please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Possibly our favourite pub in Wareham and one of the busiest. Quite dark inside with the beamed low ceiling but it has character. The Purbeck Brewery Fossil Fuel was a no-brainer choice for me when the only other options were Sharp's Atlantic, Pedigree, Abbot Ale and Doom Bar. Pleasingly one of the handpulls was given over to Purbeck Cider's Dorset Dabinett. I'm still to find the pint that beats all others in Wareham but, with numerous CAMRA awards, this pub has a head start. Oh, and they had just watered the pavement hanging baskets which looked pretty and gave a good impression of the place.
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Very good pub. It was the only place I stopped in Wareham as I was unfortunately saddled with the old banger (the car that is not the wife) so could only have the one.
I was really glad we did opt for this place though as Wareham is not short of decent pubs however, I felt we made a ReAlly good choice.
Choice of 6 real ales of which I opted for the local brew from the Purbeck brewery called Fossil Fuel. Pint was in tip top condition and served with a smile. There was also complimentary cheese and nuts on the bar which was a nice touch. We also had a Sunday lunch that couldn't be faulted and was fairly reasonably priced.
Pub is cosy and the walls are adorned with some interesting nautical memoribilia and paintings again with a nautical theme.
I hope I can return at some point without the motor so I can get stuck in to the rest of the ale range.
8/10
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We had visited the two CAMRA approved pubs in the town and then happened across this place on our way to the local Sainsburys, deciding to try it on the way back. A very nice selection of beers on the pumps and a welcoming, happy barmaid. This place should be in the GBG rather than the Quay in my opinion.
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What an excellent pub! I've been to Wareham many times and can't believe I've only just discovered this place. Superb range of ales, good service and what looked like an excellent menu, though we couldn't stay for lunch. I'll be back next time I'm in the area!
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An excellent little pub - just of the town centre - which offers a good range of beers included some local brews. In fact we stayed for 2 rounds - the Yeovil Glory being exceptionally good! As with The Kings Arms there is plenty of good banter here and a great atmosphere. Very friendly staff and if we didn't have to catch a train I dare say we would have stopped here all afternoon! Don't miss it.
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Decent beer, but no real cider, just the pressurized keg stuff from Thatcher's and Symonds, which is shameful. Now sources its food locally, so there's been a real improvement. Somehow manages to be welcoming without actually ever being friendly -- quite bizarre.
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A small pub with six real ale available, the ones I tried were very good and were an interesting selection with a couple of Scottish ones available (80 shilling and Golden XPA).
Did a busy trade in food but was still a drinkers pub with a few "interesting local characters" by the bar.
Has a large outside drinking area with plenty of seating, the bar staff were good but with it being busy could have done with extra help.
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I come to Wareham regularly and this was the pub I always used to go to but the beer quality hasn't been the same for a while now and my usual Fish pie is about half the size and not as tasty as it used to be. Shame as The Kings Head has a boring choice of beer but served much better. ( my kids miss the fish tank too)
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Small friendly pub, well-kept, clean and tidy. Good range of ales, and the Ringwood Best I had was perfect. Separate room at one end aimed more at food, but you can eat anywhere if you want.
Attractive and interesting range of meals available - my wife and I had specials off the fish board, and both were superb, as were the accompanying veg. Under a tenner each for very non-standard pub grub. Fresh flowers on every table in the dining room, and decent range of unobtrusive background music.
Well worth a visit, either for food or just to drink
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Good range of real ales including from local brewers. Tried three of them and all in excellent condition. Food was disappointing for the price - over baked and dry fish, uninspiring lettuce/tasteless tomato slice (one!)/cress/cucumber salad and meagre chips. However, lively bar with constantly changing locals and regulars made entertainment. Good atmosphere. Worth a visit just for the beer.
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Visited this pub as I was in the area and was enticed inside by the big banners stating it was the winner of CAMRA's Dorset pub of the year 2007. The interior is very nice, apart from the large TV showing football matches, and the barman was polite. The beer was in good condition, so we decided to eat there. What a disappointment, as the ingredients were clearly the cheapest that could be bought, sausages tasted like Tesco value ones, all rusk and herbs and no meat, and the chilli was made with mince that tasted like ground up gristle out of a tin. Such a shame as the pub has a lot going for it, if only they had used the local butcher to source their meat from I would be happy to use the place in future, as it is, there are plenty of other pubs in the town, so I won't be back.
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lovely drinking and eating pub, all the staff were friendly and everything was well priced. Nice log fire, which really brings character to this pub. I was very happy sitting in this pub, eating my meal and chatting to some off the locals about Wareham and the different pubs in wareham. Well worth a visit.
