Bar + Block Steakhouse in Portsmouth

Regret to say we did not have a good meal here. Was really looking forward to it, but it was a big let down. 2-4-1 Cocktails didn’t really taste like there was much booze in, passion fruit mojito was not enjoyable, bit too bitter, needed more sweetness, cherry on top was a bit like a milkshake, tasted just ok. I ordered ribeye which was the least tasty bit of ribeye I’ve had for a long time a lot of sinew, didn’t seem to have a fatty ‘eye’ either- was it even a ribeye? I dunno. The Mrs had fillet , admittedly asked for it cooked medium, which is mad in itself, but that’s her choice.. it came out rare.. not even medium rare. The lovely waitress was a bit shocked when she saw it and quickly had it sent back, it came back, medium rare, but sooo charred that it killed it that it just tasted burnt. The chips are just ok, you expect more from ‘triple cooked in beef dripping’. You have to pay a couple of quid for a sauce, the size of a MacDonald’s paper cup thingy. I poured my peppercorn sauce on my steak and it covered half of it. When sorting the fillet steak for recooking the waitress could tell I think I was a bit gobsmacked at how little you get and got me a second little cupful and when the fillet came back out we got given an extra portion of chips, but this didn’t really make up for how disappointed we were tbh. I never do reviews, but felt I had to after our meal here as I it’s bizarre so many have rated so highly it seems. For the same sort of price, the miller and Carter chain ( not sure there’s one in Portsmouth..) offers soo much more, a salad wedge with a choice of dressings, an onion loaf thing, little bit of side salad and a BIG pot of sauce all included…. Here you get a bit of steak and some chips. £2 for tiny bit of sauce…? Turn it in. Not nearly good enough. But lovely waiting staff. Would never go here again unfortunately.

Overall, a lovely experience. Drinks, service, most of the food HOWEVER!!!!! DO NOT ORDER THE BRISKET BURGER!!!!!!!!!¡!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AWFUL!!!! WOULD NOT SERVE THIS UP AT HOME LET ALONE PAYING £20-50 FOR IT. The amazing guys at the Whiteley branch took on board our feedback and removed the meal from our bill. The "burger" was awful!!!!!! No Words

Absolutely an amazing night, food was really good also the atmosphere, our waitress Georgia was lovely, chatting away, highly recommended

Really really yummy. Lauren was lovely. We ordered the 16oz for two. Plenty between us plus cocktails as well. Will definitely recommend

A lovely restaurant with a good vibe. Food was delicious! Shannon served us and she was friendly and offered a great service

Food was great, could have done with an extra slice of roast lamb as 2 wasn't enough for the price. Service was spot on, well done Charde B. Lovely atmosphere, will be back.

3 of us visited for Sunday roast. We did book but it was very quiet so needn't have worried. Upon arrival we were asked about allergies and shown to our table. The drinks are quite expensive compared to other places. We decided on a bottle of their cheapest wine (£22). And a large coke for the teenager. The roast was beautifully plated and looked tasty. It wasn't disappointing. We all cleared our plates. With this in mind, I'd give this place 3/5. A point lost for the prices. I wouldn't pay those prices for 2 slices of beef and a plate of vegetables. And a second point lost due to the dirty toilets. There were visible cobwebs behind the toilets in the female bathroom. We tipped our waitress as the service was impeccable and made us feel welcome, but the prices have stopped us from returning again. If you like fresh food and have a few quid to spare then this is ideal. I wouldn't recommend it as a first recommendation. Price for 3 people £89

Very tasty starters. Excellent service.

Lovely evening for a 13th birthday dinner many thanks to Chardé who took care of us

Food was lovely. Charde was really friendly and attentive.

Jess was a very friendly & attentive waitress

Our waitress was very good. The place is let down by very slow service due to lack of staff. Our food came 1 hour after we sat down however, the food was nice.

