BOAT CUISINE

Thrust into the spotlight by ’80s TV series Howard’s Way, this Hamble pub continues to dine out on the story. But what’s in store for boaters looking to dine in? Phil Sampson finds out

THE JOLLY SAILOR

OLD BURSLEDON, HANTS

The Jolly Sailor is a pub, and a jolly good one at that. An unrivalled location, an excellent selection of beers, wines and spirits, and indoor, outdoor and covered seating areas too; this place has it all. One of the three interior sections is a dedicated full-service restaurant, while those seated elsewhere can order food at the bar. It’s flexible, fun, dog friendly and, needless to say, busy.

On our lunchtime visit, we decided to sit in the saloon and order from the bar. The all-day menu offers multiple options ranging from light nibbles to a full three-course blow-out. With ten starters and 13 mains listed, there’s possibly a little too much choice to my way of thinking – can any establishment really do that number of different meals well? Putting this dark thought aside, I opted for the Steak and Tangle Foot pie (to complement my pint of Tangle Foot beer, naturally), while my partner chose the vegetarian Malaysian aubergine curry.

As we ordered, my eyes were drawn to the picture of the cast of Howard’s Way adorning the wall by the bar. Aaah, those were the days, and here we were following in the footsteps of Tom and Jan Howard… let’s hope the food would be a bit fresher than the plots they had to endure!

In the event our meals were perfectly acceptable, if not from the upper echelons of the gastropub scale.

My pie was piping hot, so much so that when I finally succeeded in piercing its remarkably sturdy and somewhat recalcitrant crust, a cloud of steam escaped. This continued throughout the meal every time a chunk of steak was extracted from beneath the pie’s weapons-grade lid. But once the casing had been beaten into submission, the pie tasted good – and liking my food hot, the heat wasn’t a problem for me. The one element I did not care for – given the pie had been cooked in beer – was the accompanying red wine sauce. Thankfully, it was served in its own little jug.

My partner’s curry arrived attractively garnished with mixed leaves, accompanied by a bowl of fluffy jasmine rice on the side. It had good taste and texture, although – not vegetarian by nature – she did whisper at one point that it would have benefited from the odd chunk of meat. You can’t take some people anywhere!