Pie & Vinyl, Portsmouth

 

Charming & quirky place that is worth a visit. The vinyl records are all new issues rather than originals - the prices appear to be around £22 per album so there's no chance of a bargain, and there's little romance because they are not the originals. However, if you like buying new vinyl, this is a cool place to browse - you even get a free cup of tea! 

The pie part of the shop is mostly separate, though there are albums around the tables to browse for those so inclined. The menu is divided into meat pies one side, and non-meat the other. A hot pie by itself is £6.50, gravy £1 extra, mash (various) £3 each, mushy peas or beans are £3 - though you can get the complete plate for £11.50. The servings are generous, and the pies are tasty. 

There are canned beers from three different local breweries available - 440ml cans  are £6.50. All in all not cheap but a fair deal for honest, locally cooked food and locally made beer in a charming and quirky environment. And the staff are cool. 

Well worth a visit. 

Date: March 2022    Score:  8 

59-61 Castle Road,

 Portsmouth PO5 3AY



* Trip Advisor 

Mettricks, Portswood

 

After several years under dodgy ownership, Mettricks is back under the control of the founder, Spencer Bowman, and he has opened a new branch in the old Lloyds Bank building in Portswood, which had previously been converted into a pizza restaurant.  

The ambience 

The inside is very attractive, and the atmosphere is buzzing, and the vibe is cool, trendy, and bohemian. The music is, though, just a tad too loud for comfort; and, with the high ceilings creating an unpleasant acoustic echo which makes the music sound harsh and hollow, that, for us, was a serious flaw. But the place looks great, the service is pure Mettricks (smooth, casual, friendly, and rather slow), the food menu is small, but very interesting, with a decent choice for non-meat eaters, and there's a local beer on tap. The place has more good than bad.  But it could be absolutely brilliant if the music were turned down a tad. The buzz of other people chatting and enjoying themselves is the best music - the canned music should be warm and low for the customers, just there to fill in any spaces between the conversation (or, preferably, not there at all in order to allow people to relax and chat to each other without having to raise their voice - but that's a personal choice).  

The choice of keg beers and cider

The beer I had was Unity Conflux - a locally made beer (Unity are just down the road - oh, no, they are not, they moved in 2019 to Princes Street). It's a modern hazy pale ale, in which the citric hops are added late to create a soft and fragrant citric flavour with little bitterness.  

My Turkish eggs

I ate the Turkish eggs: Poached eggs with seasoned yogurt, spiced smoked paprika butter, herbs & buttered toast. Bloody good stuff!  Lyn had the breakfast butty with awesome crispy kale. Both meals gave me ideas to try out at home.  

Lyn looking wistful as she tries
her smoothie

This is a good place. 

Date: March 2022 Score: 8


267-271 Portswood Rd, 

Portswood, 

Southampton 

SO17 2LA

Open: 8am–11pm every day


* Mettricks

* Daily Echo   

* TripAdvisor 

Portswood