Seashells in New Forest

We couldn't get a window table even though they were all available for the whole night. Food had a sharp shell in it. Overall, big no! It's probably the first time I score a restaurant 1 star.

Love this restaurant, however, just today been told, new owner, no phone number, bookings only online (my Mother In Law is 94, no Internet- loves Seashells so she can't book anymore). Bookings not taken on the day, has to be done in advance. Just hoping that this fabulous place isn't ruined, and all the reputation earned by the previous owners is destroyed. Big shame. Why mend something when it's not broken. Review written 31.10.24

My friend and I had a lovely meal tonight, the atmosphere was relaxed and the food tasty. The staff were friendly and attended to us quickly throughout our meal. Highly recommend!

Lovely seafood selection and great views while you eat

Lovely resturant with great food and amazing views of Southampton waters.

Lovely staff Great food Nice and chilled

Love the new decor! staff very friendly and efficient. Turned up looking slightly grubby after work with my 12yr old daughter also looking like a hippy from the 60s! To tired to cook and promised her a trip out. Realised that it's Friday and most people are looking great and smelling like roses. But not once did the staff judge us. service was wonderful, food was excellent, more expensive than my last visit but as always worth every penny, put us by the window and we played hang man while waiting for our food. Didn't wait long, demolished the lot, left happy, satisfied with a happy child. Definitely a lovely meal out. Thank you

While visiting the area, we pre-booked breakfast at Seashells on a Sunday morning. Unfortunately, we encountered an unexpected challenge upon arrival as the restaurant is located on the first floor. Having not noticed this on the website (there’s a note on the contact page which we hadn’t visited), it proved difficult for my husband, who has restricted mobility. While we managed to negotiate the stairs, it wasn’t ideal and unfortunately means we won’t be returning. As for the breakfast itself, the full English was underwhelming and lacked the quality we expected, both in terms of ingredients and presentation. The service was equally disappointing, with the staff seeming unfriendly and disengaged, which added to the negative experience. On a more positive note, the view from the restaurant is lovely, but overall, the experience was not one we would repeat.

Didn't eat there. I just had a drink. The staff were very friendly. It's a nice restaurant/pub overlooking the sea, settled in a lovely marina. Well worth a visit.

Always been a favourite for many a year but now with the refurbishment and a commitment to stay open 'Seashells' delivers at every level. Find out for yourself you will give it 5 stars!!

This place was much better before "renovation" Food very average Service very poor on Saturday evening.

Have visited a few times with my family now. The team have always been very welcoming. If you book a table in advance you're likely to be by the window and can get a great view of the ships going in and out. Food is reasonably priced and is always tasty. They always have a specials board up. It can get busy, so best to call and book a table at the weekend.

Had breakfast at Seashells this morning as a group of six. Good varied breakfast menu. Service and food extremely good and reasonably priced. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a visit.

Love this place. Took a friend for birthday having reserved a table overlooking The Solent. Great atmosphere and service

Hidden gem...tucked away in a small shopping centre and you could miss this. It's not a cosy restaurant and doesn't look like it will be on a list of fine dining experiences HOWEVER. what this lacks in character it certainly makes up in food quality and service Overlooking the sea at hythe you can dine in peace on some of the best food I've tasted. It's excellent value for money and every time we drive down from Kent to the area we pay it a visit

This is the first time we have been in Seashells since its refurbishment. We had a lovely lunch with superb food and a perfect view. The staff were super accommodating when we asked to be dairy free and the chef prepared us a special sauce. Love the new decor!

Food was excellent, a buzzing atmosphere, good service and a great view.

It's all about the view. The food was average at best, but priced for top end. Decor was dated, staff were lovely. Only 3 veggie options. The table was filthy, not fully sure was even ready to be reused. Wife appears to have got a dodgy tummy after.

Thank you for accommodating five stranded ladies on Friday 23 rd August. Staff very friendly and polite. Food was lovely. Atmosphere was nice. You made our evening and we had a lovely time. Thank you again.

Fantastic breakfast - full English , cooked to perfection everything was piping hot , friendly staff and beautiful view , highly recommend.

We tried the whitebait , gamberoni and garlic cheese bread. Everything seemed frozen, zero presentation, and below expectations. Hot Prawns were very watery , served on a salad bed. The salad was hot and soaked in the prawns juice . It’s not fresh seafood restaurant, only a typical pub grub.

