The Duchess of Cornwall Inn in West Dorset

Great Fish and chips . Don’t take cash .It is legal tender in UK ,why not? Lunch atmosphere ruined by screeching loud vocalist. Could not hold conversation with friend . Would have thought in such a place as Poundbury grand piano and smooth music would be more appropriate or something similar . Couple on next table were like minded .They could not speak either

Service was good. It was very chilly and had to put on a jacket. We ordered steak and tanglefoot beer pie with red cabbage and mashed potatoes. The pastry was hard and difficult to cut. It felt like the whole dinner had been microwaved. I had chicken, salad and chips. The chicken was small and dry and I did not enjoy the butter sauce. The salad was a few leaves and the cherry tomatoes were cut in quarters. The chips were good. It was not value for money and we won’t be eating there again.

Regular at the pub but Mother’s Day was a let down. Should have known it would be v busy and on service and standards would slip in this normally excellent pub. Service slow - drinks arrived halfway through meal. Then we were forgotten and have Orton g to order puddings. Roast was fine except plate and beef cold. Disappointing as really like this place!

We had a lovely meal here mid week on the house, as compensation for a minor issue last year. The staff could not have been more helpful or accommodating, and the food was delicious too. Many thanks for the managers for arranging and to Sophie for her impeccable service

Slow service staff appear to be temporary unsure of orders delivered to table, does not take cash, sofa seating by the windows is terrible worn out.

An amazing place to stay in a unique area. Great value for money but with no expense spared. Everything was perfect.

The Shepherd’s Pie was tiny. Not worth £18.95. Fish n chips came with 10 chips. Few mushy peas served in a small sauce pot.

My family and I went for Sunday lunch here last weekend. Lovely surroundings and friendly staff can not be complained of. However, the Sunday lunch was not great, and it had been our reason for dining out here. Despite ordering at the same time to the same table number, our meals all arrived separately with a long wait for the last 2 dinners, meaning we either waited and ate cold food or all ate separately. That was annoying. Then the roast dinners arrived - what 4 of us had been waiting for, and it was visually not representative of the £17.95 we each paid. A few dry, thin slivers of tough meat, overcooked roast potatoes, and what seemed like a teaspoon of gravy made the offering a huge disappointment. The wait staff were friendly but seemed too few and overworked. We had to keep asking for condiments, and they eventually arrived, but not before half the meal had been eaten. All in all, I've had so much better locally for less money, so I'll put this down to experience and won't return for Sunday lunch again.

The Dutches of Cornwall is an impressive looking inn in the slightly surreal environs of Poundbury, King Charles’ pet sociological experiment. It doesn’t have much competition in the immediate area and is - or should be - something of a flagship for the Hall and Woodhouse brewery that is based just up the road in Blandford. The setting, decor and general ambience are all excellent. The staff are youthful, smiley and mostly enthusiastic. The rooms are well appointed, comfortable and, particularly given the recent cold snap, warm and cosy. The bed and breakfast deal I got also represented fantastic value for money, particularly once you throw in the complementary drink from your room. What’s not to like? Well, we combined our overnight stay with Sunday lunch. It all looked promising. We, however, waited quite a while between being seated and being spoken to by waiting staff. “Sorry for the wait”. My pescatarian wife wanted the Hake. “Sorry, there’s no Hake left”. Our booking was at 1:30, not, I would suggest, late in the day. Not wanting fish and chips (again), she opted for the No Nut Roast. I went for the Roast Beef (‘served pink’). We perhaps confused the issue by ordering starters - arancini and beetroot cured smoked salmon. Both were delicious. We then waited quite a while for our starters to be cleared. Eventually, my wife asked someone to clear our table. We then waited for our main courses. We waited. We watched other table’s mains come and go. We waited. We asked after our mains and moments later they appeared. ‘Sorry for the wait”. All looked Okay although my beef wasn’t pink. I tried it and it was a bit tough and beginning to dry out. Had I guessed, I would have thought they may have been waiting under a warming lamp for a while. We mentioned it to a waitress, who said she’d ‘tell chef’ and get me some more, pink beef. We waited. Unsure whether I should continue to eat my veg, I asked a waitress and she said to carry on eating - I’d just be getting some more pink beef. Eventually, 4 succulent pink slices of rare roast beef appeared. Joy. When asked by the duty manager(?) if everything was OK, the waiting, string of apologies and the over-done beef were highlighted and he, again, apologised and kindly removed the cost of our main courses from the bill. Whilst I feel this was good and absolutely the correct response, I would clearly have rather have had a good meal served in a timely way the first time round. Breakfast looked promising but, again, a few items - typically those we requested - were unavailable. No baked eggs (?) and no plain yoghurt. I am not sure who eats Toffee yoghurt at breakfast, of which there was a plentiful supply, other than, perhaps 6 year olds. It was also sad to see streaky rather than back bacon included in the Full English Breakfast (and my bacon bap). Is this pandering to the American audience, do you think? A bit pernickety perhaps. Overall, a lovely stay was tarnished somewhat by some poor catering and a limited number of young staff who, whilst trying hard, lacked effective supervision; I would suggest that many of the delays we experienced could have been avoided by a good ‘maitre d’hotel’ or ‘floorwalker’ directing staff to clear away, prepare tables or identify when folk had been waiting too long. We would certainly give the Duchess of Cornwall another go - if only for the exceptional value for money of the overnight stay - and hope that the duty manager’s assurances that what we found was not representative of their usual high standards to be the case.

