The Phoenix Bar and Eatery — Restaurant in Test Valley

Update December 21 I really enjoy going into this pub, the bar staff are really friendly and give the sort of welcome only given to regulars. My one and only thing is that the games area is really noisy and loads of shouting as the evening goes on, add that to the music and it really isn't a pub for a chat. Great fun if you are with a bunch of friends but if you want a quiet drink and a private chat then this may not be the best place. The one area of the pub that is a bit more peaceful is right by the, very, smelly toilets and no way I could sit there!

2018

This used to be the sort of pub I wouldn't go into but they have really turned it around. Now it is a lively, friendly place that attracts a much different clientele. Great gin selection, good wines and beers. I have not eaten here but people, whose opinion I trust, i know have and they say it is great. I will try the good very...

We needed a cold drink and a sit down during our visit to Romsey. The Phoenix stood centre stage on the high street. Not very alluring from the outside but just what we needed on the inside. A lovely chatty young lady served us a pint of ale and a lime and soda for a really good price compared to other establishments in the south of England. She chatted whilst she poured the drinks too which also makes a difference to me. Relatively quiet we found a table away from the bar and settled down. A typical old fashioned pub, nothing special, wooden floors, basic tables and chairs, 80s music playing in the background, quirky wall paper, nothing special but it had something, it had the ability to talk to your companion, it felt comfortable, not quite sure what it was but it definitely had something, maybe just the ambiance, who knows. If we were in Romsey again we would definitely pass through its...

Phoenix by name...what was once a lifeless and soulless pub, frequented by twattood, tracksuit wearing lowlifes, has been updated, polished and a new lease of life.

OK, not the greatest choices for real ales...it seems harder and harder to find a decent 5%+ abv in many pubs..resorting as they do, to insipid 3.1%-4.3% abv choices. That said, the beers are adequate for a lunchtime session beer, there are excellent spirits and some interesting wines.

The menu seems to be well liked by the 'shopping' and 'office' brigades and service is smooth and organised. The staff are young, friendly and very efficient.

The Phoenix is now a bright, welcoming and pleasant venue for a lunchtime drink/meal. The dynamic would obviously change quite dramatically at evenings and weekends, when they put on live bands and other entertainment. Highly...