Great service Great quality food. Not the cheapest but by far the best quality meal in years! Well done Chef.

We came across this restaurant by chance as we were staying overnight round the corner from here. We visited for dinner and had the evening menu. The staff were very friendly and provided excellent service, the food was delicious and the view is lovely! Definitely worth a visit.

We stumbled across this place during a visit to the area. Up the stairs to an open bar area, with dining at the back. Views across the water and a smoking veranda. The staff are friendly and attentive. A small but well put together menu. The food was out promptly and was to a very reasonable standard. The beef burger could have done with a touch more seasoning, but we had no complaints. All round a nice experience. We would definitely come back.

Very friendly staff nicely prepared and presented food reasonably priced lovely views over Solent

The view is great (unless you're looking at the car park), the food is mediocre. Few vegetarian options so I asked for them to make the tomato tagliatelle larger, I probably could have had a similar or better quality microwave meal. The starters were good but the bread with the olives definitely wasn't ciabatta. The dessert - a chocolate brownie with ice cream - was really good, however, but probably difficult to mess up. The service was fine. The decor was tired.

Very good choice good value service excellent

Just had yet another superb meal at a fabulous restaurant which I am glad to say is just down the road for us So today went to seachells hythe hants and had the calf’s liver which was so tender the mash potato was lovely but that jus (or gravy in my mind) was superb and I doubt very much a Michelin chef could do better Alway 10 out of 10 each and every visit Ps waitresses were very nice

Fantastic food service and beautiful views.

Been here several times. Don’t let the strange entrance and stairs put you off - it does look unwelcoming BUT the views over Southampton water are great and the food is excellent. Very hot, tasty with good sized portions and very good value for money Heartily recommended

Love eating out there. My favourite escape place feom Southampton. Never had bad food or service Will be back again soon

Never been here for food before I had the filleted sea bass it was delicious 😋. So definitely recommend this place 👌

An excellent bar and restaurant. Good choice of menu, food came quickly and was hot and delicious. Full marks. Would recommend.

I go to Seashells for the ambience, the view and the good service and food. Unfortunately the latter fell well below expectation. The food was generally good, but three of us had the pork stir fry from the specials board. While mine was fine those of my two friends were severely lacking much pork or other items, so they liked the flavour but had mainly noodles. One friend ordered the steak & ale pie; a beef stew (which he said tasted good) with a piece of puff pastry rested on top is not a pie. My main unhappiness was with the time the meal took. The starters were an age appearing and then there was a huge gap before our main courses appeared. When I queried this with the waiter he said it was because they were busy. I pointed out only a third of the tables were in use. His response was “We are only staffed up for a Wednesday”. I am rather confused by this, what am I the customer supposed to make of this? If there are more diners than expected which caused the delay they should accept the service is below the expected standard, if they just put few staff on on a Wednesday and let the diner suffer the consequence they should give a discount. I have always used Seashells as the place to take friends in Hythe but now I am not sure whether to continue this.

Great food , and a great view of the solent.

Lovely little find in Hythe. Waitress was so accommodating and went above and beyond for my food allergies. Fab vegan menu and choices. Great value food with lovely views.

A table of 18 of us had a surprise birthday meal there. Food and service was excellent. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the evening and all of them said how good the food was and that they would go again.

Nice place looking over Southampton Water. The weather wasn't good so no view. We could order off the lunch menu after 6pm so a big bonus as he had a lovely Brie Omelette.

Enjoyed a very nice lunch today .

Lovely views and lovely food. Would recommend.

Excellent food as usual although a bit more expensive than the last time we were there. The whole place, whilst clean, could do with some refurbishment. The carpets need changing and/or cleaning for a start.

Lovely sweet restaurant with amazing views of the water. The veggie lasagne was so cheesy, it was delicious. Thank you!

Great food when we eventually got it ! Meal was booked for 1pm but we didn't get our food until approximately 1.40pm Even tho we had pre ordered a week before

Mothers day meal. Both food and service was great.

Polite and friendly staff, drinks reasonably priced. Nice relaxing atmosphere to sit and chat in.

Food was Amazing and so well priced. Well worth a visit 🌟😊

Pork T bone was excellent, needs to have more atmosphere.

The food was great, service was a bit slow mayne its because it was lunch time, place was just a bit crowded chairs are close to eachother, nice views tho from the window.

Jan.24 had a very good Sunday roast service good but needs a little polishing Great views of soton water very friendly staff and hard working.

