A bit upmarket, a bit pricey, and not very football orientated at all, but the Defector’s Weld remains popular pre and post match.
Name of pub: Defector's Weld
Location: 170 Uxbridge Road, opposite the edge of the Green
Size: Medium, but goes back further than you'd think
Selection of beers? Decent range of real ales (CAMRA nominated), all the usuals, and a lot of "non-domestic" stuff on tap.
Price of drinks? £3+, with the euro beer closer to £4.
How full does it get on a matchday? Packed on a match day.
How fit are the bar staff? Weird question, but usual mix of young-ish trendy people, who don't seem to talk football. Functional.
How long does it take to walk to the ground from there? Ten minutes down the Uxbridge Road.
Sky Sports/ESPN? No, and if there was, it wouldn't get turned up.
Suitable for away fans? Technically home fans only and they don't allow any club colours (though this gets flouted). With no colours on and not acting like dicks, sure.
Suitable for families and kids? No, too rammed.
What's the smoking situation? Small heated smoking area round back, and some smokers allowed on the front pavement.
Beer garden? Not really - more smoker-orientated, but there is a tiny one.
As far as pub toilets go, just how bad are these? Pretty nice actually.
Does it serve food and is it any good? Serves good, but expensive, gentrified pub food. It's a bit pricey, and take a while on match days, but decent.
Trendy modern bar, traditional pub or somewhere in between? Very much a trendy modern bar - take out the football fans, and this wouldn't be out of place in Shoreditch.
In one sentence why should people visit/steer clear of this pub? If you're looking for a place to go for one or two nicer beers before or after the game, it's a nice, if expensive start.
Any other business? Found it to be very hangover-friendly/first drink of the day fare. Enough football fans in there for it to be buzzing, but it's not incredibly loud either. Would recommend it for a pint or two if you're not planning on drinking in the Bush very long, because the beer selection is really nice, but pricey.
- E3Ranger
Name of pub: Defectors Weld
Location: On the Corner where Wood Lane meets the Uxbridge road, just across the road from The Green.
Size: Medium, does have an upstairs that not many people seem to know about but the bar up there is a bit crap.
Selection of beers? Not bad, plenty of lagers. Small selection of ales though.
Price of drinks? Very expensive.
How full does it get on a matchday? Not too bad, always get a seat but bar staff are slow at the best of times.
How fit are the bar staff? Lots of lovely ladies there whenever I’ve been so pretty fit.
How long does it take to walk to the ground from there? Ten minutes.
Sky Sports/ESPN? No
Suitable for away fans? No. Must show season ticket/membership or tickets or being wearing QPR colours to get in.
Suitable for families and kids? I guess, never seen any in there though.
What's the smoking situation? Small heated smoking alley out the back with seats.
Beer garden? Not really, just the alley sort of thing.
As far as pub toilets go, just how bad are these? Pretty good. Big and clean, with lots of toilets and urinals.
Does it serve food and is it any good? Yes but never tried it. Pricey.
Trendy modern bar, traditional pub or somewhere in between? Very Trendy
In one sentence why should people visit/steer clear of this pub? Visit of you want to avoid any Neanderthal type fans. High prices and trendy crowd keeps them out. Steer clear if you want a reasonably priced pint or a good pre match atmosphere
Any other business? Not a great ‘football’ pub but ok if you want a chat with a mate and a few pricey pints before the match. Beer and ales have always been of a good quality. Music is pretty good too normally. Sort of a indie/alternative, nothing heavy.
-Hanwell Hoop
Further Comments: Last thing on defector's is it does a sterling Sunday lunch with free shot of Bloody Mary - not cheap but loads of good quality chicken - all round one of the best Sunday lunches had in London. - Ingeminate