Alexandra,
The |
Bellvue
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
|
From the outside, The Alexandra, or the 'Alex' as it is colloquially known looks like an average pub, however this is definitely a hidden gem. There is a bit of a movie theme going on and the pub has weekly Film Nights where a certain movie is shown on the big screens (several of them, including one in the fairly spacious beer garden), free popcorn too! I think the movies are voted for by the patrons. There's also the usual pub games including pool, darts, giant Connect 4 and table football, as well as a jukebox. Good selection of ales including Ringwood Best, London Pride and Hopback Summer Lightning.
Visited 10th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
The Anchor
(East Street) |
East
Street, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The Anchor is a long and narrow traditional pub that looks very small from the front but actually goes back a long way. The decor is very traditional with wooden
paneling and some fantastic Victorian tiling in the toilets, which are in the basement. It does food and has TV and darts, however there was no sign of a jukebox, only background music. It was dead when I visited which is a shame as it seems quite nice. It also has a couple of ales.
Date visited: Tuesday 1st May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
The
Anchor (Redbridge) |
Redbridge,
Southampton |
|
The Anchor, like the nearby Ship Inn is located at the far South West of the city, with panoramic views of the dual carriageway to Totton, a railway line and the Test estuary. This Eldridge Pope pub was fairly busy when I visited on a Sunday afternoon and the smallish main bar area was quite smoky. There is a slightly bigger lounge bar offering a good range of food at good value but this was devoid of any patrons! The service was good and there were two ales on tap. The only for of entertainment I spotted was a dart board. Visited
20th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Anchor and Hope |
Foundry Lane, Freemantle, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Anchor & Hope is a massive looking pub although half of it is a bar for private functions. It boasts a pool table, jukebox, dartboard and regular karaoke nights and when I visited, there was a fairly lively atmosphere, however the beer was not very well kept.
Visited 1st April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
Angel
(Of The South) |
Palmerston
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Angel
looks a bit rough from the outside and inside it looks even rougher!
The upper part where the bar etc is located is fine but the back room
where the pool table is looks very spartan and rough. It does have a
nice mural in the upper section, otherwise I would have just given it one
point for decor. However, look past the shabby decor and it seems a
nice enough place. It has disco and quiz nights on Fridays and
Saturdays (the disco equipment seems to be permanently set up, a bit like
the Ice House in Shirley Warren) and the quiz nights are fantastic!
Rather than the usual pub quiz where teams scribble away on pieces of
paper, this Scottish guy called Lemmy (who I presume to be the landlord
and yes, he likes Motorhead!) asks a question and the first person to
shout out the correct answer gets a free drink!
My original visit was on a mid
weekday night and it was dead but I liked what I saw so made a return
visit on a Friday night and it was still fairly quiet, despite the great
quiz. Very friendly and welcoming though, this pub is definitely an
undiscovered gem. The drinks are very good value.
TVs and pool but I didn't see any darts. No ale except for Courage
Best. I will definitely be coming here more often.
Visited 10th April, 18th May 2007
Update December 2007
Too late for any
more points as the 2007 season is closed, however this place is fab!
The landlord likes getting on the stage and DJing and is always amusing on
the mic. It has recently benefited from a lick of paint and looks
much smarter than it did earlier in the year. There's also a new
covered smoking patio and air hockey table plus there is definitely a
dartboard (hidden away round the corner). The cocktails in here are
worth a mention too, particularly "Lemmy's Black Death" (my
favorite). There is also regular live music and occasional karaoke
nights (not for the easily offended!). A year ago, I'd never even
heard of this pub but now it's one of my favourites.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Apartment
26 |
Bedford Place, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Apartment 26 is a highly pretentious bar above the slightly less pretentious Lizard Lounge in the trendy Bedford Place area of the city. The place was full of Suited Bores and other showoffs when I visited early on a Friday night. Definitely not a place I fit in. It's very anonymous and most of the seats seemed to be reserved for non-existant groups of people. The decor is very nice and extremely contemporary, the furniture looks like it came straight out of an IKEA catalogue and it has a fab 60s supermarket style floor like the Lizard Lounge below. There is definitely no ale and in fact only two beers on offer, neither of which were very good at all and both of which were very expensive. The only form of entertainment is a DJ playing pretentious 'urban' music. Apparantly it has a roof garden but it was Closed when I visited. Not a place I'd reccomend unless you have a lot of money and want to show off your new designer suit. Visited
11th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
7 |
The Ark |
Meggeson
Avenue, Townhill Park, Southampton |
|
The Ark is located on the edge of Southampton on a fairly rough but by no means the worst housing estate in the city. The outside is nothing special, a fairly standard 1960s building. The interior features a delightful combo of green striped and beige woodchip wallpaper and an equally lurid patterened carpet. The most interesting thing about the decor is the pattern on the ceiling. I visited during the daytime and the pub was full of Chavs who kept issuing dirty looks so I didn't stay long. I didn't even dare venture into the games room as the doorway was blocked with Chavs but it looked dingy and while it contained pool and darts equipmment, it was all covered up. The main bar also contains a piano and a blackboard advertising karaoke and various other Easter events but the whole place was unwelcoming. It is supposed to offer Gales ales but they were all covered up and the face on the barmaid was unwelcoming.
Visited 7th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Avenue,
The |
Inner
Avenue, Southampton |
|
The Avenue is a compact-looking pub from outside, however it goes back a long way, extending right the way between two
parallel roads. It has a fairly compact beer patio and several different rooms inside, the one at the back housing a pool table. When I visited, there was a quiz night in progress which is a regular weekly fixture. They also have a jukebox, pool table and dartboard and the place was very busy indeed, the only place to sit was outside. They have Wadworth 6X but not a lot else in the ale department. My pint contained a piece of plastic but to their credit, they changed it, however that doesn't stop them being docked a point for it. The Gents contains a washing machine and tumble dryer, with the pipes trailing across the floor! How very odd.
Date visited: Tuesday 8th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
Avondale House |
Carlton Place, City Centre, Southampton |
|
If
there was ever such a thing as a pub with no beer then Avondale House
would be it. All the beer taps were covered up although there wasn't much
to miss, in fact the barman said I could have either Carling or Guinness
and that was all they had, the rest being Off. There are some hand pumps
but they probably haven't been touched for years and there are no signs on
them. I opted for the Carling but wish I hadn't bothered, the glass seemed
to have a sickly sweet taste to it, probably a sign of poor glass washing
procedures. However, the venue is otherwise decent enough, it's set out on
three levels which can be confusing for the newcomer, it was fairly dead
when I visited but can get packed later on. They do good value food but if
their glass hygiene procedures are anything to go by, I wouldn't risk it.
They have TVs, a jukebox, two pool tables and the decor is quite nice,
however the quality and quantity of the beer was a real let-down for me.
Date visited: 26th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
4 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Bald Faced Stag |
Freemantle, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Bald Faced Stag is located only a couple of minutes walk away from where I live - yet I didn't realise it existed until recently. It is located along a dead end back street, way off the beaten track, goodness knows how it survives. The beer was slightly chemically and the interior quite shabby and dated, however, it is generally welcoming and offers an old fashioned mechanical jukebox, pool and darts.
Visited 1st April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Balmoral Inn, The |
Romsey Road, Rownhams, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Balmoral is a large Beefeater pub/restaurant on the edge of the city along the main road to Romsey. It has recently been refurbished to a high standard with the front room being a bar area and a large table service restaurant area with a mezzanine floor to the rear with a separate entrance. They have a couple of ales, including Ringwood's on tap and a karaoke night every other Saturday. When I visited, it was very quiet which was
surprising for a Friday lunchtime but apparently it gets very busy on the karaoke nights. Visited
Tuesday 8th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
4 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Bambuubar |
Leisure
World, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Bambuubar is an ultra-trendy bar located in the massive converted warehouse that is Leisure World. The decor is very contemporary with a general red and black theme throughout and there are some seating alcoves that resemble padded cells towards the back. There is also an upstairs mezzanine floor accessed by a groovy spiral staircase but it was closed when I visited.
Despite the fact it was 8:40 on a Friday night, it was totally dead when I visited. They normally have a DJ and various theme nights, as well as deals on drink but there is definitely no ale. Visited
Friday 18th 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Banana
Wharf |
Ocean
Village, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Banana Wharf is a recently opened bar and restaurant at the foot of a strikingly modern block of flats (sorry, I meant luxury apartments) in the Ocean Village marina area. The restaurant area is much bigger than the bar area, with only a small seating area for drinkers. The prices are extortionate and my enquiry as to whether there was any Ale resulted in "Er...John Smiths?". The decor is nice and very contemporary with a fabulous 1960s style stone wall and an upstairs mezzanine featuring among the highlights. It also has a good view across the marina. There is no entertainment, not even a TV but the place was fairly busy, albeit very anonymous.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
8 |
Bar
Coda |
City
Centre, Southampton |
|
Bar Coda is a pretentious bar hidden away in the backstreets of the city centre. The most noticable thing about the decor is the empty shell of a large TV at one end of the main bar area, otherwise it is fairly contemporary and clean but nothing special. It has a stage and a pool table but nothing else in the form of entertainment that I could see. It was totally dead when I visted and there is no ale. Visited
Thursday 10th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Bar
Ice |
High
Street, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Bar
Ice is a fairly recently opened bar in the busy High Street area of the
city but it is certainly nothing special. The decor is very blue as
the name would suggest and while it is fairly contemporary, is nothing special.
There are no ales but it has TVs, a DJ playing loud dance-pop music,
bouncers, a set of Chavs and that's about all there is to say really.
Date visited: 27th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Bar
Risa |
High
Street, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Bar
Risa is one of Southampton's longest established trendy bars and it works
in tandem with the Jongleurs Comedy Club above (which is excluded from
this project as it doesn't open til 11pm and you have to pay). I
wasn't expecting much but I was swayed by the £1.50 a pint (Carlsberg)
promotion, although there are no ales. It's a massive place all on
one level and it has a huge dance floor, complete with Townies dancing
round their handbags. There is a DJ but that's all you get in the
entertainment department. The decor is contemporary but nothing
special although the exposed pipes on the ceiling add something to the
general ambience of the place. Despite the fact I visited at quarter
to 11 on a Friday night, it wasn't all that busy and it was easy to find a
seat.
Date visited: 27th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
6 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
16 |
Bedford's |
Bedford
Place, City Centre, Southampton |
|
A typical city centre youngsters pub. It all looks very nice and contemporary and there are several pool tables, large TVs and a regular karaoke night. Always quite busy but no sign of any proper beer at all.
Visited 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Bellemoor
Tavern |
Bellemoor Road, Shirley, Southampton |
|
The Bellemoor is a large food-orientated pub located in the pleasant area of Upper Shirley, adjacent to a college and Southampton Common. Like the nearby Malvern Tavern, it is a part of the Spirit pub group and is a popular eaterie with reasonable prices. Other than a quiz night, there is no entertainment apart from the usual easy listening background music you tend to get in these places. The decor is very nice and contempoary, shiny and new. It was quite busy when I visited but not particularly lively, most of the patrons munching away. However, it does have a good range of ales, including London Pride.
Date visited: 8th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Bent
Brief |
Lodge
Road, Southampton |
|
The
Bent Brief is a fairly large music-focused pub in the busy student
district of Bevois Valley, however unlike some pubs, the music offering is
informal, there is no proper stage and no entry fee, plus they close at
midnight so if you have work the next day, you can get home at a sensible
time without having to miss half the performance. As well as local
bands, they have open mic nights and jazz music.
Even if you're not a music person,
there's plenty on offer in the form of two pool tables, a dartboard and
loads of quiz/fruit machines. The decor is nothing special (although
the aquarium is a nice touch) and a bit 'lived in' with some of the
armchairs being ripped but there's a good atmosphere and a superb range of
ales, including London Price, Spitfire and Brains SA although it took a
while to get served. The presence of the latter may be explained by
the large Welsh flag hanging in the window but they also have the
occasional Irish theme night so it caters for all corners of
Britain! In addition to this, they do food.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
Bevois
Castle |
Onslow
Road, Bevois Valley, Southampton |
|
The Bevois Castle is a lovely traditional pub in the Bevois Valley area of the city. It doesn't have a lot in the way of entertainment except for background music and a pool table but has ales and looks very nice. However, it was dead when I visited.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Bevois Town Hotel |
Middle Street, Inner Avenue, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The
Bevois Town is located in the back streets of the inner city and not
surprisingly therefore, doesn't attract a lot of passing trade. The decor
is nice enough buy nothing special. The front bar is quite small but the
back bar is quite large, they used to have karaoke nights there but now
the only entertainment on offer appears to be darts, pool and a jukebox.
