Southampton isn't a wildly attractive place to stay , but there are plenty of business hotels and commercial guest houses in the centre, including Linden , just north of the train station on the Polygon (tel 023/8022 5653; under A?40), which has bright, good-value rooms. For a grander atmosphere, try the four-hundred-year-old Star (tel 023/8033 9939; A?70-90) or the slightly younger Dolphin (tel 023/8033 9955; A?60-70); both hotels are halfway down the High Street and provide accommodation with all the antique trimmings. The best eating choices are clustered on Oxford Street, off Bernard Steet from the High Street, where you'll find the non-smoking Town House at no. 59 for vegetarian specialities alongside meat and fish dishes; Kuti's Brasserie at no. 39, a moderately priced Bengali restaurant, and the Oxford Brasserie at no. 35, a relaxed place for baguettes, salads, pastas and fuller evening meals. As for pubs , the ancient Red Lion , complete with minstrels' gallery at 55 High St, is a more charismatic alternative to the bars at the Star and Dolphin hotels.