We visited this restaurant for a second time Thursday evening to see the fireworks and two Queens, leaving southampton. Wow what a veiw. We were glad to see them still open as we had heard they were closing. The food was excellent as was the service even though they were very busy. It was nice to see the restaurant & bar so full on a Thursday.

Excellent food as usual but occasion was spoiled by very poor service. Pleasant location but difficult to impossible to access for the physically less able, and owners could do a lot more to make the toilets more accessible for these, mainly elderly, customers who are at least able to climb the stairs.

Food a little lacking in flavour but ok,shame its closing as great location

Busy noisy restaurant but full of happy people, eating amazing food. One of the best views and the staff are lovely. A really nice lunch venue

Visited during the week when it was quiet and lacked atmosphere. Food is pleasant but portions are small. The waitresses were very polite and friendly.

This was our first visit to 'Seashells', despite living in the area for many years. The food was delicious and plentiful. The service was friendly and efficient. We didn't feel rushed at all. It was a lovely setting, with a great atmosphere. We wondered why we hadn't been before and will most definitely return.

Food was a little disappointing, to be honest. Had the beef burger. Was on the cold side dry and tasteless & dry and you get about 8 chips. The starter was nic, butt this does not warrant for a return trio.

The best view day or night in the area

Always good service and food.glad to see it is still open.

So hope it’s true? Seashells our favourite restaurant is staying! Anyone know more or different. My friend and I Enjoyed the specials and drinks. Service so good and views unbeatable. Can’t ask for more than to hear its staying in business, especially for Xmas parties.

Great view ,good food ,good value good service

What a great find! Sadly, the actual entrance to Seashells Restaurant is incredibly shabby (needs a sweep, a good coat of paint and maybe a heavy planter?) - so much so that we nearly decided to give it a miss but having phoned to check that they could indeed do #glutenfree fish & chips - we went in. Fabulous location overlooking #waterfront & Hythe Pier with views right across to Southampton! Great #gf fish & chips, but also quite extensive menu. Staff very friendly and helpful. The owner really should do something about the entrance - it lets restaurant and their team down.

Hope this place stays open! Best in Hythe Great location, food, and service.

My wife & I visited last night, with the intention of having a few drinks. We're new parents and came to Dibden to visit the grandparents who kindly offered to babysit so we could enjoy a night out. We arrived at Seashells and even though it was quite busy, the bar was completely free. We stood at the bar for 5 mins straight, again, with nobody else around. All 3 girls behind the bar ignored us & pretended to be busy, even going as far as to avoid eye contact. Not to mention they all looked miserable as sin. It became apparent that we were blatantly being ignored when as soon as an older gent approached the bar, one of the girls literally walked by us and served him immediately. We assume the gent was a regular, but that shouldn't factor into it really. Rather than make a fuss, we just walked out. Heard this place is closing down and after last night's display of immaturity and unprofessionalism, I'm not surprised.

Perfect spot for lunch on a sunny day. My partner and I had lunch here outside on the terrace overlooking Hythe pier and Southampton Water. I have eaten here several times with my sister but it was a first for my partner. We both chose the seafood linguini which was excellent. The risotto and the omlettes are also excellent. We look forward to returning soon.

Lovely views, great food and reasonably priced. Staff were a bit slow and spent a lot of time stood around chatting at the bar while guests were waiting to be seen/pay! But were very friendly and polite when serving and talking to customers.

Always lovely, never dissatisfied. We just keep going back! Excellent service too

After booking a table on the phone, we arrived to a table by the window in the corner as requested. A great menu choice and the food was delicious with friendly service. Lovely views too. Definitely come again!

Must book if you want to eat on balcony overlooking Southampton Water. Eaten here a few times and food has always been good. Not cheap but well worth a visit. Very clean...

We called in for a Sunday breakfast, C.the staff were friendly and efficient. The food could not be faulted. Will definitely repeat the visit and recommend it.

Nice meal ,nice view and nice staff. Don't be put off by outside

WOW. The best breakfast I've ever had. Utterly superb. The waiting staff couldn't do enough for me. Superb views of Southampton Water. What other restaurant gives you these views. It'll be criminal when it's forced to close through Greed for flats to be built. Please come and visit this Goldmine of a Restaurant

This place always makes my mum cross. The food is good but service always terrible, an issue every time we eat here, so we've given up.

