St Cross

A pretty house on the corner of Back Street & Cripstead Lane in the St Cross area of Winchester

Cup of tea at St Cross

On a recent walk to St Cross we stopped by St Cross Hospital and had a cup of tea at their teashop. You can get food and drink for free at the Hospital of St Cross, an ancient tradition here is that anyone who asks for it is given the Wayfarer's Dole, a small beaker of beer and a morsel of bread.

St John's Church

 

In St John's Street is St John's Church. On one wall was this fascinating statue.

I am away for the weekend so sorry if I don't respond to any comments straight away

The Black Bottle

The latest edition to the 'Black' chain, it's the Black Bottle, a wine bar, that opened a couple of weeks ago. I did try to go in for a drink, but it is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. The building dates from the 1800′s, and has a number of different rooms including white wine rooms and red wine rooms, I'm not sure if they segregate you depending on what you're drinking!

Wines by the glass are dispensed through machines that hold 8 bottles of wine, that are operated through a card system. You buy a card, loads it with however much money you want, insert it in the machine, grab one of the 3 different sized glasses 25ml taster, 125 ml, or 175 ml. The idea is that you can try the taster on a few different wines, then once you have found a wine that you like, go to the bar and buy a bottle. Interesting concept, but I never really trust vending machines..!

I am away for the weekend so sorry if I don't respond to any comments straight away

Black Boy

Just around the the corner from the Black Rat Restaurant is the Black Boy Pub. The building has been on this site since 1750 and has been a pub for the last 200 years. The pub has a very unique interior with different rooms with collections of stuffed animals, spindles, pipes, jars of weird things, knick knacks and general odd stuff on display. It's one of the most popular pubs in Winchester and was recently reviewed in the Telegraph newspaper

I am away for the weekend so sorry if I don't respond to any comments straight away

Black Rat

This is our Michelin Star restaurant of Winchester the Black Rat. I pass by it every day on the way to work, but haven't yet eaten here. The Black Rat became a restaurant in 2007 and received its Michelin star in January of this year. Parts of the building date back to around 1550 and it has been a pub since 1770. The Black Rat is a part of a little 'Black' chain within Winchester. There is a Black Boy pub and recently opened Black Bottle wine bar.

Theme Day - Under Construction

City Daily Photo's Theme this month is 'Under Construction'. Perhaps it's wishful thinking, but I am hoping that some time soon this building will be 'under construction', as it appears to have been like this for ages. This is Chestnut Mead in Kingsgate Road in the St Cross area of Winchester. Last year, after 4 years of previous attempts, plans were finally approved to turn this large Victorian house into a four-bedroom home and three flats. The plans split the local community, with around 30 residents objecting and a similar number backing the scheme. Most of the objections were due to the fact that 2 extra houses would be built in the garden. But a year later there are still no signs of work and it just looks rather run down. The house next door has been refurbished and is looking pretty good!

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants