The Hope Tap - JD Wetherspoon image

The Hope Tap - JD Wetherspoon

Bar Pub Gastropub

One of the Most Revieweds in Reading


Address

99-105 Friar St, Reading RG1 1EP, United Kingdom

Website

www.jdwetherspoon.com

Contact

+44 118 958 2266

Price rating

$ $$$

Rating on Google Maps

4.00 (3.3K reviews)

Open on Google Maps

Working Hours

  • Friday: 8 AM to 1 AM
  • Saturday: 8 AM to 1 AM
  • Sunday: 8 AM to 12 AM
  • Monday: 8 AM to 12 AM
  • Tuesday: 8 AM to 12 AM
  • Wednesday: 8 AM to 12 AM
  • Thursday: 8 AM to 12 AM

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: good (23) staff (12) busy (10) Wetherspoons (8) Good (8) time (7) Reading (7) table (7) seating (6) drinks (6)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 Miles M. 1 year ago on Google
    Great food at good prices, what's not to like about Wetherspoons. Had my usual gourmet steak which was very tender and good size portion. Plenty of seating inside and a small outdoor seating area at the back of the pub.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 M W. 1 year ago on Google
    Decent Wetherspoons. Lots of seating inside - has a small courtyard garden with seating too. Bar staff have always been friendly. Food is consistently good and always a nice pint. Well stocked bar - extremely rare for them not to have what they advertise. Wouldn’t say it’s a ‘family’ pub - more of an adult only feel to the place. Long hike up the stairs to the toilets but at least you can burn some calories!
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 1/5 Paweł K. 2 years ago on Google
    This place was my favorite. Unfortunately service drastically went down. Stuff working in looks like they have been force to work here there is no care no smile no attitude to work in that kind of pub. After you ordered via app which supposed to get quicker food and drinks rather than waiting in a line to bar waiting time is about 35 minutes and sometimes even longer. For any questions you will receive sorry we are short of stuff. Fair enough understand but at least get the order correct. Wetherspoon do something about it as you will start loosing customers. It’s been today I waiting already 45 minutes and my order didn’t come yet. Strongly not recommended / disappointed about it how place can change in a two years a time.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Karen G. 5 months ago on Google
    Very Good cooked food everytime that I've visited ..and still hot ...comes quickly ... friendly staff and customers alike here .... The Decor may need *updating* a bit ...booth seats are low and rather old .. Hot Drink Machine. runs out of hot chocolate a lot ..and 1 maybe out of use lot may need servicing ... Had a laugh with security guard teasing my friend about his footie shirt ... Recommend stopping for the cheaper rate foods...at certain times .. Monday club **Some cheaper drinks Hot drink Refills..Breakfast until 12noon & lunches offers on 2-5pm *GOOD VALUE for money Disabled toilet on lower floor but others bit of a trek upstairs Outside at the back ..divided area for smokers and non-smoking areas ..
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Alexandra V. 1 year ago on Google
    Usual Wetherspoons, well priced, same menu as everywhere. I love the chicken wraps which are my go-to when I want something quick, cheap and tasty. I had to wait for awhile until they brought my order though so I am going to give 4 stars.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Adrian H. 2 years ago on Google
    My food was lovley had the mixed grill sausages are yummy. My dad's steak was not the best. Desert was lovley chocolate brownie with ice cream ... Lol a teaspoons full of ice cream though. At the price worth it.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 John S. 1 year ago on Google
    Bustling JD Whetherspoons with a little bit of drama. Good value tasty food and drink with no complaints. Service fulfilled with a smile but obviously will be a bit slow during busy periods. Good evening out rounded off with some delightful pitchers.....

  • 4/5 Marcin M. 1 year ago on Google
    Standard Wetherspoon. A few most popular beers and ales. Good price food

  • 3/5 Philip H. 1 year ago on Google
    The food was very good value and actually well cooked and tasty. But, the pub is tired and could do with some refurbishment. Beer range good and well kept. JDW always fall down by not clearing and cleaning tables.

  • 5/5 Keiran B. 1 year ago on Google
    One of the best. Cheap pints, good selection, good atmosphere. What more can you want? This is one of my favourite pubs in Reading and all you need is to step inside to see why. The food is very affordable with a very large variety of options for pub grub and pints. Good job spoons you've done it again 🍻

  • 3/5 Madeleine W. 1 year ago on Google
    went tonight first dinner. half a lemon chicken and fish and chips are excellent value for money and both very tasty. the building which I believe is the old Woolworths premises absolutely freezing cold, everybody sat eating and drinking with coats on. we even moved from one end if the building to the other but no different. it was Freezing we had go leave as soon as we had eaten

  • 4/5 Jermaine N. 1 year ago on Google
    Good food and good location. I found an eyelash in my food and they replaced it with no questions asked. Things happen. I'd go again. It's hard to fault a wetherspoons for breakfast. Affordable and good quality.

