|
|
Being a tourist in
Netley Abbey can be thirsty work - sate your desires
by sinking a pint in one of these watering holes:
|
 |
|
Times change, and
so do pubs. These pubs were last reviewed properly
in 2001, so things may well have changed. The Station,
my workplace for two years as a teenager, has closed
and is (in Dec 2009) about to be turned into flats.
Please bear in mind that as soon as you read this,
the info could be even more out of date.
And don’t just take my word
for it – check out Beer
In The Evening for impartial pub reviews.
|
 |
The
Old Mill House
On Grange Road, by the edge of civilization.
The Old Mill House stands on the edge of what was
once Weston Tip, a large household rubbish landfill
site on the edge of Southampton. I went to Junior
school over the road for a year, but the pub wasn't
even built then. When it was built it was called The
Grange for a while, and styled as a family restaurant,
but without much success. Since the rename it's still
got a beefeater-ish vibe about it. Every time I've
been in there its been dead, but at least you could
get served quick and get a seat, as the bar area is
massive. A pub for intellectual conversation over
a glass of Staropramen, rather than a raucous session
on the tequilla!
Back
to top
|
 |
The
Roll Call
A local pub for local people.
Once described to me as "the pub you take a
bird if you don't want your mates to see you",
the Roll Call is the place to go if you want a pint
of real ale with your dominoes. I can't be harsh to
this pub as my Mum and sister both worked there. I
was also involved in a lock-in there once, many years
ago (allegedly, officer), where I left the pub to
be confronted by the sight of mate's uncle pissing
in the flowerbed by the main road.
If you fancy a drink in here, stick to the lounge
bar (left-hand side), as you're less likely to sit
in someone's favourite seat.
Back
to top
|
 |
The Cottage Inn
Just down the road from the Roll Call, and closer
to the heart of Butlocks Heath, the Cottage stands
opposite the Hound Parish Hall, home to the Junior
Youth Club that Paul, Rich and The Wee Man all attended
regularly. The Cottage has changed hands since I was
last in there, which can only be a good thing, given
the old landlord used to walk his rottweiler without
its lead, but with a baseball bat in case it got ideas
above its station. Used to have a bar-billiards table,
which is the forgotten art of country pub gaming (along
with Aunt Sally).
The Cottage is a cosy wee boozer split into two bars,
with low ceiling beams and loads of nick-nacks on
the wall. Gives you a "pleasant drink in a country
pub" vibe.
Back
to top
|
 |
The
Prince Consort
On the road to the Vicky Park.
The Prince's proximity to the Vicky and Southampton
Water has always attracted a yachtie crowd, which
is never a good thing. Used to have a decent kitchen
as well. My Netley-based correspondents tell me that
the Prince has gone downhill a wee bit. My best visit
in here was on a Wednesday afternoon, when the Wee
Man and I happened to stumble across a drinking session
involving Rich and Pete, who were both between jobs
at the time. The place to go if you're on a Campari
and Soda/white wine and spritzer tip.
Back
to top |
Alternatives
in Netley
|
| (No
photo - well, it's not there anymore, is it?) |
The
"dear departed" Red Lion
Now a listed block of apartments on Victoria Road.
This pub closed when I was still very young, though
its legend lives on. Famous for the fat, old drunks
who used to sleep on its pavement bench, the pub was
genuine salt-of-the-earth boozer. Village legend continued
to flourish after its demise, with tales of cockroaches
roaming freely amongst the half-cooked meat pies for
sale on the back bar. It is one of my personal regrets
that the pub did not live long enough for me to grace
the premises.
Back
to top
|
 |
The
Station
(closed in late 2000’s)
Next to Netley Station.
The Station used to be a wee bit dodgy, to be honest.
I worked there as a barman for a couple of years.
Once had a ridiculously successful Sunday League team.
The pub has undergone a make-over and been painted
red and green to go with its Giants Plate rebranding.
Once upon a time this was a buzzing, vibrant pub
filled with young village types getting beered up
before heading over town to New Yorks, however these
days I've no idea what its like. Used to specialise
in gassy mainstream lagers, usually with one barrel
of real ale (which was always a bastard to change).
Back
to top
|
 |
The Victoria Park Hotel
(now closed)
I've only ever been here for functions, and I can't
say I'd recommend it as a boozer. No idea how much
a room costs either.
Back
to top
|
| 
|
Members'
Clubs
- The Royal British Legion
- The Victoria Club
- The Central Club
The RBL is open to all serving or retired servicemen,
whilst the Victoria and Central clubs are CIU affiliated.
I've never been in any of them to be honest (not being
affiliated, myself), but apparently the beer's cheap.
Back
to top |
Further
Afield
|
| Hamble
Made famous by BBC TV's Howard's
Way in the 1980's. There are a number of pubs in Hamble,
with all but The Harrier full of yachties. With its
quaint, olde worlde cobbled street feel, Hamble is
a good venue for a leisurely summer afternoon/evening
pub crawl. The Wee Man often drinks up here with the
Butlocks boys, but for Rich and I and our pathological
aversion to yachties, Hamble is really best avoided.
By the way, The Jolly Sailor (the
pub from Howard's Way) is not actually in Hamble,
but upstream in the neighbouring village of Bursledon.
Back
to top
|
Woolston/Sholing/Weston
The suburbs of East Southampton,
closest to Netley.
I wouldn't. Particularly
not The Seaweed Inn, which in on the Woolston-Netley
coast road next to the Weston Flats. By all accounts,
pubs such as The Millers Pond (Sholing) and The Newbridge
Inn (Woolston) are perfectly acceptable boozers, but
best to give the London Arms (Woolston) a wide berth.
Also one to watch out for is the last bus from Southampton
to Netley. On a Friday and Saturday night this is
a perfectly acceptable, if a little bumpy, journey,
best undertaken in a pleasant stupor. However, when
the bus stops at the 2nd Woolston Stop, 20-30 people
pile on from Woolston Social club, and proceed to
urinate, fornicate and vomit all over the bus. This
is a time when you need to have your wits about you
to dodge any wayward snooker cues/pint glasses/Chinese
takeaway cartons that may be heading your way. A bus
driver once told me that of all the last bus routes
in Southampton (and Southampton's got its fair share
of dodgy areas), the one that most drivers dreaded
was the Number 17.
Back
to top
|
Southampton
The big city just outside
Netley.
When younger, I would do all my
serious drinking in the town. A lot has changed since
those days, as the development of the huge West Quay
shopping centre has led to a lot of shops deserting
the Above Bar shopping area, leaving buildings for
the chain pubs to move into. It's also a lot more
acceptable to be a student in the centre of town -
in my day students were confined to the Bevois Valley
'Ghetto'.
Many of these new pubs are pretty
formulaic - Hogshead, Yates Wine Lodge, Ale Café,
Wetherspoons and the like. One of the first of it's
type in Southampton was The Square Balloon (now known
as The Square). It's a cavernous ex-Cinema that on
Friday and Saturday nights is full to bursting with
bright young things. Rich and the Wee Man's wee brother,
Deano, used to swear by this place back in the day.
Real ale is making a resurgence
in Southampton, with a number of excellent small craft
breweries thriving in Hampshire. One of the top places
for a pint of ale is The Guide Dog, in Earl Road (just
off Bevois Valley Road), although there are three
well-reputed pubs near St Denys station (The Dolphin,
The South Western and The Junction).
(Since renouncing
my season ticket back in 2002, I am in Southampton
less and less these days, so apologies if this information
is out of date)
Back
to top |
|
