Originally posted by @Chertsey-Saint
Originally posted by @cobham-saint
Now that it looks like the Hythe ferry may go out of business my planned Southampton pub crawl based on antās suggestions next time Iām back in the waterside will probably have to be put on holdā¦ .
No way, really? Sad times if true.
According to a very badly written article on the Daily Echo websiteā¦
Originally posted by @Chertsey-Saint
Originally posted by @Barry-Sanchez
There is a bit of colour there, always had a blast myself, ah well.
A bit. Fucking hell Barry.
Been to far more places with a bit of character in the UK, Leith on a Friday night in the 90ās was interesting, Blackpool and Manchester as well.
Not sure if this link will work as itās the echo again.
No street where you can do a good pub crawl? I lived in Bedford Place for a few years there must have been 20 pubs in a 5 min walk. I probably drank way more than I should have back then.
I wouldnāt have gone to Liverpool if it wasnāt for mates living there. As a UK tourist Iād make the effort for Bath and maybe Edinburgh. Iāve been to Manchester, Brigton, Blackpool, Glasgow and Hartlepool for conferences but would I have made a special visit? Probably not. If Iāve been abroad to a city itās to see some architecture and museums.
Southampton has a Jane Austen trail that should be bringing in the tourists!
Has anyone been in the Seacity museum?
Southamptonās got a Jane Austin trail ?? Theyāve kept that one quite ā¦ well the news hasnāt filtered out to the forest yet anyway.
Never been to the Seacity museum ā¦ kinda resent the money they spent on the place, they could have done something for the locals with it ie. ice rink, music venue, arts centre, tower or whatever.
Have been to the Art Gallery which was ok though apparently most of their extremely valuable collection never seeās the light of day as far as the general public are concerned ā¦ which I donāt quite understand.
This massively underestimates just how big the craft beer scene now is in the UK. Whilst the beer industry continues to slump (including both mass-produced piss and more traditional fare), sales of craft products are massively up year-on-year. Itās where the money and the growth is.
There are plenty of lovely trad pubs across the South (I can even think of a few in *spits* Portsmouth), but thereās fuck all for the craft fans other than in Southampton. Plenty of people are travelling from other cities to visit some of the places I listed. Ignorance of this doesnāt mean it isnāt happening.
Originally posted by @cobham-saint
Taxis are my best friend on these sort of jollies.
Bowing to your knowledge and experience, and me wanting to make the best of a day on the sauce - which ones are āmust go toā and are there any which are just ok-ish and could be visited next time round?
For my money, I would start at The Butcherās Hook (edge of Bitterne) and go from there.
The Butcherās Hook
The South Western Arms
The Bookshop Alehouse
The Guide Dog
The Rockstone
The Dancing Man
Some of those do have a 10 minute walks between them but Iād say all are essential. Personally I quite like a stroll between places and itās no more than 1.4 miles from The Hook to The Rockstone. Iād suggest grabbing a taxi between The Rockstone and The Dancing Man.
Sorry if I sound a bit dumb but whatās craft beer ? Is that the micro brewery beer
SteveITF:
āSorry if I sound a bit dumb but whatās craft beer ? Is that the micro brewery beerā
Mate, itās the stuff you can only drink out of jam-jars alongside your organic burger and fries served on a slate or shovel, whilst sporting a chunky hipster beard and tattoosā¦
Its been going on for years, how many of these are actually new boozers? And how many pubs have closed down? Does this bring in the tourists? Lets think a bit bigger than a check shirt rolled up and a bloke with a beard.
oh dear
2012
The Rockstone
2014
The Butcherās Hook
Sadlers Brewhouse
2015
The Dancing Man
Overdraft
2016
Brewhouse & Kitchen
The Bookshop Alehouse
Olafās Tun
Brewdog
Caskaway
Blues & Belgium
No boozers of worth have closed down in Southampton over this period. Absolutely none.
I donāt get the elitism (or anti-elitism? post-elitism?) regarding the craft beer scene. But frankly if people are ignorant enough to think itās all hipsters and beards then at least it means Iām spending more time drinking and less time queueing.
11 bars not pubs have opened in the last 5 years? How many are owned by the same people? My mates run a few up here, its great and very successful and I am not knocking it per se but it wont bring tourists in as its everywhere not Southampton and they arenāt pubs theyāre shops with a couple of taps and greyed walls.
ant:
āI donāt get the elitism (or anti-elitism? post-elitism?) regarding the craft beer scene. But frankly if people are ignorant enough to think itās all hipsters and beards then at least it means Iām spending more time drinking and less time queueing.ā
My earlier post was tongue in cheek - mostlyā¦
Personally I have a lot of time for new beers / start ups, but there is a lot of tosh out there from the invariably bearded Tarquins of this world who talk the most pretentiously bull shit about how theyāve crafted their artisan beer using the tears of Amazonian Indiansā¦
Iāll go a long way for a good beer, but Iām buggered if Iāll drink it out of a jam jar though.
Well not only will you be buggered possibly by the ladyboys, but some restaurants down here actually use what we would call jam jars as glasses and finding a table with a set all the same never happens
Bt we enjoy it 
Ant, I know youāre passionate about the craft beer scene, but do you think you might be over-egging its importance to the local economy? Itās pretty niche, even if it is growing. Itās not exactly a Real Ale Oktoberfest, Southampton branch, is it?
Craft beer is great, the scene is fine (if a bit pretentious from what Iāve seen of it down here), but anyone who suggests it brings in a significant number of tourists is going a bit far!
An example of what happens here.
That is distinctly shit and has as much pulling power as a fat slag in a Hefner household. A shopping centre is going to bring tourists into the place? If thats the case then make it unique, what is unique about a nandos?
Ā£40 for the family to watch a load of animals with lampshades on their heads??
Yes thats the Sotonian spirit CB.
