The Bright Water Inn (JD Wetherspoon), Shirley, Southampton

This is another old school conversion of what was presumably a shop with the blue and gold plastic signage on the small exterior. Inside it's long and narrow stretching back much further than suggested from outside with the bar roughly in the middle on the left. There is low seating at the front and rear with the usual high tables and chairs around the bar area. I was surprised to spot a dart board on the wall near the bar. The tables and chairs here are actually a bit more solid than some of their older outlets. It was doing a steady trade on my Tuesday afternoon visit. The bar has ten hand pumps which had one unused, one available soon, GK Abbot, Doom Bore, Ringwood Razorback & Old Thumper, Cairngorm Wildcat and Exmoor Beast. I went for the Exmoor Beast (£2.29) which was in first class condition. I then noticed that the Steak Club here was just £6.75 so ordered a mixed grill and another Beast as the "free" drink. This too was excellent with decent size steaks rather than the pathetic morsels I've had in some outlets. This was easily my favourite of the (currently) four Southampton Spoons.

This pub is just one fair sized room that has tables and chairs crammed into it.Although there was a fair range of real ales the place seemed very dull and the tables were full of dirty glasses and crockery.Not one of the better Wetherspoon's.