Excellent food and drink. Friendly staff. Great atmosphere. Very popular place so book early!read more

Just terrific. Located in an almost 300 year old building, rooms have been lovingly restored with…read moregreat care. Staff was very friendly and helpful. The restaurant was wonderful--clearly the chef takes pride in his work!

Wow, what a place! Quirky, fun, crazy are just a few words to describe it…read more My friend took me here on our little adventure to Winchester. After getting over the initial shock (this place would never fly in the US, nope!) I began to explore the many rooms filled to the brim with antiques, knick-knacks, and oddities. Lots of oddities!! It is much bigger inside than it looks outside, and there seems to be a resident bar dog (who doesn't love a bar dog!!?). There are countless photo ops throughout this fantastic pub. The bathrooms are somewhat hidden within the fake bookcase. The ladies room was clean enough. However, I made the mistake of reading the writing on the wall and looked up. Don't look up. It is an image that will live forever in my mind! All part of the charm ;) Drinks were reasonably priced and they had a decent selection of holiday beers. I haven't stopped talking about this place and highly recommend for visitors. I hope to return to Winchester soon and introduce others to this gem. I would also like to visit the sister pubs (The Black Rat and The Black Bottle, though I think the Black Rat has closed).

We had a great little lunch on the dog-filled patio. The sandwiches were enjoyed by all, as was the…read morefriendly ambiance. Service was very good aside from one woman who was rather curt. Bathrooms were clean-ish. It's worth the pleasant little hike from the town center to have a meal here.

Food was pretty average, service was fine, nice place, but nothing to get too excited aboutread more

I have had a most memorable meal at the Boot - a simple affair in the bar that will linger long in…read moremy memory. All we had were grouse (from the famous Stockbridge butchers, Robinson's) and a bottle of Gevrey Chambertin, but it was perfect. The wine was decanted at our request and was absolutely delicious; rich and smooth, and was the perfect accompaniment to the grouse. The grouse arrived whole in a glorious rich gravy and dressed with spinach, game chips and bread sauce, and looked as good as it tasted. It was one of the finest meals one could have. The grouse was £21.50 - very reasonable. The wine cost considerably more. The service was perfect and the ambience, surrounded by locals, everything that a good pub should be.

Wow...what a surprise!! We were on our way to spend a few nights at the Lainston House Hotel in…read morenearby Sparsholt. We were very hungry after a long day in London. It was already very dark and we came to a T in the road and saw the the town name of Crawley and decided to see if we could get some dinner there. As we came up the road we saw some lights ahead and the Fox and Hounds came into view. It was the only place along the road but it looked nice. As we were parking two other cars came in making us feel better. Inside the place was very quaint and the staff friendly. The food was excellent, beers on tap were nice, and the wine list was very good. My daughter had the special chicken and mushroom pie which was chock full of meat and the pastry crust was wonderful. I started with the goat cheese pesto and tomato salad and then my wife and I split the roasted lamb dish which was so very good. All in all this place is a hidden gem!

From the owner: Traditional bar meals cooked and served to a very high standard, pub favourites alongside perfectly…read morekept real ales and a selection of other drinks, extensive wine list sourced with quality and value in mind. Wines you will not see on a supermarket shelf. 4 en suite rooms also available.

Lively spacious pub with scrubbed wood tables and lots of seating. I came here after work to meet…read morefriends and it was perfect. Set back from the road and offering a good menu, it's somewhere I'll definitely be coming back to. Next time I'll be staying for dinner as the smells emanating from the kitchen were very tempting!

This was my local pub for 5 and a half years, after work outings for birthdays, a quick drink at…read morethe weekends or a meal after work with the hubby. This place has a lovely interior and exterior decor, has plenty of seating, outdoor seating in the front and at the back and a great menu. There is a good choice of drinks including some ales. Often there are food deals for two meals for 9.95. This runs every weekday evening. My personal favourite is the Yorkshire wrap (roast beef wrapped in Yorkshire pudding) served with chips and gravy.

There are way too many good quality pubs that have been taken over and corporatised, or worse…read morefolded and I'm grateful The Bush Inn isn't one of them. This traditional old country pub and restaurant is nestled in the Hampshire countryside by a stream near Alresford. Good dark local beers, from clean beer lines, great quality food and a dark, wooden interior make this a wonderful place for a date or an intimate catch up with a small group of family and friends. Service is always helpful without being overly fussy and I haven't had a bad experience in the 30+ years I've been visiting.

