The Carpenters Arms in New Forest

Lovely meal at the Carpenters Arms. Portion size was massive & all hot, freshly cooked. Highly recommend

Great food and reasonably priced.

Recently went here 2 have a meal with friends, on a b'day. I had the Cromer crab, which was lovely ; well presented, tasty; a mix of white & brown 'meat'. Nice sized salad 2 go with it & thin chips, which worked well. Very tasty meal.

Poor service & disgusting roast dinner. First impressions were the sprayed dead weeds on disabled access. Asked for a table for 2 - only options were the small tables even though there were lots of bigger tables available. Asked for a bottle of still water and 2 glasses. Waitress gave me a big bottle of tap water and no ice - not what I wanted. Gave us menus and did not come back. Went to counter to order was told to go back to table for the order. No atmosphere and service felt unfriendly. Roast dinner was not edible - as you can see from photo roast beef was like leather, cabbage and carrots were unappealing and limp and looked like they had withered from hanging around. Roast potatoes were just heated up, they were not roasted . Left an aftertaste - gravy was dried around the edges - maybe from a microwave? Complained to waitress who said she would feed it back. Went to pay and waitress was on the till but older female chef pushed her away to use another till and served me. £31 for the worst roast dinner I have ever had and could not eat and no apology or discussion about it. Daylight robbery.

Fabulous food choices, service was excellent and the ladies looking after us were lovely. Everything was lovely and the place was spotless !

Lovely pub, with great food - good value too. We ate outside on the patio, with was very nice, but inside looks very good too.

The food was good but rather on the expensive side now.

I've eaten here before & the food was good. I returned again & just WoW!!! The steak & Stilton pie is to die for. A great meal & lovely atmosphere. I see why they are highly rated for their home cooked pies.

The first impression of the pub was it was tired. The cushions strewn across the outside benches looked manky as were the tables inbetween the slats. Plants were overgrowing and the outside needed a good sweep. Old dining chairs were splitting. Inside, an effort had been made to smarten up the pub. However, the pies were like Fray Bentos in consistency: soggy pastry and small pieces of meat. The Steak and Stilton hardly had any Stilton. The veg was undercooked - chewy cabbage, hard carrots and peas - and the roast potatoes were warmed up. The dish was drowning in gravy. All-in-all, a disappointment.

Very impressed with the food the service. All round in the word lovely. Ps and after travelling down from London it was so nice to be able to sit down enjoy the carpenters.

Food was as reviewed by other great piping hot well worth a visit

So pleased it’s still run by the same family. My salmon pie was as delicious as it always is, my friends had the steak and peppercorn pie. Although a full restaurant on Sunday, the service was excellent. You won’t be disappointed.

Very nice pub, friendly staff, great food, all round a very nice place to visit

Sunday lunchtime, 13:30 reservation. Odered a drink each at the bar before going to the table. Had to ask to have the order taken after 15 mins. Ordered a starter to share and two mains. After 39 mins had to ask where the starter was! When the starter arrived around 4 mins later we had finished our drinks - werent asked if we would like refils! After a good 10 mins of sitting looking at waitresses one came to clear the table with a half hearted apology when we commented on the delay, both our glasses were empty - had to ask for refill for my partnes wine, didnt ask me if I wanted anything. Made a point of requesting a bottle of water when the wine was brought to the table. Mains arrived after around 7 mins of table being cleared - YAY! However, carrots and peas on the hard side. Steak and Stilton pie whilst a reasonable portion - couldnt taste any Stilton. Roast Pork was adequate - NO CRACKLING! veghies were bland. This was our first visit on a recommendation, suffice to say we will not rush to come back again. Need to up you game on your service, too long a wait to place order, no asking if the meal was to our satisfaction, no asking for replacement drinks. There were as far as I could see five waitresses, but felt like only two were working. It did seem that as we were a couple we were overlooked for larger groups, many diners were groups of 4 or more. So if you are planning to comenfor a meal here bring a packed lunch while you wait for your meal! In a nutshell not impressed and will not be returning.

