The Wellington Arms

Featured reviews

• E

  Eddie Manning

  ·3 months ago

  “Stopped in for a nice Real Ale. Enjoyed a Robinsons Unicorn. Lovely friendly service from Louise. Cheers!”

• N

  No Budget & 1Handed Films Present

  ·7 months ago

  “Visit 20/02/26 (Apologies for taking three weeks to post. Life.) The Wellington Arms The Wellington Arms, SO15 3DE (not to be confused with The Duke of Wellington, SO14 2AH, located in the old city) is a lovely off-the-beaten-path residential pub just off Shirley High Street in the Freemantle area of Southampton. The building dates from circa 1860 and has bags of old-fashioned character, carefully preserved in a refurbishment done sometime before the pandemic. The entrance to the pub (mind the step!) leads to three main areas - to the right the cosy snug bar which has the main bar area (be sure to see the pre-decimal coins under glass on the bar). To the left a second smaller bar, with a seating area dominated by a dart board, plus the toilets not too far away. Finally, a long corridor type room from the small bar that leads to a good sized paved outside garden (predominantly a smoking area, but popular in the summer). The pub is well stocked and maintains 5 different real ales that rotate regularly. Anthem (3.4%) £4.40, HPA (4.0%) £4.40, HSB (4.8%) £4.70 plus 6X and Gem were on offer when I visited. All that I tried were in superb condition and the pub offers a loyalty scheme on all draught or tap pours (not just real ale). Your 10th pint is free and if you ask can do the same deal on halves, your 10th half being free. There is also a good selection of alcohol free drinks on offer, including Heineken, Old Mout, Ghost Ship and Guiness Zero. The pub is thinking about expanding this alcohol free range into gins and others. There are TV’s around the pub but I didn’t find them intrusive. In fact, the winter Olympics (2026) was on at low volume and it lead to some pleasant conversation with the regulars who were enjoying an after work drink. The pub offers a selection of board games (lots of different types of Monopoly*) plus house darts for the dart board. James and Kelly behind the bar were friendly and welcoming, as were the few locals. The Shirley^ area has become a treasure trove of good pubs and bars in the last few years, so I hope “The Welly Arms†” lasts for another 160+ years. Don’t hesitate to include it in your route if you are exploring the area. Be wary of that step at the entrance and note that given the historic nature of the pub the floors throughout are a touch uneven here and there, but that is undoubtably part of the charm. How many floorboards can you get to creak? I look forward to returning to see what tasty real ales are being used to tempt people like me. Plus, I have a loyalty card to complete! *Banned in certain sections of my family. ^Don’t call me Surely. †I always thought this was an interesting visual mnemonic.”

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• P

  Philip Scott

  ·7 months ago

  “This Pub is full of character with a good choice of beers. The Murphy's Irish stout was lovely there.”

• J

  Joe Elsey

  ·1 year ago

  “I recently had my 50th birthday here, staff couldn't have been any more helpful, polite and courteous. A proper "local pub" great atmosphere, great music and a band every Saturday night. The perfect pub, nice one welly arms, keep up the amazing work”

• S

  smurfymofo

  ·1 year ago

  “Old style back road pub, nice and quiet. Friendly staff, a few local regulars.”

• R

  Robert Rose

  ·1 year ago

  “Great little pub, Really enjoyed our visit – the staff were welcoming and attentive, the food was fresh and tasty, and the atmosphere was relaxed. The beer garden is a lovely spot to sit and unwind. Will definitely be back.”

• T

  Teeisfortutor

  ·1 year ago

  “Great local, traditional pub to meet up with friends after work.”

• I

  Ivan Roper

  ·1 year ago

  “Cracking little pub with a good line up of beers, very friendly and welcoming”

• R

  Rob W

  ·1 year ago

  “A pub that like mang others has fallen on hard times. You can see that it was once a place with ambience and had a great community gathering. Food is no longer served although there is still a reasonable choice of real ales available on hand pull which alone does make The Welly worth a visit.”

• M

  mike gregory

  ·1 year ago

  “My band played a gig here. What a great pub, superb staff and clients.”