The Caulkheads in Isle of Wight

Went for a carvery today,lukewarm food and veg overcooked. The meat was OK but poor staffing . The manager seemed apathetic at best and considering it was 3pm very quiet. Have been before when the new mangers took over ,was definitely better then

Such a fantastic pub. When in the IOW always navigate there. Lovely friendly place.

Well where to start the staff and management are definitely in the wrong job can barely clean a table properly never mind run an establishment. Rude and argumentative on the fact he and his staff had messed up not only the food orders but glasses were dirty covered in lipstick and clearly not cleaned properly. Kids meals came out cold, risotto was soggy, chewy and was lukewarm at best. 1 meal came out wrong and no servers were around to speak to as they were too busy talking in the back with each other. Then there’s the pizza that was forgotten about, told would be a couple of minutes when in reality it hadn’t even been started as they had forgotten about it. Manager Dan was aggressive and had to be pointed out he had not even apologised and instead argued the fact the food was not cold and reluctant to refund the meals. You’d be better going to McDonald’s drive through at least you would get fed not having to leave to then go buy dinner from a supermarket. Family meal definitely ruined. Cheers Dan, kids are crying.

Lovely Sunday carvery at a decent price.

Absolutely fantastic place. The staff are so friendly, the food is amazing and reasonably priced and the atmosphere is great. I'd honestly give Caulkheads 10 stars if I could! If you've never been here, I highly recommend it!!

Large table booked for a couple of visiting families over the Easter holidays. Food was sublime and worth every penny. Fantastic atmosphere and very well set up inside and out for family's with children of all ages. Clean and fresh look about the place. Staff very outgoing and cracking the occasional joke which was very welcomed. Wait times were very reasonable. Reasonably priced and I'd recommend a visit.

Food was cold. Had to send back to be microwaved. Very little meat given considering we had a medium carvery. Very bland food. Not happy 2 meals costing £25, without a drink. Will not be going back!

nice pub atmosphere with pleasant staff Nice selection on menu Food was good, nice sized portions and offered smaller portions on request friendly service Good selection of drinks on offer

Our go to pub in Sandown. Nice beer and food. Nice summer beer garden. Handy for the bus straight back to Ryde.

Had a fantastic carvery roast. All staff were very friendly and helpful. Very good value my granddaughter loved the indoor play area. we will be back

Came for the 2for 1 pizza.Loved it,food hot and enough jalapeno !!Keep up the good work,looking forward to the theme evenings you've hinted at.As always great food,service and attention.

Kindergarten not a pub ! Dreadful experience tonight in The Caulkheads Most unfortunate and unfriendly welcome I think I have ever experienced in a pub or restaurant. From a young person who did not look old enough to work there !! Have you booked ?? No hello how are you ? Can I help etc ? No we have not booked well we are fully booked We only require a drink not food We are fully booked ??!! It’s a pub being fully booked is not a thing in a pub as far as I know??? We only want a drink and we will only be staying an hour max There were loads of empty tables!!! If you are going to survive in the hospitality business you need proper trained staff not all the tables are booked for 5.30 pm ??!! So let us sit on a table that is booked for 6.30 pm or 7 pm ?? Dreadful will not return

Had a wonderful family meal at the Cailkheads pub on Saturday evening for my daughter’s 40th birthday party. Everyone in the party of 12 enjoyed their meals and would recommend a visit there and the staff were only to helpful. My grandchildren loved the pool table and the ball pit so ideal for children as well. Thank you so much / keep up the good work, well done to all the staff?

