Trendy Southsea bar continues to enjoy life in Palmerston Road

It's only been open for just over a year '“ but already Meat and Barrel has gone down a treat and been welcomed with open arms by the community.
By The Newsroom
Published 14th Apr 2016, 06:05 BST
From left, Jess Kaqorri, Steffan Jones and Laura McCallum at Meat and Barrel, in Palmerston Road, Southsea. Picture: Raphaëlle PérezFrom left, Jess Kaqorri, Steffan Jones and Laura McCallum at Meat and Barrel, in Palmerston Road, Southsea. Picture: Raphaëlle Pérez
From left, Jess Kaqorri, Steffan Jones and Laura McCallum at Meat and Barrel, in Palmerston Road, Southsea. Picture: Raphaëlle Pérez

If you’re after a hearty burger and a well-crafted beer, then the Palmerston Road venue is the place to be.

Based in the former Bamboo Bar and Restaurant, the pub celebrated its first anniversary in December.

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The venue is owned by the team responsible for Victorious Festival – entrepreneurs James Ralls, Andy Marsh and Ben Miles.

Meat and Barrel, in Palmerston Road, SouthseaMeat and Barrel, in Palmerston Road, Southsea
Meat and Barrel, in Palmerston Road, Southsea

And they’ve brought their cool Southsea vibe to the bar.

When you stop by, the first thing you see is the wide range of tap and bottled beers behind the counter.

Then, the indie rock music adds to the atmosphere inside.

There are 18 different beers on tap, and more than 100 bottled and canned beers.

Meat and Barrel, in Palmerston Road, SouthseaMeat and Barrel, in Palmerston Road, Southsea
Meat and Barrel, in Palmerston Road, Southsea

There’s also plenty of wine and a range of spirits.

A lot of the beer stock is British, but there’s also beer from North America, Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, and Germany.

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Manager Steffan Jones said: ‘It is very trendy at the moment.’

When the team arrived, they completely changed the decoration and the place is unrecognisable from the restaurant it was before.

It was opened up and bigger windows were brought in.

The walls were stripped back to expose brick and steel work.

Huge changes have been made to the menu, and there’s been a big focus on selling beer that customers perhaps wouldn’t get anywhere else.

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Steaks and vegetarian meals are on offer and different beers are put on all the time.

Twenty staff help to run the place and managerial duties are also shared with Paul Clilverd.

Steffan said: ‘We don’t really do private events, but we do get a lot of birthday parties in.

‘We had no problems when we started our business as we had very experienced people to start with.

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‘Now it is very popular for the food, as much as for the beer. It has grown in popularity so it’s going very well.’

Though it’s a trendy, up-market place to hang out, the bar has its fair share of regulars to keep business ticking over.

Steffan said: ‘Some people just come for a drink, others come to eat here nearly every other day.

‘Our goals are to keep growing and to keep expanding the range of beers.

‘As more people become interested in proper beer and well-produced good beer, it will carry on growing.’

The pub is open every day from 11.30am until 11pm or midnight on weekends.

Related topics:Southsea