Lovely atmosphere, clean, staff attentive and pleasant! However we had the roast dinner which was good but arrived cold on cold plates! Lemon tart dessert was small, unpleasant, hardly any filling and a mouldy raspberry sitting on the top! Shame

Excellent fish and chips and great friendly service - a very enjoyable lunch. We'll definitely be back.

A lovely place to stay The manager and his staff were so friendly and helpful and made you feel very welcome. The room was very well presented and very clean. Thank you hope to see you again

Went for lunch yesterday. The service was slow but we ordered Shepherds Pie with seasonal veg. It was pricey but sounded nice. It was slow coming and the portion was on the small side but the shepherds pie was tasty - but had some sharp fragments of dried bay leaves in it. The veg was awful - carrots, leeks and tender stem broccoli they were over cooked and had a peculiar taste possibly pickled but that was not advertised. All in all not a good eating experience and definitely over priced.

Extremely poor service, had to wait for 2 hours for food. We were a party of 9 pre booked table and ordered food through the app. Drinks arrived and food was ordered. Then had to wait for over 2 hours for the food. When it did arrive, food was ok, but having to wait that long took out the enjoyment of the food. When my father in law questioned the wait for food, we were given a bottle of wine. A substandard service. Our reservation was for 1pm, we didn’t leave until nearly 5pm. This is the only pub in the village, then they need to up their game with service, food.

We are a group of 10 who enjoyed a fabulous meal on Christmas day at The Duchess. I cannot fault our experience. The food, staff and venue were perfect. It's not easy serving 3 courses to 6 adults and 4 children in a timely manner and all piping hot. The atmosphere was great. All of our meals were excellent and we enjoyed an amazing lunch. Big thanks to all at The Duchess. We have never eaten out at Christmas but will definitely return and reccomend this lovely Inn to anyone considering joining the team for a fab Christmas

I live in Dorchester, and have been coming up here to eat since it opened. Last night myself, my partner & his parents went for dinner. The staff were so lovely, the setting always beautiful, the food was INCREDIBLE. Being 8 months pregnant I struggled to eat it all but it was so lovely. The staffs attentiveness really did make it a perfect night out, so thank you xx

Good location for parking, lovely building with plenty of room. The food is a good solid 4 stars, Service was average a bit Ai - ish, and a bit slow in clearing the table and making sure cutlery was done for the next course, paying...

Came in for a meal with colleagues for a Christmas party and was very impressed. Upstairs dining room is absolutely beautiful and very festively decorated, we were waited on by the lovely Sophie W and she was amazing, very attentive and willing to do anything...