A big thank you to Charde who made our visit easy. We arrived after a long 6 hour journey with 2 exhausted neurodivergent kids. We had a lot of requests and Charde didn’t blink an eye, no judgement or jokey comments about being fussy which we’ve been faced with so many times before! Thank you Charde, We appreciate the kindness you showed our family.

I went with my partner for dinner, having booked a table for two for 19:30. We arrived at the time and were told to wait, only being seated at close to 20:00, with barely an apology. In the meantime we went to the bar to get a drink, where there was only one lady trying her best to serve the large queue of people also waiting to be seated. There were only two waiting staff and a supervisor running the shift that evening, so I understand that they were very busy, however the supervisor came across like he did not care or want to be there. The lady who served us was very nice and apologised for the wait however, and gave us good service once we had finally sat down. We ordered two rump steaks, which were not bad, but you can definitely get a nicer more tender steak elsewhere for less money. We upgraded one of the steaks to surf and turf, paying £6 for only two prawns! Overall the experience was not as I had hoped and the place seemed quite poorly ran.

Friend wanted a surf and turf ended up with sea food as the starter I just wanted a steak with peppercorn sauce got a steak no sauce had to go to the bar too ask for my sauce it's not a cheap restaurant the service should be better

4 for food but our waitress was great. Small plates were fine, can recommend brisket burger

AVOID, who ever writes these 5* reviews is clearly paid or works there or knows someone who does because the food is absolutely horrendous especially for the price.! We have gave this place 3/4 chances and everytime something has gone wrong with the food. There are much better steak houses in Portsmouth. You should know it’s going to be bad when it’s part of a premier inn.

Lovely meal for 4, steaks were delicious and cooked perfectly. Our server Charde B was brilliant, extremely attentive and helpful.

Jess served us tonight and was amazing had a great sense of humor and kept asking if we wanted more drinks etc amazing service! Bar & block are lucky to have her

Great atmosphere, enjoyed the 2 for 1 cocktails and staff were lovely.

Char was lovely on our night out. It was my birthday and she was lovely and friendly. She was very accommodating especially with my children and we all had a wonderful evening. I had a great birthday. Thank you Char!

First timer here, attended a hen night for my daughter in law, never done anything like this before.....wow ! Amazing staff, very attentive and made sure our drinks were flowing. Food was absolutely beautiful, will definitely be back

Excellent meal for our 39th wedding anniversary and the service from Jessy was brilliant. Highly recommended

Had an amazing steak yummy.Staff were very good and helpful. Restaurant clean and a spacious seating area.Desserts were amazing l don’t usually have a dessert but would definitely go there and enjoy another

Had the most amazing meal here Wednesday. Char is a credit to your business. So friendly, kind and nothing is too much trouble. The 2 course meal list we chose from and the food was gorgeous. Perfectly cooked medium steak with garlic butter, hubby had frites, I had salad and a decadent chocolate brownie and pouring cream we both had. Thankyou Char and all the staff. We will be back soon.

Stayed at the hotel so took advantage of the dinner/breakfast deal. We reserved a table. Unfortunately we waited for 25 minutes for our drinks order to be taken. I had to find a member of staff to take our order. Once this had been sorted the service was more efficient. (We were lucky as the table of 4 next to us were told that their meals had not been put through to order.) There didn’t appear to be any clear indication to which member of staff for serving which area and definitely and lack of management. One small concern is that staff called me sweetheart, love and hun. I’m 53 and I didn’t feel this was very professional. However, the food was delicious and the four members of kitchen staff were seen hello, working really hard. We would definitely visit again.

Absolutely perfect for a restaurant attached to our hotel after a day exploring historic war ships with my son. Food was excellent and Jess, the server was lovely and indulged my little boy's games when she came.over to check on us.

James, our waiter was really helpful. The food was great, and the service was all round 5*

Jess looked after us really well and the food was excellent. Great steaks. Nice beer and a happy fussy child. We went for steak and puddings.

Food very average. Fillet Steak chewy not top quality. Very expensive. Loud music and sun shining in your eyes when trying to eat. Eaton Mess lacking in Raspberries and strawberries just had cheap other berries.

