The William Webb Ellis

Pub in Twickenham
The William Webb Ellis image

8 / 10 from 1 review
Address
24 London Road
Twickenham
Twickenham
TW1 3RR
Map
Telephone
020 8744 4300
Region
Twickenham
Nearest Station
Twickenham
0.03 miles
Category
Pubs
Other Branches
JD Wetherspoon
Opening Times
Monday
Opens 09:00 - Closes 23:30
Tuesday
Opens 09:00 - Closes 23:30
Wednesday
Opens 09:00 - Closes 23:30
Thursday
Opens 09:00 - Closes 23:30
Friday
Opens 09:00 - Closes 00:00
Saturday
Opens 09:00 - Closes 00:00
Sunday
Opens 09:00 - Closes 23:30

Twickenham is the home of rugby and, appropriately, this Wetherspoon pub is named after William Webb Ellis, who is said to have invented the game.

All In London Review

Excellent Value and Service at Mexican Monday

Review Image
I’ve walked past this pub a million times and never been in. To be honest, you can’t see much from the outside and it’s not particularly welcoming – especially as there are usually people hanging around on the street – you have to run the gauntlet. But the idea of “Mexican Monday” persuaded me to give it a try.

Pleasant and varied spaces

Walking in was a tremendous surprise – the initial area is small, smart and contains some classy green leather wing back chairs – more like a gentleman’s club. Further in there is a dining area to the left and ahead is a very long and well-stocked bar. There are high tables and chairs a sensible distance from the bar (leaving lots of standing room for when I assume it gets rather busy) and, to meet all tastes, there are regular height tables and chairs against the walls. There’s a cute little nook hidden behind some rather smart leather chairs against a book case – and there’s a children’s loo and parent room to the side. So family friendly too. Who would have thought it?

But the place goes on. Next is a fabulous area with modern, shell-like comfortable armchairs around a circular central fire affair. Perfect for a pow wow or for quietly reading the newspapers. Then there are further dining areas. The only thing that put me off a bit were the screens and machines everywhere. OK – the TV screens are relatively small and the noise level isn’t too high, but the flashing machines do spoil the ambience a bit. Out to the back is a small paved area with tables and chairs and trees overhead – which on warmer evenings will be fine although there’s not much of a view.

The clientele is mixed – there were plenty of young folk, mostly in small groups but a few larger groups too. There are also groups of older people – chatting away at those high tables. But there was also a surprising number of people on their own. I would feel comfortable drinking and eating here on my own.

Mexican Monday

So far, so good. And we return to the first dining area. The Mexican Monday menu offers allows you to make some choices (£5.99 for the meal or £6.99 with an alcoholic drink). I picked the burrito with some BBQ pulled pork. I also ordered some tortilla chips and salsa (£1.49) and, because I was hungry and it indicated that you should order dessert at the same time to qualify for the £2.25 price, I also order a waffle with maple syrup and ice cream. A glass of cold white wine to wash it down.

My companion decided on the nachos, with some chilli con carne and a pint of real ale (they had 11 on offer and he chose the local Naked Ladies) and pancakes, maple syrup and ice cream to follow. I have to admit that I was stunned that the total price of this meal was just £22.46.

The bar staff were excellent – friendly and helpful. They asked for my table number and took the order. I took the drinks back to the table and we waited for the food. It didn’t take long. It was another pleasant surprise when the food arrived on smart blue and white plates. But we had an overload of tortilla chips – there were a few beside my fat burrito, I had a separate plateful – my companion’s main course had them and his side was mini nachos. That’s a lot of nachos. And a lot of sour cream, guacamole and salsa. He commented that his chilli was good. My burrito was excellent and the pulled pork perfectly tender and moist and tasty.

Despite the fact that we were full, we ploughed on with the desserts. The pancakes and waffle were not particularly notable but the syrup was sweet and the ice cream was creamy. We ate way too much.

Calorie counting

The menus helpfully point out how many calories are in each dish – we were horrified to realise that my meal had contained 2,400 calories and my companion’s a whopping 3,200. The main menu is extensive and we found some lower calorie options for those who are watching their figures – a freedom salad (£5.59, 480 calories), chicken breast burger (£4.49 420 calories), pasta pomodoro (401 calories) and these prices include a drink. There’s also salmon fillet (306 calories).

Other special menus

I took time to browse other “specials” – there’s a parallel Monday Club offering discounts on selected beers (£2.15), wine (£2.45) and spirits (£215) and ham, egg and chips (£2.99) and a sweet chilli egg noddle dish (£3.49).

Fish Friday (with sustainable fish) costs £5.25 or £6.25 with an alcoholic drink. There are similar deals with Tuesday Steak Club (£8.35), Wednesday Chicken Club (£7.75), Thursday Curry Club (£7.15) and Sunday Club (£8.49) with turkey, chicken, beef or lentil options. There’s a Breakfast Club from 9am to noon with a traditional breakfast at just £2.99 or a large breakfast for £4.70.

There’s free Wi-Fi and a children’s menu (£3.99 with options including fish, cheesy pasta, sausages and mash, jacket potato, chicken nuggets, hot dogs, spaghetti Bolognese, ham, egg and chips) too.

OK. The food wasn’t particularly special – but the environment was really good and the service and staff were absolutely brilliant. And I can’t imagine where you would find such good value for money – the prices were absolutely amazing.

And if you are in the area on a rugby day, this place must be on your list for hot comfort food and an amazing selection of reasonably priced drinks.

Reviewed by KimT
Published on Apr 14, 2015


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