Fabtastic food, the ultimate burger sure lives up to its name. The service is absolutely brilliant,…read morethere was a very friendly young waitress called scarlett who had a constant smile on her face. Lovely location, lots of seating inside and outside and a beautiful view looking out to sea.

I love this pub. I lived in the Isle of Wight for 7 months and out of all the places I tried (and I…read moretried many - research, of course) this was my favourite. I ran a B&B and would often send my guests here to sample their food while overlooking the beautiful countryside that surrounds this gem. The food isn't exquisite but it's reasonably priced for what you get and it's usually well cooked. The staff are friendly and there's plenty of seating both inside and out on the patio overlooking the sea should it be a nice enough day. There's plenty to entertain the kids with an indoor play area in the garden and some swings. If you're in the Isle of Wight I highly recommend you visit Chale. The scenery is stark and beautiful with the rolling hills complimented by the cliffs and sea for as far as the eye can see. Driving along the coast you can regularly see all kinds of birds of prey including hard-to-find Merlins. If birds don't take your fancy, keep your eye out for the kite surfers which can occasionally be seen out to sea. Great fun to watch, particularly if they're show offs and perform all their best tricks, which most of them do. All in all, this is a great day out no matter your age or interests. I hope to return soon.

This is a fair-sized pub located just off a busy road, quite near Arreton Barn Craft Village. The…read moremain event seems to be the 'All you can eat' Curry Night which is held every week and is always fully booked. It actually took a few tries before we could even get in to try this as it was so busy and there was absolutely nowhere to sit. We actually found the Curry Night to be rather disappointing, as being people who usually enjoy good curries, we found the trays of provided food to be extremely bland and mainly just sauce. It tasted like it was pre-packed just straight out of a jar, heat and serve. Given the difficulty in getting in here we had high expectations and so we left genuinely disappointed with the Curry Night. It's not a bad pub the rest of the week, and delivers exactly what you'd expect from a local traditional public house, it's just a shame the Curry Night was a let down. It must really appeal to some less adventurous people though.

Excellent pub grub: home cooked and large menu with daily specials. Curry nights on Wednesdays very…read morepopular with locals. Traditonal pub setting -food available in restaurant and bar areas.

The Chequers Inn is a lovely little family pub in Rookley, just outside of Godshill. Famous for its…read moreself serve carvery each sunday, I found that the roast is best eaten early in the afternoon - Getting there late leaves you with the hot - plate baked roast potatos and some rather dry meat. My girlfriend raved about the beef lasagne served here. I had a chicken curry, and I think I'll leave my thoughts on that particular meal out. There's a great garden and its situated in a beautiful area, adjacent to plenty of farms and great surrounding wildlife such as pheasants and the odd buzzard. For a fairly cheap n' cheerful pub meal, then it wouldn't hurt to give this place to go.

Good food and plenty of it also ideal place for childrenread more

Really good pork roast , service was excellent and a wonderful British pub in the new forestread more

The Turfcutters Inn is an old fashioned pub in the tiny New Forrest village of East Boldre. We…read morepopped in here on a Saturday lunchtime, mid way through a walk. It was fairly busy at the time so I guess it's a popular haunt, it certainly has the feel of a proper local. We didn't stop for lunch, just a refreshing pint and some crisps, but the menu looked like typical pub grub with a few specials on the board. The bar staff were friendly and welcoming, downsides included a telly showing Cash in the Attic or some such tosh, and grotty loos, but overall it's a good stop off for a beer and a wee!

Bonchurch Inn is a quaint old multi-roomed pub with some decent wine (house white was French…read moreburgundy) and some local ale on tap. Food wise the garlic bread was yummy but I was disappointed with the bland crab spaghetti, although as bf rightly pointed out seafood pasta always disappoints! I would recommend instead the lasagna which was much more tasty. The zablaglione dessert was sensational - it basically tastes like hot liquid boozy meringue and don't get it if you don't have a (very) sweet tooth, but for those who do it is a must try! Staff were very friendly and it's a convivial place to spend an evening, I imagine it's especially cost in winter.

I would like to put a shout out for the Bonchurch Inn for doing a great job of accommodating us…read morevegans without any advance notice! We went there knowing the menu didn't have much that would work, but my brother was staying at the Inn, so we figured we'd eat chips or something. Anyway, the cook's sister-in-law happens to be vegan, so he was used to thinking up ideas. He created 4 "vegan surprises" for us. They were delicious. Curried quinoa with jackfruit. (I mean, who happens to just have jackfruit kicking about the place?!) Really tasty, and great, personable service. The others seemed happy with their pizzas and stuff, too, but mostly I wanted to share about our positive vegan experience. Nice little Inn, a good local beer from the barrel, and good selection of wine and kids' drinks.

Great place, super location; super menu local style food- fresh and very well prepared; well…read morepriced; service super; Worth a visit - had lunch there; live music Sunday evenings!

3 stars for the food, 1/2 star for the space/location, 1/2 star for the view! superb meal of lamb…read morewith gnocchi, peas, fine beans and lamb jus - gorgeous gorgeous pieces of lamb, perfectly cooked and accompanied with sautéed gnocchi and veg with their light and delicate flavors shining bright (peas never tasted so good). absolutely dreamy view of countryside at sunset. definitely would have you given a rare 5 star if not for the casual level of service - certainly not terrible or even bad, very easy going and friendly, perfect for small town.

