The Grey Friar - JD Wetherspoon — Restaurant in Preston

We have visited this venue before and enjoyed the food and ambience, which is why we returned. Unfortunately, our most recent visit was distressing.

My child, who has autism and sensory processing needs, was sat down with his shoes off. This is necessary for his comfort—he was not walking around in socks and would not have done so due to OCD traits around hygiene and socks touching a pub carpet. Despite this, one staff member addressed us in a manner that was abrupt, curt, and unwelcoming, making the situation unnecessarily stressful, even after I had explained.

Other staff were superficially warm and did issue a refund on food, as I was in no state to eat after being treated in such a way, but they did not step in to provide understanding or a compromise; there was no attempt to meet us halfway. We left the venue early, feeling upset and frustrated.

When Autistic people dine out, they are navigating sensory needs and managing constant challenges from the world around them. They need environments and staff who can respond with understanding, flexibility, and empathy—not pedantic chastisement for actions that have no practical impact. Rigid enforcement of rules without consideration of individual needs causes unnecessary stress and undermines the experience of the venue for those trying to enjoy a meal.

Soles of shoes, such as Xero, are often soft these days; there is a trend for these sorts of shoes. Yet a rigid, one-size-fits-all rule was applied, causing my family to cut our trip short and pay for an earlier train fare than our original ticket. If the risk under consideration is glass entering someone’s foot, this was entirely irrelevant in our situation: my child’s feet were not about to touch the floor, meaning the risk was zero.

The staff member who enforced this rule with us was cold and dictatorial. His enforcement clearly disregarded consideration for customers. When I mentioned that you take your shoes off to enter a friend’s house, he responded with ‘this is a business’—very authoritarian. Not warm. Not caring. Not relatable. He clearly saw it as his duty to tell us off.

We had planned this trip for a long time and even paid for hotels to revisit Preston, making a financial outlay to create a positive experience. This was an autistic boy looking forward to returning to a place he used to live and misses. The rigid enforcement of rules in this situation, which had no practical justification, disrupted that experience and caused unnecessary stress and disappointment.

We hope the venue reflects on how small acts of flexibility and awareness could make a huge difference for customers with hidden disabilities, and that in future, staff understand that kindness and accommodation are essential.

I wish I had read recent reviews before visiting, as it now makes me wonder whether the staff member who was so horrible to us was in fact the manager—the “king” of the venue.

Additionally, my child noticed changes in the venue itself: the family seating area has been replaced with more barstools, there are more gambling machines, and the space feels less clean than it used to be. This suggests a shift in priorities toward revenue over customer comfort and inclusivity. These changes, combined with the rigid enforcement of rules during our visit, made the experience even more stressful and...

My partner and I chose The Grey Friar as a meal out over the other Wetherspoons in Preston due to problems we have experienced at the other place with food quality.

On this occasion, I was extremely unimpressed and upset by the disregard and rudeness of both the woman that served me (short height, blonde hair) and the manager who later assisted, poorly if I may say. After finding a table, I approached the bar to order food and drink. Once I gave my order and before paying or receiving my drinks, the bar woman disappeared for a good minute returning whilst replenishing ice. With no apology or acknowledgement, she then disappeared for another two and a half minutes. When she came back, she made both drinks and told me what the bill came to. As I paid through contactless, she turned and disappeared again, not saying thanks or offering me a receipt. Therefore, I stood at the bar for a further two minutes thinking she was coming back and she walked out with a plate of food. At this stage, I said to the man behind the bar. “Excuse me; please can I get my receipt”. After fully seeing the situation unfold he then replied, “I’m just serving this gentleman at the moment” in a rude tone of voice. I then asked, “Are you the manager” to which he replied “yes”. I went on to say, “I think it’s just a bit rude that she’s just left without offering me a receipt or saying thanks”. To which the manager replied, “She’s just fussed at the minute”.

As the customer, I do not feel that someone should affect my visit because they are ‘feeling fussed’. I was left feeling unwelcome, disgusted and without an appetite. Further to this the Burger bread was stale and tough and the meal lacked freshness, the table wasn’t cleared or cleaned from the previous customer in the whole hour we was there and no one offered any apology for all mentioned above. I was made to feel I had done something wrong.

This made me feel like the regular that I once was should not be again. I thought better of the chain of Wetherspoons and I could not count how many times I have recommended The Grey Friar to friends and family.

Furhter to this I have contacted Wetherspoons through their online form on their website. I have provided all receipt information and even submitted and image of the receipt. I did this for Twelve Tellers and Grey Friars but to no avail. I have not hear anything. Therefore, I am still waiting to discuss this with their ‘Customer Service’. Hence, why I decided to make the review public through...

Service was quick but attitude of certain staff members were horrible and absolutely disgusting. Two men were let into the restaurant and one or the colleagues asked them if they were in the same household. He proceeded to say that they weren't in the same household but they were, in fact, members of each others bubble, which government guidelines do say, you are allowed to form a bubble. Her manners towards these customers mentioned was awful. She was very adamant that she was correct about government guidelines and standing two metres apart from everyone, yet when specifically talking to the customers mentioned, she was stood directly next to them. The man then made points about how she wasnt following the guidelines that she was telling them to follow. The man had explained that the person he was with was in his bubble and she was very rude telling them to get out of the restaurant. The man had told her that they were in a bubble and she refused to believe him.She was very rude. She then walked away from him as he was talking to her, which is very unprofessional. She refused to serve him and got another member of staff over to help her with the situation, who also, just like the other colleague, did NOT follow government guidelines herself. And also, I believe that if someone is serving food, they should wear a mask as they are breathing on the food that we, as customers, are going to eat. But when asked, the lady on the door said PPE was not mandatory in the restaurant, so the colleagues serving our food have not got masks on so could be breathing any bacteria or any kind of germs on our food.

It was disgusting behaviour and we will not be...