  • 5/5 K. P. 1 year ago on Google
    This was a fabulous pub to go drinking at, with a vintage design from the frames, windows and backing of seats. The bar is well-presented and I had a sweet WKD Blue, sitting comfortably at a clean table!

  • 1/5 Wolfpup505 R. 9 months ago on Google
    Popped in 1/7/23. Ordered the steak. Came out cold. So I politely told the gent it was cold. Took it away and gave me a warm one. 2/7/23. I wake up with severe bathroom issues. You make your own mind up on that one. They will be pleased to know we wont be popping back.

  • 4/5 barmy r. 1 year ago on Google
    A better than average Wspoons. Staff work fast but not enough of them! £2 for good ale, what's not to like. Table clearing could do better.

  • 3/5 colin o. 9 months ago on Google
    Yeah it's a good pub but got to experience people being sick on the floor due to drinking to much and this was 2pm on a Wednesday afternoon while dinners are being served. I do not understand why bar staff didn't refuse to serve them anymore when clearly they had more than enough

  • 1/5 yip cheuk hong y. 9 months ago on Google
    Extremely rude staff. My family not even got in the restaurant and already stopped by staff asking for ID with a patronizing tone. Worst experience among all those Weatherspoon I've visited. Would not recommend this one.

  • 3/5 Mark J. 5 months ago on Google
    Wetherspoons in the middle of Reading Town centre. Not overly busy when visited and was served at the bar in good time. Ordered Vegetarian Breakfast and it came with scrambled eggs, rather than fried eggs, due to an issue in the kitchen. Beefburgers were also off the menu due to the same reason. If you like beer, usually has six available on the bar and generally has a more varied selection than the nearby Back of Beyond. I've been to in excess of 100 different 'Spoons branches. Whilst not the best I've ever been to, the staff were generally friendly and the service was good. If in Reading centre, worth a visit.

  • 5/5 Simon B. 4 months ago on Google
    It's a Wetherspoons. You know what you're going to get. Visited twice recently, once in the evening and second time for breakfast, they did miss the fried eggs from my plate, but by the time I noticed I was already full and didn't miss them.

  • 4/5 Izzy S. 4 months ago on Google
    Generally like this pub and will come here for a cheap meal and drink when over in Reading. Unfortunately it's often quite busy so limited seats are available during busy periods. Stairs to toilets are very steep and narrow. Have to be very careful if in heels. It serves its purpose, but I've been to better Wetherspoons

  • 5/5 LINDA N. 5 months ago on Google
    Cheap and cheerful, had a lovely full English breakfast, which could have been a bit hotter but was still great. A pint of orange juice for just over £2. Nice and warm inside and lots of people made it homely and pleasant. Service was excellent from a very pleasant young man!

  • 5/5 Alison H. 5 months ago on Google
    The table was a little sticky but I asked for a cloth and the staff member asked what table it was and can over and cleaned it. The food was good and the wait wasn't too long even though they were busy. It wasn't overly noisy and the bar staff were very well mannered. Great start to our evening

  • 4/5 Yared M. 1 year ago on Google
    Easy place for where to start your night out or finish it off. Good selection of beers which are good value for money, spirits and cocktails. I generally go there to enjoy my Leffe.

  • 3/5 Muhammad A. 2 years ago on Google
    Very pricy. Lady at the counter was amazingly helpful and advised us. Staff like these are saviour to places like these

  • 4/5 Fred C. 2 years ago on Google
    Busy pub, can feel more like a crèche at times! Usual menu, service fast, not always friendly. Plan going to the loo as it is a big staircase upstairs to the toilets. Usual sticky spoons tables.

  • 2/5 David N. 2 years ago on Google
    Standard Spoons in the centre of Reading. Ordered Fish and Chips which was fine. However when I asked for some salt I was told there wasn't any due to problems with the supplier. There's a Sainsburys over the road and it was too much trouble for them to go over and buy some.

  • 4/5 Andrea Rodriguez Y. 2 years ago on Google
    Good food, good price. Atmosphere could be better but overall a nice wetherspoon!

  • 1/5 Rich B. 2 years ago on Google
    Panini is the most undergrilled thing I've ever had. Not even a speckle of garnish? Service was hurried and impersonal. Drugs being dealt openly in the far left corner of the outside smoking area. Horrible place. Compares not one jot to the Back Of Beyond so if you're looking for a decent Wetherspoons in Reading do yourself a favour and take the extra 10 minute walk.

