When people think of Leicester, a few things probably come to mind. In recent history it’s perhaps Leicester City’s surprising 2016 Premier League glory which stands out, but the city has a rich history, dating back to the Roman times, and of course quite famously the resting place of King Richard III.

The city centre has two Wetherspoons – The Corn Exchange and The High Cross. Further afield are three more – The William Wygston in Wigston, The Lord Keeper of the Great Seal in Oadby and The White House, near Scraptoft. As far as we can tell (and Leicester locals, feel free to correct us!) these three fall just outside of Leicester, so we’ll be including them in a future post about Leicestershire.

The Corn Exchange – LE1 5GG

Click here to read our full review of The Corn Exchange.

Our first stop in Leicester was The Corn Exchange, a grand 19th-century building situated beside the city’s famous 800 year old market – the largest outdoor market in Europe, in case you were wondering. When we visited the impressive archway at the front was undergoing refurbishment works, leaving it fenced off and meaning the only outside seating area was to the side.

Inside the pub is large and its open plan layout offers plenty of seating, with a ground floor wrapped around the central bar and an upstairs mezzanine area, which was unfortunately closed when we arrived on a quiet day. The pub feels reasonably fresh following its £719,000 refurbishment in 2022, although the colour theme felt overwhelmingly brown in our opinion. The carpet, however, was a wonderful feature, encompassing the cinquefoil of Leicestershire and incorporating a corn motif in keeping with the building’s history.

The toilets had similarly benefitted from the refurbishment, with a wonderfully sleek and modern grey design. They were located downstairs, rather uncommon for a Spoons.

Overall score: 4.0/5

The High Cross – LE1 4JB

Click here to read our full review of The High Cross.

Up next, just a short walk away, was The High Cross. The High Cross is an important part of Leicester’s history, built originally as a structure to provide shelter for market traders in the 16th century, with only a single pillar still standing. That pillar now stands just across the road from this Wetherspoon, with a granite slab in the road outside marking the centre of medieval Leicester.

This history is proudly embraced in Leicester; not only does this Wetherspoon pub, located on Highcross Street, pay homage to it with its name, but the city’s Highcross Shopping Centre also makes reference to the history.

The High Cross is a very traditional, and rather beautiful, pub from the outside. It’s a Grade II Listed building, which opened at the end of the 19th century as the High Cross Coffee House, embracing the country’s growing teetotal movement.

Inside the pub’s traditional feel continues, with a lot of dark wood and quite an open bar area. The seating area wraps around the bar, where the secondary seating area is wonderfully well-lit by a wall of glass looking out onto the beer garden.

The beer garden is perhaps the pub’s best feature; a hidden gem tucked away round the side of the pub, nestled between the buildings of Leicester’s historic city centre. Enclosed by tall brick walls it has a warm and inviting feeling, again embracing the traditional and historic feeling of the pub.

When we visited the pub’s toilets were being renovated; the women’s had been completed, and earned a score of 4/5, but the men’s were dated and seemingly untouched, earning just a 1.5/5.

Overall score: 3.08/5

Leicester average score: 3.54/5