Wetherspoons quietly axes iconic menu item from pubs across UK with fans crying ‘it’s the worst day EVER’

BOSSES at Wetherspoons have quietly axed an iconic dish from the food menu across hundreds of pubs in the UK.

Heartbroken fans of the boozer were left fuming after the popular item shockingly dropped off the menus.

1

Wetherspoons' famous £6.49 chicken bites are listed as "temporarily unavailable" on menus across all pubs in the UK.

The staple item featured 10 crispy chicken bites, chips and a bunch of sauces.

One fan posted on the Reddit group r/Wetherspoons recently, asking: "Where have the Chicken breast bites gone?!

"They’ve disappeared from my local spoons menu, not greyed out like they would if out of stock, completely removed in all forms."

However, bosses have confirmed that the food items are not available on the menu.

A Wetherspoons spokesperson told The Express: "We can confirm that they [chicken bites] are currently not available on the menu in our pubs."

Fans were left disappointed after not being able to order the staple dish.

One social media user said: "They've been out for ages now. Infuriating!"

Another person added: "Sounds pretty serious, hopefully it's not too much and they’re back soon, my fiancé lived on them."

A third customer shared: "Rip Wetherspoons chicken bites. It's the worst day ever."

It is unclear whether the food item will return.

But its not the only thing to drop from Wetherspoons' menus.

The boozer is cutting steak, mixed grills and gammon from menus across the country in a cost-cutting shake-up.

The pub chain’s top brass John Huston told staff on Friday that the popular dishes would be disappearing in May after an increase in meat costs made them the company’s “biggest loss-makers”.

Confirming the news to The Sun, the popular chain said the beloved items will drop off the menu on May 14.

The “high steaks” move comes as Wetherspoons prepares to “tighten belts” amid Labour’s National Minimum Wage increases coming into effect on April 1, as the chain bids to return to its pre-COVID profit levels.

In an email sent to staff, Wetherspoons chief executive John Huston confirmed that the meats were being ditched “after much debate”, as part of a planned menu change, but supplemented the news by announcing a new “gourmet burger” which will be served up in May.

It is not yet known if the pub chain intends to publicly announce the move to its customer base.

A spokesperson for the popular chain said: "Wetherspoon is making changes to its menu in May.

"This includes the removal of steaks, mixed grills and gammon on May 14.

"A new range of Gourmet Burgers will be introduced; The Big Smoke, Buffalo Burger and Cheese Meltdown, on Wed 14 May.

"There will also be a range of Korean style chicken meals added.

"Wetherspoon is confident that its menu provides a variety of choices and value-for money meals.

"We appreciate that some customers will be disappointed with the decision to remove steaks and grills."