Me & my partner had a lovely meal here at Caulkheads. The meals are always delicious. My dad couldn't make it due to ill health so we asked for a steak & Ale pie to takeaway my dad absolutely loved it he said it's one of the best pies he's ever had even the pastry and he said he can't even make pastry that good. Thank you Caulkheads for a lovely meal. Excellent service Excellent staff

Pros The carvery is good value and the staff are very helpful. Cons The veg were overcooked They did not have a note of our booking A member of staff was observed picking up a spoon she had dropped on the floor and returning it to the clean cutlery. Overall a good place to eat and the children's soft play area is great for younger children

We've gone a couple of times (with the dog) for the Sunday Carvery. The place is very busy, but the staff are extremely helpful and you don't have to wait long. The food is good: perhaps the roast potatoes are cooked more crispily than at the sister carvery at The Bugle in Brading, but everything is very tasty and lunch is very satisfying. The place is nicely atmospheric. I rember it from my youth 50 years ago when, under an earlier name, it was a bit of a dive. Not the case these days.

Good carvery, great service. Would recommend

Lovely pup, great atmosphere, friendly staff, and short walk to beech

Just back from the 2 for 1 grill night Fantastic value and steak perfectly cooked.Next stop the 2for 1 burger night in a couple of weeks.Staff attentive as always and service just right.Compliments to all staff.

Since changing hands.. it's not the same.. the food prices are expensive for what you get and the food is substandard for a pub eatery.. For example. I had a £16 Gammon steak and the steak was thin and lacking in flavour.. my brother had a Macaroni Cheese he said the food was bland and mainly tasted of white sauce and no cheese flavour.. we then paid for a supposed "triple chocolate brownie" which where the pubs speciality. And then waited over 20mins for pudding when the pub wasn't busy.. it was about a quarter full. When brownies arrived they where very small and the side dish (custard,cream ect) was double the quantity of the brownie.. and my brownie didn't taste of chocolate.. in fact it tasted burnt. (I was expecting a soft moorish chocolate brownie) and I got a small burnt square of disappointment. I wouldn't recommend the pub for food now.

We went for the carvery after finding a deal on the Price is Wight. Decent carvery but busy.

Love this pub. Good value high quality food and service.

Was the best 3 course dinner i have had for a long long time.worth every penny.the service was brilliant.the food was hot and tasty.and had entertainment.what more can you ask for .

Just had fish and chips from here absolutely amazing. Spot on service was great and very fast and the food was lovely. Would 100% recommend

Friendly busy pub. Staff lovely. Mixed age range clientele. Pub food basic but good 😃

Visited the Caulkheads for a Sunday carvery and felt I had to say that it was amazing, food was hot portions large and well cooked.The staff very polite and hard working,.Better than the carvery the Griffin used to do.Well done guys we will be back

Pub recently changed hands and introduced the Sunday Carvery in addition to their normal weekly menu., all of which are very nice. Its a nice family pub with v.pleasent, friendly staff. The Carvery is first class and at £14,98 for the large and £12.95 for the Standard, its very good value. We go for the Sunday carvery most sundays and would recommend the food and service. There are car parks both sides of the pub.

We went for a Sunday carvery and was not disappointed. Staff very attentive and polite. Atmosphere was very warm and welcoming. Food was delicious definitely be back.

The roast was good Kids running around knocking into people Bare chested tramps begging for drinks asking for food Dirty builders at bar rubbed past one ended up with paint on my coat No cajin chicken

Extremely dog friendly pub. They made our boys so welcome and they loved all the treats! Also, the best food we've had while we've been on the Island. Definitely recommend the chilli and the sausages and mash!

Great dog friendly pub. Made to feel very welcome. Food looked amazing but early in the day when we visited so only had drinks.

Lovely place, would like to say that maddie the young waitress was brilliant, very kind and polite, nothing was an issue. She was constantly busy and always happy to help.

Unfortunately we were trying to enjoy a nice evening drink and we were inundated with loads of little fly's. They kept flying into our drinks 😔.

Great place… especially for large groups of people and children. Lovely food! This is always our go to place for family meals. I must say Madeline went above and beyond for my family making sure we had a good table and helped us all move when we changed to an outside spot! Madeline turned the music down for us when requested as we sat right near the speaker. What a kind, well mannered waitress with five star service! Would definitely recommend eating here.

