The Monks’ Retreat

I’m unsure of the attitude of the guy who served me the first time I went there but on the whole it has a tolerable atmosphere and is a good place to stop off for a quick one. I wouldn’t hang around there for too long though. Their variety of ales and lagers is quite big and the prices are reasonable which I think is one sign of a good enough pub to stop off at.

Went there for a drink with friends on a sunday night. The inside is very lit and it had no music!!! Weird

At the end of the day it’s a Wetherspoons.
On weekend nights it tends to be the stop off for cheap drinks to start the night for most of Reading’s younger crowd. Door staff keep the super-​scallies out so it’s really not as bad as it could be.
No, this is isn’t a 3 star pub, but it gets an extra star as it’s one of the better Wetherspoons you might find yourself in.
Friendly bar staff too, when it suits them.

I had the worst breakfast in the world here, tasted like the grill had not been cleaned, left a bad taste in my mouth for hours.
I normally find Weatherspoons breakfasts good value for money but I was very dissapointed at the Monk, need to sort the Chef out.

The Monks’ Retreat is part of the Wetherspoons chain of pubs and so offers all of their usuals. There is a front bar and a back bar, both of which have a few of the mainstream beers on tap (Heineken, Carlsberg, Stella) and some guest ales too. Bottled beers and mixers and wine too.
Because of its proximity to Thames Valley University, they get pretty good business from the loud and raucous (and semi-​dressed) kiddies.
Food is available — expect the usuals. Breakfast, eggs and pancakes and traditional Full English. Lunches and dinners — sandwiches and pies and burgers. Puddings too — cheesecake and jam roly poly, etc.
Last call is run promptly at 11:50, so drink up and head to one of the later pubs across or down the street.
Bonus: they have free wifi.

nothing fancy here in this pub but ideal for a cheap meal and a cheap pint, plenty of seating area, best of all for me is the great choice of real ales

Ok if you don’t mind sticky carpet and filthy tables.
Very cheap though.

Standard Weatherspoons. It does some great deals on food.
Can be quite busy at lunchtimes as many people go here from various businesses in the town.
Was quite smoky last time I went, but this was pre smoking ban. Drinks are a good price too.

I like the monks retreat for a what it says on the tin pub meal. I find the food to be of a good quality, and very reasonably priced. I find that the monks retreat is the ideal place to come if you are on a budget and very hungry.
Avoid going in the evenings as it is usually very very busy.
Keep an eye out for the themed nights — like tuesday is grill night.