keynes

“Run-of-the-mill sports bar where (I think) the old Slug and Lettuce used to be. Plenty of sports memorabilia strewn about. Not sure that this bar is relayed to the various 'Tap' bars around the UK (Euston, Piccadilly, York etc)* but if it is, it's a poor cousin regarding beer selection. Old Speckled Hen on cask plus various keg around. Looks like macro plus ex-craft: Beavertown, Brixton, Camden. Core BrewDog and Lilley's cider is as edgy as this place gets. But for the centre of MK, it's actually not a bad option to have in the back pocket. *it isn't. It's a Crafted Social, which sounds about right.“

jjsint 30 days ago

“I visited really to eat, but the beer choices were decent, a few I hadn't come across before. They were very busy & didn't seem to care about serving you a full pint of the brown ale I chose. Excellent value food & pint prices made it hardly worth complaining. Food was quick & tasty.“

Jerseyislandbeer 457 days ago

“NIce weaterspoon. OK service, but bartender was not very listening. Normal tab range and 10 casks with the usual 2 specials. Food was alrigt. Fish and chips nice. Nachos maybe the smallest portion ever served.“

HenrikSoegaard 675 days ago

“Visited 16/11/2021. Contrasting place to the Moon, bigger, brighter, apparently more up-market, and yet had a much less interesting range of beers on this visit.“

Grumbo 912 days ago

“Visited 16&18/11/2021. Two enjoyable visits. First was a Tuesday evening visit, when tried 5 quality beers from the guest list. Was comfortably busy. Turned out it was quiz night. Ate there, food was typically good. Service was very good or patchy depending on who I spoke to. Then quick lunch stop in Thursday before catching train home. Not many people in. Good service, decent food, and an excellent Siren can from the fridge (2 fridges, 1 with BD beers and 1 guests). BrewDog have applied to open a place in Ipswich which I hope is successful as they are good.“

Grumbo 912 days ago

“Visited 15//2021. “You should be ok on a Monday evening but you wouldn’t normally want to go there”, said the chap behind the bar at the B&K. To be fair my Monday evening experience there was fine. Busy even though it was a Monday, quite typical spoons set-up/audience. Friendly staff. They had 5 local ales available - sadly for me I’d had them all at local festivals - but would have been a good place for out of area folk to get a few Bucks and Beds beers (though only early in the week apparently).“

Grumbo 914 days ago

“Note: pre lockdown visit. A large open-plan L-shaped bar in a modern purpose built unit, it has about the atmosphere you'd expect. I've been here a few times with my brother (who lives in the town. It's always crowded, it's always strangely cold, the service is not great, and the cask quality is sub-par. Not one of 'Spoons better venues then, although to be fair it's clean, the clientele are well behaved, there's always a couple of beers from local micros on, and being Wetherspoons it's very, very cheap. Might be worth popping in to see if there's a new local brew on before you quickly head across the road to Brewdog...“

wheresthepath 1262 days ago

“Note: pre lockdown visit. Pubs on Milton Keynes' main drag are weird by UK standards - like most of them, the Brewdog bar is a modern unit squashed under a stand-alone office block. Inside it's a big open space with possibly an even more industrial feel than their other pubs. It was bustling on our visit, but we still managed to get a table. Despite being busy, the high ceiling and the restaurant-style table layout definitely soaks away some of the atmos. The staff were friendly, but didn't seem quite as enthusiastic as in other Brewdog venues - but maybe we just caught them on a bad day. 20-odd taps with a decent guest selection when we were there, and being Brewdog you can buy all beer in flights or thirds if you wish. Overall, maybe not quite as good as other Brewdog bars I've visited, but still a great beer venue; probably the best in MK at present.“

wheresthepath 1262 days ago

“Easy to spot with its large neon signs when walking on the right hand side of the Midsummer Boulevard from the train station. Large place, open and airy. About 14 BrewDog beers on tap joined by a six guest beers, and a fridge with a rather huge selection of craft beers. The draught beers can be bought in thirds, and free tasters are offered. Friendly service. (Visited with Finn 12.02.2019).“

Rune 1909 days ago

“Called in on our Buckinghamshire tour around Milton Keynes of pubs appearing in the 2019 Good Beer Guide. There was a decent choice of a few ales over their usual range and we enjoyed the Leighton Buzzard Captain Cook and the locale Hornes Greensand Golden Ale“

gillhalfpint 2008 days ago

“We visited here Thursday 11th October 2018. We were going see Daniel Blumberg (music gig) a short walk away at the Milton Keynes Gallery, and we'd parked the camper up for the night a 3-4 minute walk away from this Brewdog. I never visited this place in its previous incarnation as one of the small Draft House chain of bars or prior to that as a JDW so can't really compare then and now. However looks wise this has certainly been given the Brewdog look, though its in a fairly modern building, lots of glass at the front and not on a corner. It's quite a good size for the location (which is on the central/main boulevard area for anyone familiar with MK) the bar is towards the back with a tiny kitchen to the right hand side, there is a small upstairs area with a table tennis table? I seem to recall the toilets being up here as well. Lots of seating on the ground floor with much of it shared long benches, but some smaller high tables and benches near the front.