We’ve used The caulkheads for years and have always enjoyed our meals and functions using it for lots of different occasions, the managers Reece and Lizzee couldn’t have ever done enough to make sure every experience was enjoyable. Sadly since they’ve been taken over lots of things have gone down hill a bit, the roasts in particular. Before the carvery the roasts were fresh and always home made - disappointing to see things like the Yorkshire puddings are now frozen as opposed to the old massive freshly made ones. The staff are still as friendly and accommodating as ever and work really hard to make sure that everything works as smooth as possible despite the carvery being crowded and the queue in everyone’s way. Fingers crossed all Lizzee and Reece’s hard work isn’t undone under new ownership.

Went for a discounted Sunday lunch with a few friends. Cheap and cheerful carvery, very busy as expected. Food was OK but good value considering the price, so I would recommend if that's what you want. All our party left satisfied - what more can you want?

Lovely.roaast dinner meats are cooked perfect can't fault it 1 bit

Popped in for a family meal this eve and food was amazing!! Kids had fun too, indoor and out door play area. The waiting staff were spot on aswell. Quick and excellent service. Would defo recommend!!

New owners Roast self services good Sauage and mash with onion rings rather have onion gravy Cajin chicken on hot plate gone poor show Chocolate pudding gone poor show

We went for my mum's birthday on Saturday night. The people who work there are very friendly. We was a large group ( 8 adults and a 1 year old ) and were squished around a table. When I asked if we could put 2 tables together, the young girl said sorry no, not her rule but management. That to me was just crazy but we didn't have much choice and it wasn't the young girl's fault so we got on with it. The food was amazing! All of us said that we have never had a pub meal like it. Whoever the chef is... wow.. big well done to you. Would we return, yes.

Sunday lunch was amazing well worth the money will be coming back

Excellent quality of food and amazing value for money such a lovely family pub with grate customer service highly recommend

Good food, served promptly with fine local ale. Very helpful staff.

Had a lovely Birthday Meal at this great pub followed by delicious pudding. It was good to see the pub buzzing on what we thought would be a quiet tuesday night, it created a lovely atmoshere, will certainly visit again and can recommend.

Having eaten here for many years I was quite disgusted when just wanting something light and ordering chips to get 13 chips for my £3.45.

Food wasn’t great, steak was chewy and we waited nearly an hour. Wasn’t very very busy at time so no excuse really. Outside seating is pretty crap but lots of it. No good for disabled folks to sit on as all hard benches. On the plus it’s good for children as things to keep them entertained.

Looking through the reviews for this place and comparing it to the actual quality of food and service, I would suggest that all the ‘good’ and ‘excellent’ reviews are made by people that don’t understand good quality ingredients, cooked by a well trained and experienced chef/cook, served by engaging, and professional waiting staff. For those that understand good food for a good price I would suggest don’t go near this place. I have put a two star rating because ‘terrible’ seems a little harsh, but ‘poor’ is a good description. (Just to clarify I am not comparing to fine dining establishments, I am comparing to everyday run of the mill pubs… which this place is very sub par)

This is one of the best family friendly pubs/restaurants I’ve come across, including on the mainland. The food has always been lovely and the garden is made for families with plenty for kids to do. The indoor play area is small but perfect for keeping toddlers occupied. With the app the deals are fantastic also, just another reason why this is one of our favourite places to eat.

Lovely, hot and tasty food! Service was fast and food came out quickly. Friendly staff too.

The place was hectic and noisy and the seats were uncomfortable. The food was ok. Our group of 19 had a few issues with orders being wrong. The meals were not coming out together as promised, Expected them to be staggered but not as 30 minutes apart. Couldn't talk to each other as our tables were spread out too far away from each other and we were told they would be closer. So we were all disappointed. However the staff did apologise for meal orders being wrong and the delay in which we had to wait. Unfortunately it actually ruined our night. But taking into consideration it was August and height of season, we think maybe it wouldn't be as bad any other time.

Excellent food - caters for vegan, veggie and GF. Great choice and excellent service. Staff are helpful and friendly - made to feel welcome and highly recommended.

