The Otter, Winchester

Cosy village pub with an L-shaped layout that is clearly popular with diners. Every table was taken on our Thursday evening visit. You'd certainly need a booking to eat here. What I also liked about the place was that it was fairly unpretentious, unlike most food-led pubs these days. This was a proper village pub serving food, rather than a modern restaurant with a few beers. Ales on are Otter Ale, Sharp's Doom Bar & Timothy Taylor Landlord. Whilst we didn't have any food, the menu looked tempting and what we saw looked like good homecooked fare. A huge array of pumpclips can be seen on the ceiling, including a few vintage ones. Service was with a smile.

The Otter visited august bank holiday. A proper village pub, sitting on the local green, deceptive in its size. The bar area is all old dark wood leading to a more modern extension and conservatory where restaurant styled food is served. The pub does have a good reputation for an excellent menu. It was quiet considering it was a bank holiday, the bar did seem to have local/ regulars, but the restaurant side wasn’t what I’d call busy. Great selection of five hand pump real ales, Young’s Bitter, Summer Lightening, Ringwood Best, Doombar and locally brewed Otter which was a lovely pint. Considering the size of car park, the rear garden is small and in comparison to the rest of the pub needs some magic, as it did feel like sitting in the smoker’s corner! Somewhere to go back to, to sample more ale!