It was quite busy when we were here, a young after work crowd made up most of the folk here. We ordered food, the burgers and chips at a Brewdog wherever we've been have always been pretty good without ever setting the world alight. Beer choice was good, I think we had about two to three beers with a Siren DIPA, Siren Session IPA, the latest Fanzine Stout from Brewdog, plus an American Barrel Aged Quad (brewery name forgotten). Prices as ever were on the steep side, but staff were good, friendly and the atmosphere fairly relaxed. “

Fin 2035 days ago

“Like the Bucs winning the Super Bowl (2003) and and Trump becoming president (2016), you could bet on BrewDog Milton Keynes forever remaining a figment of your imagination. 'I'll love you until Milton Keynes has a BrewDog' would once have been as firm a testimony to faithfulness as a wedding ring. But here I am, in 2018... Has Milton Keynes come up in the world or has BrewDog become too aggressive in their search for new locations? A bit of both I suppose. It's in the old Draft House which was previously the Secklow Hundred Wetherpsoons. Going in, I notice it's a big, big space, a change from many of BrewDog's more intimate venues. The beer list is impressive - not the best BrewDog but not the worst, concentrating on BrewDog's beers from their main brewery and their Overworks - and it seems cheaper than most BD bars at fist glance. The can/bottle selection looks pared down but I can live with that. Friendly and solid like most of their pubs. A shot in the arm to the local beer scene, which was improving without it but can now claim to have laid the groundworks for a proper beer town.“

jjsint 2085 days ago

“Large glass fronted Brewdog bar that was recently converted from a Draft House following Brewdog’s purchase of that chain of bars. Big inside, usual industrial vibe. Long benches & booths for seating, there is outside space also. Around 20 taps plus bottle fridge. Table tennis table upstairs“

Cheeseboard 2086 days ago

“This BD bar is located some 12 - 15min walk from MK Central train station, straight up the pedestrian walkway. This was recently converted from a "draft house" following BrewDog's purchase of the chain. A fairly modern building from the outside with full glass frontage. Inside is quite large with plenty of long benches and booths. 19 kegs on my visit, of which were 17 BD and only 2 guests. I would prefer this to be more equally balanced. Couple of fridges to the left of the bar had perhaps 40 beers or so. Well run with knowledgable staff as I have come to expect at BD bars. A decent spot overall and I have no doubt this is best beer venue in Milton Keynes.“

Scopey 2113 days ago

“Accesible from both inside and outside the Xscape building, this large modern Spoon, well-lit, was a busy affair on a Friday night, although a little shabby looking in both appearance and clientele!!! Despite this it had a decent enough cask selection over 3 sets of hand pumps on its inner curving bar, which is by its street entrance. Outside of here a fake grass patio area offers up a decent outdoor space to drink or dine, but like most of Milton Keynes this means you're pretty much watching the goings and comings of a car park from here. This is split into a smoking and non-smoking section, although one not being enforced on my visit.“

ManVsBeer 2204 days ago

“Part of a hotel complex opposite the Xscape building, it was difficult to find this place at first using the RB map as its current position is wrong. It's perhaps the most traditional looking building in the area, although it's clearly an imitation with a large ground floor area, traditional and cosy, and mostly set up for pub style dining. The bar on the right offers up a couple of cask ales and keg ales, with its bottle selection, albeit well known brews, offering up some craft options. There was nothing new for me in here though. Has an outdoor space between it and the extensive car parking here.“

ManVsBeer 2204 days ago

“On the main central avenue running up from the main station on the left hand side, this L shaped Wetherspoon in one of the many non-descript buildings in this area was a busy affair on a Friday night, and difficult to get served, although the selection of ales both cask and keg was a fair one for this chain. It's a large open plan "L' shaped affair and fairly traditional in fixtures and fittings, with large glass windows given it's a relatively modern building.“

ManVsBeer 2204 days ago

“Visited a while ago after a meeting in MKC. Decent range of beer on including a couple from the Concrete Cow brewery. One of the better Spoons, a decent amount of space and seemed well looked after. I’d pop in again if in the area and looking for a beer!“

WingmanWillis 3285 days ago

“Spoons located in the shopping centre. Fairly light and airy for a spoons with it being a more modern building and not the usual old shop conversion. Clientele was mainly shoppers - as you’d expect so not too many shady characters in this one. Beer range is ok, couple of guests beyond the house JDW casks. I wouldn’t venture here unless you happen to be shopping in the area.“

Theydon_Bois 3443 days ago

“Typical Wetherspoons in the MK Xscape shopping/entertainment complex. Beer choice is commendable, quality varies but is usually good. However the service, even at quieter times, is very slow; you may spend more time queueing than drinking!!“

jjsint 3820 days ago

“Usually called ’the old Spoons’ to distinguish it from the other three in Central Milton Keynes(!), this is the best of the bunch. Slightly out of the way of the boozing circuit and a 5 minute brisk walk from the station, this Wetherspoons offers 10 real ales in good condition all the time. Can get busy, and staff aren’t always clued up and seem rushed sometimes, but we all get by. This is what every JDW outlet should be.“

jjsint 3866 days ago

“A typical Beefeaters but then this is the most identikit town in the UK. This pub but slightly more beer-focused than most in the chain, offering four fairly well-known beers in good condition. More of a restaurant really, serving the typical British menu done to a high enough standard.“

jjsint 4020 days ago