Fantastic food cooked to perfection, ambience was fantastic in midweek and service was top drawer. Highly recommend!

Great steak dinner. We shared a chateaubriand steak. Jess provided us excellent service!

Stay away from it. This Tuesday night in almost empty restaurant we paid nearly £90 for dwarf portions and had to wait nearly 40 mins for the main course. Menus don't have gluten free markings, nobody came to advise although we asked. Service is really lousy. We came out hungry considering to visit Tesco. The whole experience was worse than in Burger King.

We visited at the start of July. The server (Char) was fantastic; great sense of humour, and a good knowledge of the menu items. My steak was cooked to perfection, and a slight oversight with my partner's meal was corrected within seconds. Food presentation and service were the best I could have wanted. If you're anywhere near the Historic Dockyard, don't bother looking any further than the "Bar+Block" for your meal. You will not be disappointed.

Food was very good, service was excellent. Atmosphere was good, but probably would rate it higher it wasn't so quiet (it was early afternoon).

The food, cocktails, service and atmosphere were pretty good until they clearly wanted us to go. It was only 9pm (they claim to be open until 11pm), we'd still got half a bottle of wine but they brought the bill over without asking then started vacuuming around us. They might as well have stood there with a big sign saying 'GO HOME' on it. Such a shame as it had been a pleasant evening until then. The complementary beef dripping popcorn was divine!

Went for a evening meal on D-day weekend to find the restaurant closed at 20.50 HRS.

Good food. The steaks are fab, well cooked, and very tender. I didn't have a starter or dessert. Great service, very friendly staff.

Lovely steakhouse, which cooked my steak just how I like it. The staff were lovely and welcoming and ensured we enjoyed our meal from start to finish. Our host, Charde, was fantastic and made us feel welcome.Other options are available on the menu. I can't comment on those, but if they are like the steak, then the quality will be high

Breakfast great loved it lovely atmosphere we'll needed to keep me going all day. Will come again that's for sure!

Came here for my boyfriend’s birthday, we had the loveliest time! The food was delightful, atmosphere was perfect, Georgia was amazing, perfect service 🫶🏻

Such yummy food, good service and enjoyable atmosphere. Definitely recommend! 😍

False advertising - opening hours for Tuesday says 11pm online and the restaurant doesn't have a sign with opening hours at the entrance. So I went inside and was told they close at 9pm. Please show your opening hours correctly.

The food was lovely and Charde was an excellent waitress always making sure everything was going smoothly with us

Great restaurant to eat meat, a treat, some waiting but the bar is there for that and a very lively place. I adore

Came here for a late dinner. We had the Chateaubriand. It was overcooked and the accompaniments were cold as they were premade. The service was attentive and friendly but didn't make up for the disappointing food which definitely wasn't worth the price.

Very pleasant girl called Jessica great customer skills and so well mannered pleased with the way she conducted herself 10 out of 10

Great service from Jessica! Bit too loud and very busy evening but service was great! Burned ends to die for-thanks for reccomendation! Will defo back again.

food & cocktails were excellent, service from ishbel & jessica was great they were friendly and tentative, would definitely recommend

Great place, Great service from Jess, and great food

Excellent restaurant, the food was amazing the service top and the place has a very nice atmosphere. Also my partner got 25% NHS discount. The cocktails were without a doubt the best I've had anywhere plus 2 for 1. Would definitely recommend this place and will definitely be returning.

Having worked in hospitality for 7 years, including michelin-starred restaurants, I have to say that the food, service, and the drinks were exemplary. I am not a chef but from a bartender's perspective, I could immediately see that the bar is well kept, clean, and the ingredients such as syrups, garnishes, and citrus are handmade. These qualities immediately jump out as a place you should spend your money on booze! I do have to say, as a small negative, that a negroni is usually a stirred cocktail and not shaken but I will not complain as it was delicious regardless. Lauren was super helpful and attentive, and made sure I was completely taken care of as a lone diner in a restaurant full of tables. The beef short rib was perfectly cooked and paired excellently with the baby potatoes that came with it and the garlic spinage that I added as a side. For less than £35 a head, I can seriously not recommend it enough.