Very good home cooked food. Staff lovely

Arrived at 1.30pm for lunch, nearly left because it was so full and busy. I’m glad we stayed because the service and food was excellent. Two of us had fish and chips, the other person had the gammon with 2 eggs and chips. The fish was just the best, lovely non greasy batter, good size portions. The prices were very good too. Katie served us, she worked so hard and efficiently. No wonder the pub was full!!

Went for meal with my family on mother’s day all good but I ordered sea bass and it didn’t come with what was on the menu instead it came with peas and scallop potatoes should of been new potatoes mixed salad leaves

The location and food are excellent. Can get very busy. Although put on table next to kitchen it allowed us to talk without being drowned out. 😃 Highly recommend.

The first time I've at this pub, I came for lunch with my nan and 2 of her friends who had recommended the place. The service and friendliness from staff were great, the food was very good. I love pies and quite fussy with them, This was a proper pie and NOT a stew with a lid. Would definitely eat here again and is worth every penny. The meal portion is good, but they also do reduced portions for elderly but don't think it's on the menu, just mention when you order.

Lovely place, lovely staff and great food!!! Homemade Baileys cheesecake is amazing!

Had an evening meal when staying in the village. Large open area bar, restaurant area. Good choice of drinks and food. Friendly staff. Had been told that the pies were recommended and we weren't disappointed. ( special steak and ale) Dog were welcome but understandable not in the restaurant area.

Came in with a friend for a lovely meal. Had one of their starter platters, the pie of the week, and then also a dessert. Everything was delicious, the staff were lovely and very attentive. Perfect dinner after a long day 😃

Excellent tasty food as always highly recommended

Absolutely fantastic value for money and good selection of quality meals. Really friendly pub and dogs are more than welcome.

Visited last night with my elderly parents, food was delicious when arrived. The customer service was disappointing. Starters arrived fine, then waited for main after chasing as forgotten us as we’d been waiting patiently for about 40 mins when asked where food was they bought another starter! The girl who waited on us had a terrible attitude and threw my dad’s dinner down, was patronising and said short staffed! Not my problem! Such a shame as I’d come from Surrey to stay. Your customer service needs to be better. Sadly won’t be visiting again which is a shame.

We go to the carpenters every week never had a bad meal and the service is great

This place has the very best food I've tasted in Bransgore. I've eaten in all three pubs in the village & the quality, portion size & dining experience is second to none. Great atmosphere, great food at great prices. Well worth a visit for some proper home cooked food.

Absolutely the best Pub for food Staff are very welcoming Excellent all round

We’ve been meaning to visit this pub for a while, so we’re looking forward to a Sunday roast, given previous reviews. We were so disappointed. The quality of food was really poor, bland, and cheap. The atmosphere of the building is cold and uninviting. Staff seemed friendly andhelpful enough, but we didn’t find that they went above and beyond in any way.

Great staff, great food, solid range of drinks

The Carpenters Arms offers very good HOMEMADE pub food at a great price. The presentation of the meals isn't trying to be perfect like many other pubs try to replicate. Proper home cooked food which never fails to disappoint. The service is prompt, a brilliantly organised and managed pub which I highly recommend. It's quite difficult to find a pub that offers very good meals and service. Well done, you should be proud. I will absolutely return.

Carpenter's is a great place for homemade pie and craft beer. The pies are tasty, fresh, and have a buttery, flaky crust. The cozy atmosphere and friendly staff make it a great place to relax and enjoy good company.

Always good food , nice staff !!!

Friendly staff, good service & extensive menu of proper home cooked food.

What an outstanding service today. 39 of us had set Christmas menu (choice of starters, mains, deserts). Everything was served efficiently, hot and well presented. Plus pub still had members of public to serve. Definitely first class.

Currently in restaurant, we had the seabass and a selection of starters can definitely say the food is excellent we will return again.

We visited for a group Christmas meal and were able to have our own room, which was good for us and for the other diners. Large groups can be noisy. Excellent service considering there were about 20 of us. Good food, and we liked the sustainable crackers supporting the Trussell Trust.

6 of dined on Saturday 23rd November 24. Venue relaxed, Service excellent and food piping hot and very tasty. Large portions on starters. Prawns with dipping sauce very nice. Prawn cocktails well worth the money, large portion and mains. Liver mouth watering, Lamb shanks beautiful, Curry amazing. Just make room for the desserts. First visit will definitely come again. Visiting family travelling from London

Lacking fundamental service techniques. Management rude and obnoxious.

