Revolution, Bedford Place

 

Visited with my sister during one of our Sibs Who Lunch outings. Revolution is a nationwide chain of 48 fun bars in city centres, such as Manchester, Leeds, Glasgow and Southampton. Founded in 1996, the company was taken over in 2006 by Alchemy, who tried unsuccessfully to sell it to Slug & Lettuce owners Stonegate in 2017. The chain is aimed at a young, fun loving audience, with a focus on appealing to women. The seating is casual and cosy, with circular settees ideal for small groups. The room is light and airy, with a good, safe vibe. We were attracted inside on a cold, dull Friday lunchtime by a very enthusiastic and cool waitress, Brogan. The street outside Revolution is undergoing roadworks, so the area is a little unappealing at the moment, and we found only one other customer inside. Despite this, Brogan was constantly upbeat and positive, extolling the benefits of the place, and dismissing the lack of daytime customers as fairly irrelevant because at night-time, apparently, the place is buzzing with students. She also pointed out that there is a rooftop bar. Because it was cold we didn't fancy the rooftop bar that day, but we were both intrigued enough to want to try it out in the summer.

Brogan outlined the offers available, which included two cocktails (they have to be the same) for £10, and a lunchtime offer of a meal and a soft drink for £6.95 (which is cheaper than the meal by itself, plus you get a free drink). As we pondered the offers, Brogan suggested that we go for both offers, and then upsold us on adding chips (£1) and converting the soft drink into an alcoholic drink (£2). Her suggestions were taken up, and we ended up with a boozy, fun, tasty, and satisfying lunch for much less than we expected.

I asked Brogan about the veggie meals, and she enthusiastically pointed out the plant based crispy fried chicken, which she says was her favourite, as she was also a veggie. There are lots of veggie items on the menu, which is a big plus for me. My partner had a chicken and bacon sandwich. When the food was served Brogan brought out a special 'slaw, which she said was also one of her favourites. It was wonderful!

We enjoyed the experience, and the cocktails (though filled so much with ice it was really hard to detect the alcohol, and were garnished with what appeared to be last week's lemon slices saved from the bin) were great fun! 

 

Enjoying our Sex On The Beach

There are no cask ales on offer, and the keg beers were fairly limited to ordinary lagers, no craft; but I don't think Revolution is aiming for either a cask ale or craft beer audience.
The hand dryer in the toilet wasn't working, and there were no paper towels, but Brogan brought paper towels out straight away, muttering that someone (presumably the cleaner who had just finished in the toilet) should have put paper towels there.
All in all, even with the lack of - for me - a decent drink, and an empty daytime atmosphere, this is a very good place, and while not suitable for all, would be a great venue for fun loving youngsters and the young at heart looking for a good night out that would be safe and good value.


28A Bedford Place
Southampton
SO15 2DB

Open Noon 'til late
Food Noon to 9pm 


* Revolution 
* TripAdvisor

* WhatPub 

***

Stonegate / Enterprise

Pubs in Bedford Place