The Haven Hotel In Sandbanks, Poole Review

My husband came across all romantic last week and offered to take me to the hotel where we were married for our wedding anniversary, after getting over the initial shock of his romantic gesture I put my glad rags on and off we went!

We had dinner at the main restaurant however the first thing that struck us was since our wedding three years ago the restaurant has lost its rosette status, the last one being issued in 2005!  We didn’t let this dampen our spirits though and we carried on regardless.  For a starter both my husband and I had local Dorset crab, which was nicely presented with white and brown crabmeat served in the shell with salad garnish which was both aesthetically and tastefully pleasing.

For a main course I had the summer truffle risotto which was very good with not too much truffle which can be quite over powering, my husband had the calf’s liver served on a bed on creamy mashed potato topped with bacon and onion which he enjoyed and said the liver was cooked just right!  The desserts I much say however were very disappointing my cheese and biscuits lacked imagination and variety and my husbands chocolate mousse was not something he would normally pick due to the fact the menu for desserts lacked choice, however after initially not being happy he did enjoy the actual mousse.

The service given by the staff was attentive and welcoming and you could tell they work well together and take pride in their service.The meal overall was a pleasant experience and given the setting right on the waterfront it is hard not to be impressed by the actual hotel!  I cant help thinking though as The Haven is the main hotel situated at the centre of the 4th most expensive place in the world to live (1st for leisure) they should invest in their main restaurant and really take some chances to expand the menu and attract some the clientele that frequent the glamorous Cafe Shore.

Branksome Beach Restaurant Review

It was a Friday morning and as my wife and I were both on holiday so we decided to take a trip down to Branksome Chine. We thought we would have a meal at Branksome Beach Restaurant on the chine’s beach front. The location is amazing overlooking the beach.

We decided to have an outside table to take in the superb views and summer atmosphere but found the table we were given was behind a wall where the beaches bins were, which then gave us a problem of a nasty smell and wasps. So we asked the waitress if we could move inside, we were then given a corner table with a nice view of the beach front.

The menu was very well designed with a good mixture of fresh fish and meat dishes I believe the restaurant once had an AA Rosette for quality but there was no evidence that was still the case. There were around 30 customers which surprised me as it was 12.30pm but the restaurant did start to fill from the English classic lunch time of 1pm. The waitress served our drinks quickly and our order was soon taken and I must say the front of house service was very good throughout our dining experience.

My wife and I ordered the scallops as a starter from the fish specials and I must say I was pleasantly surprised with tasteful mix of a spicy chilli and tomato relish, fresh salad garnish and the lightly pan fried scallops these went down a treat with the only downside being the half hour we had to wait for our starters considering how quiet the restaurant was and the number of chefs on duty.

For main course my wife had the pan fried cod which was served on a bed of mash which was simply cooked, tasted wonderful and fresh and I must say the presentation was first class it seems the chef must have a fine dining background. I ordered the Angus beef burger which looked great! The hand prepared burger was served in a focaccia bap and was served with hand cut chips, beef tomato salad. I then tasted the burger and I must say it was overcooked and the taste was dry. I know in the UK that mince meat has to be cooked through but there is a difference between cooked thoroughly and cremated.

Disappointed by my main course we decided to pass on desserts and had two filter coffees which were nice, hot and freshly brewed.

The pricing is average to high starters being from £5 to £10 and main courses are generally between £10 and £20. There was a BBQ upstairs which runs during the summer months which I saw advertised for £17.95. Overall we enjoyed our dining experience and the red arrows flying over for the Bournemouth air show was great.

My ratings: Atmosphere/Ambience 9 out of 10, Front of House Service 8 out of 10, Food quality 7 out of 10.

For more information on Branksome Beach Restaurant see their Website at: http://www.branksomebeach.co.uk/