The Townhouse, Lymington

Official site of The Townhouse - www.thetownhouselymington.co.uk

Facebook page of The Townhouse - www.facebook.com

Official site of The Townhouse - www.thetownhouselymington.co.uk

Facebook page of The Townhouse - www.facebook.com

Originally an 18th Century tax office, it became The Anglesea Hotel, then Thomas Tripp, then Salterns, but this pub’s repeated change in name and character hasn’t really done much to improve it – the clientele has stayed constant over the years, and it’s definitely one of Lymington’s lowlights. Three main areas, two of which were primarily dining and the third a sparsely furnished bar. There is a paved garden at the back, which has an outside bar and a covered smoking area. The atmosphere was damp and oppressive, not helped by awful muzak. The landlord was sluggish at best, incredibly slow and disorganised – he took our money then took an age to bring us our beer, which, like the person serving it with a sneer, was overgassed and unappealing. We may have been served quicker if he, and his under-intelligent staff, had concentrated on the beer rather than pandering to the entitled Karens and their over-indulgent husbands who were demanding immediate delivery of the over-priced bar snacks and poor value food on offer. The only ale on was Eight Arch Square Logic, which was not well kept. All this is quite surprising given that it’s currently owned by the same people who run the Sail, opposite, which is a much better bet. I really can’t be bothered to go back here.

A two room pub sat on the apex of a busy one way road system.It's obviously had a makeover at some point but manages to maintain a reasonably pubby feel.There was just a couple of beers on The Flack Manor Double Drop was in excellent condition albeit not the style of beer I normally favour. Not a pub I would go out of my way to revisit but as far as Lymington goes, one of the better ones.

Apparently Thomas Tripp was a 17th century smuggler who was arrested in this very pub before being packed off to the Tower of London for hanging. This is a two bar pub located on a corner in the middle of the one way system to the west of the High Street. I didn’t visit the empty larger left hand bar during my recent Tuesday evening visit, but I did peer through the window to spy a stage that is used for regular live music events. The right hand bar with a coal effect fireplace was populated by a few twenty-somethings who were chatting away whilst some background music played. Out the back is a large sloped beer garden. A premium and standard keg range was available from the bar that also supports three hand pumps. These were drawing the local Vibrant Forest Brewery’s Flying Saucer and Flack Manor’s Double Drop with the third hand pump being off. The food on the specials board started at £11.25, but this pub specialises in pizza which is all priced around the £9 mark. I found the service to be polite, but I wouldn’t make a special trip to revisit.