Pubs and Beer in Southampton: The Ship Inn, Redbridge

Bags of character in this 17th century inn on the Western edge of Southampton in the area that was once the village of Redbridge. Now hidden in a wilderness of mainly modern housing just off the dual carriageway out of Southampton, and not far from Redbridge station, the pub is owned by Enterprise Inns.

Three local cask ales on offer

It offers three local cask ales, an attractive menu, and plenty of room for everyone. Families are very welcome. This is a proper pub serving the local community as it has done for 400 years. Well worth seeking out, this is a country pub on the edge of town.

Roasted veg, melted cheese and salsa sauce in a baguette
with a pint of Flack's Double Drop, all for around £7

The Redbridge and nearby Nursling areas are amongst the oldest in Southampton. There is evidence of Bronze age settlement, and the Romans had a bridge over the River Test, near where the modern motorway bridge is. The stone bridge over the Test (which still exists in front of the nearby Anchor pub), was used by drovers from the New Forest, and the Redbridge community was built up to take advantage of the bridge crossing, and also as sailors and ship builders.

The welcoming interior of the 400 year old Ship Inn

Date: Aug 2016 Score: 8

Cracking well run pub. Bags of charm and character. A top pub. However, they insist on a minimum of £5 to use your card; OK if you're having food and a drink, but awkward if you just want a beer - it put me off when looking for a light lunch. And they pump out music just a tad too loud.

Selection OK, but the local beers are gone.

I still really rate this place, and my Summer Lightening is in superb condition, it's just the little things that hold me off from rating this place very high.

Date: May 2019. Score: 8

A return visit after three years, with Myles as part of our regular Lads Who Lunch meet ups. The place hasn't really changed since my previous visits - this is still a pub loaded with charm in a forgotten and awkward to access location. The place was busy, but there was plenty of places to sit. A new addition is that you have to wait at the entrance until a member of staff comes to show you to a table. Even though we had a choice of tables, this may not be the case on a sunny Sunday in summer, so it would be wise to book.

Decent beer choice

I found the beer choice to be much improved over previous visits: there were four beers by reasonably local brewers. I had the Spring Zing and the Pigswill, both in decent condition.

Myles with his baguette

The food choice wasn't as impressive as the beer choice, and instead of struggling to decide between various temptations, we found ourselves struggling to find something we wanted to eat. Myles had a Brie and Bacon Baguette with Crisps, while I had a Baked Potato with Beans and Cheese. Not exciting choices, but, to be fair, very tasty. We both enjoyed our meals.