Tipsy Turtle bar and restaurant given warm welcome in Lee-on-the-Solent as it opens for the first time

Alan Shorthouse and his sister Tracy Jones, from Fareham, opened the doors of the Tipsy Turtle in Lee-on-the-Solent High Street last week. It is an endeavour that the siblings have wanted to embark on for a number of years.

Having finally achieved their goal they are appreciative of the support they have received from the community. Alan said: “The community have been great and really supportive. It’s early days and the staff are still learning the menu and how to operate the tills but the local community has been great.

“On opening day we had the local businesses all came in for a drink and they were really welcoming and friendly, it was lovely.”

The bar/restaurant serves a range of food and drink, including made to order cocktails, pizza’s, burgers and a tapas menu with sweet chilli prawns, calamari, goujons, halloumi froes and chicken wings among others. There is also an evening menu which has a range of dishes from carbonara to rib eye steak.

Alan has spent the last 24 years working in JD Wetherspoons in the area, most recently as the general manager of The Giddy Bridge in Southampton. He has always dreamed of opening up his own place and this week has been a landmark moment for him and his sister.

He said: “Anyone who has been in this industry, especially as long as I have, its an absolute dream to open your own venue and do things the way you think it should be done. Me and my sister are so pleased, it’s taken a lot of hard work and some long days to get here. It’s not for the faint hearted it’s been real hard work but now we are opening and trading it’s a dream.”

The Tipsy Turtle can be reached on 02392554646.