The Sunday roast is such good value for money! Big portions and cooked to perfection. The atmosphere and the staff were really great and the cocktails were very yummy! Would definitely come back here when in Portsmouth again :)

Great atmosphere. Great service. Our waitress Jessy was the best.

Best Chimichurri steak I've had in the UK

Steak cooked exactly as I asked. Service was prompt and welcoming

Great place for 241 cocktails. Stayed for dinner, lovely steak served by Evie…. Hostess for the mostest so friendly & professional. Definitely come here on our next visit

Great service from char and amazing food!

Busy Thursday night, table booked for 7pm, for 2 of us. Staff were prompt in coming to the table with menus. Drinks ordered, they arrived quickly and then we ordered our food. A squid and a prawn starter, both good. Then Short rib and a trio of sausages. Very good, very tasty. Reasonably priced. Would go again if in the area.

This is a great steakhouse and I'm surprised at the quality of the food considering it's a chain restaurant. Each meal I've had here has been delicious, I love the fact you can choose your steak size all the way up to 30oz! The Ribeye has always been my favourite to eat here but have tried the fillet, sirloin and beef short rib. They have a good selection of wines, beers and soft drinks. The restaurant is huge, very spacious. We've always managed to get a table when walking in but I'd suggest booking ahead at weekends. Staff have always been very helpful, friendly and funny! Top marks there, always makes the meal better.

Went for a bottomless brunch,the waitress was fantastic and food was good.Would definitely go again.

Everything was great. I am very eager to go here again😻🫶🏻

We did not realise that this was attached to the hotel when we booked. It has a great menu which focuses on steak. The waitress was lovely and did a great job explaining the menu and options. Being a steak restaurant we tried the fillet and sirloin between us both medium rare. The sirloin was cooked slightly over but not enough to worry about. It was not a great cut of steak and did have a very chewy end to it which was much fattier than I would expect. The fillet was great. The Side salad that we had with the steak was fantastic and a much better option than the chips.

The food was okay in general. However, I personally really don't like Rocket and the salad specified crisp lettuce on the menu, and instead, I got mostly rocket for the greens. I had to sit there and pick most of it out, which meant my meal was smaller as I opted for salad instead of chips. I have no issue with places offering rocket salads, but I feel like the ingredients on the menu should reflect what I get on my plate. The desserts were great, and the service was very friendly.

One of the best steaks I've had, and the beef dripping popcorn is amazing 👏

Not the best customer service. I approached the bar, at which 3 people were working - a woman making drinks and two guys performing back bar tasks. I was not acknowledged for a while but eventually the woman asked the other two whether one of them could serve me. One of the guys answered 'I'm filling up the water bottles' leaving the other no choice but to serve me. Pretty shocking really. We were then asked to move from our booth as it was needed for restaurant customers. Clearly they prioritise their restaurant customers and treat their bar customers with disdain which seems like the wrong strategy because alcohol has higher margins than food. On the plus side the cocktails, including virgin ones, are good.

Great steak as you would expect great atmosphere and 2 for 1 cocktails properly made

It is worth recommending this place to eat a perfect steak. We chose the chateaubriand version for two people, with simple additions. A delicious dish that melts in your mouth. It is worth emphasizing the quality of the drinks - even for an ordinary Aperil Spritz, the staff did not skimp on alcohol. Finally, fresh coffee and an amazing selection of desserts. It's worth it!

This place was a real lifesaver as they serve breakfast from 7AM even on Sunday. I had to catch an early Coach, so this was really convenient, as the bus station is 5 minutes walk. Fresh food and high quality meat. In the afternoon there was also nice atmosphere to have a beer.