Off the Winchester / Alresford road there's a lane leading to the little village of Ovington. Pass…read morethe church and go on down to the river (the Itchen) to find a wonderful gem of a pub hidden among the trees, beside an ancient Pilgrim Way. Long the haunt of local groups like the Young Farmers' and a favourite of fishermen - as the Itchen is one of the best trout streams in the country - it's a traditional dark and cosy pub, with roaring fires in winter and many nooks and crannies in which to settle for a long lunch. In summer there's a well-kept garden and food and drink are served under the shady trees beside one of the Itchen's streams. On recent winter's day, we had a table in one of the windows and our dog was allowed to sleep under it while we had an excellent meal that surpassed even previous visits. There was a first rate vegetable broth with crusty bread to warm one up, followed by the best, largest, plumpest plaice (and full of roe) I have ever eaten. There's a photo attached. A plate of traditional Eton Mess ended the meal with a touch of summer. There are two sittings for lunch - at 12.00 and 14.00 - and it's tempting to overstay if one takes the first, but the staff are charming and a gentle reminder is not given until long after the time has passed. There is free wi-fi (as there's hardly a phone signal let alone 3G!)

Visiting from the US and came here on the recommendation of a local due to its location along the…read moreriver by Wolvesey Castle. The outdoor seating near the river gave a great ambiance. The espresso martini was excellent and the Half Roast Norfolk Chicken was good. As a member of the service industry myself, what really stood out to me was the service. Considering our status as tourists, James was very patient and helpful in taking my mom's order as she was a bit indecisive. Minashe (not sure if I'm spelling that correctly) was extremely helpful and accommodating despite it only being his second day on the job here, though you wouldn't be able to tell due to his exceptional service. All in all, I would definitely visit again if I ever find myself in Winchester again.

I went to this place with my friends for some drinks. We were not very hungry. They had good…read moreselection of appetizers. We ordered their hummus and pita plate. the hummus tasted very fresh and good. I ordered a Pinot. The server helped me to select from a variety of wines. My friends had Negroni cocktail and they liked it. The only thing that disappointed me was that they had very less option for vegetarian appetizer. Towards the end we ordered their sticky toffee pudding and it came out to be amazing. The place overall was very cozy and old fashioned but still luxurious. They had a cute patio but we went on a winter evening so decided to sit inside as they do not have heating outside. Would recommend this place.

This has to be in the top 5 best pubs in the UK!…read more Truly exceptional drink, food and service. I would be going here more often if I lived more local to it. It's a little tricky to get to, narrow country roads, etc, but we'll worth it. If you wanting to eat I would advise booking and this place gets busy from the second it opens. Caters to all, especially families and has a wonderful garden and patio. Tim Gray is the landlord of this gem and is hands-on and welcoming. You will not regret visit this amazing pub.

Truly my dream pub/restaurant; open, bright dining room, large outdoor patio area and traditional…read morepub garden. Bar room at the front has been tastefully restored and updated, local brews on tap, decent wine, fantastic food and prompt, efficient and really pleasant serving and front of house team. Garden with fresh veg and some fruit, with a couple of outdoor games and covered outdoor pub tables and benches, all sit on the raised 150 yard garden platform above the haha. An infinity garden concept that rises just above the Hampshire countryside with fresh water stream and farm fields. Just excellent and what any city dweller that grew up in the country needs to reset their soul.

This a very cute thatched pub. There has been a pub on this site for over 400 years and although…read morethe last one burnt down this one has been around for a good while too It is full of character and charm. And is the centre of the village life. They have various dart events usually in memory of a villager who has since passed away and funds are then raised for a charity close to that persons heart. ie. Recently they had a darts match in memory of my cousin who died some years ago at an early age. There is usually a good turn out for such events. The locals love it and the walkers and beaters are always welcome when they pass by. The food is expensive though that is it's only downfall.

Best pub in the world. But you can't got there. It's mine. All mine…read more I went there with my friends for their regular knitting night. They knitted, I drank beer. And, oh my, what beer. Sourced from the local Pots Brewery, I had a brand new Pots IPA and it's one of the nicest British beers that I've ever had. Plus the thing that I particularly liked was that it was a new barrel just set up behind the bar. The landlady then tapped it, took out a small sample, tasted it, considered it, and, seemingly based on that, decided on the price per pint. £3.50 if you're interested. I would have paid twice that. And at around 8% you don't need too many. Plus, Thursday is, of course, sausages night, so there were sausages to accompany the liquid gold available from the bar for a mere 70p a pop. Plus, there's a dog. Every pub needs a dog. This one was not only a gorqeous spaniel, but friendly and lovely. He was also even more excited by the prospect of sausage night than I was. He spent much of the evening resting his chin on the bar doing puppy dog eyes. This was much more effective from him than when I tried it. Plus, the third Thursday is also their poetry and story telling night, so I popped down to the cellar to take a look. Their cellar is, quite literally, a cellar, but crammed in there were a few budding poets and writers sharing their efforts. I felt kind of bad that I had nothing prepared. So, yes, stay away from this pub. I've bagsied it. I might move to Winchester just so it can be my local. In fact, I might just move into the pub.

The floors are wonky, the air is slightly smokey from the fire and the beer is warm, as is the…read moreatmosphere.. the perfect local!