An institution in Bournemouth. Student central, and as such this club is cheap and very cheerful…read more So what if your Bacardi is sold in a plastic glass?? You don't mind so much when it's only a few quid! Theme nights run throughout the week, and dressing up is part of the fun. Not to mention more than decent comedy nights mid week. Tickets are available to non students, you do have to have a student friend to enter, though. It's not all studenty. Of late, TOFS, as it's affectionately known, has begun to get some well known artists and djs coming to its doors, that are openly promoted to the general public. 80s Matchbox Beeline Disaster, The Pigeon Detectives, and Zane Lowe, are just a few people you can see there. Always fun.

I love it here! It's a student union run club, energetic atmosphere at all time. When inside it's…read morefun because there are lots of different rooms all playing different music. A warning though, the £5 entry fee has to be in cash, and once your inside the minimum card amount is £5 - but there is a cash bar too which is always pretty empty, so it's definitely worth bringing some cash with you. I've never had a bad experience here, and every night out I've had here has been great fun!

This place is a classic In Bournemouth. It's a mix of a pub and restaurante where they have a good…read morespecific menu. Loved to stay hours having pints and conversation. Clean bathrooms and good music.

Awesome outside dining experience second time here in 2 days clean and very friendly staffread more

Great local pub, lots of history and atmosphere. The owner is a real character, a dyeing breed of…read moreindependent pub landlords....

A really lovely pub with great atmosphere - lovely bar staff and well looked after ales. The new…read morecovered seating outside is really good and the live bands are usually good (although they can be a little too loud).

The Opera House is without doubt the best club in the bournemouth area. Over the years it's played…read morehost to the worlds biggest DJ's and quite a few mammoth live bands too. During my first year at uni it had Slinky on every Friday and they were always nights that had to be seen to be believed, unfortunately they stopped Slinky after the re-design but I hear it's made a triumphant return finally. The venue itself is reminiscent of Brixton Academy or Koko with it's high ceiling and just general old-age. If you're a student, resident or just in the area for a short trip, you must check it out!

One of the best nightclubs in the South-West of Englandread more

Went to see Gary Numan last night at this 02 venue what a fantastic time we had. Numan as usual was…read morefantastic. The door staff were so lovely and helpful checking we were okay doing the very cold wait. The entry was easy and although a sold out gig I had plenty of room around me and didn't feel squashed. The staff at the front gave out free water during the gig which was great. The stage was high so had an excellent view of gary doing his act. Exit was smooth and I didn't experience any problems. Thanks once again for this amazing night *****

I saw the vamps there, great band. Alright venue, low-key rude staff but that's fine they were…read moreprobably j sick of no one wearing masks. Shit toilets, smelt and doors jammed. Huge queue outside to get in. Missed the first opening act completely.

I think Peppino's must have been reinvented since the last review as it is anything but…read moreold-fashioned. But it is still Italian and the food is good. The place is massive and consists of a restaurant and separate bar area which is used for live music gigs. We went on a mid-week evening which was more quiet, but not as quiet as they expected. Staff seemed completely overwhelmed by the number of guests. We had to wait well over an hour for any food to arrive at our table the large party at the table next to us weren't served until we were ready to leave at 10. Unfortunately, the more senior waiter lost his cool in the course of the evening and wasn't particularly friendly, almost snapping when one of us went up to the bar to hand over our payment. As we booked the table on a discounted deal, I'll be forgiving and give three stars. At full price this would seem generous as no food is good enough if the atmosphere isn't right.

Good old fashioned Italian restaurant even down to the tableclothes with their red and white…read moresquares. Sometimes you have to wait quite a long time to be served as they spend a lot of time chatting to the customers which is a good thing in my opinion. The pizza and pasta is of good quality and they have a good selection of wine and beer. The staff are really friendly and chatty as I mentioned and it is generally quite good fun in here with lots of people in large groups.

This place was refurbished a couple of years ago. It is lovely with nice piano music in the…read morebackground. We have been a couple of times for a sandwich and both times it was perfect. I recommend the beef and horseradish sandwich. And the chips are fantastic!

I worked here back when it was a dive but since it's been refurbished it's a lot more classy!…read moreGenerally for the older generations (35+), this pub is a great place to go. The real ales are well looked after and my mum assures me the wine choice is excellent. The only downfall is that sometimes the smell of the toilets is a bit overpowering.

Let's get the loo re-voo done first. The toilet doors are signed in Gaelic; I think mine said 'Fir'…read more(or was that the Ladies'?). The designers must have thought it was a good idea to tile the walls with tiles saying 'failte' (welcome). The only living thing that would find a welcome in O'Neill's toilets is a germ. Everything odious (no, I didn't mean to write 'odourless') that can be associated with a bad toilet area can be found here. In the main bar, two foreign bar lassies were both struggling to get the till to work, whilst a long queue of dispirited drinkers looked on. Of course, they didn't know how much anything cost, so if the till was not working, neither were they. I try find Manager on phone, one explained in halting English. There is a smaller bar in O'Neill's up some steps on another level, so I nipped round there in the hope of getting a pint of Guinness; there was not a soul in sight, but at least I was now first in the queue. After a few minutes, some loud glass-rattling brought the desired effect: a bar person - a pale, emaciated youth with long, lank and greasy hair, emerged from within. What now followed was amazing. In an attempt to be jovial, I mentioned that I was dying of thirst, and asked The Ghost of Banquo where he had been. Ah, I was hiding he confided, I needed a rest. The tables were sticky, the floor tacky, and it was a nice evening so I went out into their yard, which is ambitiously described as a Beer Garden on their web site. The tables were crammed with uncollected glasses, unemptied ashtrays, and the decking was littered with crisp packets. There's an O'Neills near you, I'm sure. I know that the Cardiff branch is clean and well run. So Bournemouth must be down to management. But who manages the Managers? Stand up Mitchells and Butlers Leisure Retail Limited. By the way, the Guinness was excellent. But not worth the bother.

If pretentious £10 a drink Bournemouth isn't you're thing then there's only a handful of places to…read morego and of these, O'Neills is one of the only places that is open late. While it's part of a fake Irish pub chain, it has an independent feel. There is a distinctive troupe of locals who fill the place every weekend but it's got a welcoming and fun vibe around it. The crowd is that little bit older, with 20 and 30 somethings filling the split section pub. The smaller top section is more laid back, with plenty of seats to chat with mates. With the main bit usually features a live band, covering everything from Van Morrison to the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. The music follows a similar trend when the DJ's on so it's usually a good place for a dance. The drinks are fairly cheap and if you go during the day the cheap food is actually quite scrummy. A good bet for a group of mates. You're likely to see rocky looking folk mingling with gay men and women and scruffy students chatting to well preened ladies. A real mix of people rather than an Hollyoakes type meat market. A rarity for Bournemouth.

Bournemouth Folk Club is held here on a Thursday and Sunday evenings. The venue is a bit like a…read morecabaret club with tables and chairs and a small stage. There is a bar and also food available if required. There are many great folk singers and musicians perform here and there is a great friendly atmosphere. The guy who runs it is called Paul Burke and he has been involved with the folk scene for many many years. There is a small admission charge.