Large birthday celebration. The food and service were great. Definitely recommend.

We needed somewhere to cater for a group of eight of us and this worked out nicely. We had heard about the pies here and they certainly did not disappoint. Great menu choices (not just pies) and a hefty portion. Will definitely be coming back with some pie fans to sample another flavour. Some good beer choices here too so a good choice all round.

Excellent food good service lovely company great night thank you

Went as a group of 4 with toddler. Pies lovely but should be served with a portion of gravy. We asked for some and got some so ok. Cabbage watery and peas looked reheated a few times but in the main nice. Clean table. Served quickly for drinks. Kids meal nice portion wise and all eaten. It's a local pub that we've not used much but will be returning.

Absolutely beautiful as always. Lovely, friendly, relaxed atmosphere. Went for the steak and stilton pie tonight which was absolutely perfect. Thankyou for another great experience x

I love the ESB . Lovely staff and great atmosphere as well as superb food .

Visited with a pal for lunch whilst out on a motorbike tour of the New Forest. Good sandwich lunch and good service to the outside seats. Would call in again if in area .

Family meal last night at the carpenters was great as always. We all had roast dinners and pies, every meal served piping hot with plenty of fresh vegetables and nice meaty gravy. Service was great considering they were quite busy

Amazing as always. We didn’t book, so busy, service excellent , food was delicious. Roast Beef, chicken pie and as always my salmon pie.

Ordered four meals- two roasts. Both roasts had long thick black hairs mixed in with the gravy. The second hair was found when the waitress was at the table. She took them back and we received replacements within 10 minutes. One of the meals had string on the plate which again we brought to the attention of the waitress. When paying there was no apology and we asked for a refund of the two ruined meals. The manager told us she had checked one and saw no hair (we had pulled it out at the table) and seemed to think it was fine for string to be on the plate because it comes on the beef joint. She eventually agreed to refund the two meals if it “made us happy” which we said not really as our evening out. Didn’t even apologise.

Great English pub food this is what pub food sould be like . Had a pie, this is the best one in years

2x Carvery and 1 Steak and Stilton pie.. Lovely. Highly recommend 👌

Very homely and friendly experience!

Had cod and chips was amazing no skin on service was brilliant very nice staff very good service really good price will come again soon

Food wonderful. Good portion sizes reasonably priced. Friendly staff and quick service even though very busy. Lovely atmosphere.

Stopped off for an early dinner. Staff and atmosphere was great, a shame it is not nearer to our house. There is a comprehensive menu to chose from. We both had a starter followed by roast chicken and desert. All the food was well portioned and we had no complaints. Will be visiting again when next in the area.

7 of us had an exceptionally good meal, arrived quite quickly, very tasty and reasonably priced. They had a varied menu. Would highly recommend it.

Eaten here twice , lovely food , fantastic value

Good food as always. Can recommend, especially their pies

I went out for dinner and a relaxing evening and had a wonderful time. The steak and ale pie was delicious and the cheesecake even better. All the staff were very welcoming and friendly. Definitely recommend

This is a lovely pub which is surprisingly spacious, with ample room inside and out for families (we visited with a group of 7) and smaller groups too. The staff were very friendly and polite throughout the service and were clearly hard working too. Our mains were very good value for money and probably could've sustained us over two days with some of them! The starters were the only sticking point for me as they were all priced at £7, which the prawn cocktail was good value for but the same price for the goujons and garlic bread seemed somewhat steep as there were 3 pieces each. However, the food was very nice all round and it is somewhere I'd happily return to again.

Lovely home cooked food. Reasonably priced good value for money. Home made pies excellent so are the roast dinners. Let very full. Staff lovely , We were on holiday and intend to go back next time we are away.

Nice place to have dinner, reasonably priced food and drink

Thank you so much for your help on the 25th Steve. Amazing highly recommend.

Excellent food. Served very quickly and staff were very efficient and friendly. The lamb pie was very good as was all the food with lovely fresh vegetables. Will definitely return.