I went to duchess for my daughters birthday meal, after being shown to our table, we waited 20 minutes for service ( it wasnt busy!) they came to take our order,... Would of been nice to see a menu first!!! We asked for bottle of...

Looks great but manager awful . Had a really bad experience with my disabled daughter left her for a few minutes for an appointment with a glass of lemonade (safe as I thought ) how wrong I was manager told her to take her assistance...

lovely looking pub at a first glance but the food was fairly average. my son got the chicken supreme and it came out cold. i had the fish and chips and it was barely edible. another thing that made the experience worse again was the...

Issues from the start. Booked a table online for 2 adults plus dog. They couldn't find the booking and said we couldn't go to a table upstairs as we had a dog. Fortunately a couple were leaving at that moment and we were offered their...

A one night stay in Poundbury having read about it and driven by a few times over the years, so keen to see what it is all about. This appears to be the only viable option as a place to stay. Essentially a pub but...

Visited for lunch with friends but unfortunately had poor service again. Ordered food and drinks at the same time but our food arrived with no drinks. Member of staff said he would chase them up but they still didn’t arrive. Went downstairs to the bar...

Stayed for 1 night, dinner and breakfast very good all freshly cooked, bed very comfortable an enjoyable experience would recommend.

We booked a room a few days before, just their standard superior room. Having stayed in their luxury room before we were delighted by the big bed and large shower room. Very comfortable in deed. We ate dinner in the bar area which always had...

I’ve visited The Duchess many times and I have to say yesterday was by far the worst. I’d ordered a charcuterie board to share as a starter, agreed when ordering it would come separately to our main meals. The waitress bought it over the same...

Friendly efficient service, good coffee and really lovely brownies. Excellent choice for a coffee break with friends.

The food was piping hot, plenty of it and well presented. Previously Sunday lunches there have not been as good but this time it was fab. Staff were lovely and everywhere spotlessly clean. The atmosphere was lovely. Will definitely go back. Intact we booked Christmas...

The menu is always un available .the staff are good but need to clear tables quicker. I can't understand why they have ran out of things when they have a waitrose looking at them .beyonf me the management need to dress as the stage as...

Great food including the usual menu on a Sunday which is appreciated as I'm not a fan of Sunday lunch out. Spacious setting so you don't feel hemmed in or in anyone's way. The restaurant was busy, the bar downstairs was really busy so service...

Not very impressed, poor menu choices, not a good service the staff seemed very lethargic, seemed bored to tears, we will not be going back in a hurry.

Wow! Best meal I’ve had with my family in a long time . Arrived a little late due to traffic but the table was ready and waiting for when we arrived. Lovely setting in a grand, elegant building. Was greeted straight away and shown to...

The service was really quite poor They had run out of key vegetables that were part of the dish The dish that arrived, whilst tasty was actually pathetic No one asked No one cleared No one thank us for our business Wouldn’t return Think they...

Very poor. Turned up for a family meal, little choice left on the menu, almost all sold out! Would have been good if the waitress could have smiled! Won’t be back !

Unfortunately this used to be a great experience but value, quality and service have slipped. Meals took nearly an hour, they were small and cool or cold. Service is really disappointing and I am not sure this is the staff's fault. I'd guess that training,...

This was one of our favourite dining spots when in Dorset visiting my family. Unfortunately a few black spots have sort of spoilt this for us. The first is that the kitchen closes at 9 pm I know this sounds crazy but it's true. I...

An overnight stay whilst in the area. Set in the town of Poundbury (designed by the then Prince of Wales, now King Charles), this pub/hotel creates part of the Queen Mother Square area. The pub itself emits an air of grandeur. Large and spacious, with...

I’ve visited this pub several times and always have a good experience. The interiors are impressive and the staff are very friendly. Service can be a bit slow, but the food is always of high quality. Good selection of food and drinks. Would definitely recommend.

