The Brockley Barge - JD Wetherspoon — Restaurant in London

🚇 Brockley 🍺 £2.94 Carlsberg

The Brockley Barge is located in Brockley, in the borough of Lewisham, in southeast London. The nearest station is Brockley which is close by.

Built in 1868 as the Breakspears Arms, the pub closed in 1994 after gaining a reputation for disorder. It was also controversially known for operating separate ‘black’ and ‘white’ bars.

Wetherspoons acquired the pub and reopened it in October 2000 under its current name, which recalls the barges that once operated on the Croydon Canal. Opened in 1809, the canal was replaced by a railway in 1836, following much of the same route.

This large, one-bar pub is instantly recognisable as a Spoons. The servery runs along the right side, with an open-plan front area filled with poser tables. A row of pillars and partial walls in the centre marks the location of the original servery. Decor includes pale green walls, prints of local historic figures, plenty of standard seating, and the signature jazzy carpet. A small beer garden sits at the rear, there are a few benches at the front as well.

The beer lineup was a who’s who of familiar keg favourites, and an impressive range of cask ales that have earned the pub a spot in the Good Beer Guide for 10 consecutive years. I opted for a Carlsberg—my pint was excellent, and the price was under three quid! The food menu is extensive, offering a wide selection of comfort food options. Fish and chips with a pint costs £11.91.

I arrived around 2:30 p.m. on a warm and sunny Saturday afternoon in April. The pub was busy throughout, with a mix of local punters of all ages. The liveliest spot was at the front of the pub, where most people were watching the horse racing on the big screen above the door. The service was efficient, and the lady collecting glasses was friendly and chatty.

First of all, it was nice to visit a Spoons that was originally a pub—I haven’t done that in a while. Secondly, hats off to Wetherspoons for transforming this place from a nuthouse into a true community local; that takes some serious hard graft. Overall, I enjoyed my time here, a proper Wetherspoons experience.

📅 12th April 2025

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Been going to this weatherspoons for a number of years and had always enjoyed my experiences and food until today. Ordered the ultimate burger like always and today first it took over 40 mins to come. When it arrived the burger bread was cold like from fridge and the bacon was stone cold, they was no onion rings either. I complained to manager Mike who then told me to my amazement thats how it comes they no longer serve the bacon hot and that the onion rings would arrive shortly. 10 mins later no onion rings and i couldnt eat the burger like that. Complained mike again and said he would be willing to put it back under the grill for me and he didnt know why onion rings didnt come. Now 1 hour had passed itold him i had been regularly and burger had never come like that he insisted things had changed i was no longer interested the attitude shown and his behaviour were appalling i never have known weatherspoons to serve cold bacon i asked for money back and left. I shall be making a complaint to head office to find out when they changed policy and started...

Wonderful pub with wonderful people and staff but every time I pick up their newspaper / Witherspoon mag it reads more and more like a UKIP manifesto.... Suggestion no.1 do not buy anything French or German.. So mr martin can monopolize the British beer industry ...man of the people speeches forgetting how many familie' s pubs he has actually put out of businees Bangs on about tariffs never mentions subsidies Will be interesting to see what the price of hops will be post Brixit (down no doubt) and will mr martin support the growers when there is a bad seasons growth Still went to the pub for a drink read a political lecture .....my review has turned political Drinking has got boring now the nation is entrenched in bar room politics Joining EU was a Tory idea as is leaving but please leave at the right time not when the nation is bankrupt of ideas and leaders but we will and mr martin no doubt will choose his own party to represent to get more of what...