Unfortunately had a bad meal off the gluten free menu. I ordered a chicken burger and fries. The chicken burger had so much sauce on it, it was overpowering and i cldn't eat it, i also found myself chewing on a bone i found in my chicken. The fries had no taste and tasted like cardboard, the waitress was really nice and didn't charge me for my uneaten meal. Mayb put the sauce in a separate pot on the side? Will def go back for the 2 for 1 cocktails but will be giving the food a miss. Our table was booked for 5pm, our meal didn't come out until 6.20, disappointing!

Enjoyed starters, rib eye very good,puddings very good, need to sort out peppercorn sauce small portion and abit thin. Staff great and helpful.

Breakfast was poor: lukewarm food under heat lamps at the buffet, eggs rubbery and solid.

Food was delicious! Very impressed even the childrens meals was large and looked amazing! Staff was very attentive and had a speedy service.

This restaurant is top spec so relaxing was a pleasure to dine there the food is second to none priced at the right money for first class food I highly recommend this restaurant

It is ok but by far not the best. A bit too expensive.

Excellent food and excellent staff tonight! Nice to see it busy tonight. Special mention to the two waitresses on duty tonight. Very attentive and on a busy evening shift. Special mention for waitress Char.

My first visit to this place and I was very impressed. The staff were friendly and helpful. The food was perfect. I’m very fussy when eating steak but here it was cooked perfectly for me. Could not fault anything.

Loved the food and drinks, and it was great service from our blonde waitress. The beer flavoured popcorn 🍿 was a hit with us. Loved my open sandwich, and my husband's steak sandwich was cooked just as he asked. Definitely will be back. Breakfast looks great

Another great meal. Top steak, greens are limited, but spinach was excellent and glass of house red well worth a try. Warm and comforting on a rainy Portsmouth night.

Amazing service and great food. Our waitress Char was fab too! It was all delivered on time and when we needed assistance it was there straight away. We will definitely be coming back. Thank you!

The food was absolutely incredible! Really has surprised me with the amazing tastes and care that was put into the dishes. For starters we had halloumi fries bruschetta and crispy hoisin meat. For starters Angus ribeye and chicken skewer which was cooked to perfection, well done chefs ❤️ The only slight problem we experienced was a little delay in drinks and the starters were 3 for 16 which was not discounted on the bill initially but after raising the issue it was promptly resolved. It also needs to be noted that the restaurant is quite pricey but for an occasion it is very much worth the quality.

We had a lovely evening meal here, food was very nice and our waitress Char was great and even added in a little treat as it was a birthday meal which was very kind!

Wow chardonnay was amazing great server ....👏.... such a lovely server .... evie was so 👏 lovely and professional...... our waitress Georgia was awesome 👌... such a fun person and we had a great Time xxxxx Food was lovely and so was Bar + Block xxxxx we will be back xxxxxxx

Incredible! The food was delicious and our waitress Char was so lovely and accommodating. Thank you so much! We will be back!

Fantastic food, great staff. Char was fab and recommended the best steak which was amazing. Would definitely come back.

Excellent service from Eleanor our waitress for the evening. Excellent food. Cooked to perfection and well presented. Steaks - One sirloin and one Rump

We thoroughly enjoyed our midday meal until the dessert. It was ordered as Eaton Mess. The dessert with fruit and ice cream was lovely but there was very little meringue in it. There fore it should be renamed. If trading standards investigated it would not live up to its name. So company get this sorted asap. The service by Char was excellent. We will go back as the rest of the menu was brilliant.

Amazing! Me and my boyfriend came here on Valentine’s Day, the set menu was so nice and great value for money! Char was our server and she was so lovely and helpful! Would definitely return!

Food is excellent really can't fault it. Their burgers and steak are on another level! Great atmosphere and friendly staff. Sumayyah went above and beyond thank you for your awesome service!