After a chaotic and lengthy check in and uncertainty over booking a table for dinner we had an enjoyable stay. The room was a good size with very comfortable bed and good bathroom. Although the menu was a bit uninspiring the food was very well...

Large prices, small portions. Friend paid over £16 for fish and chips and had 8 chips on her plate. She asked for more chips and they tried to charge her for them later. I am vegetarian and the vegetarian food is sadly predictable with vegetarians...

Excellent hotel- completely exceeded our expectations in terms of quality of accommodation and food. Friendly, well-informed and efficient staff.

We held our wedding reception at The Duchess of Cornwall and were thoroughly satisfied with the service they provided. The food was delicious (as everyone commented) and the atmosphere/location was delightful. We hired the entire top floor and had a fantastic day. The staff were...

I cannot believe I paid £17.95 for a large Zinfandel spritzer and a pint of Morretti. How can that be justified. I who asked to see the drinks menu but there no prices listed. I asked why and was told the prices go up and...

Great service, amazing food and gorgeous rooms. We arrived as part of a tour and they accommodated all kinds of requests. What a gem of a hotel in a lovely town

Booked up for a birthday lunch for my friend . We were seated promptly, the Staff were really friendly and obliging and food was served quickly and overall it was a really lovely lunch. Food was delicious especially the skin on fries . I had...

My GM had organised and paid for a 2 nights stay at this beautiful hotel. I couldn’t have been looked after any better and made to feel so welcome. Food was lovely and staff so friendly and helpful. I will definitely be returning. Thank you...

Popped in at the end of the day after a cycle ride. Friendly staff, good drinks, nice to see lots of people we know they’re having a drink in the sunshine. Special shout out to Billy for really great service. I live in Poundbury and...

My mums birthday. 18 of us. Pre ordered our meals Reservation 1pm. We waited 1.5 hours for our meals No explanations until we asked Not exceptable Not what we expected at all We were offered free drinks but to be honest there should have been...

We have been to the Duchess of Cornwall on several occasions. We really like the pub and atmosphere there. The food varies from average to excellent. This often is determined by how busy the kitchen is. The majority of the staff are excellent particularly the...

Great value for money and above the standard I expected for an inn. The building was lovely and hard to believe it was only opened in 2016..it felt like we were in a Victorian bedroom..really authentic. Nice sized rooms, comfortable amenities, nice bathroom and great...

The ‘City’ of Poundbury is a splendid place, all shiny, happy PEOPLE LIKE YOU who have found their tribe. Queen Mother Square is the proud centrepiece and the Duchess of Cornwall an equally new and even more shiny hotel, resplendent in glass and copper and...

Good selection of "pub" food with a few daily specials. Service was a little slow but the food was very good when it came.

I thought service was non existent in the UK. This place came recommended however having already eaten we all decided on desserts and drinks. The table came with a great view. Plenty of light unlike the feel in some British pubs. Service was fine. Desserts...

This was our first visit. Very impressed. We were a family of 10 adults who all ordered different meals. Chicken Kiev, Fish & Chips, Belly Pork plus various others. Service was excellent, food was cooked fresh. Most enjoyable. Thank you to Diane and staff for...

We had lunch and tried to order on the app only to be told that we could only order drinks on the app and had to order food at the bar. My partner said he had eaten better at Wetherspoons for a fraction of price....

Dreadful service, incredibly slow, still waiting for food nearly an hour after ordering it....it's one thing if you're told up front that there's a long wait, but.......

We both had tasty very reasonably priced light meals . Spacious and dog friendly I thought it was a bit of a find

This was our first visit to this lovely high ceiling, light and dog friendly establishment. We ordered a light snack at 1255 which did not turn up. After about half an hour we asked what had happened and there had been a breakdown of the...

A great room,staff are really nice and friendly, a nice cosy place to hangout as the rain was bucketing down outside we will definitely be coming back the only thing that let it down was the food ? 7pm and they had ran out of...

We stay every few months when coming to visit family, and every time I love it more and more. The hotel is beautiful, stunning Georgian elegance. It’s furnished fabulously, the bedding and pillows are premium and insanely comfortable. The deep bath and rainfall shower are...