We stayed on the cottage next door. Pub was very friendly. Lovely friendly staff. Food was good. And was sensibly priced. Only thing that amazed us was it shut so early. We were all out by about 9. Which was a shame as we were putting quite a bit behind the bar. Hopefully it gets busy enough again to stay open till the end again.

Lovely little pub great outdoor space

Lovely family pub. Fabulous staff, child friendly. Very clean and great food.

Excellent food, welcomed dogs, staff very attentive even though it was very busy

Great family pub, great food and the staff are lovely, the young waitress maddie is very good at her job and made the day for us Very pleased

Very friendly staff, we had the fish and chips it was delicious. Even though the pub was absolutely packed, we only waited 10 minutes for our food. Great play area for children nice garden, small parking area, but definitely recommended.

Nice pub nice food friendly staff. Tables were a bit sticky.

This place is fantastic for the kids! We took our nearly 2 year old and he loved it! There’s a playground outside and an indoor soft play area. The food is also really good, especially the chicken tikka!

Visited on Sunday 6/8, hadn’t booked so wasn’t able to get seated indoors. So decided to brave the elements and sit in the garden. Lots of seating and tables, separate child’s play area. Food definitely didn’t disappoint and neither did the weather. A nice chilled afternoon eating and drinking, what more can you ask for 😊

Good atmosphere staff attentive & helpful

What a lovely find! The food was excellent - my husband had a chilli burger which was very generously sized and I had a pizza, which was freshly made. The children’s portion sizes were also good - they both had hot dog, chips and sweetcorn and neither finished their meal. There is a little play area inside, which kept our 6 and 8 year old boys entertained before and after dinner. In nicer weather, there is also a brilliant garden with seats and play areas. Recommended if you’re in the area and want the children to stay entertained while you have 5 minutes of calm! There is also an ice cream factory machine and silent cinema, but we didn’t try either of these so can’t comment. Thank you to the lovely staff on duty today!

Absolutely fabulous food well presented. Very reasonable prices.staff were very helpful. We will definitely be back .possibly the best meal so far on our list of places to eat(number 18 on our list of places already visited ) thank you

Great place to take the kids! Loads of things to do for them!

Soft play area for children they ate for £2 with a adult meal

Large group of friends and family came here to celebrate an engagement. We were all seated outside and pub was extremely busy. We were advised there would be a wait for our food but it turned up earlier than expected. All delicious, hot and great...

Lovely place with gorgeous food. The staff were really friendly and welcoming. Had the mixed grill and it was so much food. So filling.

Had a great afternoon in your garden 😊 ☺️

Enjoyed a party with family and friends. Live music very good and great atmosphere. Some of us are and the food looked good with large portions. Good for children as a large garden and play area.

The great staff accommodated 26 people for a birthday meal after excellent communication through Facebook and email when the meal was booked. We had an area allocated to us that enabled us to have a relax atmosphere for the event. Maddalyn did an amazing job...

Take your kids with you and treat yourself to a pint and some good food.

Good food, great place for kids, relaxed dining and good service. Highly recommended for families with young children.

Lovely end of holiday meal before we head back home to Mid Wales tomorrow. Staff friendly and informative.

Just popped in for a drink. Definitely a family pub. If kids annoy you steer clear !!! I had a nice hour there tho!

My bday visit 1st time in my live I give back food. 😢 food over priced

Was quite empty and we could choose where ever we wanted to sit. Nobody said if it was order at table or go to the bar. After looking through menu we went to the bar to order. We were asked if we wanted to pay in one go or each . We said we wanted to pay separately was was ok. As we sat back down after the bar staff gave us our knives and forks we had a napkin wrapped round them but it was so tightly wrapped they ripped. As we were waiting for our meals these people came in from from garden with a load of kids it was totally mayhem. So we got up and went to a quieter part of the pub as it wasn't that busy. My mum heard one of them say something horrible to us. Not very nice. Plus found out from a booklet picked up from isle of wight ferry this pub offers 30% off food with QR code the pub didn't say anything about this. Typical.

