The Charles Dickens in Thanet

Best saxophone night in the British Isles

Visited yesterday and the whole visit was top notch. Food was outstanding, biggest pork chop I’d ever eaten and so tasty. Our waitress Taloola was outstanding. Will certainly be back.

We ate here twice during our stay in Broadstairs. Service really friendly both times. Good selection of food on the menu including kids meals. Nice quality food and amazing sundaes for pudding! The view from the upstairs restaurant over the bay and the sea is a really beautiful backdrop for dinner.

The Charles Dickens is in a lovely location and we had a great table overlooking the beach. The service was good, but it was a very quiet night, so not sure how it would be if the restaurant was busy. The Food was ok but not great considering the price. Where the restaurant really falls down is the shouting from the kitchen, I have never been to a restaurant where all you can hear is the kitchen staff's conversation. I was there with my young son and do not expect to hear the staff swearing.

We didn't eat food. We just went in for a drink, and it was a lovely pub. The atmosphere was very relaxed and cosy. Very friendly staff.

Great place, staff service,ambience, menu/food. Everything works in great clockwork order. Restaurant provides wonderful panoramic views of the bay. We will definitely be returning.

One of the best roast dinners I've had in a long time!! Had the roast lamb on Easter Sunday and every part of the dish was tasty and flavorful. Also would like to mention Lottie who booked me in and gave me a window seat upstairs, her service was warm and friendly. The whole experience made my little solo trip to the Kent coast really special. I found this establishment via Google as I googled the best roast dinner in Broadstairs and this place comes up tops and definitely lives upto it.

Food and drinks overpriced. Roast dinner was poor, sloppily presented, roast potatoes undercooked. The poor staff were rushed off their feet , too many

My brother moved there had steak really nice place is great coming bk in June

Go there regularly and have the same experience. Great food is served by excellent staff in a friendly, relaxed atmosphere. Really can not fault the place.

Perfect for having lunch or dinner. Delicious fresh fish I will return for sure

Lottie! You are wonderful! Thank you for the cocktails and for making our night! The band that played this evening were sublime! And we shall be back for more! Can’t wait to share the brilliant experience we had with friends 😘 Thank you.

Went for mother's, had to send my food back twice because veg was cold and potato Luke warm, was told they would get me fresh one which should take ten minutes after five minutes brought a new dinner which veg was still cold and potato slightly warm and gravy was warm, gave up at this point, drink didn't turn up and a pudding was missing altho was on bill, which we asked to be removed, would not book or eat there again

I want to rate higher but unfortunately it wasn't amazing, my sons burger came out wrong which had to be reordered, then his dessert got forgotten a out and took ages to bring out just for a single scoop of ice cream, felt bad for him as he didn't eat with us with both courses. We were forgotten about towards the end, I ended up going to the bar to pay so we could leave. Not put off going back but staff need more training waiting on tables.

One of must visits pubs in Broadstairs. Love their food and drinks. I've tried espresso Martini, I must say it was fantastic. Take a table by the window and spend a love evening with friends and loved ones.

We had a roast here today and I must say it was excellent. Super friendly staff and the views from the upstairs are fantastic. Thank you for having us.

Didn't eat. Was there for the music festival at the Broadstairs Blues Bash. Good beer great service

Nice all round pub with good food and ales. Could have larger menu. Always look forward to visiting The Dickens

Booked a Sunday lunch. Attentive staff and nice location but food was smothered in garlic and very salty. Even the roast chicken had full garlic cloves with it, making it inedible. Disappointing. Unlikely to return as there are so many other places to eat in Broadstairs.

Two Lovely pints of Guinness lovely 👍👍👍👍

Great pub for a quick lunchtime meal at very reasonable prices, serving classics such as fish and chips, sausage and mash, ham egg and chips, etc.

