St Michael's Church and a Great Meal

Across the street from the Tudor House and Garden is St. Michael the Archangel Church. Founded in 1070, it is the oldest building still in use in the city of Southampton and is the only church still active of the five originally in the medieval walled town.

If you look above the center window, you can see the outline of the original gabled roof line which was raised in 1828. The original spire was built in the 15th century and reconstructed in 1732 to make it slightly taller. In 1887, to make it a better landmark for shipping, a further 9 ft was added bringing it to its present height of 165 feet.

With its very limited open hours, we were lucky to get in, especially because it doesn't actually open at all its advertised times. The interior is simple, but beautiful.

There is a wonderful wooden sculpture of St. Michael near the north wall.

Also along the north wall and in the Lady Chapel are several medieval monuments.

The first is a wool mark. This

small stone plaque bears the monogram

of the Wool Staplers Guild.  The parish

of St. Michael’s was the center of trade

in the medieval city and home of some wealthy wool merchants.

Just beside the gate in the chancel is an upright headless figure of a bishop holding a crozier (staff). In the chapel itself is the 13th century stone coffin of an unknown knight whose sword is displayed on the lid, if a bit hard to see. 

There are grave markers in the floor and it was a bit disappointing that so many of them were covered by chairs, making them impossible to see clearly.  

 Window of the Lady Chapel depicting scenes from the new testament:  

Behind the alter in the Chancel is a window showing Jesus with two archangels, St. Michael and St. Raphael. The Virgin Mary, the Apostles and the old testament prophets are beside them. 

The window is a replacement dating to 1949, taking the place of the window that was destroyed during the blitz.

Interestingly, St. Michael’s was the only church that wasn’t bombed during the blitz.  This is because the Luftwaffe used the steeple as a landmark and German pilots were ordered not to hit it.  In my visit to Holyrood church, I had heard one of the audio clips describing the night of the blitz when Holyrood was hit and two gentlemen were seen carrying something in a blanket that looked rather heavy.  It was the lectern, which was carried to St. Michael’s for safekeeping.  That lectern is still in use at St. Michael’s.

I spoke to one of the volunteers in the church who took me down to take a closer look. Made of brass, it dates to the 14th century.  The eagle shape is a symbol of the fourth evangelist, John, and this eagle holds a snake, representing Satan, in its talons.

The lectern is believed to be the oldest brass lectern in England. Its base is triangular, not round, and each leg rests on a lion, representing Jesus’ authority as the divine King, and his power to triumph over evil.  

I had a chat with two of the volunteers, which started when I told them that I had heard the church bells ringing the night before and wondered if there had been an event or if it was bell ringing practice.

I told them that I stood at the window of my rental accommodation just listening to it in awe.   They looked quite relieved and told me that they get a lot of complaints about “the noise” from visitors renting nearby. Incomprehensible! I also asked them about the significance of the rooster on the top of the steeple. The cockerel, as it’s known in England, symbolizes vigilance, repentance, and the power of God’s forgiveness. It was mounted on the spire when it was rebuilt in 1733 and has only been regilded once.   

We had a lovely chat during which one of the ladies referred to the other, named Beryl, as "knowing more about the church than anyone else." Beryl said, no, that the woman who really knew all about the church had just passed away at age 93. We discussed the need to commit these stories to paper before they’re lost.  I could sense the devotion they feel to the church and the sense of melancholy that there were only 5 people attending the eucharist service which was about to start. I bade them farewell and left St. Michael’s with a deeper appreciation of what I had seen, thanks to these lovely ladies.

That evening we decided to have a meal at a restaurant on the Town Quay called Ennio's. The menu looked wonderful and, though we knew nothing about it, we gave it a try. We were greeted by an ebullient young Italian gentleman who seated us at a table for two by a window. We ordered cocktails, a negroni for me and a limoncello/mango spritz for Bruce.

For appetizer I ordered Capesante, a dish of pan-seared king scallops, with caramelized fennel, saffron and fennel puree, crispy pancetta, and dill oil. It was heavenly. The scallops were seared to perfection and the combination of scallop and fennel (one of my favorites) suited me to a T.

Bruce had Guancia Maiale di Brasato, slow cooked pig cheeks, with parsnip truffle & honey purée, julienne of green apple, red wine jus, and chive oil. No knife was necessary; the meat fell apart at the touch of the fork. It was rich and flavorful and smelled heavenly.

For a main dish, Bruce chose Brodetto di Pesce, a classic fish & shellfish spicy chillie stew, with chargrilled ciabatta. It was similar to cioppino, but much spicier.

For my entree, I chose dinner and a show, aka, whole branzino baked in a sea salt crust, served with roasted vegetables. It was, of course, delicious, but for the waiter, it was all about the presentation. A small cart was wheeled to the table

Then the surgery began.

Several people applauded when it was delivered to the table.

The salt crust gave the branzino just the right amount of seasoning, and the clean flavor of the roasted vegetables provided the perfect balance. There was a massive amount of food, but they happily wrapped what I couldn't finish to take home.

Bruce's dishes were paired with a Montepulciano d'Abruzzo which was rich and full and positively opaque in appearance. I went with the waiter's recommendation of an Angelo Grillo from Sicily, which one of the blandest wines I've had in recent memory. That was really the only misstep all evening.

We didn't need anything else, but when has that ever stopped us? Bruce chose a Crema Bruciata, a rhubarb creme brulée with pickled blackberries and a glass of Vin Santo. I had a scoop of champagne sorbet. His was wonderful. Mine was quite bland, but at least it was cold and provided a fresh end to a rich meal.

It was a truly wonderful dining experience. I would highly recommend Ennio's should you find yourself in Southampton.