This place COULD be so good, but it’s just not. Such a shame. We came for a drink last night & the beer was quite stale. Ordered a different beer next round & it was also stale! They were busy so we let it slide....

Went for lunch yesterday and was very disappointed. Sat and had coffee while we waited for friends to join us. The coffee making area was filthy. Everything I looked at was in a desperate need of a good scrub. The assistant was using a filthy...

Albergo molto carino lontano dal centro, in una bella piazzetta con tanto parcheggio a disposizione Camera bella e pulita con...

Lovely building - after that goes down hill. Staying with a number of family members for a wedding. Rooms not ready until two hours after stated - short of staff. Bar closes at 11pm even for residents! Bar manager rude and condescending. Also charged for...

What a beautiful building, so perfect it looks like something from a film set. At 7pm on a Monday not busy. Ordered food at bar. Starter came after about 15 minutes - not as expected or discribed on menu - bland and tasteless. Then we...

Absolutely love this hotel in a lovely setting in a lovely square ,it’s beautifully decorated,our room overlooked the square ,and nice spacious bedrooms ,there’s a lovely bar area ,and fabulous dining area upstairs high ceilings ,there’s also a lift and a lovely staircase ,there’s outside...

Visited for a birthday lunch (4 adults). Friendly and efficient service, lovely food and prompt drinks service. Sat in the upstairs dining room which was a great setting. Felt looked after by staff and no rush for the table (although the restaurant was not full)....

Have had few ups and downs here but last week for an after work drink and snack had the steak frites and it was possibly the best have ever had! A good size and perfectly cooked medium rare with perfect fries..keep it up! Far superior...

We were disappointed with our visit for lunch. The place was quite busy but service was acceptable. I had the roast beef - this was tough to cut and very chewy. When asked how was the meal I mentioned this but the waiter did not...

We always stop here for lunch on our way to the West Country, but alas not any more. I had the beef and ale pie and left all of the meat as it was too tough to eat. I would be absolutely ashamed to serve...

I have eaten here 3 times now Great venue pleasant staff but I have yet to have a meal that I have ordered in a reasonable time frame. It’s a great shame if they could improve the quality and sort the eating out it could...

Visited The Duchess of Cornwall for a light Friday afternoon lunch and to meet friends. Food was prompt, delicious and reasonable. Staff were very friendly and accommodating. Nice ambience. Free parking - rare and welcome surprise. The location, central Poundbury, is interesting in itself and...

Beautiful building in the heart of Poundbury. Service can be abit slow and few times drinks forgotten however the roasts are rather spectacular. Yorkshire puddings make a few delays worth it.

Yesterday we had my 60th birthday party at The Duchess of Cornwall Inn. I cannot praise the team highly enough for their care and attention throughout the afternoon. The buffet provided was of an extremely high standard, and was enjoyed by all . It was...

This an INN not a hotel despite having 4*’s. Room was dark and badly lit. The lift wasn’t working for the 4 days we were there so we had to climb 10 flights of stairs to get to our room. Breakfast was the biggest disappointment....

Felt like early evening snack and drink, pleasant staff and fairly quiet in spacious downstairs, the double cheeseburger would have been great but for the burger sauce that hid any signs of the cheese! But what did strike me on a pleasant sunny evening, was...

Both experiences here have been mixed. Most recent was a light lunch. The hummus was finished with an unnecessary pomegranate drizzle which masked the complete lack of taste. Was there once one complaint about garlic, so you removed it entirely? Underseasoned and no taste of...

Burger was gristly and didn't taste nice. Tartare sauce tasted strange and fish was greasy. Nice interior and building couldn't save the meal unfortunately.

A beautiful building, and the menu is refreshingly different. The food we had was delicious. Cannot believe that this is part of a pub chain. Unfortunately, they were short of staff as our table was not cleared and was quite scruffy. The food arrived quickly...

