The Giddy Bridge, Southampton

Located in the centre of Southampton city centre, you’ll find just about anyone in here who likes a drink.

The atmosphere’s really chilled with everyone having a laugh and enjoying themselves, including the staff. It can get quite noisy at times, especially if you’re sat near the TV’s surrounded by footy fans! However, the loud cheers and boos coming from the slot machines aren’t much better either! But it all helps create the pub’s welcoming character. There’s also wi-fi facilities and so a prime location for the students at the nearby universities to pop in.

There’s a new range of drinks, including new plum ciders and real ales. Plus, you can double up on spirits for an extra £1. With food being generous and fairly priced, plates were being constantly served round the pub.

On the whole, The Giddy Bridge is cheap and friendly, making it a great and convenient place to go to if you’re ever in town.

The Empress of Blandings, Copythorne

The Empress of Blandings has all the characteristics of a good pub… nice furniture, wooden ceilings, a fireplace, very spacious, overall giving the place a 'homey' feel. However, the pub seemed to lack soul. The majority of drinkers fell within an older range who had come in for a quiet drink. Literally. Apart from the background music and the occasional ‘ker-ching’ from the slot machine, there wasn’t the usual lively banter and chat you’d hear when at the pub.

The pub sells its own ale, which is brewed in Dorset. Food is of a reasonable standard. However, with good prices on their lunch menu, 2 courses for £8, who’s complaining?

There’s a function room upstairs, so great for special occasions. There’s also a beer garden and a patio seating area, however being located right next to the main road, it can get quite noisy from the cars whizzing past so it’s probably nicer to sit inside.

Old Farmhouse, Totton

Located in the residential area of Totton, Old Farmhouse is definitely a pub for its locals. You may experience a slight awkward long stare from the locals when entering, wary of someone new stealing their spot at the bar.

Nonetheless, once you make your way to the bar, there’s no need to fight for a seat in this pub. The Old Farmhouse in huge in size. With lots of room inside and outside, its probably why its popular with families. There’s also a beer garden and patio area.

The Old Farmhouse has slot machines and TV’s around the pub. There’s live entertainment or karaoke every month, or if you’re feeling shy, just have a go on the dartboard!

The White Star, Southampton

The White Star is right in the middle of Oxford Street, Southampton. The street is full of busy restaurants and bars, perfect if you are indecisive on where to eat or drink. There’s plenty of choice, however if you’re looking for a sophisticated place to pop in, The White Star is ideal.

There’s a wide range of drinks, including their cocktail of the month, which is Caribbean Rum Punch for £6.50. There are also a range of champagnes offered to reflect the up-market location and audience. Looking around, the pub was full with formally dressed people. Scruffy jeans, t-shirt and trainers could be argued as a no-go regarding dress code! 

The White Star is spacious, with a separate dining area, which is great if you’re eating and you don’t need to compete with the loud conversation by the bar. Or if you’d prefer to take advantage of the great weather at the moment on the south coast, there’s seating outside.

Prices for drinks are not expensive but not cheap either, students may come here as a treat rather than as a local, however the 2 AA Rosettes awarded restaurant has some great deals on food with their 2 for 1 breakfasts everyday. Now that’s an incentive to wake up early!

There’s live music here at the White Star every Friday evening, great to kick start your weekend. Overall, The White Star gets…

The Bird in Hand, Shepherd's Bush, London

All these sunny evenings took some of the team to London for the weekend. Located in Shepherd’s Bush we visited The Bird in Hand. 

Under new management, this pub is lovely. Massively popular with the locals and young workers, we found it perfect for our food and chilling out needs.

The Bird in Hand is modern in décor and played all the latest tunes through the pubs impressive speakers located throughout the medium sized venue. The pub has a well-stocked pile of old board game favourites and while we enjoyed our ciders, it was nice to see people of all ages enjoy playing draughts while socialising with their friends.

The pub catered for all drinking tastes with a wide selection of wines, beers and ales and their food menu was simple but extremely tasty! We sampled the beef burger and scampi which both came with very well dressed salads and a generous portion of tasty French fries; always a bonus!

Fit to burst, we could not restrain ourselves from ordering the chocolate brownie and we were glad we did. If you want to eat quite possibly the best brownie in the world…okay, England, come to The Bird in Hand. The brownie was delightfully warm, gooey with real melted chocolate pieces and was absolutely huge (more than enough for two!) and came with gorgeously creamy, thick mascarpone style ice cream. Well worth the fiver!

We found the prices good value for London and the laidback, fun atmosphere is worth travelling to for. A definite must for anyone that situated near or in the area to wind down after a hard day’s work and catch up with friends or meet the friendly locals.

This pub gets a very well deserved....

The Crown Inn, Highfield, Southampton...

This weekend we dropped into The Crown Inn, Highfield, Southampton...

The pub is a definite favourite amongst local residents, especially students. The Crown is small and simple in décor but outside seating is quite limited. The pub can get busy on Sunday’s due to their generous Sunday Roasts so if you don’t want to miss out, booking is advised.

Bar staff are welcoming, helpful and service is quick. The menu is simple and generally burger, baguettes/sandwiches and chip based! We would recommend this pub if you are looking for a quick bite to eat at great value. Nonetheless, “The Crown Burger” is legendary for its great taste, huge portion size and brilliant price (plus you can add bacon and cheese for a few extra pounds!).

The pub has a real buzz during weekends and a good selection of real ales. The pub has no juke boxes or fruit machines but if you are looking for some entertainment, The Crown runs a quiz night every Sunday for just £1 from 8.30pm onwards.

The Crown gets 2 pints for value and convenience but is not recommended for those looking for a unique pub experience.

The Gordon Arms, Portswood...

This sunny afternoon saw Jennie and Laura spring upon The Gordon Arms, Portswood, an area better known as the typical Southampton student's sanctuary for socialising!

The pub accommodates their audience’s needs by playing up to date chart music, wi-fi access and a reasonable sized tv, plus 2 meals for £9.95 on certain weekdays. Quiz nights are every Monday which is likely to attract quite a crowd, given the location. The Gordon Arms is located on Portswood’s high street so is ideal to pop in for a quick lunch or somewhere to start a night off, as its close to surrounding pubs and bars. Sobar, renowned amongst party go-ers, is within walking distance.

The beer garden was not so much a beer garden, but more of a backyard with slabs and randomly assembled garden furniture. The range of food and drink is simple and uncomplicated, but would still get the thumbs up on taste. The pub certainly reflects the easy going nature of their primary customers. House ales are available for those looking for something a bit more classic, however it’s not really the place for pub enthusiasts so therefore gets...