They do food (not sampled) and there is no ale apart from Greene King IPA.
Date visited: 24th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Big
Cheese |
West End
Road, Midanbury, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Big Cheese is a typical franchise
restaurant-pub, in this case, part of the Hungry Horse chain. The main bar
is primarily intended for dining and is massive (and probably child
friendly) while there is a smaller bar to the side featuring a dart board
and jukebox. The decor is pretty average but quite homely and well-kept
but there is no atmosphere.
Visited 3rd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
The
Bittern |
Thornhill
Park Road, Southampton |
|
The Bittern
is located on one of the main roads out of Southampton, while it is
located in the relatively pleasant suburb of Thornhill Park, it is close
to the Thornhill housing estate. The Bittern is a Modern style pub with
Crittall windows, it has been partially painted in bright orange paint
which doesn't suit it and is now starting to peel. This tattiness
continues inside the pub although the decor is otherwise generally
welcoming. Scores: Price - 1/5 - £2.60 a pint Entertainment - 2/5 -
Dartboard and pool table but nothing else Atmosphere - 1/5 - Very dead
when I visited Looks - 2/5 - A bit tatty inside and out Beer - 2/5 - Not
much on offer but well kept.
Visited 3rd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
8 |
Bitterne Park Hotel |
Bitterne
Triangle, Bitterne Park, Southampton |
|
Mock Tudor hell! This massive building contains a 'Saloon Bar' and 'Public Bar'. I opted for the Public Bar and managed to come out alive. Bitterne Park is by no means the roughest area of Southampton yet this pub contains a fine selection of down and outs including a lady who sneaked a bottle of Vodka in but the barmaid confiscated it. The decor is just as shabby as the clientele although the pub does offer pool, darts, karaoke and a jukebox. No sign of any ales, the patrons only drink Stella 'Wife Beater' Artois probably.
Visited 5th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Blue Keys Hotel |
Northlands Road, Fitzhugh, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Blue Keys Hotel is a recently opened bar/restaurant off the beaten track in the Fitzhugh area of the city. It was formerly the Golden Lion but has had a major refit and rebranded itself as a posh
eatery, hotel and jazz/blues bar, with live music several times a week although when I visited there was just
background music. The front of the establishment is a good sized bar area with casual seating and a stage featuring a piano. The decor is very nice with a
contemporary yet traditional theme. Behind the main bar area is a posh looking restaurant area. There are three ales on tap but no bar games or TV (the lack of the latter being a good thing as all the other nearby pubs were heaving with people watching football on TV). This place was quite dead when I visited.
Date visited: Wednesday 2nd May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Bosun's
Locker |
City
Centre, Southampton |
|
The Bosun's Locker is a large pub located near the city walls in the old town and while at first glance it may appear to be old, in actual fact it is a Mock Tudor structure erected in the 20th century. There
are supposed to be two bars, a large lounge and a smaller public bar but only the public was opened when I visited
on a rainy Friday night, hoping to seek a nice cosy pub to shelter in from the rain. No such luck. The public bar is very spartan with exposed floorboards and little in the way of comfortable furnishings. All the tables were taken up by very noisy men playing pool. As well as the pool table, it also has a jukebox and a few ales, including Ringwood's and London Pride and the prices aren't bad at all.
Visited
Friday 11th May 2007
Update December 2007
I visited this pub
just before Christmas and was very pleasantly surprised. It has been
refurbished and the Public Bar is now smart and modern and the Lounge Bar
is large and more homely and traditional and very nicely furnished.
It's too late to pick up any more points for the 2007 round but this pub
looks very promising for next year.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Bowlers |
Golf Course Road, Bassett, Southampton |
|
Bowlers is a bar/restaurant located within the very pleasant surroundings of Southampton Golf Course. It is a 1930s building but the interior is fairly dated rather than retro. It has TVs and disco equipment set up in the corner which would suggest that they have entertainment sometimes, however there was no sign of anything else on the entertainment front (other than the football on the radio) and they don't have any ales, however it's a great place to relax and have a meal or a refreshing pint in beautiful surroundings.
Date visited: Sunday 5th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Brass Monkey |
Shirley Road, Shirley, Southampton |
|
Formerly
the Rising Sun (a pub going back over 100 years), this place was given a
major makeover a couple of years ago and was transformed into the Brass
Monkey. While it looks a lot fresher, it has lost a lot of the
atmosphere. It is currently up for sale so more changes may be afoot
(see here)
Described as "Audio And Visual
To The Extreme", the pub features loads of TVs, including mini screen
in the beer pumps. These usually show a variety of sports and videos
from the jukebox. There are also several pool tables. It has a
quiz on a Sunday and a live DJ on Fridays and Saturdays although they tend
to play mainly new stuff as the pub seems to be aimed at the under 30s
market. There is also occasional live music and a recently started
(as of yesterday!) Thursday karaoke night.
Food is available although not cheap
and Ringwood 49er and Hopback Summer Lightning were available on tap when
I visited.
Date visited: 12th April 2007
Update November 2007
Still trundling
along steadily minus the Thursday karaoke night which has moved to Sunday
and replaced the quiz. I don't know why but I never really feel much
at home in this place.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Bricklayer's Arms |
Wimpson Lane, Millbrook, Southampton |
|
The
Bricklayer's Arms used to be a country pub until the Millbrook estate was
built around it, however it still seems like a decent place. The
hanging baskets outside look a bit sorry for themselves and somebody in
their infinite wisdom has painted the outside walls black! The
inside is nice and homely, however I have docked a point from the Attractiveness
score upon seeing the toilets which were scruffy and dingy and while there
was a light, there was no evidence of any way of switching it
on!!!
On the ale front, there's not a lot
to choose from but they do superb value meals. There is Karaoke on
Thursday nights (which I can highly recommend) and disco and quiz nights
the weekends as well as a pool table, dart board and cribbage (according
to the sign). It has a small paved outside seating area. I
visited at lunchtime and it was dead-ish, however I will visit in the
evening and perhaps re-evaluate the score.
Date visited: 12th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Bridge
Inn (Woolston) |
Woolston, Southampton |
|
The Bridge Inn is a large and prominent pub located near the end of the Itchen Bridge (hence the name). The upper floor is set back from the road which gives the place a kind of hanging gardens of Babylon look. There are even some palm trees on the terrace and the place is floodlit at night which gives it a really eyecatching look. Inside, the decor is very nice, contemporary but cosy and welcoming, the green fingered theme continuing with plenty of indoor plants and foliage. There are TVs and pool
but no evidence of any other entertainment. Ales are a bit thin on the ground apart from Marstons and it seems fairly busy whenever you visit. They also do food.
Date visited: 17th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Bridge Inn (St Denys) |
Priory
Road, St Denys, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
A mainly unremarkable but pleasant and busy enough pub. Decent décor, great jukebox, pool and darts. Greene King IPA but nowt else in the proper beer category.
Visited 5th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Brightwater Inn |
Shirley Road, Shirley, Southampton |
|
A JD Wetherspoon Free House. Enough said. While like all Wetherspoons pubs they do cheap food and drink, these places are pretty much the same everywhere except for the building and the Brightwater is basically just a converted shop unit with no features of architectural merit, the most interesting thing being the ceiling lighting and the old pictures on the walls of Shirley when it actually had interesting pubs! There is no atmosphere (although they're always quite busy) and no music but they had a superb selection of ales as my visit coincided with a Real Ale Festival which offered three 1/3rd of a pint glasses of different ales for £1.69. Normally, they usually have some decent ales, Ringwood Brewery being a regular feature.
Visited Friday 4th May 2007
Update November 2007
Still a good place
to go, my visit coincided with another Real Ale festival but apart from
the smokers congregated outside the doors, little has changed.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
6 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
6 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Bulls
Eye |
Butts
Road, Sholing, Southampton |
|
The
Bullseye was a pleasant surprise. The area it is in has a bit of a
reputation so I wasn't expecting too much, however I kind of liked the
place. It has a great range of entertainment, including darts (of
course!), pool, TV and karaoke nights (another pub where the karaoke
equipment seems to be in permanent residence!) and the interior is just
fab! It is SO 1950s I had to give it an extra point for
authenticity, from the interesting curved ceiling mouldings to the frosted
glass patterns to the original Formica bar counter. It was fairly
busy when I visited and seemed friendly enough, however there were no
ales.
Date visited: 22nd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Bush Inn |
Wimpson Lane, Maybush, Southampton |
|
The
Bush Inn is located next to the Ordnance Survey HQ - one of the city's largest
employers, therefore at lunchtime, it is usually fairly busy with civil
servants, particularly on a Friday. However, it did have a bit of a
reputation at night although I have been in there on a Friday night fairly
recently and not seen any signs of trouble so perhaps it is under control
now.
Formerly called the Maybush, after
the area it is located in, the pub boasts two bars and a large beer
garden, two pool tables, darts and table football. As would be
expected, it also has the usual TVs, Sky Sports etc and a jukebox. A
nice touch and a good idea is a TV behind the bar so patrons propping up
the bar can watch TV. They usually show the news/weather at
lunchtimes which is a good idea too. There are also disco and
karaoke nights at the weekend and rooms to let.
The decor is nothing special but is
comfortable and adequate.
When I visited, there were no real ales available.
Date visited: 13th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
C
Breeze |
Canute
Road |
|
To be honest, this place stretches the definition of a pub, it is definitely a restaurant - with a strong Carribean theme. There is no beer on tap at all although they have some interesting Caribbean bottled lagers. The food smelled very good although I didn't sample it and I suspect it is on the pricey side as the bottle of Carib lager cost over £4! The decor is nice enough, with beach style colours and palm trees being the order of the day. No entertainment - as I said, it's more of a restaurant than a pub.
Visited 10th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
6 |
Castle Inn |
Witt's
Hill, Midanbury, Southampton |
|
A very interesting pub, The Castle is located at the top of Witt's Hill, probably the highest hill in Southampton. Views North and West across Southampton can be seen from the pub. The pub itself is kind of semi-circular, with a Games Room sporting pool and darts and a large main bar area with a conservatory at the back. They have karaoke nights every weekend and a fairly large beer garden with play area. Food is available and while not sampled, it smelt very appetising. Bombardier and Hobgoblin ales on tap. The decor is very pleasant and modern. While I haven't been in the pub in the evening, I thoroughly liked what I saw.
PS: The area this pub is located in
is pronounced MID-AN-BURRY not MY-DAN-BURRY which in fluent Southampton
dialect equates to MID-UN-BRIE
Visited 7th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Ceno |
Highfield
Road, Southampton |
|
A
somewhat upmarket pub (well more of a bar really) attached to a
hotel. It has some very nice outdoor decking and a contemporary
interior and the service is good, however the closest you get to real ale
is Boddington's! No entertainment but fairly busy.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
8 |
Chamberlayne
Arms |
North
East Road, Sholing, Southampton |
|
The Chamberlayne Arms is a very unremarkable pub. There is no entertainment except for TVs, pool and a jukebox, no ales and the barmaid seemed more interested in chatting to a regular than serving customers. It was fairly dead when I visited except for a couple of Chavs. It does, however, have a garden. Otherwise, the decor is fairly spartan.
Date visited: 24th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
8 |
Chambers |
London Road, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Chambers is
predominantly a wine bar, however they serve very popular pizzas (not tried). The first thing that grabbed my attention on going in was a large sign proclaiming they were "Open Late Thursday, Fridays and turd". Obviously some (t)wit had stolen the SA and AY from Saturday! However, that pretty much summed up my visit. The decor is a bit plain and dingy in places. It has two pool tables and some TVs, however it seemed fairly dead when I visited and the lager I had tasted poor.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
1 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Chapel
Arms |
Albert
Road North,
Southampton |
|
The Chapel Arms is a small but generally pleasant, albeit unremarkable pub located in the Chapel area of the city. Due to its close proximity to the St Marys Stadium, there is a football theme throughout, however it also has a selection of books on the windowsills which is a nice touch. It has two joined bars, the smaller of the two was very dark but otherwise the decor is nice and there is a friendly dog in residence. It was fairly busy when I visited. The pub boasts TVs, jukebox and pool but apart from Greene King IPA, no ales and it was let down by the toilets which had were a bit
malodorous.