Lovely Sunday lunch with my family. The atmosphere was lovely and the service was fab. We will definitely be coming back. Thanks

The Charles dickens made my best friends 40th birthday truly special. I emailed to enquire about a sit down meal for approximately 40 guests. Immediately told that this would not be a problem and that we could have the top mezzanine to ourselves for the occasion. They then put together a set menu to make things easier for the guests. The tables were set out beautifully and the staff were incredible (even when I had messed up with settling the bill) The food was gorgeous and the birthday girl was blown away with everything. My only regret is whilst trying to remember my maths I didn't round up enough of a bigger tip. Thank you so much to everyone including Paige who responded to my many emails. If you are looking for a gorgeous meal with amazing staff get yourself to The Charles Dickens

Always very attentive service especially from one waitress who always seems to be there & knows how to sort out our awkward dietary needs. lovely food, can't wait to go again.

Lottie saved the day! If it hadn’t been for duty manager Lottie this review would have got a begrudging 1*! We booked a table for 7 for a belated Xmas lunch, the restaurant area wasn’t busy but apparently there was a function on the floor above. We each ordered starters and mains, our server didn’t know what the soup of the day was so had to go and ask! (Personally I’d ask the question at the start of my shift) starters arrived quite quickly, mains we thought they’d forgotten us. five out of seven ordered sea bream on crushed new potatoes as a main course, when these arrived it was sea bream on a bed of cous cous, three of the five have food intolerances so couldn’t eat the couscous, when we advised our server she said ‘oh yeah the menu changed today, we gave you the wrong ones’ we were then offered one up to date menu to choose alternative dishes, we asked to speak to a manager but she was ‘too busy to talk to us’ Four of us ate our mains whilst three looked on. Poor Lottie came to clear our plates having just come on shift to find seven unhappy customers. She was very apologetic, very helpful and couldn’t do enough for us. Bad form from the previous on duty manager and the serving staff that seem to be employed from the neck down. Would I return, probably not if you can only rely on one decent member of staff. The couscous was oily, the sea bream slightly over cooked. Possibly a bad day for the Charles Dickens, definitely a bad experience for us.

Food was delicious (at least the sea bream, was very fresh)! Friendly staff

Just had to leave the saltiest cheeseburger I've ever been served. So disappointed as the Dicken's cheeseburger is usually really delicious.

The olives to start with were good. The dinner was hot and plenty of it, we struggled to finish the desert. The Sunday we went it was full in the restaurant up stairs. Over all, the ambience was lots of chatter, with the music coming through now and again and the place was nice and warm.

First visit here. Had coffee and breakfast. Coffee warm and breakfast cold. Shame

Very nice, good selection of drinks, great views and good for people watching, friendly and good service.

Just had the slow roast spiced shoulder of lamb., served with triple cooked, duck fat roast potatoes. Genuinely the tastiest roast potatoes I have ever had.

Thank you to everyone involved in looking after us last night. Everyone had a really good evening and looking after twenty three of us would not be easy. As you had a lot of other diners I would have to say an even more challenging prospect, done brilliantly Broadstairs Carpets team

Lovely food, plentiful, friendly and helpful staff

Fantastic local pub owned by a local brewery. Everyone remarked how good our Christmas meal was here this year. Well done, use local!

Good place for drinks on a cold afternoon

Only had drinks but the service was exceptional. Staff really friendly, attentive and engaging.

Both enjoyed a light meal and it was very enjoyable , nice size for a light meal. Sat upstairs with lovely views and a general good environment. Staff were friendly and we had good service. The toilets were clean

Had a fantastic time last night , the staff were incredible especially Lottie nothing was too much trouble . The food was amazing and the band was the perfect end to a perfect evening! Can’t wait to come back Thankyou all !

A great pub,plenty of room,great food at a reasonable price,quick polite service,would recommend.

Sat upstairs and enjoyed night time sea view with the seafront lighting. Food and service very good

Although lacking in charm or personality we went to this pub because of the location and thinking there was a nice range of food options. However, all went to pot when I discovered that my chicken dish was very pink and uncooked. When we took it to the bar to point this out, we were told, it's supposed to look like that. A waitress followed up with a visit to our table to explain that the chicken is steamed, and therefore the blood vessels pop and so it looks bloody and raw. Well.. yum! She explained that they have this complaint all the time. I would imagine if a food serving establishment actually gets a complaint 'all the time' they would seek to address the issue and change the cause of complaint, no? Regardless, we were offered no compensation or even recognition of the fact that chicken that looks like this should not be served. We were not happy, will not return and will never recommend this venue.