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Ah The Duke, what can i say.. Another of our Real Ale Quest regulars, good selection, very good prices, but, (and I hate there to be a 'but'..), last year we noticed a distinct trend toward cooling the Real Ales down too much - a very big 'no no'... With a heavy heart, we left this time after a couple, and de-camped to the Kings Arms at the top of the High Street. Not as big a range, but comparitively priced, and the correct temperature. Give 'em a go...
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The landlord was not interested in telling me anything about the ales he was selling, and made me feel uncomfortable for asking about them before I bought a pint. I had been looking forward to visiting the pub, having read a good review in Good Beer Guide. The beer when it came, was in good condition, but I would not go back there.
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Customer Relations
Don't complain about the beer!
The manager was extremely defensive and quite rude when I was insistent that the Abbott Ale had an unpleasant aftertaste. To be told that it was a fresh barrel that morning and that no one else had complained did nothing to address my dissatisfaction, as I had already ordered and paid for replacement glasses of Ringwood which was excellent. As one who lives in the town and who comes to this pub quite often, I was quite let down. A drink in a pub these days represents extremely poor value for money compared with a bottle of wine at home and it seems reasonable for a customer's comments to be listened to and taken on board in a less aggressive manner. The beer in the nearby Kings Arms is considerably cheaper and the food in the Kings Arms at Stoborough is in a different class to that served in this establishment.
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OK pub with good selection of Real Ales.
Not the most welcoming of barman (assume manager).
Nice drinking area in the rear of the pub particularly when the sun shines.
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Reliable well-run real ale pub which also sells good value food. This Sunday they had a superb range of beers on as part of a Waverley sponsored real-ale month - including Moorhouse's Pendle Witches Brew, Keltek Magik and something very good from Brixham.
There is a pleasant (in summer) beer patio out the back. A great place - this was my best visit here: 8/10.
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Very good pub with good food. Beer very well kept with a good choice of micros. Nice outside drinking area. Staff very pleasant and knowledgable.
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The best pub in Wareham probably, but not without its faults. The cramped L-shapes layout makes it easy for boring groups of darts players to dominate the place. Aside from darts night it's OK.
The food is OK by pub standards but that's not saying much.
The kitchen is behind the bar so food has to be ferried through the punters to the restaurant at the other end. This creates a revolting stench of over-used chip fat and cheap "sizzlers" when they're busy. Go when they're quiet and it's OK.
The beer is generally - though not always - well kept with a good turnover.
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Great food is always on offer here. I haven eaten here quite alot of the time and have never been let down. The pub seems very pleasent and so does the staff. The draught beer tastes great. One of the best places in wareham for food. There is also a beer garden at the back which looks well looked after
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Just to let 'RealAleMonster' know that the cat lives 3 or 4 houses down the road and is not the pub cat. It just likes to come and visit, like the rest of us.
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Excellent pint of Summer Lightning to be had here on a recent visit. The friendly pub cat added to the convivial atmosphere in the beer garden.
anonymous - 22 Aug 2008 21:31 |
Best pub in Wareham - At least 4 regularly changing real ales, of excellent quality and better priced than anywhere else in the area.
Food is very good, with a range of prices from good value to very high.
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I have eaten two very good meals here recently ,and had some fine beer to go along with it.Four good ales on and large menu with many fish dishes on.Best pub in Wareham by a long chalk.
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VERY well kept ales although slightly pricey but a great pub worth visiting
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best pub in wareham...excellent beer selection and all well kept...
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a really friendly pub with some true charectors of the loal variety beer was good with good local beers for some reason i always seem to miss the lunch hour so cannot comment on that but then again i always leave there a little worse for wear!
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Beer was good, but maybe a little cold
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ive been using this pub about three tomes a week for the last 10 years it is by far the best pub in town for both food and drink.its jus a shame about one thing and that is the manager is never about the only time you see him behind the bar is when he is pulling himsel a beer(which i never see him pay for)
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A real locals pub where you can hear some of the strongest Dorset accents for miles around. Great selection menu-wise. If you like fish. Which I don't.
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tried a steak sizzler, not impressed. It had a piece of burnt fish in it, and a lemon slice. My partner had mussels and there were eight dead ones. may have been a bad day, as this has been my favourite Wareham pub since I was young.
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This is a real country pub, the locals are friendly, the food is delicious, in winter had a roaring fire going, great place.
anonymous - 30 Jan 2006 14:15 |
Have stayed here B&B great food, you must try the sizzlers, friendly staff and locals, highly recommended
anonymous - 8 Sep 2005 16:41 |
Good for food and ale, it was pissing with rain when we were there so I didn't check out the beer-garden but it looked good as I skipped out to the outside loo.
The food is good and it attracts local council office bods and old gits a-like. Four ales on the good, a fish tank in the resturant, handy for a pint or two, I thought.
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