Date visited: 24th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Clowns |
Bevois
Valley, Southampton |
|
Clowns is a very popular student bar in the Bevois Valley area of the city. I think there is a nightclub upstairs/downstairs called Jesters. Clowns itself looks quite tatty but was packed with students wearing strange masks and hats. I didn't ask. It's a bit cliquey but very busy. It has a pool table but no music or ale as far as I know.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
4 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Cork
& Bottle |
Ocean
Village (ish), Southampton |
|
Part of the Laurel Pub Co., the Cork & Bottle is a massive pub located near Ocean Village that has definitely seen better days. The herringbone flooring is breaking up and the wallpaper is peeling. The main bar area is a huge double height space which has a lot of potential to become an inspiring space while at one edge is an area with lower celings containing further seating and a pool table. There is also a very nice 'snug' room in a cosy alcove. Unfortunately, the loos let it down as there was a definite smell that would best be described as 'pungent'. The place is fairly busy, albeit anonymous, probably due to the excellent drinks prices as well as the range of typical Wetherspoons-style food. Apart from the aforementioned pool table, the only form of entertainment is a tV.
Date visited: Thursday 10th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
6 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Court Jester |
|
|
A light and airy pub with lots of glazing around the street-facing facades. The décor is very Green. Quiz nights and pool. Apart from that, nothing of note.
Visited 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
The
Cowherds |
The
Avenue, Southampton |
|
The Cowherds is one of Southampton's oldest and most famous pubs. Located on the edge of the Common, one of the largest urban open spaces in the UK, it is mainly aimed at the food market, with no entertainment being available and the prices slightly pricey. It is under the same ownership as the Fisher's Pond pub near
Eastleigh. When I visited, it was neither busy nor quiet but I can imagine it is very popular for meals on Sunday lunchtimes etc. There were three ales available but two of them were off,
however Old Speckled Hen did the trick nicely. The decor, as can be expected in pleasant and
cosy, with a distinctly rustic flavour.
Date visited: Tuesday 8th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Cricketers Arms |
Carlton Place, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The Cricketers looks and seems like a proper pub, however it has more of a wine bar type atmosphere and there are no bar games. However, they do have a DJ at weekends and they also serve food. The decor is nice, a cross between modern and traditional that works well to create a chilled out style. It seems quite popular with students and has three real ales, however why ANY pub needs a bouncer at 8pm on a Tuesday night is beyond me so it lost a point there.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Crown
& Sceptre |
Burgess
Road, Highfield, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The crown & Sceptre is a large Mock Tudor pub located near the main Southampton University campus. Inside, the decor is attractive, with wood panelling throughout, however it is perhaps a little spartan in places. For some reason, there were loads of chairs piled up at one end of the pub.
Apparantly, they normally have ales, however they were all Off when I visited. They have pool, darts, TV and a good jukebox. It was totally dead when I visited although friendly enough.
Date visited: Tuesday 8th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Crown
Inn (Highfield) |
Highcrown
Street,
Highfield, Southampton |
|
The Crown Inn is a very pleasant surprise. It is tucked away off the main road in the back streets of the pleasant Highfield area of the city and is a proper traditional pub. It seems to be mainly a food pub although it does have a Sunday quiz night as the only form of entertainment. No TV which is sometimes a good thing. The decor is very nice, cosy and traditional and the various old pots hanging from the ceiling add to the rustic character but this is a genuinely rustic pub. It was very busy when I visited, despite the fact it was a Tuesday night. It also has a very good selection of ales.
Date visited: Tuesday 8th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Crown Inn (Shirley) |
Shirley Road, Shirley, Southampton |
|
The Crown (known as 'Tramways' until recently) had a bit of a dodgy reputation, however it has since been comprehensively refurbished and given back its original name (where the name Tramways came from is anyone's guess; there haven't been any trams in Southampton for years!). When I visited, on a Friday night, there were no signs of any trouble in the front bar, although there was something vaguely musical going on in the back bar bus as it looked totally pitch black in there, I stayed in the front bar which is adequately furnished in a traditional style and fairly green colour scheme. The clientele were all over the age of 40 and it was a bit
smoky. They had three ales on draught but no sign of any jukebox or bar games.
Date visited: Friday 4th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Cuccini's |
Town
Quay, City Centre, Southampton |
|
An
up market bar somewhat off the beaten track at the wrong end of Town
Quay. Fairly quiet with a contemporary but slightly dingy interior
and pricey food. No entertainment except for TVs. Visited
Tuesday 15th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
1 |
Total (out of 25): |
6 |
Dock O' The Bay |
The Avenue, Fitzhugh, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
A silly bar with a silly name. There is no dock or bay anywhere near it although the walls inside are painted with brash watery murals and they seem to specialise in shellfish. The upstairs area was closed as was the downstairs, they seemed to be very keen on closing completely for the night, despite the fact it was only 10:20pm. In fact, I was the
only customer in there! It was also incredibly warm and the decor a bit tatty. No ale at all and no entertainment apart from dull backing music. It seems to have lost its way.
Date visited: Tuesday 8th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
6 |
Dockgate
4 |
Terminus
Terrace, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Dockgate 4 is a 'bar and grill', and a pretentious one at that. The interior is very grand although perhaps a little dingy, which I guess is to try and increase the candlelit ambience. The restaurant is massive but was pretty dead when I visited, apart from a group of Suited Bores who were busy guffawing about their latest adventures on the FTSE 100. No ale here unless you count John Smith's (I don't). There is an electric piano in residence but no sign of anyone playing it or any other entertainment. Visited
Thursday 10th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Dorchester
Arms |
Onslow
Road, Bevois Valley, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The
Dorchester Arms is a large, traditional-looking pub in the Bevois Valley
area of the city, an area popular with students. It has pool, darts,
a good jukebox and regular live music, however when I visited, there was
no entertainment except for the jukebox. It was pretty dead which
was very surprising for 10pm on a Friday night. Flowers bitter
available, very good value. The decor is OK but nothing
special.
Date visited: 13th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
5 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Drummond Arms |
Welbeck
Avenue, Portswood, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
This pub is located in the back streets of Portswood but is pleasant, welcoming and busy. Good selection of ales, darts, pool, big TV, quiz nights, clean and well kept décor. Nothing special.
Visited 5th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
Duchess
Of Wellington |
Grove
Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
A pleasant enough pub with two dartboards, pool tables, card games and a selection of Wadworth ales, although these were fairly expensive. The décor is quite nice, with a historic OS map of the locale on the wall but the lurid patterned carpet spoils it.
Visited 8th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Duke
Of Wellington |
City
Centre, Southampton |
|
The
Duke Of Wellington is a historic pub in the heart of the Old Town. It was
badly damaged by WWII bombs, but was reconstructed to the original design
after the war. It is a very traditional and welcoming pub offering food
and a superb range of ales. It has a function room but nothing in the way
of entertainment. It was relatively busy when I visited and the decor is
very cosy and traditional. Well worth a look.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
5 |
Beer: |
5 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
The
Eagle |
Palmerston
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Eagle is
a fairly prominent Mock Tudor pub on the edge of Southampton's city centre
parks and the place seems massive inside! It's got a flagstone floor
and lots of exposed wooden beams to give it an old fashioned look but it
works surprisingly well and seems quite cosy. TVs, jukebox, pool and
darts plus disco nights every week. No ale except for Flowers
("Sorry, this isn't actually Flowers, it's Whitbread Best but it's
almost the same, honest!"). Great value though.
Visited 10th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
5 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
18 |
Earl
Of Locksley |
Sholing, Southampton |
|
The Earl Of Locksley was a pleasant surprise. Despite being in a
typical housing estate location, it seemed very friendly and had a good selection of ales, including 6X and Ringwood's. The decor is very nice, very wooden although perhaps slightly dark in places. It also boasts a beer garden (not seen), two pool tables, darts, TVs and a jukebox. All was well until I saw the loos which looked very poor so it lost a point there but otherwise, very good.
Date visited: 24th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Encore |
Commercial
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
As the name suggests, Encore is located adjacent to the Mayflower Theatre and is very popular with theatregoers. It was pretty busy when I visited with no seats available it is but not all all pretentious - it is along the same lines as a Wetherspoon's type pub, offering affordable food and drinks and indeed a couple of proper ales. It also has a jukebox and pool table, as well as karaoke nights every week. Like most 'shop unit' type pubs, the decor is nothing special but it is well kept and nice and contemporary. Visited
Friday 18th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
4 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Endeavour |
??,
City Centre, Southampton |
|
The
Endeavor is a small city centre pub, located off the beaten track in the Old Town area. When I visited, it was pretty dead, however it seems decent enough. Some of the tables have flowers and candles on; one end of the pub is set out as a restaurant. It has a piano but no other form of entertainment other than background music. It has Greene King IPA but no other ales. The bar area looks rather spartan and the chairs are squeaky!
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Englishman
Inn |
English
Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The
Englishman is a friendly local pub off the beaten track in the back
streets of Freemantle. There are two bars and a beer garden although
the rear bar is quite small. It hosts karaoke twice a week (Weds and
Fri) and has a pool table, dartboard and jukebox. The decor is
pleasant and homely and 6X is on tap. It is usually fairly busy and
as one of my regular watering holes, I would definitely recommend it.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Exford
Arms |
Harefield,
Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Exford Arms is a modern pub located within
the Harefield estate in Southampton. It is nothing special inside and out
and the architecture is typical of bland 1980s housing estates. However,
it is a generally pleasant pub offering a good selection of entertainment.
Scores: Price - 2/5 - £2.50 pint Entertainment - 4/5 - Pool, big screen
TV, disco Atmosphere - 1/5 -Dead when I visited Looks - 2/5 - A bit
spartan but well kept Beer - 2/5 - Not much choice but well kept.
Visited 3rd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Ferryman
& Firkin |
High
Street, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The Ferryman & Firkin is part of a national chain of pubs and this one was a popular evening venue a few years ago but seems to have fallen badly out of fashion. The large interior looks very tatty and unloved and the place was very, very dead. There was no ale available but it does have pool, darts and live music
(apparently). The only other saving grace was low prices, £2.10 for a pint.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
5 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Firehouse |
Vincent's
Walk,
City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Originally,
I wasn't going to include this venue in the project as I thought it was
more of a pay-to-enter/only open at night live music venue along similar
lines to Unit 22, however, I went past on a Monday night and it was open
and free to go in so I thought I may as well add it.
This place has undergone many name
changes recently, previous incarnations being 'The Parkside' and
'Strikers', now Under New Management and rebranded as 'Firehouse', it's
themed as a Rock Music bar and so perhaps unsurprisingly, the jukebox was
playing endless Bon Jovi. It was fairly dead but then again, it was
a Monday night. As well as the jukebox, they have TVs and pool
although obvious the main attraction is the live music nights at the
weekend. The only ale I could see was Green King IPA, the decor is
OK but nothing special, perhaps a little dingy and over cluttered.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
The
Fitzhugh |
Milton Road,
Southampton |
|
The Fitzhugh is located in a street full of student digs so you'd think it would be busy in the evening, but it was dead when I visited. However, the staff were incredibly friendly and there are two very inquisitive but harmless dogs. Pool table, TVs,
jukebox, table football and a good selection of board games on offer. The decor is decent but perhaps a little on the spartan side, however there are some nice modern paintings on the wall. No ale.
Visited 10th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Flares |
Above Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Flares is a national chain of 70s themed bars, however this one got off on a bad foot to me with the bouncer grumbling about the fact that I looked "unsteady" despite the fact I was pretty much sober. Seeing as there was only one customer in there anyway, you'd have thought they would have wanted people to go in. He did let me in in the end which is fortunate, otherwise they would scored NO POINTS! They still lost a point anyway due to this officious Jobsworth. The only thing worth saying about this place is cheap drinks - £1.50 a pint but there's not a lot of choice anyway and certainly no ale. They have a DJ most nights and while he plays mainly 70s disco dirges, he also played an 80s song! That just about says it all. It doesn't really looks that 70s at all, they could have tried a lot harder, it could learn a lot from the nearby Reflex 80s Bar.