Stopped for lunch, very pricey. Chips come with skins on not my taste prefer them skinless

Absolutely abominable Sunday roast lunch! The veg were soaked in oil & the potatoes, if one can call them that, were soggy, much too fatty. Never again. 👎

Tasty home cooked pub food, great portion size but more on the expensive side for a meal. They catered for gluten and dairy intolerance very well with a separate menu and the kitchen and barmaid was very helpful and informative. Nice chilled atmosphere!

Great food great staff chelsea and lottie were fantastic . This is not a dog friendly pub outside only !

Disappointing Sunday dinner! Asked for the beef with veg and new potatoes (no oils or butter, due to an intolerance, not a fiusy diet) The first meal came out with oily veg and over cooked beef (the menu states "served rare"). The server was so apologetic, and quickly replaced the meal. This time the veg were plain, so safe to eat, the beef was rarer, but was so tough that I couldn't eat it, even my husband declined to eat it for me! It was a busy service, but I felt the quality of the food was poor and the attention to detail was lacking on this occasion. Ot was also a shame that customer's were allowed to open the doors to the balcony to go outside to smoke/vape as that's meant that the restaurant was balsted with cold air that made it very uncomfortable. It would be better if the balcony doors were locked and those who wanted to smoke/vape or just wanted some air went downstairs and outside, so the whole restaurant was not impacted. 📸 is of the replacement meal.

We were in Broadstairs on a family holiday & came here for our Sunday dinner. We were a group of 6 & were told to head straight upstairs & we would be seated. As we waited upstairs, a young girl with blonde hair showed us to our table & then in the rudest way told us in future do not come up the stairs unless we are told to. We were all very shocked at the way this girl expressed this & we were ready to leave, but decided to stay only because it would be unlikely to get in anywhere else. Our food arrived quickly & we were all happy with our food. another young girl with dark hair was very giggly and acting quite strange when serving us drinks at the table. So, food was good but your staff serving upstairs were very rude/unprofessional & like I said we would have left but only stayed because we wouldn’t get in anywhere else

After previously being so disappointed and complaining can only say wow you’ve upped your game. We both had the beef cheeks and they were lovely. Extra gravy was no problem with super friendly and helpful staff. Defo coming back

This is the "go to" places in Broadstairs. Very nice, big place with live music and great service

Very nice place first time there

Took my family here for breakfast and what a lovely surprise. We both ordered the full english, and the mushrooms I had were some of the nicest I’ve had in a long time, my partner is a scrambled egg fiend! And she was not disappointed, very very good. Friendly service, can’t complain at all.

Walking around in Broadstairs looking for an place to lunch. Decided to try this place. We had a wonderful lunch and would definitely go back again. The mussels were really tasty!

Superb roast. The only thing I didn't like was they mix up the veg and I had to ask the waitress to thin the gravy out. Apart from that food was lovely. I had the prawn cocktail as a starter and it was huge!

Just had drinks so can't comment on the food.

Inexperienced FOH staff who need training on customer service. Food was ok, main courses were late coming out. Wine list needs to be improved. There are some really cheap convenience store wines on the list that are not even worth cooking food with.

Lovely views, lovely staff and the food was good too! Had the monkfish with parma ham and mussels. It was really tasty. Quite pricey but think thats due to the location.

Had beef cheeks, one of the best meals I have had out ever! Cooked to perfection with lovely seasonal vegetables and champ mash. Service was swift and with a smile, we will definitely be back.