Staff were lovely and the outdoor area was so nice, they popped the bouncy castle up for the kids as the sun came out, it really is an ideal spot for lunch with the family and children, with a small indoor soft play and large secure outdoor garden,

Everything I want from a family friendly pub/restaurant. Great atmosphere, good play equipment both indoors and out. Great food choices for children. Tasty quality food with something for everyone. Food arrived in a timely manner can’t fault it.

Lovely pub serving a good range of good quality beers and excellent food

Awesome place amazing food reasonable priced

Went last night with 17 family and friends for our boys 14th birthday. We would highly recommend the Caulkheads. The staff looked after us all with a friendly, welcoming and professional manner. The food was well cooked, fresh and prompt. There is a lovely garden...

We had a wonderful night last night for our Sammis 14th birthday - the staff went out of their way to make it special, even making a whole arch of balloons with his name on. Lovely food, friendly staff and great atmosphere - highly recommend...

Excellent service and the food was just as good. We had the Sunday roast and all 3, turkey, lamb and beef, were cooked perfectly. Sticky toffee pudding was exceptional too. Very friendly servers, quick service and great atmosphere!

The staff were great and the food was good. However the local clientele left a lot to be desired, I find it very offensive sitting in the garden with my three year old granddaughter listening to a woman on the next table calling someone else...

A truly great family pub and affordable. Good play space for toddlers, most appreciated

Arrived and shown to a table for two, then order at the bar! Meals arrived without cutlery for which we had to ask at the bar for! Nobody asked us was everything okay, well it was fortuetly, just as well. Left with our plates still on the table! Service below average!

Six of us visited yesterday and would give 10/10, lovely meals, staff very friendly and helpful can't really fault this pub.

Good place for kids could be better etc more toddler toys but food is amazing

Still a great place to eat out but the menu has been reduced and the choices are limited. Still really good food though.

booked a table for 6pm, on arrival was shown to the table then told to join the long queue to order at the bar. After about 15mins in the queue saw the sign in the bar saying "45min wait on food" at which point we left. Sure it was half term week, but only two people working in the bar?

Positives: The drinks were cold, the menu actually has veggie options, and the pub was open. Negatives: the veggie options were really, really bad. I don't understand how you can make a veggie burger that bad.

Nice cozy pub close to beach in Sandown. Had a good food menu with vegeterian options too. You order you food and drinks at the bar. Attendants were very quick and helpful. Food was good and the portion size was good enough for a dinner after a sunny sea dip. Cocktails were nice and pretty new. Overall a good to go if you visiting Sandown and you dont have a preference of sea facing dining.

Lovely pub with entertainment in the garden for the children to play. Met up with family and had a lovely lunch. Food was tasty and priced well… deserts were yummy! Definitely worth a visit if your in the area.

I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THE CHAULKHEADS TO EAT OR DRINK AS THEY ARE VEDY RUDE AND MAKE YOU WAIT OVER AN HOUR TO TELL US ONLY TO DRINK AND WOULD NOT BE ALLOWED FOOD! WE ARE MAKING THIS COMPLAINT ABOUT A GIRL WITH LONG BLACK...

Local to us in Sandown. Lovely big garden at the back. Lovely menus and wide range of drinks. Just a few minutes walk to the seafront. Friendly welcoming staff to greet you

I have written you a review before for our valentine meal but this time we came to celebrate my birthday and it did not disappoint all staff were so friendly and made you feel welcomed and comfortable. The food was fresh and plentiful. We left...

They catered for 20 of us a mix of adults and children, all food came out together and was cooked lovely and hot. We moved outside after our meal so the children could play on the well maintained play area. Will be going back.

Nice friendly staff. good food. was welcoming of our dog an daughter. Little one loved playing outside

Great place to stop of for a pint and a bite to eat. Good service.

We arrived with 2 other adults and 4 young children the eldest was having a birthday treat. The staff were warm and friendly, food was quick and they brought out a birthday cake candles and plates!!