Date visited: Wednesday 2nd May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
6 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Fleming
Arms |
Wessex
Lane, Southampton |
|
The Fleming Arms is located next to the railway line near the edge of the city and very near Swaythling station. It has been through a bit of a troubled spell in the last few years but has recently been refurbished to a very high standard. Formerly a Gales pub, it has now came under the stewardship of London-based Fullers brewery as has the entire gales operation. Fortunately, it still offers a very good range of Gales ales including the legendary
HSB, these are now supplemented by London Pride. The Fleming Arms used to be known for its live music but it doesn't have music any more, preferring to cater for the food market. A large part of the pub is a restaurant area but they do proper pub food at reasonable prices. I was impressed by how shiny the beer pumps were and indeed the high standard of upkeep is
apparent throughout the building. When I previously visited, the gents toilets left a lot to be desired but they have now been totally refurbished and are better than most. They have a big TV and pool table but I was surprised how quiet the pub was at Sunday lunchtime, although there was a crucial Saints football match on and it wasn't on Sky. Date
visited: Sunday 5th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Four Horseshoes |
Nursling, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
A
pleasant pub that was in the middle of the countryside until the M27
motorway was built very close to it. Unfortunately, the motorway
definitely spoils the ambience of the pub garden which is huge and more
like a field than a pub garden except for the half demolished shed in the
middle of it.
The service was very good and they
offer a selection of somewhat pricey food and ales (mainly Wadworths).
The pub itself is cosy and welcoming but no entertainment.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Fox
& Hounds |
Brook Road,
Bitterne, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Fox & Hounds is hidden away in the back
streets of Bitterne but is well worth a look, it's a small but welcoming
pub with darts, pool, and a jukebox. The furnishings are slightly spartan
though.
Visited 3rd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Freemantle Arms |
Albany Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Freemantle Arms is another of Southampton's hidden gems, tucked away down a dead end back street, it looks very unassuming from the outside. Its interior is nice although slightly dimly lit. There is no pool or music but there is a dartboard and a selection of board games as well as a boxed microwave (?)
Visited 1st April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
The
Freemantle Hotel |
Paynes Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
|
The Freemantle, sometimes known as the Freemantle Hotel, is a Modern style pub offering two bars which are both very comfortably furnished and very well kept. The toilets an are authentic 1950s design and they looked as good as new. However it was quiet when I visited and there were no entertainment events advertised so it lost points there. It serves Ringwood beer which is an advantage and the service was very good.
Visited 1st April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Frog
& Frigate |
Above
Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The
Frog & Frigate is a 'spit and sawdust' entertainment bar off the
beaten track near Ocean Village. Apparently it's very lively at peak
times with people dancing on the tables but when I visited it was totally
dead. They do have a jukebox, TV, pinball, fussball table and
regular live music but no ale. The decor is very 'well worn' but
there is an interesting mural on one of the walls. Visited
Tuesday 15th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Fruit
Style Bar |
City
Centre, Southampton |
|
The Fruit Style Bar is a recently opened upmarket bar in the High Street. It's very luxurious, instead of ordinary seating, there are sofas with cushions! It has a DJ but no sign of any other entertainment. The luxurious ambience is continued with candles. There are no ales, which is hardly surprising for such an upmarket establishment, in fact the only beer on tap was Beck's. It seemed fairly quiet when I visited on a Friday night. There is an interesting 'House Rules' sign which has amusing touches to it. Visited
Friday 11th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
1 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Gardener's
Arms |
Newtown, Southampton |
|
The
Gardener's Arms is the South-Eastern outpost of hostelry in my epic voyage
around Southampton's pubs and it's located in Newtown, which is virtually
a village in its own right. It looks rather like a 1960s community
hall from the outside and this theme continues inside, although it is well
kept and generally pleasant, it also has a large beer garden containing
the remains of a rusting tractor, presumably to add to the gardening
theme. The main bar contains an impressive collection of assorted
trophies. However, there was no ale and it was fairly quiet on a
Sunday afternoon. It offers pool and darts, as well, as TV.
Date visited: 22nd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
The
Gate |
Burgess
Road, Highfield, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Gate is located near Southampton's main university campus although it was fairly quiet when I visited (well it was a Tuesday night). They have two ales available, food, pool, darts and live music. However, the decor looks a little dated and the large open space of the main bar is perhaps a little spartan, it somehow appears to be lacking something. Like the Platform Tavern, there is an adjoining cafe next door.
Date visited: Tuesday 8th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
The Gatehouse |
Padwell Road, Inner Avenue, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Gatehouse is located in the back streets of the inner city and until fairly recently was known as the Royal Arms. It seems to have reinvented itself as an entertainment pub which is a good thing and it has regular live music, DJs and open mic nights, as well as a pool table, jukebox and large TV. It has a fairly good selection of ales including Adnams (fairly rare round these parts). The decor is nice albeit nothing special.
Date visited: 24th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
16 |
Giddy
Bridge |
London
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The Giddy Bridge is a JD Wetherspoon Free House and is pretty much like any other Wetherspoons pub. The decor is nothing of merit, the furniture seems to be a but crammed in, particularly on the upstairs mezzanine floor. I think it has a roof terrace. Like most Wetherspoons pubs, there is no entertainment at all although this place is always busy, probably due to the excellent prices. There is aLso an excellent choice of ales, when I visited they were in the middle of a Real Ale Festival so you could have three third-of-a-pint glasses of different ales for £1.69! There were about half a dozen different ones to choose from.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
6 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
6 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Goblets |
Above
Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Goblets is one of the better drinking venues in the city
centre. While it calls itself a 'wine bar', it has a far more eclectic crowd than the
usual inhabitants of wine bars such as Townies and Suited Bores. It is always quite busy, no matter when you visit. It also has a choice of three ales, TVs and a fantastic old fashioned jukebox that is free. The main bar is actually in the basement of the building although there is a small seating area at ground floor level. The decor is nothing outstanding but the exposed air ducts on the ceiling make an interesting feature.
Date visited: Tuesday 1st May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Gordon
Arms |
Portswood
Road, Portswood, Southampton |
|
The Gordon Arms looks like a nice pub from outside and I'm sure it is normally, however I was unfortunate to visit on the same day as a massive group of 20 or 30 Public Schoolboy Upper Class Toff types who were very noisy indeed and had taken over the beer garden. The service at the bar was very slow as well although they do have Bombardier ale. Otherwise, it's nice, the decor is decent enough, perhaps slightly on the dingy side though and they have a jukebox, big TVs and even a bookcase!
Update May 2007
This pub is a lot
nicer than I originally thought, unfortunately the Upper Class Toffs that
were in residence on my last visit spoiled it! Good range of ales,
quiz night, TV, good service, fairly busy, food.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
The
Grapes |
Oxford Street, City Centre, Southampton |
|
A nice enough city centre venue with a vague Titanic theme, however the prices are extortionate - £1 dearer than the cheapest price seen! It has a superb selection of ales and always seems busy and popular, although it is quite small. It features karaoke, pool, a jukebox and TVs.
Visited 7th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Griffin, The |
Anglesea Road, Shirley, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Oh dear. The Griffin is a huge 1950s vintage pub on the edge of the main Shirley shopping area that has changed its name several
times recently, former inn-carnations being the Moose Inn and the Henry Paget. Recently refurbished to a decent standard, the decor is green and nice enough but not outstanding. The front bar is quite green and a bit spartan; it features a piano, jukebox, TVs and pool table while the back bar which is absolutely
colossal has a warmer, more inviting colour scheme but never seems to be used. There used to be karaoke nights here but they were cancelled due to Lack Of Interest. Indeed, when I visited on a Friday night, there were only a handful of people in there, dodgy looks abounded and the barmaid was more interested in chatting to the regulars than serving me. I don't know how this pub survives, it has a lot of potential but at the moment doesn't seem to have a lot going for it.
Date visited: Friday 4th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Grove
Tavern |
Woolston, Southampton |
|
The Grove Tavern is located on a quiet residential street in Woolston and this 1950s vintage pub looks massive from the outside although it doesn't look so big from the inside, the decor being fairly basic. There are two bars and it has London Pride and Whitbread Best on tap, the latter being very good (I've had it in other other pubs and it has been poor) so they obviously care about the quality of their beer here. It has pool, darts and a jukebox and the landlady was very friendly and helpful in giving directions to the remaining establishments on this night's adventure.
Date visited: 17th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Guide
Dog |
Bevois
Valley, Southampton |
|
The
Guide Dog is a small and cosy pub located off the beaten track in the back
streets of Bevois Valley. It was very busy when I visited, probably
due to the superb range of ales on tap, there were about eight of them to
choose from, including some local Hopback and Flowerpots Brewery
ones. They also have promotions with some of them being only £2 a
pint at times. As previously mentioned, it's a small pub but very
homely. They have a dart board and occasional live music.
There is no sign of a jukebox but they have loads of CDs behind the bar.
Date visited: 27th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
4 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
6 |
Total (out of 25): |
20 |
H2O |
Onslow
Road, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
H2O
is a strange kind of place. Outside it looks quite big and boasts
loads of neon lighting but inside it's quite small. It has a pool
table and apparently a weekly karaoke/disco but no darts or jukebox.
No ale. The decor is OK but apart from the nice mural on one of the
walls, nothing special. There is a small garden outside. It
was dead when I visited.
Visited 10th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Hamptons |
Above Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Hamptons is a "Deli Bar" (eh?), however it looks just like any other trendy bar to me. I
believe they do food although there was no evidence of this when I visited in the evening. It's quite a small and intimate place and the decor is
nothing special, although the wall above the bar has a very long list of different shooters on it. While there may be plenty of shooters, those
preferring more grown up refreshments such as a proper pint of British ale will be
disappointed. You can have any beer as long as it's Fosters or Kronenburg. The choice is so poor, I docked a point for this. It was fairly dead when I visited, despite the fact there was a half decent blues-rock band playing. As well as live music, they also have comedy nights.
Date visited: Wednesday 2nd May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
1 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Hare
& Hounds |
Cheriton
Avenue, Harefield, Southampton |
|
The Hare
& Hounds is located at the very edge of the Harefield estate and is
one of the farthest outposts of hostelry in my grand expedition to explore
all the pubs in Southampton. It is a Modern style pub and when I visited,
it appeared a lively and pleasant local, being busier than some of the
other pubs I visited the same night. Scores: Price - 2/5 - £2.50 a pint
Entertainment - 5/5 - Pool, darts, jukebox and karaoke nights Atmosphere -
2/5 Looks - 2/5 - A little dated but would got 3/5 if I hadn't seen the
toilets, they leave a lot to be desired. Beer - 2/5 - Not a lot on offer
but well kept.
Visited 3rd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
The
Hobbit |
Bevois
Valley, Southampton |
|
The Hobbit is one of my favourite watering holes and deservedly so. It's the kind of pub where everyone and anyone would fit in. Although it is quite popular with students, it is not at all 'cliquey' like some of the other pubs nearby. There is always a very interesting collection of characters in there.
The pub itself is on a hill and is unusual in that you enter the main bar at ground level and then you can go down some stairs to another small lounge area and another bar where they have live entertainment of some kind every night of the week. The Open Mic Night on Thursdays is highly
recommended as it brings out some of best examples of British eccentricity in the area and some really talented people.
The Hobbit also boasts the biggest beer garden I have ever seen, again it is on a hill and kind of laid out a bit like an
amphitheatre. It's a bit tatty but that's part of the charm. The beer garden really has to be seen to be believed. It even has it's own burger bar and in the summer hosts one-day festivals. Sometimes you also get outdoor theatre or spoken word and I even witnessed some Morris Dancing once! It really is the sort of place where anything can happen!
The jukebox is also of note, you can tell a lot about a pub by looking at the most requested songs on the jukebox and The Hobbit's is very good and quite eclectic. It wasn't too busy when I visited but can get packed sometimes. They have a couple of ales on and a selection of famous pint glass cocktails in various bright colours (named after Lord Of The Rings characters; Gollum, the green one is my personal favourite). Also a pool table.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
6 |
Atmosphere: |
6 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
23 |
Hogshead
(NOW CLOSED) |
Above
Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The
Hogshead is one of a chain of pubs that are actually one of the better
chain pub brands. That said, it's nothing special. When I
visited on Monday night, it was totally dead. There's a large bar
downstairs and another large bar upstairs but the upstairs was closed when
I visited, probably due to Lack Of Interest. Surprisingly, it does
not appear to have a website. There is a pool table but no evidence
of any other entertainment. It has two real ales on tap and also
serves food and the interior is fairly decent. If you want a nice
quiet drink or a meal in the heart of town, this is ideal.
Date visited: 16th April 2007
Update 8th May 2007: I went past
this place yesterday and noticed it has ceased trading permanently.
Work is underway to convert it into a 'Slug & Lettuce' pub.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Honest
Lawyer |
Lodge
Road, Southampton |
|
The
Honest Lawyer is a fairly small pub located in the busy student district
of Bevois Valley, however it is very much a traditional British pub.