Jack and Owen were impeccable with their service. Fast and efficient, handled the crowd after the food festival very well. Jack was very helpful and had no problem fulfilling extra needs we had as a party

Came with friends on the first day of our holiday. Fab Sunday roast, best roast potatoes I’ve had in a pub. Great service and atmosphere

Great food and service! Will definitely be back again

Tried oysters for the first time and they were great. Service was prompt and polite. Food was good and we had a lovely view of the bay. All together the experience was really nice for me, my husband and our grown-up family. We will come again - unpretentious, good food, served in good time with great views. We had been turned away from the Tartar Frigate that evening, which we went to the next day and was rubbish in comparison.

An excellent lunch. The staff were very welcoming, friendly and helpful. The food was well presented, very tasty and very good value for money. My wife's Gluten Free diet did not cause any problem and I can recommend the gammon steak. Can certainly recommend.

Live locally but do not visit that often due to very high drink prices. Used to be a fabulous Sunday lunch so tried it again. Pork belly total fat, Yorkshire puddings tasteless, parsnips and carrots rock hard, but cabbage boiled to death. For £17 it was very poor. The quietness of the venue probably sums up the total lack of value, when there are so many excellent alternatives within walking distance.

Very nice pub. Great views, friendly staff. Good service. It's worth visiting.

Good food, service and fair price. Not keen on the herbs in the hash browns. It's not needed for breakfast

Last stop drink b4 heading back to London after a hot day on beach Very helpful staff who were happy to charge my mobile as I was in a bit of panic as our train tickets were in the app 😀 lovely girl and guy on the bar working so hard 😀 I would defo return x

Dropped in for drink and then decided to have an early dinner. Steak was good, pity there was no french mustard available. Wife's Plaice was a little too salty for her taste, but the Crème Brulee was a 'hit' so overall ,a nice dinner. Barmen and waitress certainly on the ball and very friendly. Also between 6-7.30pm not at all crowded along with prompt service. A good find.

Great service and nice food, not much more to say, really...... the beer was nice and cold 😎

I had looked around this place looked very good when passing. I went around the town looking for somewhere to eat. I decided I'd go here. I had the burger which was extremely good and and came with some of the best chips I've had...

overall wasn't impressed. paid £10 for a full English that I refused to eat as tasted like perfume, as well as told there would be hash browns and was given a birds nest of potatoe slices, bbq sauce tasted like washing liquid. my nan had the £6 bacon sandwich. yes £6 for 3 bits of rough bacon inside 2 slices of bread. only thing agreed on is the coffee was just OK and we would never go back. all in all its a not recommend

Food was delicious but very overpriced and the portions were very small.

Freirnfky atmosphere, polite staff. Clean areas to sit. Good menu choices at good prices. The bowl of chips were delicious. Family friendly pub.

Fantastic service. Great food and window seat which was brilliant as it was fireworks Amazing value. Special thanks to Ellison for looking after us so well. Would definitely recommend

Breakfast, lunch or dinner great pub grub and a vast array of drinks for any pallet. One of the best all round pubs in Broadsatirs.

Booked a table with husband for evening meal. Food tasteless. Deep fried squid very greasy. Husbands chicken risotto “ could make better at home” my moules sauce was luke warm and the “hand cooked chips” tasted like refried old potato’s with bitter taste. Customer Service...

It was the first time we have eaten here. When we arrived our table was on the 2nd floor. My husband has Parkinson and was using a walker. We are both in our 70s but with the help of my son and grandson we managed to climb the stairs. The meals were excellent as well as the staff. The only thing that spoilt it was a party of about 24 people which half were children. It was extremely noisy with children running around screaming and shouting around our table so sadly it spoilt our day. We will return though as the meals were excellent and hopefully it will be a bit quieter and enjoyable.

First visit today. Folk week has started and the staff were clearly rushed off their feet, yet all happy, smiling, friendly, and never made us feel rushed. Service was quick and efficient, the food was just wow - best roast I've had in a while, and the lemon creme brulee was beautiful - and the restaurant was clean and tidy. Really happy, highly recommend, and will definitely be back!

It's good for a drink but the food is bland and has absolutely no taste whatsoever and it's expensive too it was £50 for a starter roast and some chips not worth the money and there's barely any signal, Pro tip use the money you...

