IT'S centuries old and full of character. One of Romsey's oldest and best-loved pubs is the Three Tuns and it is set in a quiet backwater of the Hampshire market town.

Managed by Rob Price and his fiancée Marielle Wertheimer, who is the landlady, the Three Tuns pulls in customers from far and wide and it is well-known for its traditional food dishes especially Sunday roast.

Rob said: "We are traditional and very pubby as it should be and our general rule is to do what we do, well. We get people coming here from as far away as Wales and Kent."

The Three Tuns is Grade Two listed and is around 300 years old and you can expect a warm welcome when you drop into the Middlebridge Street watering hole which is popular with families and it prides itself on what it has to offer.

This includes wholesome meals in the 30 seat restaurant and a wide-range of alcoholic beverages. Rob pointed out that the Enterprise Inns-owned pub stocks various beers, ciders, stout porters and lagers.

Rob and his wife-to-be, have been running the award-winning Three Tuns for about two years and they employ eight bar staff at the dog friendly pub which is open Monday to Saturday between 11am and 11pm and from midday until 10.30pm on Sundays. Food is served at various times of the day throughout the week. Sunday roast is dished up between midday and 4pm.

No one can dispute that the Three Tuns is a friendly pub and it is the idea place to spend a cold winter's evening in with its old open log fires burning away. The olde world pub's impressive ancient oak beams gives it plenty of charm and people are drawn in whatever their age. It also has an outdoor seating area where customs can sit out and enjoy a pie and pint on a warm summer lunchtime or evening.

The Three Tuns is close to the Romsey Bypass and is the ideal place to stop and have refreshments when taking a stroll along the 44-mile Test Way footpath between Eling near Totton and the Inkpen Beacon on the Hampshire-Berkshire border. A section of the walk is only a short distance away from the pub which has been given a makeover inside during the last few years. The Three Tuns is not far from Romsey town centre either where there is always something to see and do.