The decor is lovely and traditional and very well kept and they have
a couple of ales on tap. There is a jukebox and a separate games
room containing the usual pool table and dart board. It was fairly
quiet when I visited, despite it being a Friday night, however it was a
welcome oasis of tranquility where I could actually sit down for a quiet
drink.
Date visited: 27th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Hop Inn |
|
|
The Hop Inn looks fairly unassuming from the outside, however like the nearby Castle Inn, it is well worth a visit. The building is kind of triangular and features two bars, a main bar and a sports bar featuring the usual pool, darts and a jukebox. The main bar has an open fire. They have regular quiz nights and Bombardier ale is available. There is a beer garden which is well worth a look. It features what looks like the metal framework of a roof but without any roof covering, a guinea pig/rabbit hutch (which appeared to be vacant when I visited) and some very nice murals.
Visited 7th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
16 |
Horns Inn |
Romsey Road, Rownhams, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Horns Inn was a country pub once upon a time, however it is now on the edge of the sprawling suburb of Lordshill although it is still a very pleasant pub. The pub loses a point for attractiveness due to the badly peeling paint on the front exterior walls, however, inside it is nice enough. The main bar is perhaps a little dimly lit but there is a bright and airy non smoking restaurant area and ample seating outdoors. I could not see any sign of any entertainment but it is friendly and was fairly busy at lunchtime. They do good value food and a very good range of ales, including HSB! Visited
Friday 18th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Hotshots |
Leisure
World, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Hotshots
is more of an amusement arcade than a pub as it features numerous arcade
machines, pool tables, tenpin bowling, loads of TVs and occasional
DJs. It was very dead when I visited (Sunday night) and the bouncers
outside are a very unnecessary permanent fixture. The closest you'll
get to real ale is Boddington's.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
5 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Humble
Plum |
Commercial
Street, Bitterne, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Humble Plum is hidden away from main roads
but is well worth a visit. I would even go as far as to describe it as
Bitterne's best pub. While it scores low for entertainment, it has a
splendid range of proper ales, including four guest beers which were well
kept. The pub was very busy when I visited, despite it being the quietest
night of the week, obviously a sign of its popularity and the interior is
very cosy and welcoming with a log fire. They also do a good range of food
but I did not sample this so cannot comment.
Visited 3rd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
6 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
The
Ice House |
Warren Avenue, Shirley Warren, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
This pub is an interesting place. Once you've got past the Elvis fixation and the mirror tile clad DJ booth, it looks like somebody's living room. A corner of the pub had odds and ends spread all over the place and the DJ booth has CDs and other paraphernalia arranged in a haphazard fashion that is unusual in a pub. It also has an ordinary TV on an ordinary TV stand, no wall-mounted TVs here! All this gives it a unique character and it is a generally welcoming and homely pub with lots of entertainment, such as karaoke and quiz nights every week.
Visited 4th April 2007
Update November 2007
Have made a couple
of lunchtime visits to this place as I kind of like it! Good for a
quiet drink watching the news on TV. Haven't been in at night
though.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Isobar |
St Marys Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Isobar is a 'gay' pub but certainly nothing special. When I visited it was very dead, however it does have a beer garden which is unusual for city centre pubs. No ale and no entertainment except for TVs although I guess they might have DJs at the weekend.
Date visited: Tuesday 1st May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
7 |
Joe
Daflos |
Commercial
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Jo Daflos is a large wine bar/restaurant located in an old church building and while the interior is eyecatching, it isn't as good as I expected it to be, it is very white and doesn't really look much like a church any more inside. The first thing that struck me was the fact that the clientele were almost exclusively female - hardly any men at all depsite the fact that it was fairly busy. There is no ale at all but more than fifty different types of wine stacked up high behind the bar (so high that some of them are impossible to reach so they are obviously there more for effect than for use). The upper mezzanine floor is exclusively for diners while us lower forms who just want a drink are limited to the ground floor. The service was terrible and the highly overpriced lager I bought was badly kept and tasted of cleaning chemicals. Visited
Friday 18th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
1 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Jones
Wine Bar |
??,
City Centre, Southampton |
|
Jones Wine Bar is a 1960s vintage bar that has had many names over the years, recently becoming Jones Wine Bar. The decor is pleasant and contemporary with some nice paintings and an authentic vintage 1960s staircase. It has live music nights but no other signs of any entertainment apart from the 60s Hammond Soul style backing music. Funky dude. No ales here and it was very dead on Tuesday
night except for the odd Suited Bore, for whom this type of establishment is their main haunt.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Junction Inn |
St
Denys, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Fabulous atmosphere. The layout is odd, you go in and it looks small but if you go far enough around, you get to the main bar area which is a decent size and very homely. There was a table with a few people sitting around it and they suddenly started playing music on accordion and guitar and singing. Fantastic! Also pool, darts,
bar billiards (a rarity nowadays), good selection of proper beer, a friendly dog and a well-stocked bookcase. I have booked a repeat visit.
Visited 5th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
20 |
Kelly's |
City
Centre, Southampton |
|
Kelly's is a popular bar located in the basement of a shop building in trendy London Road. It doesn't have any ale but there is a reasonable range of the usual big brand beers on draught. There are no bar games but DJs playing proper music such as party tunes and classics and there is a karaoke night every week too. I visited early on a Friday night and it was pretty quiet but I can imagine it gets busy later on. The interior is decent enough, fairly
contemporary and perhaps a little on the dim side but nothing of note except for loads of disco lights on the ceiling. Visited
Friday 11th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
6 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Key
& Anchor |
Shirley
Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
Photo coming soon |
The Key And Anchor is located in the back streets of Freemantle and is a fairly average 'local' pub featuring pool and a jukebox (which was not working when I visited). There are handpumps but they were all turned round out of use. Decent enough décor but nothing special particularly.
Visited 8th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
King Alfred |
Northam
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Located very close to the St Mary's Stadium, this pub is understandably very sport orientated and has loads of TVs. Despite the fact there were only a few people in there, it took ages to get served. The layout is strange - the loos are located downstairs off the front door. The decor is shiny and new but quite nice. London Pride on offer. The pub features occasional live music at weekends.
Visited 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
King George |
Oakley Road, Shirley, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The King George is located on the edge of Shirley and is a typical Mock Tudor suburban pub dating from the 1930s. Inside, it offers all the usual facilities and has a pleasant, new-looking interior. A couple of Courage ales are available but no other proper beer. It also hosts a weekly karaoke night.
Visited 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Lizard Lounge |
Bedford Place, City Centre, Southampton |
|
A popular student venue in the trendy Bedford Place area of the city, the Lizard Lounge is a large and very contemporary styled bar. The decor fweatures some large lampshades and fabulous 60s supermarket style flooring. It has a pool table and DJs most nights but no TV (which is an advantage when all the other nearby pubs are heaving with football supporters). it was fairly quiet and has no ale at all. The lager I had was poorly kept.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
1 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
London Hotel |
Terminus
Terrace, City Centre, Southampton |
|
This is a 'gay' pub although when I visited you wouldn't guess if you didn't know apart from the very theatrical atmosphere and rather camp quizmaster. The décor is incredibly lavish and the bar is square in the centre of the room. Strange place.
Visited 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Lord
Palmerston |
Palmerston
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The decor is
horrid - lurid bright blue and red which clashes badly and apart from
that, the decor looks spartan. No ale. Dead. Not
particularly friendly. Apparently has karaoke nights. Pool, TV
and jukebox.
Visited 10th April 2007
Update December 2007
Every time I go
past, it appears dead or closed. No sign of any entertainment.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Malvern Tavern |
Winchester Road, Shirley, Southampton |
|
The Malvern is a large food-orientated pub located in the pleasant Upper Shirley area of the city. Part of the 'Spirit' pub group (like the nearby Bellemoor, it offers an extensive menu at reasonable prices but also has a jukebox, dartboard and pool table. On my first visit to this pub, the jukebox ate my money but I am pleased to see that the offending contraption has been removed and replaced with a new one now. There's not a lot in the way of ales except for Greene King IPA (which was Off) and Bombardier. It's always fairly busy, mainly with diners but pretty harmless.
Update December 2007
Had a works
Christmas meal in here, 'twas not bad. Fairly busy trade for food.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
The
Manor (Shirley) |
Shirley
High Street, Southampton |
|
Like The Crown opposite, The Manor has had a very recent refurbishment and
rebranding. Formerly the Shirley Hotel, this prominent corner pub has a bit of a bad reputation but major structural works have taken place and it is now a lot bigger than it used to be and the decor is very contemporary, minimalist, white, trendy and 'shiny'. They have regular live music, including some good tribute bands although when I went there was just a DJ playing bland chart rubbish. The place was also very dead indeed which was surprising for a Friday night. Like most trendy pubs, there is no ale but it does have a jukebox and pool, as well as TVs featuring live feeds from the CCTV cameras.
Date visited: Friday 4th May 2007
Update November 2007
I haven't been in
here lately but have heard they've upped the ante with entertainment with
karaoke and regular themed disco nights as well as live music.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Manor
House |
Woolston, Southampton |
|
The
Manor House is a huge pub on a bland housing estate in Woolston, my first
attempt at finding it failed but unfortunately, I found it the second
time. It looks like a place that could do with a little tender
loving care, the interior is very Postmodern and probably hasn't been
refurbished since the late 80s. It is also very green. It has
a stage which is empty and no sign of any activities to utilise it.
It has a jukebox and a dart board and an empty space that looks like it
was designed to house a pool table although said table was nowhere to be
seen. There is no ale and the place was dead. Very
dead.
Date visited: 22nd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
8 |
Miller's
Pond |
Sholing, Southampton |
|
The
Miller's Pond is a Wadworth pub located adjacent to the tranquil oasis of
calm that is the pond itself which the pub takes its name from. The
layout is strange, from ground level, it looks closed as all the windows
are blacked out and there is no door. To enter, you have to go
through the beer garden and the pub itself is at basement level! The
decor is nice and the beer garden is even better, being large and located
on a pleasant slope. It offers a good selection of real ales (mainly
Wadworth's ones obviously), a pool table and a regular quiz night.
It probably has food as well, however it was dead-ish when I visited.
Date visited: 22nd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
The
Mitre |
Portswood
Road, Portswood, Southampton |
|
The Mitre is a popular and very large pub in the heart of the Portswood shopping area. It boasts a beer "Garden" although in reality, it is more of a patio and was not very pleasant when I visited due to some idiot leaving a noisy engine running in the nearby bus depot. It has three pool tables, big TV, table football and a jukebox and has a quiz night every Sunday and occasional live music. It serves Greene King ales but no other ales and also serves food. It seemed pretty busy when I visited, perhaps due to the televised football and the only place to sit was outside. The decor is nice but nothing special.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
16 |
Mono |
Vernon Walk (off Bedford Place), City Centre, Southampton |
|
This fairly compact bar in the
back streets of Southampton's trendy Bedford Place area recently won an award for the best venue in the city. I can't see why. Drinks are expensive, there are no ales and the only entertainment is DJs. On the plus side, the very
contemporary interior is nice and it seemed quite busy.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Mountbatten, The |
Lordshill District Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Mountbatten is a fairly modern (1970s/80s) pub situated in the heart of the Lordshill estate, along with local shops, a library and bingo hall. The exterior is unassuming, with 'U' shaped windows and brickwork. The interior is equally unassuming, and the exposed internal brickwork and artexted lintels and ceiling truly give it that 70s/80s look. However, the decor is generally pleasant and well kept, part from being very smoky but that problem will be gone come July, hurrah! They serve a good selection of food at good prices and have one ale, Ringwood Best on tap. Entertainment takes the form of TVs, background music and disco/karaoke/quiz nights. If there is a jukebox or bar games, I couldn't see them. The pub also boasts a function room. When I visited at lunchtime, it was fairly busy, mainly with older people having meals. Not sure I would visit at night though due to the location but it certainly seems pleasant enough by day.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Obelisk |
Woolston, Southampton |
|
The Obelisk is a huge old pub located off the beaten track in
Woolston. It has two bars, one being a 'public' bar and the other being more of a restaurant. They have a carvery on Sundays and a good selection of ales, including London Pride,
Ringwood's and Flowers. There is a jukebox, pool and darts but it was pretty dead when I visited.
Date visited: 17th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Old
Farmhouse |
Mount
Pleasant Road, Bevois Valley, Southampton |
|
The Old Farmhouse is, as the name suggests, a converted farmhouse although it has been a public house for over 100 years. However, the landscape around it has changed and it is now sandwiched between a railway depot and a cement works, on the edge of a notoriously seedy district of the city. The decor is very rustic, with exposed beams and a wooden floor and it's quite a small place. It has a separate room with a pool table and jukebox and a huge beer garden. I also believe they do food although there was no evidence of this when I visited.
It was fairly busy when I visited and quite friendly. They have a couple of ales including London Pride.
Date visited: 26th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
The Old Fat Cat |
Above Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Old Fat Cat is a typical city centre shop-unit pub which was formerly a gas showroom. It has been refurbished a few times but while it's huge, is nothing special. They have DJs at the weekend, live music occasionaly, open mic nights I think and a karaoke night on Thursday featuring a DJ who never shows any emotion. They also have a pool table and some games machines and I think they serve food. However, there is no ale and it was totally dead when I visited. It was so quiet that the bar staff were all busy polishing tables which accounted
for the strong Aroma Du Pledge.
Date visited: Wednesday 2nd May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Orange
Rooms |
Vernon Walk
(off London Road), Southampton |
|
As the name
suggests, this place is quite Orange, however the decor is fab in a 70s
Retro kind of way. Brown and orange wallpaper of the kind you hoped
you'd never see again, loads of disco balls and those awful concrete
patterned see through bricks (hard to describe) that graced many a garden
wall. The place is a bit pretentious really although I recommend a
look just to see the decor. Outside it's nothing special apart from
the two Orange Mod scooters, I forgot to mention, there's an Orange
Chopper bike upstairs (the upstairs is strange). They do food but I
suspect it's very pricey, the drinks certainly are and there are only four
beers to choose from, none of which are very special. When I visited
there was no entertainment (other than the elevator music in the
background) but I believe they have proper DJs - none of of this business
of an old bloke playing Status Quo and Elvis records but somebody playing
crappy dance records you've never heard of and are instantly forgettable
and mixing them with other equally dirgy tunes in the interests of Break
Beats and all dat funk. Yeah, whatever.
Visited 10th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
5 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Pig 'n' Whistle |
Shirley Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
|
Formerly the Sidford Arms, The Pig & Whistle is one of Freemantle's best venues for live entertainment wsith weekly disco, karaoke and quiz nights as well as full pool and darts facilities. The décor, while not exceptional, is comfortable and decent.
Visited 5th April 2007
Update November 2007
Lots of 'trouble'
here recently and the pub has lost its music licence so no more
karaoke.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Pitcher
& Piano |
Ocean
Village, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The Pitcher And Piano is a chain of bars/restaurants that often seem to crop up in waterside locations. I was expecting it to be pretentious but it wasn't too bad in the end, apart from seeing somebody slipping up on the highly polished shiny wood floor. Unlike the nearby Banana Wharf, it is mainly a bar with a small restaurant area. The decor here is superbly modern, featuring a funky clock and 60s style stone wall. It was fairly busy but anonymous and there is no entertainment apart from a TV showing adverts for the venue and background music, (no sign of the piano!) however they do have Marston's Pedigree on tap, a nice suprise.
Visited Thursday 10th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Platform
Tavern |
Town
Quay, City
Centre, Southampton |
|
The
Platform Tavern, located on the waterfront, is one of Southampton's best
live music pubs, it's a very intimate venue with comfortable chairs and it
has a very 'chilled' atmosphere. The decor is quite dark, with
subdued lighting and rich colours. They have a good selection of
newspapers there and a recently opened restaurant which seems to
specialise in seafood. There is live music every Thursday and
Sunday, with an emphasis on blues and jazz, when I visited on a Friday
night, they just had a DJ playing weird music but it was busy-ish.
There is a good selection of real ales including some locally brewed White
Star ones.
Date visited: 27th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
Plume Of Feathers |
St
Mary's Street, City Centree, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
This stone-clad pub looks imposing from the outside but inside it looks very rough and tatty with brown paint. It probably hasn't been redecorated since the 1950s., The clientele were 'enjoying' the seemingly perpetual country & western music on the jukebox. Barman with vest. On the plus side, it contains darts and a piano - not many pubs with a piano these days.
Visited 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Poletrix |
Above Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
A recently-opened venue that caters for the less sophisticated 'gentleman', when I went in here I didn't know quite what I was letting myself in for. Technically, it is excluded from the project as it doesn't open til the evening, however it was open when I passed so in I went, not before being given a full explanation of the House Rules by the Bouncer (no touching etc...). Oh dear, I didn't realise it was THAT kind of venue. Well, there was no turning back now so in I went to this den of iniquity. There were a few scantily clad ladies whose job it is to offer the clientele a 'private dance' which comes in two flavours according to what you want to pay. I politely declined, swiftly sank my drink and left. There is no ale and no entertainment (unless you count ogling as
entertainment) and the atmosphere is seedy. A real gentleman doesn't pay for that sort of thing. Date
visited: Tuesday 1st May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
6 |
The Quayside |
West Quay Road, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The name of this establishment implies that it enjoys a pleasant waterside loocation but you'd be wrong. Instead, it offers panoramic views of a dual carriageway on one side and a large tin shed masquerading as a cinema on the other side, there's no quay to be seen! None the less, this huge pub features a very lavish (although not original) interior, pool and occasional DJs. They also do food but there is no ale. It was totally dead when I visited though.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Que
Pasa |
Above
Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Que
Pasa is a fairly new 'pub', until a few years ago, it was a shop unit then
it was converted into a drinking establishment called 'Toad In The
Park'. Not surprisingly for a pub with such a silly name, it didn't
last long and mutated into its current form, a trendy, somewhat
pretentious bar serving Tapas (whatever that may be; what's wrong with
Chicken In A Basket?) and a delightful range of exotic beers that can only
be found in any pub in the country. No ales at all. The loos
smelled unpleasant and contained a selection of bluebottles that would
fascinate Chris Packham (I docked a point for this). The place was
busy-ish but anonymous. They have a posh DJ at the weekend but
that's all the entertainment you get. It's probably nice in the
daytime when you can sit outside.
Date visited: 16th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Queensland
Tavern |
Clovelly
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The Queensland Tavern is tucked away in the back streets of an inner city area and often seems to be closed. There were only three people in there when I visited and I think they were all staff! The place is rather white and rather tatty but it does have pool, darts, TV and a jukebox - no ales though.
Date visited: 24th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Red
Lion (High Street) |
High
Street, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The
Red Lion is the oldest and most historic pub in Southampton and it's still
going strong today. A far cry from the modern trendy bars up the
road, this place just oozes history. There are plenty of Mock Tudor
pubs in the city but this is the real thing - the conspirators that
plotted to murder King Henry V were put on trial in this pub!
The main bar is a double height
space with a gallery above offering more seating and a dart board.
There is a huge old fireplace and loads of historic artifacts.
Behind the main bar room is a cosy restaurant area - the pub does good traditional
pub food at sensible prices.
The pub also contains an absolutely
gorgeous grey parrot in a cage and he's really tame and let me scratch his
neck for him. They have a few ales on tap but they're quite
pricey. There is also a jukebox. I can highly recommend this
pub, it is a must-see.
Date visited: 27th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
6 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
Red Lion (Bedford Place) |
Bedford Place, City Centre, Southampton |
|
A very football orientated pub. Apart from lots of TVs, no entertainment. Was dead when I visited. London Pride and Ringwood beers on offer (although the Ringwood was off when I visited). It looks very shiny and new. Nothing special.
Visited 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Red
Lion (Bitterne) |
Bitterne
Road, Bitterne, Southampton |
|
The Red Lion is located at the top end of
Bitterne shopping precinct, however it is distinctly average inside, the
décor being dated and slightly tatty. The pub does meals, however these
were not sampled on this visit. It was also dead when I visited.
Visited 3rd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
7 |
Reflex |
Off
Bedford Place, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The Reflex is a recently opened (the building previously housed The
Academy) massive 1980s themed bar, part of a growing nationwide chain. Strictly speaking, it's not really a pub as it only opens in the evening but as they open early-ish (7pm) compared to other nightclubs, and plus the fact I am a child of the 80s, I thought I'd give it a try.
The 80s theme is everywhere and very over the top. There are dozens of disco balls, mirrored tiles, fab lighting effects and a huge, light-up dance floor. The place is absolutely massive and as well as the main bar on the ground floor, there is a mezzanine floor above one end with another bar. The decor is really worth seeing, it's so colourful and oh-so-80s! However despite the fact it was about 8:20pm and they'd been open for well over an hour, it was totally dead. In fact I was the only customer but it was nice to have the place to myself! There were also two girls dancing on the stage, bit of a waste of time when there's nobody in there!
No bar games (except some arcade machines) and definitely no ale although the beer is served in funky chunky tumblers rather than the usual boring plain glasses.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
6 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
Regents Park Hotel |
Regents Park Road, Shirley, Southampton |
|
The Regent's Park is a huge Mock Tudor pub located in the Regent's Park area of the city, near the recently closed BAT tobacco works. I must say I wasn't expecting too much as it looks like a typical suburban estate pub, however I was pleasantly surprised. When I visited, they had a barbecue going on in the (fairly small) garden and some kids playing at being a DJ. It seems friendly and the service was good, what surprised me was the number of kids in there but it shows the vital role a pub serves to the local community. They also have a pool table and table football but the only ale was Courage Best. The gents are also of note, you have to go downstairs into the basement and they look like they something straight out of the 1930s, fabulous. Visited
Sunday 20th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Richmond
Inn |
Portswood
Road, Portswood, Southampton |
|
The Richmond Inn is exactly what a pub should look like. Unlike the other pubs in the area, it wasn't too busy. It has two bars, an ordinary bar and Lounge Bar. The Lounge Bar is nice and cosy and has a really old fashioned metal till which is still being used! A great talking point. The guy behind the bar was very friendly and the selection of ales was very good. Then I saw the garden which is incredible! It's really well kept and has a lot of character. They also had some CAMRA leaflets which is a good idea. Entertainment is a bit lacking but it's a small pub and does have darts and a nice old jukebox.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
14 |
The
Rover |
Shirley
Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
|
A typical town pub with nothing special to offer really. No ales at all, good jukebox, pool and darts, usually fairly busy. The décor looks a bit dated (very green!) and carries a football theme, such as football scarves and pictures.
Visited 8th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Royal Oak |
Houndwell Place, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
From the outside, The Royal Oak looks dull, perhaps even univiting. Forming the corner of a 1960s shopping centre, it is nothing to look at from the outside. However, you should never judge a book by its cover because this is a very welcoming and lively pub. The Royal Oak has one of the best entertainment schedules of any pub in town with karaoke, live music, themed nights, open mic nights and live music on a regular basis. Being close to the student accomodation in St Marys, it is naturally popular with the students and can get quite busy, however I have never seen any trouble in there (although somebody once stole a urinal from the gents toilets - said article was recovered and now hanging on the wall!). The landlord and staff are very friendly and the only thing I can say agsinst the place is the drinks are generally a bit more expensive than other pubs although they do have deals sometimes. Pool, darts, table football, big TVs and a good jukebox too plus the barmaids are gorgeous!
Visited 2nd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
6 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
16 |
Saints, The |
? Road, Millbrook, Southampton |
|
The
Saints is one of those pubs where the reputation goes before it.
Unfortunately in this case, the reputation is bad. From the outside,
the pub looks derelict, upon first seeing it, my first thought was that it
looked closed. The car park out the front is as rough as the
building itself. I saw a fire door propped open and assumed it must
be builders at work in there but to my surprise, it was open although it
looks even more sorry for itself inside. The interior is dated,
battered and very tatty but I don't blame whoever runs the place for not
doing it up as it is being pulled down in the near future to make way for
new flats and a new, albeit smaller pub. The walls have holes in
which makes it look like somebody has been punching them and the barstools
were held together with duct tape.
The Saints is massive inside and as
well as the vast, high-ceilinged Games Room, there is a Function
Room. It was dead when I visited at lunchtime with only one regular
in residence but the barmaid was friendly enough and was talking about the
uncertain future of the pub. There was a rooftop protest and a
petition when the plans for demolishing the place were proposed although
all it seemed to achieve is a stay of execution.
It has a pool table and jukebox (the
latter was either switched off or broken) and no ale or food.