Although I have reviewed this place before, every time I go I feel need to share my delight. The Staff, waterfront view, good food, location, free 2 hrs to park or I can walk it. We always hope to get window seat and we did. My friend was treating us. I had the board special hunters chicken, salad and Cajun wedges. My freind Fi had lasagne. Both excellent. All Staff lovely and always attentive. Especially Heidi. Hope this place is always there for Hythe diners.

Gone down hill of late, staff not so intentive, forgetting items ordered, as if they all know it's only for a short period before the lease is up!!.

This restaurant has a really good selection of dishes. Some were not suitable for me as I have an allergy to shellfish but there was still plenty to choose from.

As we’re not local, stumbling across this place led to finding a great little restaurant serving quality food which tasted delicious I highly recommend you try Seashells, we most definitely will visit again when in the area

Lovely tbone pork chop with absolutely fantastic crackling. Nice and polite staff. My friend liver dish was good as well. Will reccomend and be back when in the area

Fine dining on a budget? Yessir. The food was exquisite, the service excellent and it was fine value at around £35 a head with drinks. The food took a while to arrive - always a good sign.

Visiting friends in Hythe highly recommended, Friendly welcome staff, table by the window looking out to sea. Excellent choices on the menu, desserts. Meal hot, well presented. Choice of desserts. Stairs up to the restaurant, no lift.

I wasn’t happy with the happiness of the staff as we didn’t even get a smile from one of them, also a major downside was the glasses weren’t clean, and the fork I nearly used had left over mash on it which isn’t very hygienic for me or any customers that eat here. We was recommended this by the general public after asking where to go but wouldn’t recommend this to anyone else due to this Manor

Had a lunch at the Seashells, chose calves liver (pink) , there was three of us, another chose calves liver (well done) and Pork Cheeks. All mains were cooked to perfection including the vegetables. Beautiful jus , plentiful portion at reasonable prices. Booked a table by the window. Sat in corner, so we were by two windows, view was fantastic. Service was slightly slow, not that we were in a rush but after our meal , wanted to order dessert and had to go to the bar to order as had waited a while. All in all , rated 4.5 . Waiters all cheery and polite. Restroom was clean and hygienic. Definitely recommend a visit and I will definitely return.

It will be a great loss when we loose this fantastic place.🍺Still going great food brilliant staff.🍷🍷

Good food, with captivating views. We have visited here a couple of times - morning coffee and dinner, both times the place was buzzing. There is a good variance on the menu, fish, meat and vegetarian, all served hot and well. We have always booked.

Everything was lovely no complaints will hope to come again

Such a shame that the owners are selling to developers for flats. Lovely place to meet friends/family . Food and staff are lovely

Always a fantastic meal and service we have been going to Seashells for many years and nothing else compares so lucky to have this restaurant close by.

Good selection for vegans, great views of the Solent.

Nice food and the service was good

Had nice cappuccino. Nice view of the harbor. Refurbished and nice and clean

One of the best roast lamb I've ever had, great food, who ever was in that kitchen was on point, front of house were ok, they were more interested in talking to each other than giving the best service. Toilet were clean but old.

Very friendly friendly stuff, tasty food, reasonably priced and an absolutely awesome environment overlooking the sea.

Had breakfast on new years day, very nice.

Fantastic food, served by a friendly professional staff.

Beautiful meal, well presented with friendly professional staff.

Beautiful scenic view of the sea, lovely food so well cooked and presented and so tasty. Staff are very caring, lovely warm and cosy. Great family experience.

What a lovely Christmas dinner ! The gravy was especially delicious and it was one of the best Christmas meals I have had . The staff were so helpful and friendly and they were happy to adapt the menu for my problematic tooth , meaning I had trouble with anything crunchy !

Staff very pleasant and helpful. Food very good.

Seashells was recommended by a local shop owner, but the entrance looked very inauspicious! However we ventured in and went up to the first floor and were pleasantly surprised. We booked for dinner and went back later. The dinner was amazing. Delicious fish pie and braised pork cheeks. The staff were super, really friendly and lovely. I would highly recommend this place and it had a great atmosphere on a Friday night.

3 stars is all I can give as there is no faults about the food at all, the staff were very polite and helpful but very slow at taking our order and clearing between courses.

Came here with friends for a late lunch/early dinner and sat on the balcony overlooking the harbor and passing cruise ships. In cooler weather, there is plenty of good seating looking out through the wall windows. The staff was friendly and helpful. The menu was...