Many years since last visited The Carpenters Arms, the premises have been enlarged and improved. Went for Sunday lunch, which was extremely good, food was nicely cooked. well presented and served hot. The service was faultless, each girl pleasant polite and helpful. It was so good that it was no surprise that the premises were packed with a constant change over of customers, which were made up of mainly elderly people with the odd young family. Certainly worth a recommend and re visit

Visiting the new forest and came across this pub. Great value food, really good portion size and was really delicious. We had a sharing starter for the four of us, a burger, ham egg and chips, the mushroom tagliatelle and scampi. Great service and happy staff. Would visit again - recommended.

Overall, the experience was fairly good. Hospitality needs a little work we as felt a little unwelcome during our visit. Food took over an 1hour to arrive - for the time taken for the meal to arrive would have expected better quality. So if looking for a quick meal maybe give a swerve. However for the price it was ok. Overall okay but customer service needs work as some staff looked like they didn’t wanna be there.

Sadly a big let down today. Ordered a vegan roast dinner. Waited quite a while (which is ok as it's often a sign of something being cooked fresh). However, nut roast had a weird sort of dried strange tasting crust. Everything was absolutely tasteless including the watery gravy. Not enough roast potatoes. Carrots were julien which made them totally tasteless & hard, (julien is ok in stir fries). Nut roast is so old fashioned anyway, there are great vegan sausages out there which would have been a good option. Not worth the £30.

What a great night lovely food superb service great atmosphere. Lovely place Thank you very much.

Lovely proper pub with great food and excellent service

Excellent meal and service, good value

Lovely Sunday evening meal with friends. Service was excellent and food delicious. We had salmon & asparagus pie, steak & kidney pie, liver & onions and a lamb roast. The vegetables all tasted freshly cooked (they still had a bit of bite to them) and the meat and fish were succulent and moist. Portions were generous (including the ice cream scoop size for dessert) and prices were very reasonable. It was fairly busy but service was quick and friendly. Thank you Carpenters Arms - we would come again.

I gave 5stars for atmosphere because great pub and food we were there at lunch time and it was a week day but nice staff helpful great sitting outside to eat thank you

We are a walking group,& booked a lunch for 22 people.We had a room of our own.Excellent food & service & we didn't have to pre order! Well done to all the staff at The Carpenters Arms! 👍👏👏👏

A real find- lovely roast lamb dinner even on a Tuesday evening!

Everything was perfect. Quality of food, prices, service, atmosphere. No faults found atall.

My Wife and I don't travel so well these days but decided to go a little further afield from our usual Highcliffe and Christchurch haunts - we live in Mudeford. We went twice in point of fact. The first visit was the 21st June when My wife and I had a quiet Birthday celebration lunch prior to the Family celebration later in the day. It was excellent. We only had the Mains and despite it being busy and not having booked we were served promptly and cheerfully with a round of drinks. My Wife had Chicken Pie and I had Liver and Bacon. Both were excellent and my Wifes vegetables were freshly done. I don't have vegetables. We liked it so much we went back three days later to celebrate our youngest Daughters birthday and again had lunch before the Family celebration later in the day. The meal was as fabulous as three days prior. My Wife had a Chicken Roast, our Daughter had Beef Roast and I had an amazingly well filled Steak and Merlot Pie of the Week. As before the vegetables were freshly done. Unusually for us we also had puddings (Lemon Meringue, Bailey's Cheescake and Apple Tart with Custard. All were excellent. All washed down with Tea and a Latte the former being served in nicely twee Teapots. Total cost £80 for the three of us on the second visit. Worth every penny. All in all First Class and couldn't fault it. Disabled parking nicely located in the front with ample parking for those more mobile at the side and back. Just a note for History buffs. The main building was built in 1853 by John Harrison(?) a Carpenter thus the name Carpenters Arms.

Had lunch with the girls yesterday, great lunch as usual and good service even though I believe they were short staffed that day, but still served quickly and with a smile. I am celebrating my special birthday this year and guess where we are going.

Menu provides a good choice of meals, reasonable prices, good service, good food

Our first visit but certainly not our last. Fantastic food.

A lovely, friendly pub with a wide menu choice, excellent food, great service and good value. The above says it all - we will come again!