Celebrated my sister's birthday for a family lunch on a Friday. There was a mix up with a table that we had booked. The lady staff member was not very apologetic but when we complained to Ben the Manager he gave us complimentary drinks and...

A disappointing lunch with a friend on Monday 31 January. Upon arrival we were told there was no smoked salmon, no hummus, no Shakshuka, no Middle Eastern cauliflower salad and no flatbread. That left a very limited menu of lunch dishes. We chose the goats...

At the Inn for an 80th birthday meal. Staff were really friendly, always there, but not in your face. Room was cosy, bed was comfy. The shower, well that was second to none. There were 9 of us, and although we'd pre-ordered, most of us...

Joined friends for lunch yesterday my food was terrible had the tagine it was cold and the flat breads were cold dry and like shoe leather . Asked for a side of purple cabbage as my friends were having it with their pies . But...

So many things wrong, we ordered in advance & still there was no Tofu for the vegan meal. Chunky chips ordered, fries delivered for two meals and no bun with one of the burgers, even though this was not requested. With the two Ceasar salads...

Lucky to get a good meal here I’ve had a great Sunday lunch with fantastic service and lovely fresh food. This sadly wasn’t it. Chaotic food service, cold food and staff that would rather be furloughed. I was thinking of taking my wife up the...

An impressive but dysfunctional building . Restaurant downstairs, kitchen and loos upstairs. This did not help staff who had to carry trays of food down a long wooden staircase. All seemed poorly organised and staff lacked training or management. Lost drink orders, then found they...

We had a family get together lunch on Saturday, the first time, like many other people, for a long time. We were a party of 10 ( 6 adults and 4 children ) so pre- booked our food ( recommended by the manager Becky when...

We have been regulars to Duchess of Cornwall for a long time.I have to have gluten free food due to a medical condition , it is not a fad or lifestyle choice . I had noticed of late that the nice gluten free rolls had...

We took our old in laws out for a treat, so we thought. We ordered a bottle of white wine for £ 20 and is was way below average quantity. We ordered a southern fried chicken flatbread, which wasn't too bad, apart from the tough...

Arrived Thursday with my partner for a long awaited 3 night stay. The hotel room was absolutely lovely. Clean and spacious and decorated within keeping of the hotel. Shower was lovely and bed super big. Comfy and nice bedding. Clean fluffy white towels and room...

This place has a lovely quirky atmosphere and a welcoming vibe. The drinks took 20mins to get to us from being ordered, and yes it was a midweek lunchtime but the place was not especially busy. The manager/duty person was unapologetically apologetic when I raised...

Unfortunately, the roast was really poor. You could tell it had been under a heat lamp as the small amount of gravy had congealed. The potatoes were not at all crispy and the veg was all hard. Asked for more gravy twice. It was delivered...

Attended on Tuesday evening and have to say it was fabulous. Excellent, courteous service. The best vegetarian burger ever. Lovely smooth red wine. The decor is superb.  We will definitely be back.

Booked a table for 17:00 with intention of having a Sunday roast. Made the effort to drive 8 miles looking FWD to a nice meal. On arrival was informed by waiter that they had run out of roast dinners. Just not worth making an effort...

Went for lunch. Had to ask to be served menu choices not available. Staff had poor customer service and waiting skills. Ended up with the Take, which was OK but the components of the dish especially the cous cous made it very dry. Coffee came...

Checkin was easy and was done in a professional and friendly manner . The room itself , it was PERFECTION !!!!! Beautifully decorated and furnished and most of all , immaculately spotless . The bed was so comfortable and slept well . The shower was...

Staff are friendly and a good selection of drinks, however the food is subpar. Half a slice of toast each for the shared camembert which isn't great. Tried to grab a member of staff for some more but once the food was served no one...

Slow service and limited menu half of which was types of beef burgers showing little imagination. For a flagship establishment it was truly a disappointment. Expensive beers with narrow selection.

What can I say other than outstanding from check in to check out. We were moved as there was no walk in shower as per booking, but this was dealt with by Billy in a very professional manner. Food good, room spotless, staff exceptional and...