  • 4/5 Natalie C. 2 years ago on Google
    It's a Wetherspoons, dark, busy, a bit dingy, always one drunk person getting thrown out, but cheap and cheerful, food came fast, two meals and two drinks for the price of two drinks in another bar. You don't go for the ambience!

  • 4/5 steve o. 2 years ago on Google
    The beer was as always well kept and the usual excellent prices and choice. If you like a quiet pint it probably isn't the place to go on a Saturday though. Efficient staff.

  • 4/5 Chi L. 2 years ago on Google
    A traditional British restaurant, reasonably priced, quality food, worth exploring

  • 4/5 Ulrich 1 year ago on Google
    To be honest - you get what you came for and that‘s pretty fair. Cheap barfood that is no way nutritious, but satisfy. You are not going to a 3 Star place. You only want to have a full stomach to deal with the amount of drinks served in pitchers.

  • 4/5 Hamish P. 1 year ago on Google
    Decent place for cheap alcohol and food. Plenty of seating though can get quite busy and hot. You can order food and drink on the app which I find great. Especially when the bar is very crowded.

  • 1/5 Ian C. 1 year ago on Google
    Very unfair to give one star, but I figure it's the best way to communicate with the management. When you send you staff out to clean the tables, all they are doing is smearing grease equally around the full surface of the table. So it's sticky and disgusting. To remove fat you need one cloth with detergent to make the fat soluble in water, and then you need another clean cloth to actually wipe the dirty stuff off the table... Instead of smearing it around. But you know that, because it's a health and safety issue.

  • 3/5 Ian “Eddie” S. 2 years ago on Google
    Standard Wetherspoon establishment, ageing in appearance, could do with a refurb. Generally a good selection of real ales, not too busy on a Tuesday afternoon. Only one coffee machine was working but it was sufficient.

  • 1/5 Bubble 1. 1 year ago on Google
    Went to hope tap have been many times but this time I have to share my bad experience, first of all we had no welcome or anything, secondly when ordered drinks they got slammed on the table by a guy in a green top, thirdly we had problem with our food we spoke about it and then most of your staff was then constantly staring at our table and laughing and talking about us, for on as I work in a restaurant myself this is unacceptable customer service, then we though you know what we will try a dessert, but then as we was eating my sister found something in it as she was about to feed it to my niece lucky enough she didn't, when complaining about it we then got started at, and talked about only good thing is two of the employees actually apologising about it, but other then that I don't think we will ever come there again after the customer service skills being shocking

  • 3/5 paul b. 1 year ago on Google
    Following a bit of an adventure trying to park, I arrived here on one of the hottest days of the year. Quite busy and an interesting depiction of the history of transportation in Reading. Small outdoor terrace

  • 1/5 Sherri W. 1 year ago on Google
    Ordered the Freedom breakfast and a large traditional. Beans are taste vile and stone cold, bacon flash fried and barely cooked, tomato raw, mushrooms slimy, cold and taste weird, ordered toast - received bread. Couldn’t bring myself to eat anything other than the egg and hash browns and I’m sat here wondering how long that’s going to stay down ! Maybe the cleaner is cooking today as this would also account for the filthy tables ! Such a shame

  • 4/5 Mark B. 1 year ago on Google
    Not overally the cleanest I've been too. Pretty much standard for spoons though. Food is 'ok' cheap, cheerful and convenient. Location is great but beer garden is a little small.

  • 3/5 win t. 2 years ago on Google
    Everyone know Wetherspoon is good for cask beer & ales. Even its ale festival is going on now a days. Btw first time there, get atmosphere good. Staff is good n attentive. No doubt staff is busy to make everything good. Service is quick. But still one thing bothered me. Most of the tables were sticky n never been clean. Not feel Comfortable with that. Apart from that, all good. Plenty of seating to enjoy the drink or food as everyone know about their food n curries.


Call +44 118 958 2266 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Parking
    • ✓️ Difficult to find a space
  • Payments
    • ✓️ Debit cards
    • ✓️ Credit cards
    • ✓️ NFC mobile payments
  • Offerings
    • ✓️ Beer
    • ✓️ Food
    • ✓️ Wine
    • ✓️ Alcohol
    • ✓️ Cocktails
    • ✓️ Food at bar
    • ✓️ Hard liquor
  • Accessibility
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible seating
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible entrance
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible restroom
    • ✗ Wheelchair accessible parking lot
  • Dining options
    • ✓️ Seating
  • Service options
    • ✓️ Dine-in
    • ✗ Takeout
    • ✗ Delivery
    • ✓️ Outdoor seating

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