The Square and Compass is such a gem if you're looking for an authentic pub experience in the…read moreEnglish countryside! The views alone are worth the visit, but the unique character of the place makes it even better. From the beer garden in the back to the small museum of fossils and local artifacts, it really has a one-of-a-kind charm. One thing I loved was the quirky "Woodhenge" sculpture in the parking lot--made from tree trunks, it's been standing since 2015 despite the local council initially wanting it taken down. It's still there as of my recent visit, and it's a fun little sight that adds even more personality to the place. The menu is limited, but that's part of the charm! I had the sausage roll, and it was sooo good! The warm, flaky crust and flavorful sausage made for the perfect pub snack. We sat inside since it was a warm day, and the locals couldn't have been friendlier. My friend and I (a pair of Americans) were welcomed like old friends, which made the whole experience even more special. Definitely worth a stop if you're in the area--especially if you want to enjoy the local history, great beer, and a fantastic countryside view.

A couple of friends and I once went for a hike along the South West Coast Path in Dorset. It took…read moreus a couple of hours and was really nice: good weather, beautiful sea views, rolling pastures, and a great pub at the end. That pub turned out to be the Square and Compass. When we arrived it was warm and sunny, and most people were sitting on the dozens of outside tables, rocks, or just on the grass, enoying the sunshine. Oddly, a large number of chickens were strolling through the assembled patrons, but no one - drinker nor chicken - seemed to mind. There was a band playing some Beatles covers, too, though they finished shortly after we arrived. This is a proper country pub, long, low and very old wood and stone. They keep kegs of real ale and cider in a pump room here, so you order at the hatch. Check the Dinosaur Room while you're there. I won't say any more, since it deserves to be a surprise. I can't imagine a more relaxed, laid-back, country pub. The only downside was that although we'd planned to take a local bus back to Swanage, where our car was parked, those services don't run on Sundays. The day was so nice we decided to walk back anyway (along the road, though, a much shorter trip than the coastal path). EDIT: I was back again today, and despite the weather being crap - or maybe because of it - this pub was even better. We walked down to the ocean, to watch the surf pound the cliffs by the old quarry. We wedged into one of the tiny rooms and ate pasties and drank Ringwood ale. We gazed in wonder at the bizarre little fossil-and-beach-item museum at the back.

IMPORTANT: Please note that previous reviews on Yelp relate to earlier owners, not the current…read moreones. This review is as the result of two visits to the Folly Inn. My wife, who is American, and I, visited the Island for the first time in twelve years and chose the Folly Inn for lunch. I grew up in East Cowes and have fond memories of family picnics down by the river there. I've revisited the Inn many times over the years and it has continuously improved over the past decade or so. We had a great experience last time that we visited and weren't disappointed this time. The improvements are very noticeable. We chose different starters and main courses and every one of them was perfect. They were tasty, beautifully cooked and presented and good value. We even stretched our appetites to a dessert that was equally good. The selection of drinks and wines was great too. It's nice that they have the best local beers and the Island's own Mermaid spirits, for instance. The service and staff were wonderful (That's something that I don't often have the pleasure of saying) - informative, attentive, friendly and timely without being intrusive. The location is beautiful, of course, and the Inn is in perfect condition, clean, inviting, spacious and tastefully decorated. We spent time looking at the many little features on our way out. Things don't always go as well on subsequent visits to places that you visit on your travels, but this was an exception. Having looked at a few other places by the sea and in the countryside, we decided to go back to the Folly Inn. It was the right decision. We enjoyed a perfectly balanced seafood "sharing" plate. The nicely presented combination of smoked salmon, shellfish, squid (calamari) and whitebait was excellent, as was the dessert, which we also shared. I've had inferior dishes in places with Michelin Stars. We heartily recommend the Folly Inn for everything from a "pub lunch", to a special occasion. It will be our first meal venue next time that we visit the Island and we recommended it to relatives on the Island. A place that was once a slightly weary hangout for the locals and a few mariners is now well and truly on the map. Thank You to the Folly Inn team for adding some extra lustre to our trip.

Have some great memories in this island. Nice meals, lovely service and the views are great. Visit…read morewith confidence and enjoy. We sure did.

Nice services waiters were very friendly but I asked for my steak medium rare and it came well…read moredone, took quite a while for food to come out. But overall a good meal. Ambiance is nice good overall vibe.

Roast dinner was good. Only thing I would say was sayThe meal I recently enjoyed was quite…read moresatisfying overall. The quality of the food was certainly up to par, and the flavors were well-balanced. My only suggestion for improvement would be to increase the portion of gravy served. A little extra gravy would have elevated the dish to an even higher level of enjoyment. Overall, it was a positive dining experience.

One of the best surprises in Hampshire, fantastic ambience, nice service and the food was just…read moreincredible. I had a lamb roast that was divide, my wife had an incredible mushroom gnocchi and my daughter had a what seemed a never end.tower of fine chicken breast, English bacon and cheese with a good portion of home made barbecue sauce. Lovely lunch in the middle of the New Forest.