The Florist, Buckland, Portsmouth

Recently taken over by Oakleaf Brewery of Gosport. Oakleaf beers on sale and guest ales.

Architecturally, this Victorian corner pub on the main road through Fratton is a neo-Gothic gem whose ground floor tiled exterior provides a strange contrast to the two-gabled roof and appealing belvedere. Once inside, however, the delight and romance come to an abrupt end. It was difficult to decide which was less lively, the pub or the funeral parlour opposite. There were two bars (in the pub, I mean, not the undertaker's) with a total of nine handpumps, none of which carried any ale. The barman was openly hostile when we entered, while the solitary local was also pretty uninviting. There was an unpleasant odour in the bar. This pub was previously owned by Wadworth, but they sold it a couple of years ago. I don't see my coming back here until there is another change of ownership.