North Star, Bridgemary, Gosport

Seriously weird place. Someone's clearly bought this suburban pub and jizzed a load of daytime TV makeover ideas against a wall. Pub carpet, black walls, various bits of crap like old suitcases in a pile, wall mounted Barbies, a hundred plastic lampshades. Oddly, bits of the prior incarnation remain such as an unusable dart board and a pool table which jar with the lame attempt at up-marketness. Four pumps and not a single ale. Ended up with a Yakima Red. That and a lemonade for £4.20 - you can’t get away with charging those prices round here. Can’t see this being open for much longer (and lo, a few weeks after my visit as I type this review, it isn’t. Call me Mystic Meg).

A large road-side pub dating from the mid-20th Century. It consists of a large L-shaped bar mostly set with tables for diners. The menu is basic ans shows little imagination, but the carvery is good and represents reasonable value for money, while the food was freshly cooked and served personally by the chef. There is a good sized seating area at the front and a car park to one side. The muzak is quite depressing causing me to start thinking about self-harming before I had another beer. The floor is a mix of carpets and tiles, and the decor is bland. The staff were friendly and welcoming, but the clientele were hard to judge - a mixed bag, but mostly the over-70s. There were 2 ales on, Doombar and Abbott, Both were ok and kept at the right temperature so were rather enjoyable. It's a good place to stop in for a quick meal if passing.