We ate here twice during our short break in the New Forest. The food was excellent both times. I had home made steak & kidney pie on our first visit and fish & chips on the second. Both meals were delicious. My husband's coices were liver & bacon and home made chicken & mushroom in mustard sauce pie, both cooked to perfection. On top of that our dog, Luna, was also welcome! Roll on next year. 😊

Went to Carpenters for Sunday Lunch I had the Roast Pork which was good generous portion all nicely cooked wldve liked a Yorkshire pud&stuffing tho! All meals were nice&generous portions ,lovely pub/restaurant with very friendly staff

We decided on a whim to take the motorhome down to Dorset for the weekend but hadn’t booked anywhere to stop over. We called in for dinner at the Carpenters arms. Lin and Steve were really friendly and the staff were all amazingly helpful. The food was delicious and all home made. My wife had the butternut squash wellington with roast potatoes and veg. The meal was hot, filling and deliciously tasty. I had salmon fillet and sauté potatoes. The salmon was a decent sized portion and also very tasty. Deserts were also decent size very tasty and again home made. The landlord and all the staff were extremely friendly and prices were very reasonable. We ate in the bar area which is very nice and dog friendly. There is also a large outdoor area which seemed very nice too. (Forgot to take the customary food photos, sorry!)

Food very dry, had to send chicken burger back which we were not charged for, but gammon and pie dishes dry too - overcooked. When spoke to staff, no apology just told all their regulars are happy, asked if we go to The Crown regularly because everyone that goes there when they try The Carpenters arms complains about their meals!! Obviously The Crown is better!! Very disappointed because we went for a family meal for my mothers 86th birthday.

Having phoned ahead to confirm they were showing the racing, and booking a return taxi, all was well on arrival. Without warning, all TVs were switched to football and the staffs attitude was tough luck. Very rude staff and no customer service. Will not be returning!

Excellent home-made snake & ale pie. Only downside was that gravy had been liberally added, mayne just me but I prefer to pour my own. Vegetables seasonal but tasteless due to boiling. Staff attentive.

Not far from our caravan site so thought we'd give it a try. Glad we did as the pie I had was as good as I have eaten. My wife had the roast which she enjoyed also. Attentive staff particularly the waitress. Beers choice was excellent. All in all a great place for an evening meal.

My friends stayed here for four days very pleased with the caravan it was spotless and very comfortable

Could do with extra bar staff , wait for drinks not great but all in all brilliant Sunday lunch venue

Fantastic food - so varied. Nice people. This is the way all pubs serving food should be run!

This is simple. Phone up and book a table. Turn up, sit down and order the steak and stilton pie. Eat the pie and enjoy. What is there not to like, this pie is to die for.

We used to come here regularly, both for the food and for the service, which were excellent. However our last visit - our very last visit - was appalling. The landlord has obviously decided to cut back on quality to protect his profits. Not only was the quality of food lower standard than usual, but I ordered a Latte and was served a watered down version (literally). When I asked the waitress to bring me a jug of milk with which to top up my coffee, she brought a jug of watered-down milk!! Once I removed the froth on top I could actually see how watered it was! Never again!!

We had Sunday lunch here today and I have to say the service and the food was 10/10 also very reasonably priced too. A pub full of life - nice and busy but very quick service !! Definitely will come back again

Great traditional home cooked pub food, lovely selection and good price. Service was friendly and food cooked to order. Puddings are 10/10

The pies came highly recommended as they are made on the premises and we can second that. They had plenty of filling and a good sized portion too with an assortment of accompaniments available. Good selection of drinks, friendly staff and a dog friendly area to boot. Don’t make it too popular please as we’d like space to be available for a return visit. Cheers.

I had the steak and mushroom pie with mash, peas, cabbage, carrots and fantastic gravy. Excellent, £15.00 well spent, the ales very nice also. Went on a Wednesday lunchtime thinking it would be quiet but it was very busy which shows how popular/good it is. Highly recommended.

Pre-booked with dogs. Great service and lovely food. Large portions at reasonable prices.

Best pies ever, I tried all the special ones for British Pie week and they were lovely. Yummy freshly cooked veg. I can’t wait to come back and have another pie 🥧

Great food, great value, never disappoints. Party had mixture of pies, liver and bacon and a generous nut roast. Be back in April in my motor home. Thank you carpenters, lovely friendly greeting and service as always.