We had a reservation but when we arrived we were told there was a wait of at least 20 minutes to even be seated. We decided to eat in the bar area, so that we could sit and eat sooner. This meant however, that we had no server. We had to go up and order our food and drink and even go back up to the bar to collect our drinks. It was almost a shock when the food was bought out for us as we thought we might have to go up to the gantry area ourselves. Our starters arrived, the scallops and prawns were 3 in a portion, which wasn't worth the price and the squid was warm at best. I stacked the plates as to make removing them easy, however it took until our main arrived for anyone to bother checking back in or taking away our cleared plates. We felt completely ignored and maybe that's our fault for not waiting to sit in the main area of the restaurant but I think there should've been better customer service no matter where we sat. The mains portions seemed quite small as well. My partners burger was overdone and dry so I felt bad and reluctantly shared my steak. We are sat letting our food go down as I'm writing this and our dirty plates are taking up room on the table as there has been no interaction with staff since our mains arrived. We came out to celebrate the purchasing of property and we're leaving with commiserations after feeling robbed of our money and a nice evening. Won't be returning anytime soon if at all.

It was freezing cold in the restaurant the music was so loud you could not hear the server speak and other groups were raising their voices to hear each other over the music , food great it was just ruined by the rest

The food is always great here, have been with family and friends and never had a bad meal. The steaks are cooked as requested and don't come out well done when you wanted medium rare. I don't usually review but on our latest visit the order got a bit messed up with a sirloin being served and not a fillet (first world problem right?) and I was blown away by the customer care from our server Evie and the wider staff. Genuinely the best way to deal with an error, thank you guys, we will be back

Sumayyah our waitress was happy, kind to children and attentive. Lovely dining experience. Perfect portion size. Yummy dinner.

Booked a table for 4. It was my daughters choice for her 13th birthday. Service was great. Food was lovely steak was spot on. 2 for 1 on cocktails was a winner.

Was served by the sweet Sumayyah who was lovely. Took my order in a timely fashion. Great drinks arrived pronto. 241 cocktails. Ordered Chicken kebab and was taking a wee while , but bless her Sumayyah came and said she had sent it back as wasn't cooked well enough. Offered me a free glass of vino as complementary and exactly the right way to handle things. Friendly, thinks on her feet. Love this place for anything. Lite bite, dinner , breakfast , just the bar, great place. Thanks guys. ❤️

This is a lovely restaurant, was busy on a Saturday night but service was good, we didn’t wait too long for our food and it was very tasty! Char and all the team looked after us so well, thank you!

OMG! the steaks in this place are amazing👏 everything we ate was amazing! Beef dripping pop corn is something that i never would have thought of making! And still wouldnt because their beef dripping is out of this world! You have to try the pop...

Always come to this site with friends, always great and speedy service, this time we were well looked after by char , constantly checking if we needed more drinks or anything, excellent customer service, down to earth and really nice person all around!

Thank you to Char for the brilliant service tonight even if we were a pain with moving tables etc it was greatly appreciated, food was lovely atmosphere was relaxed and comfortable, thanks to all the team

I'll start by saying that although there were times when I did have to wait a bit for a staff member to come to me, all the staff i encountered were really nice and helpful everytime I went in there. My mum and I stayed at the premier in over Christmas and as soon as we arrived we went into the bar and block as we hadn't eaten yet. We ordered the Christmas dinner with starters. There was a mix up so my starter came with the main which didn't bother me too much and the lady serving made sure to sort out the mix up. My mum's was starter came with a horrible gravy and a dollop of a mayo like sauce which wasn't listed on the menu. My starter was prawns and scallop and it was over done and dry. Then came the Christmas dinner. The sauce tasted like a watered down version of the horrible one my mum had with her starter, the turkey was tasteless and think like a credit card (my mum's words), the stuffing was very questionable and burnt on all corners, the potatoes left an unpleasant after taste and the vegetables weren't good. We decided not to go back there as it left us unsure of whether we would have this issue again. It was a shame as it's location is so convenient. I won't say we will never go there again as it might be worth giving them another chance and trying their normal menu but I will say we will not be having their Christmas dinner again