Date visited: 12th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
1 |
Total (out of 25): |
6 |
Salisbury Arms |
Shirley Road, Shirley, Southampton |
|
The Salisbury Arms is a long-established pub on the busy Shirley High Street. It has a rectangular bar you can walk round all sides of! Apart from that, the decor is nothing special and a bit dingy in places (one corner of the pub was in total darkness!). They had a karaoke night in full swing when I visited but it was still fairly dead. The Friday night karaoke market in Shirley is pretty much saturated. It also has regular quiz nights and TV but no sign of any bar games or jukebox. No sign of any ales except Greene King IPA, seeing that this is a Greene King pub that is to be expected. This place has a lot of potential but it's not being fulfilled.
Date visited: Friday 4th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Seymour's |
Carlton
Place, City Centre, Southampton |
|
A
typical 'trendy bar' with the obligatory bouncers. Small and fairly
busy on Friday night when I visited but not packed. A rather
Anonymous place. The decor is decent enough but nothing special
apart from the interesting display of multi-coloured swirly drinking
straws. DJ every night of the week apparently. They were
actually playing some half-decent music when I was in there but no bar
games. Real Ale? Don't be silly.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
10 |
Shield And Dagger |
Stratton Road, Shirley, Southampton |
|
Located
on the edge of a large 1960s housing estate, the Shield & Dagger is
hidden away from all the through roads surrounding it so it's quite
elusive! It is a Modern pub and the decor is fairly modern
inside. All the tables have condiments on which suggest it does food
and there are several tanks of tropical fish which are a nice focal
point. Like the Bricklayer's Arms, the light in the gents does not
work!
It has pool, darts, TVs and a
jukebox and apparently, live entertainment on Fridays. It also has a
beer garden and taxi telephone numbers displayed prominently which is a
good idea.
It is a Wadworth pub and 6X and
Henry's are available on tap. It was fairly busy-ish when I visited.
Date visited: 12th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
Ship
Inn (Redbridge) |
Redbridge,
Southampton |
|
The Ship Inn is a lovely pub located on the South Western edge of the city. Once upon a time, it would have been a delightful country pub on the main road between Southampton and Totton, however it is now dwarfed by a massive dual carriageway overbridge which carries the new main road to Totton and as such, The Ship and the nearby Anchor are now located on a back road. The pub has a lot of heritage and a large and very well kept beer garden. The interior is just as good, it is large but cosy and welcoming with a vague nautical theme and there are several different rooms. They do reasonably priced food and three ales on tap, however there is no entertainment. When I visited on a Sunday afternoon, it was fairly quiet. Visited
Sunday 20th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
5 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
SoBar |
Bevois
Valley, Southampton |
|
The SoBar is a fairly recently opened pub in the student-centric Bevois Valley area of the city. It always seems quite busy and usually has a live DJ most nights, sometimes playing good stuff! The decor is very contemporary and there is a huge beer garden. It has pool, table football and a vintage Space Invaders game, however there was no sign of any ale when I visited, however they do
food at reasonable prices. It's a good jack-of-all-trades pub really.
Date visited: 26th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
5 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
South Western Arms |
St
Denys, Southampton |
Photo to come soon!
|
Being located right next to St Denys station, this pub understandably has a bit of a railway theme to it, including some old station signs. The décor is very wooden and you can see the beams of the roof, no ceiling here! There is a mezzanine floor upstairs containing a pool table and seating while downstairs often features live music. There is also the best selection of proper beer I have seen in Southampton, including some locally brewed ales. Highly recommended.
Visited 5th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
5 |
Attractiveness: |
5 |
Beer: |
6 |
Total (out of 25): |
23 |
Spike
Islander |
Sholing, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Spike Islander is a fairly nice pub with two bars (sort of), however there was no
evidence of any ale. It appears quite homely, particularly in the lounge-type bar. It was fairly dead when I visited and the only entertainment is a big TV, pool and darts.
Date visited: 24th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Sporting View, The |
Sports
Centre, Lordswood, Southampton |
|
As
the name suggests, the Sporting View is situated within Southampton's
excellent outdoor sports centre and it offers a panoramic view across the
centre. The location is lovely, it could almost be rural if you
didn't know otherwise and the building is a splendid 1930s Art Deco pavilion,
however the interior is perhaps a little tatty and in need of a lick of
paint. The beer was superb value and while there isn't a lot of
choice in the ale department, Theakston's was on offer. As would be
expected on a sunny Saturday afternoon, it was fairly busy. It has a
pool table, dart board, TVs and events - the day I visited was set up with
real bales of hay for a Barn Dance in the evening!
Date visited: 21st April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
4 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
The
Square |
Above
Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Square is a massive bar located inside a converted cinema, the architects have made full use of the interior space and created the largest bar I have ever seen, it is about four floors high and has several different levls of terracing with a huge hot air balloon with a video wall suspecnded from it as the centrepiece. Very impressive. They have a DJ playing various chart/dance stuff at weekends but no ale or bar games. They do food during the day.
Visited
Friday 11th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
5 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
St Denys Hotel |
Priory
Road, St Denys, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
This is a strange pub. Like many, it has two bars but I could see no way of entering the larger of the two so this review is based entirely on the smaller bar. Very small, good music being played on the jukebox, plus a dartboard. Quite lively, however, the beer I had was tasteless and flat.
Visited 5th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
1 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Standing
Order |
High
Street, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The Standing Order is a huge Wetherspoon's pub in the High Street - it used to be a bank hence the name! Like most Wetherspoon pubs, you know exactly what to expect - good value food, low drinks prices and no entertainment, although they have been known to get the TV out in the case of major sporting events. Like most Wetherspoons, the range of ales is superb, however there is little atmosphere and this place is looking rather tatty in places with torn seats etc. I also ordered fish and chips in here a few months ago and it came out almost stone cold! Time for a refurb/change of management methinks. Visited
Thursday 10th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
6 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
6 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Station Hotel (Bitterne) |
Bitterne, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The
Station, as the name suggests, is located near Bitterne railway station
(which is actually quite a way from the main part of Bitterne). I
get the impression it is a foodie- type pub but the place is absolutely
massive! It boasts TVs, pool, two jukeboxes and a Sunday pub
quiz. Greene King IPA and Old Speckled Hen were on offer. It
seemed fairly busy for a Tuesday night. The decor is nice
(contemporary) but nothing special.
Date visited: 17th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
The
Stile (Burgess Road) |
Burgess
Road, Highfield, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Stile is located adjacent to the main campus of Southampton University and as part of the 'Spirit' pub group, it does the usual food offering - a varied menu at reasonable prices. The pub is light and has a lot of windows which is nice. It was fairly busy when I visited and has newspapers, a weekly quiz night plus a selection of board games are available from the bar. It has four ales on offer including some not often seen arouind these parts.
Date visited: Tuesday 8th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
16 |
The
Stile (Freemantle) |
Shirley
Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
|
The Stile is a Biker's pub and this is clearly evident from the shiny Harley's parked outside to the bike-themed décor to the heavy rock music on the jukebox to the leather-jacket clad patrons. While this is a bit intimidating to a non-biker like me, the place seemed friendly enough and offers good music (if you like rock!), darts and pool as well as a couple of ales, however I was given a short measure!!!
Visited 8th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Stoneham
Arms |
Bassett
Green Road, Southampton |
|
The Stoneham Arms is a huge Mock Tudor pub located on the Northern fringe of the city in a slightly dodgy area, however it seemed pleasant enough (albeit quite quiet) when I visited on a Sunday afternoon. There was an important Saints football match in progress when I visited, and as Sky weren't showing it, they had it playing on the radio (good idea!). They do have a big TV, as well as a pool table and jukebox plus they have regular karaoke nights. The pub serves bar snacks and has a garden although there isn't a lot in the way of ales apart from Whitbread Best. The decor is quite nice and like a lot of Mock Tudor pubs, it has an ornate fireplace.
Date visited: Sunday 5th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
The
Swan
(Woolston) |
Portsmouth
Road, Woolston, Southampton |
|
The
Swan is located in the outer reaches of Woolston, along the busy
Portsmouth Road. It looks a bit tatty from the outside, however it
is a superb pub famous for its live music which is up to five times a week
and free of charge! (see website for listings etc). I visited on a
Sunday afternoon and there was a band on and the place was packed!
They also have quiz nights, TV, a pool table, raffles and traditional pub
food (basket meals - yaay!) at very reasonable prices although I haven't
sampled them (yet!). It seems to be popular with bikers but that's a
good thing - they never cause any trouble and are usually friendly!
Superb range of ales on offer and it also has a beer garden. Highly recommended.
Date visited: 22nd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
6 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
5 |
Total (out of 25): |
19 |
Talking
Heads |
Portswood
Road, Portswood, Southampton |
|
Talking
Heads is a live music venue and due to the policy of charging for entry
most nights, is on the fringe of inclusion within this study.
Occasionally they don't charge although the drink prices are quite
reasonable. They're usually quite busy and offer a good
selection of ales including Strong's Romsey Bitter, a rarity
nowadays! The back room is huge and reserved for live music; it has
guitars hanging on the walls which make it attractive, however the state
of the toilets loses a point.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
4 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
The
Terminal |
Portswood
Road, Portswood, Southampton |
|
The Terminal is a typical 'shop unit' pub in the main shopping area of Portswood. A part of the Smith & Jones pub chain
(similar kind of setup to Wetherspoon's), the place sells reasonably priced food. It was very busy when I visited and the patrons were cheering in response to the televised football. Unlike Wetherspoons, it has a quiz night on Sundays and occasional nice music. Not a bad selection of ales (Ringwood in particular) but very slow service. The decor was nice but nothing special.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Two Brothers |
Townhill
Way, Townhill Park, Southampton |
|
The Two Brothers is located on a very dull housing estate and is a part of the 'Sizzle' pub chain. It is really more of a restaurant than a pub as there is no music, events or games. The décor is pleasant and contemporary and there is a beer garden, however its location next to a busy road spoils the ambience somewhat. The drinks are very cheap as is the food - astonishingly cheap although I cannot comment on the quality as I did not try it.
Visited 7th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
5 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Varsity |
London Road, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Varsity
is a part of a nationwide chain of bars that cater for both the daytime
and evening market, however they close at a sensible time unlike some
other bars. They do food and things were looking promising when I
spotted some hand pumps, however they were not being used. I visited
on a Friday night and the place was absolutely heaving. The
mezzanine floor upstairs overlooking the bar was a bit quieter but still
busy. I'm not sure what the attraction is really as it's nothing
special. They had loud generic dance/pop music on but no sign of a
DJ or jukebox, no pub games either. The decor is quite nice and
contemporary, the double height space and mezzanine floor combining to
produce an inspiring space.
Date visited: 27th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
4 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Victoria
Inn |
Woolston, Southampton |
|
This pub is located by the main entrance to the massive Vosper Thornycroft shipbuilding works - or at least it was until recently. The works have been cleared to leave a massive area of wasteland and the closure of the works no doubt affected the trade in this pub. However, it seems like a nice enough place although my first impressions were not good at all as when I was exploring it, I banged my head on a low doorway. A 'Mind Your Head' sign or some
high-vis tape wouldn't go amiss. I'm sure the locals enjoy watching strangers making the same mistake on a regular basis! However, if you take a hard hat in or avoid the little snug bar in to the right of the main bar, it's fine! They have a full schedule of entertainment with a good jukebox, pool, darts, karaoke, disco and quiz nights. The decor is a bit rough and ready and peeling round the edges and while the
place was fairly dead when I visited, it was friendly, the barman actually saying bye when I left (a little politeness goes a long way and gained the pub an extra point!). It also has a good beer garden and very good value food and a payphone with taxi numbers prominently displayed
(a good idea).
Date visited: 17th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Waggoners
Arms |
Portswood
Road, Portswood, Southampton |
|
The
Waggoner's Arms is a very small 'local' pub in Portswood, it looks as
though there is a second bar and large garden but if there are, they are
off limits. The prices are very reasonable and it offers TV, a
jukebox and dartboard. It was fairly busy when I visited and while
it 'usually' offers Greene King IPA, it was "off" when I
visited. The pub features lurid red wallpaper and lots of horse
brasses.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
3 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
12 |
Walkabout |
High
Street, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The Walkabout is part of a chain of Australian themed bars, this place is like a massive barn which gets packed full of youths on Friday and Saturday nights when they have a DJ playing various cheesy music. I visited on a Thursday night and it was fairly dead. They do food but if you were expecting real ale, forget it, Fosters is of course about as good as it gets in here. One thing I did think was a good idea is they have some of those racing car arcade machines - unusual for a pub but another way of relieving the tedium. Not a bad place really but as with all the chain bars, you know exactly what to expect wherever you are in the country. They also have sport on TV (the English variety).