We heard there was a new chef, and due to the great location overlooking the bay we wanted to give it another chance after a couple of lacklustre lunches over the previous year. Wow! What a change!!! We have now been 3 times and will...

It's a pub with an old man pub feel although it's in a nice location it's still feels "sticky".

Food was really good and everyone was very kind

New chef - food is amazing! We had tried the Charles Dickens twice (due to great location and views over the sea) but food was not great. We tried again when we heard there was a new chef, and the experience was a different level! We have now been 3 times. The first time we had simple fresh starters, with a fragrant tomato salad and perfectly prepared calamari, and then the pork belly and the lamb, both of which were delicious, with the lamb the best I have ever tasted! We then tried a Sunday lunch which went down well with our larger group as there was other food rather than Sunday roasts on offer. Again the food was well prepared and tasty and all 7 of us (who love our food) had something different and really enjoyed our meals, including a good selection of desserts. The 3rd visit was for the fruits de mer which included oysters, fresh king prawns, anchovies, mussels and battered crab, served with a simple mixed salad with tasty dressing, and chunky chips. Twice we sat in a window seat with beautiful views across the bay and we were even able to watch the Broadstairs fireworks outside from the balcony. All 3 times the service has been excellent. The new chef has definitely changed the experience at this place for the better, and we will certainly eat there again! Thank you .

This is a lovely location overlooking the sea and harbour , so sit upstairs in the surprisingly very good restaurant. Excellent meal - selection of starters and tasty lamb for me and fish for my partner. I had thought it might be standard pub style...

Food was edible but in any way enjoyable. Staff were friendly but not efficient. Not worth the price. Wouldn't recommend.

We sat and ordered a bottle of wine which was very pleasant. We then went up to the restaurant as we were a bit peckish and ordered 1 soup and 1 foccaia. Sadly the foccacia had to be the most uninspiring thing I've ever tried, most of which I left and the leek and potatoe soup was very watery. Note to chef - must try harder!

Great family meal ,good food wonderful service

Nice pub, nice food, good service. Not too expensive but not overly cheap. Fish and chips 16.50 and a kids meal was 5.50 for one course. Only complaint would be that advertised fish goujons for kids but they were fish fingers.

Had a “sharing” ploughman’s platter. Even asked the barman if it was for two people as it said “sharing” on menu and he said it was. Came over and for £17 you got one slice of bread cut in half? Half a slice of bread...

Very quiet for a seaside town pub. Staff were very nice and friendly and cider went down a treat. One of three places we visited in Broadstairs.

We went for Sunday lunch, which was poor, to say the least. A chicken breast, 4 roast potatoes, a Yorkshire pudding, and a spoon of cabbage and carrots. The carrots were rock hard and cold, the cabbage was cold, as was the Yorkshire pudding. NOT worth the £17 they were charging. On a positive note, all staff were lovely, attentive, and welcoming. Improve the food, and you'd be onto a winner as the location is great.

There is a nice view of Viking Bay from the upper floor. From the Light Bites range, Beer Battered Fish, Hand Cut Chips, Garden Peas for £10 is enough for a light dinner. The service was ok.

We ate here on a Sunday evening and it was very quiet. There are great views from the restaurant across the sea. One of our starters was served with part of it missing and when I queried it I was told that they had run...

Nice pub that over looks the sea

No dogs. Could mention the fact that dogs are not welcome on their website, as we decided to walk to the pub from Ramsgate for breakfast only to be turned away. So no idea what the food is like. Dog owners generally expect pubs to...

Went here and we had the dog with us..Most pubs were dog friendly but we hadn't even opened the door when the barmen shouted no dogs..! We sat out side ..only had the one drink here ..Went to find another dog friendly pub instead...

I hadn't visited for quite a while and found prices very expensive.

Great place and right by the sea. Very pleasant staff.

Bland, frozen food, approximate service. The view is the only upside. Avoid

Day trip to Broadstairs. We had Sunday Roast which turned out to be one of the best roasts I'd had in a very long time. Definitely recommend.

Popped In for a quick drink. Lovely views, clean & tidy. Barstaff were all helpful.