I was able to park on the street outside Mike and Abbie's flat, which was a bonus as I didn't have to negotiate the tight corner into their rear car park. First up was a cuddle with an enormous Hugo who was happy to be passed around!
He was so heavy but lovely and cuddly! After a chat about Mike and Abbie's future plans (which include travel to Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam) we drove to Romsey for a drink. Luckily, the weather was still sunny and dry, and it was lovely to walk around the charming little town.
We had a drink in one pub and had a good chat about what we were all up to. Abbie has managed to secure a physiotherapy position in Nottingham and starts in November, so it's another change of scene for them both. We told them about going away for Christmas, which I had been dreading, but they both accepted it calmly!
After a couple of drinks, we headed for another pub, with Sophie, Abbie and me calling into a charity shop on the way for a browse. Sophie found two unusual tiles that would look great in her bedroom.
At the pub, Keith and Mike were sitting inside, but people were able to sit in the sunny garden area outside and watch the football this afternoon.
From Romsey, we headed back in the direction of Southampton and found our pub for lunch, The Chilworth Arms. It was packed with people celebrating Father's Day and we were seated apart from the main dining room, so a little quieter.
We had a special Father's Day menu to choose from and four of us opted for the chipotle sticky chicken to start, while Mike had squid. Keith and Sophie chose a roast for a main course, Abbie and I opted for the fish and chips, while Mike had a dirty burger.
Our starters were delicious but I was disappointed with my fish and chips. Although the batter was lovely and crisp, it lacked taste. Keith was astounded at the size of his three-roast lunch! His Yorkshire pudding was huge!
He gamely made his way through his meal but he couldn't finish it, much to the delight of Mike who scoffed the lot! He hadn't been happy with his burger so I was glad he enjoyed the rest of Keith's roast meat and vegetables!
For dessert, both Keith and Mike decided to substitute their pud (it was a three-course set menu) for a cocktail. Naturally, they decided to have an Old-fashioned, but when the waitress came to take their order she said they'd "run out." How can you run out of a cocktail? Surely the pub stocked all the ingredients? Reluctantly, Keith and Mike were forced to have a Passionfruit Martini, a.k.a. a Pornstar Martini, much to the mirth of us all! I never thought I'd see the day when Keith chose a cocktail!
Sophie and I chose a much more sensible dessert, a chocolate brownie with ice cream. Delicious!
When we asked for the bill, we sent it back as they had charged us for two drinks we never received and they hadn't taken our £25 deposit off either! Huh! It'll take a lot to get one over on us!
We left the pub and headed back to Southampton to visit The Witches Brew for a last drink. Overhead, large grey clouds were gathering and I hoped it wouldn't rain on the way home! We parked easily and walked up to the quirky pub which was empty. I chose a stout and the rest of the beers were pulled straight from the barrel so looked a bit flat. It's quite sad that this will be our last time visiting Southampton as Mike and Abbie will be moving in August.
We dropped them both off at the flat and headed home as it was 6pm. Our journey was fine and although the traffic was a little heavier we made better time on the way home, and avoided the rain!
I managed to get Keith home just in time for the England-Serbia game at 8pm. Result!
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