Date visited: 19th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
3 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
The
Waterfront |
Shamrock
Quay, Northam, Southampton |
|
This
pub is fairly pleasant although perhaps more of a restaurant than a pub,
particularly given its location in the Shamrock Quay marina. Apparently
they have live music sometimes. Visited
Tuesday 15th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Waterloo
Arms |
Waterloo
Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
|
The Waterloo Arms is a popular venue for fans of decent beer as it offers a superb range of ales, including some from the Hopback Brewery. It features a nice, sizable beer
garden, conservatory and dartboard but no other entertainment, however there seemed to be a noisy party going on at the house next door! Fairly busy.
Visited 8th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
4 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
5 |
Total (out of 25): |
16 |
Wellington
Arms |
Park
Road, Freemantle, Southampton |
|
The Wellington Arms is rather like Doctor Who's TARDIS. It looks rather small and cosy from the outside while inside are several different rooms, each with a different decoration theme including one non-smoking room, it's actually quite big! The décor is very nice and cosy throughout, as well as
somewhat lavish and it also offers a beer garden. There is a superb range of ales on offer including Ringwood's and London Pride at good prices and it's a nice friendly pub, however the score is let down by the fact that there is no entertainment other than background music and a TV.
Visited 8th April 2007
Update November 2007
Visited again and
still impressed. Good range of ales and welcoming although it was
quite dead for a Sunday night.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
4 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
5 |
Total (out of 25): |
17 |
White Star |
Oxford
Street, City Centre, Southampton |
|
More of a restaurant than a pub really. Very pretentious. No form of entertainment whatsoever. Candlelit, clean and shiny décor. Ringwood ales but not very well kept.
Visited 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
8 |
White Swan |
Mansbridge
Road, Mansbridge, Southampton |
|
The White Swan is one of the outer bastions of hostelry in Southampton and it enjoys a pleasant riverside location (except when the river bursts its banks on an increasingly frequent basis). However, the tranquillity is spoiled by the permanent roar of the nearby M27 motorway (not to mention the low flying planes from the very close airport) and the riverside patio is fairly small. The White Swan offers a Carvery every day and this is good value. The drinks are also fairly cheap compared to most of its local rivals. However, the pub is almost totally catering to the food market and as such offers no music, TVs, games or other such entertainment. Courage Best is on offer but that was the only sign of proper beer I saw.
Visited 7th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
5 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Whitehouse |
Above Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
This recently-opened bar was totally dead when visited on a Tuesday night. Technically, it should perhaps be excluded from the project as it does not open until 9pm but it was open and I was passing so I thought I'd have a look. The place is painted white throughout, and while this makes it look large, it also makes it look plain and uninspiring. This theme is continued by the distinct lack of furniture. There were a selection of dope-inspired paintings for sale above the bar, that's about as exciting as the decor gets. Of course, there was no ale and the only entertainment is a DJ who wasn't there when I visited.
Date visited: Tuesday 1st May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
2 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Willows |
City
Centre, Southampton |
|
Willows was a very pleasant surprise. The evening I visited had so bar been full of dull, pretentious establishments and I have to admit that from the outside, this looked like it was going to be the same again, however it is a friendly, welcoming and relaxed bar and it has Ringwood Best on tap. There is a nice snug bar at the back and the chequered floor tiles add to the general ambience. I also believe they serve food, however it was fairly quiet when I visited. Visited
Thursday 10th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
7 |
Windsor Castle |
Shirley Road, Shirley, Southampton |
|
The Windsor Castle is a Mock Tudor pub in Shirley Precinct that has a bit of a reputation, which is reinforced by the huge "OVER 21S ONLY NO ID NO DRINK" blackboards outside. However, inside, it's quite a nice pub with cosy decor including wood
paneling, glazed arches and a huge stone fireplace although it is perhaps slightly tatty. It features a good jukebox, pool, darts and regular karaoke nights. When I visited on a Friday night, the karaoke was in full swing and the place was quite busy with an interesting assortment of characters in residence. Apart from a couple of noisy Chavs, it seemed harmless enough. No ale except for Flowers and Whitbread but better than nothing.
Date visited: Friday 4th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
5 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
19 |
Wine Bar, The |
Bedford Place, City Centre, Southampton |
|
The
Wine Bar is a somewhat pretentious establishment that can't be bothered to
think of a more original name. The typical clientele are up-market townies
and upper-middle class types , indeed when I visited, the place was packed
full of Suited Bores boasting about their high paying jobs and their
holidays in Cambodia. Yawn. The upstairs bar is far more chilled out and a
safe retreat from the Suited Bores. It has a pool table which permanently
seems to be covered, TV and also serves Tapas (grumble). However, the
drinks seemed very cheap (happy hour perhaps?) and the decor is nice and
contemporary, the sparkly lights on the ceiling are good. Obviously with
the emphasis being on Wine, real ale is non-existent.
Date visited: 26th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
5 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
4 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
15 |
The
Winning
Post |
Peartree
Avenue, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The
Winning Post is a typical Mock-Tudor estate pub and the interior is very
White, which matches the shiny trainers worn by the Chavs that seem to
frequent it. It seemed quite lively but not the sort of place I
wanted to hang around in for long. Very loud jukebox, table
football, pool table, football on TV and karaoke nights. Serves
London Pride and Courage Best (can't imagine the Chavs drinking that!).
Date visited: 17th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
1 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Winston Hotel |
Hill Lane, Southampton |
|
The Winston is a fairly large pub that always seems to be very popular, indeed I have had to abort three previous attempts at visiting becuause the crowds have been literally bulging out the doors! The main bar is nothing special and perhaps a bit tatty and dimly lit in places although there is an adjoining airy conservatory area which is mainly dedicated to dining use. The main bar features a jukebox, pool table and TVs and there is a weekly quiz night, however there was no sign of any ale when I visited. Visited
Friday 18th May 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
2 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
11 |
Woodman, The |
Lordswood, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
The Woodman is a large suburban pub on the edge of the Lordshill estate, probably of 1950s vintage. It has a fair sized public bar and a huge main bar which also includes a small cosy restaurant area leading out onto a pleasant but compact outside patio area with seating and BBQ and a large function room boasting a pool table and stage. They do a good selection of food at good prices, however I couldn't see any ale (although there are a couple of hand pumps). As well as the pool table, there is a jukebox, quiz night every Sunday and regular karaoke nights and live music. The decor is pleasant, albeit slightly blue and when I visited at lunchtime, it was fairly dead.
Another thing they have which is a good idea is a selection of second hand books and videos for sale.
Date visited: Friday 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
2 |
Entertainment: |
4 |
Atmosphere: |
2 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
13 |
Yacht
Tavern |
Sea
Road, Woolston, Southampton |
|
The
Yacht Tavern, unsurprisingly, is located by the River Itchen, however it
doesn't face directly onto the river which is probably just as well as it
is not a particularly salubrious part of the river. It's off the
beaten track in what seems like an industrial estate, however, it seems
homely and welcoming, the decor having a vague nautical theme. It
has a big TV, darts, jukebox and apparently live music and karaoke
nights. Bombardier ale was on tap when I visited but that was the
only real ale I could see. It was fairly quiet when I visited, as
would be expected early on a Sunday evening.
Date visited: 22nd April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
5 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
3 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Yate's
Wine Lodge |
Above
Bar Street, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
One
of Southampton's longest established chain bars but definitely nothing
special. The interior is very contemporary and modern but it is let
down by its lack of ales. Website doesn't work properly. No
evidence of entertainment whatsoever although I think there may be a DJ at
the weekend. It was busy-ish for a Monday night when I visited
although that was mainly due to the presence of a load of people wearing
silly outfits. Just about says it all really.
Date visited: 16th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
1 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
3 |
Attractiveness: |
3 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Zeb |
St
Mary's Street, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Formerly the Oddfellows Arms, this pub has been revamped and given a silly name. The interior is splendidly retro/contemporary with glass block walls and zebra print but £3 a pint of lager and no entertainment other than a jukebox? There were only a couple of patrons in here so that says it all. No ale except Greene King IPA.
Visited 4th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
1 |
Atmosphere: |
1 |
Attractiveness: |
5 |
Beer: |
2 |
Total (out of 25): |
9 |
Around
The World |
Town
Quay, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Closed;
For Sale
Checked 15th May
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Blacksmith's
Arms |
Romsey Road,
Shirley, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Apparently
"Closed for refurbishment"
Will come back soon
Checked 8th May 2007
Update November 2007
Still closed and
boarded up too now
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Bridge Tavern (Shirley Warren) |
Coxford Road, Shirley Warren, Southampton |
|
Closed
when I visited. Locked up, a broken window, peeling paint.
Sign outside saying "Closed until further notice". Who
knows whether it will reopen or not?
Checked 4th May 2007
Update September
2007
Still closed
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Prince
Of Wales |
Northam
Road, Northam, Southampton |
|
Closed
when I visited
Checked 15th May
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Old
Thatched House |
Romsey Road,
Shirley, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
"Closed
until further notice due to family illness"
Will come back soon
Checked 8th May 2007
Update September 2007
Has reopened at
last! Great roast dinners on Sundays. Will review properly in
next year's round.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Dolphin,
The |
St Denys,
Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Closed when I
visited. Apparently awaiting a new licence?
Will come back soon
Checked 5th April 2007
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Latimers
On The Quay |
City
Centre, Southampton |
|
Closed
when I visited, looks like major building works in progress.
Checked Friday 18th May
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Merry
Oak, The |
Spring Road,
Merry Oak, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Has been
closed for ages following Trouble. All boarded up. No signs of
any re-opening.
Will come back soon
Checked 7th April 2007
Update December 2007
Another pub
threatened with demolition.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
New
Inn |
Bevois
Valley, Southampton |
|
Closed
for refurb!
This one-great pub looks like it
going to be renamed to 'The Usual Suspects'. Who thinks up these
stupid names?
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Cooper's
Arms |
Northam,
Southampton |
|
Closed
when I visited; For Sale sign up.
Checked 15th May
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Ship
Inn (Woolston) |
Woolston, Southampton |
|
Closed
when I visited
Checked 22nd April 2007
Will call back soon.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Victory,
The |
Blechynden
Terrace, City Centre, Southampton |
Photo to come soon! |
Has been
closed for ages. No signs of any re-opening and has been totally
stripped out. Will keep an eye
on.
Checked 2nd May 2007
Update November 2007
Now closed.
The office building it is located in is still there but the space occupied
by the pub has been divided in two and half of it converted into a
Starbucks!
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Star
& Garter |
Waterloo
Road, City Centre, Southampton |
|
Closed
for good, will soon be demolished for flats.
The Star & Garter was my local
for a year or two, while it was a good mile down the road from where I
live, it was worth the walk once my geographical local, the Rising Sun was
sanitised and converted into the Brass Monkey.
Gordon the landlord moved to the
Star and spent a lot of money refurbishing the place. There were
regular disco and karaoke nights and good meals. I spent many
memorable occasions there and even had the honour of running a regular
disco and karaoke show there.
Unfortunately, the greedy property
developers don't care about the history of the city. It's a shame
that the pub can't be converted into flats (or better still reopened as a
pub) rather than flattening such a historic building and putting yet
another bland development on the site but it seems that little can be done
to save it now.
See more photos
Update November 2007
Has been demolished
now. Shameful.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
The
Target |
Butts
Road, Sholing, Southampton |
|
Closed
for good, will soon be demolished if it hasn't already been.
Update 26th April 2007 - it's gone,
as has the footbridge I took the previous photo from. I have added a
new photo.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Elephant
& Castle |
Bursledon
Road, Sholing, Southampton |
|
A
Mock Tudor pub, recently demolished to make way for dull identikit homes
(see photo)
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |
Sun
Inn |
Weston
Lane, Weston, Southampton |
|
I
don't know anything about this pub but apparently it's been closed for
ages. Who knows how long it will be before another vital community
asset is destroyed to make way for flats? Weston currently has no
pubs at all, the other one, The Seaweed Inn being long gone.
Checked 7th May
Update November 2007
Currently threatened
with demolition by vandals who care nothing for the history of local
communities in the interest of squeezing more and more people into dull
houses or flats.
|
Scores (all
out of 5) |
Price: |
0 |
Entertainment: |
0 |
Atmosphere: |
0 |
Attractiveness: |
0 |
Beer: |
0 |
Total (out of 25): |
00 |