Originally Posted by
JamesWales
I don't think the word essential could apply to any pub, although they are very important social spaces and very important to community wellbeing.
However, pubs aren't all about drinking 'decent beer', which everyone will define in their own way. They are about meeting friends, having a few drinks, some food, some company, even some warmth in some cases.
In that sense Wetherspoons are particularly important as they are nearly always the cheapest pub around, esp in some of the cities I mentioned earlier.