The Golden Bowler, Fareham

The Golden Bowler is a real oddity - Architecturally it sits somewhere between hacienda and pre-fab, while its decor is vaguely of the Falkland Islands genre with a hint of Eastbourne. The interior is big on Artex and fake beams, and there are pre-colonial carpets. When we walked in (all aged between 45 and 55) the average age of the clientele dropped significantly - together, this gave it something of the ambiance of carehome. But - it is an ex-GBG pub, and with its selection of 5 real ales, all in excellent condition, and a list of the next 4 to come up from the cellar, one wonders why it isn't in the latest edition. The landlady was very hospitable (a young slip of a thing in her late 40s), food was better than average and there was plenty of room to park between the Zimmer frames. The music on the grammophone was a bit annoying (awful Rock and/or Roll nonsense, not proper tunes like they used to write, you know the noise they put on the pirate wireless channels, now, when we were young...). I would heartily recommend this pub to anyone who likes real ale or a decent pub meal, and to anyone interested in Jurassic studies, and please, CAMRA, put it back in GBG.

Very pleasant pub. Friendly staff, good food and a choice of real ales. Well worth a visit.