The Elderflower Lymington in New Forest

We visited the premises for a midweek evening meal in August. We had pre booked the meal several months before, a must in high season. We were met by the new maitre de, who was in his second week at the restaurant. From reading previous reviews, he is a good addition to the premises. He was attentive and knowledgeable and made us feel at ease immediately. We opted for the 7 course taster, but not being great wine drinkers we sought advice. On his recommendation, we were able to share a ‘wine flight’ between my wife and I. They even gave us a spare glass on each course. This elevated the whole meal experience for us. The entire meal was sublime, with faultless service from the staff. Only one observation was the over attentiveness of the owners wife, who had a habit of over lingering at a table once a course was served. Sometimes less is better👍. Will we return ? Absolutely Yes! Highly recommended.

Absolutely stunning; wow, what an experience. The food was unbelievable, just beautiful AND the service was also out of this world. We LOVED everything about our visit. Just wised we lived closer . Will definitely visit again. Can’t recommend highly enough.

If you have money to burn and if you love having every ingredient of each course described in detail in an almost religious ceremony then this is the place for you. If, however, you just want to eat high quality seafood without too much pretension then you should go instead to Verviene in Milford-on-Sea. A hundred times better (and much cheaper too). The service is ostentatious, overbearing and intrusive. The food is fancy, but not nearly as good as they try to pretend. We really did not enjoy it and could not recommend.

The very warm welcome was the start of a culinary journey of the tasting menu. The ambience is lovely, staff so friendly and knowledgable. The food was a delight weith tastes, looks and flavour that challenged the palatte and led you through a merry dance of food heaven. I was a pleasure to get top quality food in an unstuffy environment. Be back soon, many thanks.

We went for the 4 course tasting menu and one wine flight between us, which the staff kindly offered to do in separate glasses. The staff were attentive and knowledgeable. We would visit again, for a special occasion, but would probably not go for the wine flight as, nice though the wines were, I did feel that they were a little pricey. We finished with an additional cheese course. I doubt we will see a cheese presentation like this anywhere else. We were mortified the following morning when were realised we had not included a tip. The service could not be faulted.

We had intended to have fish and chips on the green in Milford but the shop was shut. We decided to move to Lymington to see what was on offer and came across The Elderflower just off the quay. It was a high end restaurant but it had a sign outside saying ‘Fish and chips…best in town’. I went in to enquire, and once it was established Chef could do our order, a 10 minute wait and we had absolutely SUPERB F&C along with mint pea purée and tartare sauce which we ate sat along the harbour. The staff were extremely friendly and helpful which was lovely. As an aside, whilst eating we weren’t bothered once by seagulls although they were around…nice to be able to enjoy food without trying to fend off those daylight robbers!

Our third trip to The Elderflower and the food and service were excellent yet again. Lovely local produce cooked well and explained by the team at each course. I also enjoyed the wine pairing and had wines from South Africa, France and Argentina. Excellent job.

Having read the reviews I definitely thought it worth a try. Let's be honest and say the service and attention to detail was excellent. The reason for the rating I have given is that, for me, it was not worth the money. I found it very expensive and having been to other similar restaurants which were cheaper, I was disappointed that this was so expensive. You will enjoy the tasting menu and customer service. You may not enjoy the bill so much.

Some very excellent dishes and the lemon souffle was to die for. The signature dish of lamb rump was a huge disappointment due to a lack of trimming of the meat hence 4 stars. This restaurant is expensive and I do not expect a significant layer of outer sinew not to removed. Also the lamb was full of sinew and having recently cooked lamb rump steaks at home with little sinew I was disappointed.

As it was the 10th anniversary for the restaurant we spoiled ourselves with the 5 course tasting menu. It was fabulous in every way and in our opinion the chef never fails to deliver superb food with every changing ideas. We have been enjoying the Elderflower menus over the last ten years and look forward to the next. Bon appetite!

We had seen the Elderflower feature on Saturday Kitchen and the tasting menu looked incredible. It did not dissapoint, our first visit here and it won't be the last. The menu was innovative and the courses flowed really well into the next. There were many highlights of the 7 course tasting menu but the Pigeon dish was outstanding. At the end of the meal we saw the table next to have the additional cheese course which twisted our arm. I have never had a cheesboard like this and have eaten at a lot of fine dining restaurants. The welsh rarebit and the stilton cheescake were incredible. We look forward to coming back here very soon.

What a delightful evening we just had, food amazing staff were on point! Will be returning very soon! Thank you very much

Wow. I’ve been here twice now and it’s blown me away both times. Excellent service and the best food. 👌🏼🫶🏼 💯 % coming back here again.

Another incredible and outstanding dining experience at The Elderflower. Having visited in December for the 12 Days of Christmas, we couldn't wait to return. Completely different offer this time and each dish in the 7 course tasting menu was a masterpiece. I cannot find enough superlatives to describe the ingredients and skill that went into creating and producing these individual plates of utter delight. Staff were superb as usual and their unobtrusive attentiveness and relaxed approach made you feel so at home And with the superb Marjolaine overseeing all front of house activities, we were guaranteed a fabulous evening - which indeed we did have. We'll be back very soon..... https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g190774-d6467684-r938543654-The_Elderflower_Lymington-Lymington_New_Forest_National_Park_Hampshire_Hampshire.html#

Good but not very good or excellent. That's how I'd rate my experience. Average is a little harsh but 3.5/5 Good would be fair. Interesting menu, some great flavours, excellent service. A very competent kitchen. Portion sizes on the 5 course tasting menu were small and service was slow. 2 hours and 20 mins for 5 courses is painfully slow. I know restaurants are having a tough time right now but £225 for the 5 course tasting, with a bottle of water and one glass of wine plus service. You can eat just as well in Hampshire for a lot less.

Given the universal praise in previous submissions, our party of four went to The Elderflower with high expectations - and we were not disappointed!  The four-course tasting menu was full of innovations such as an edible tulip (complete with its asparagus like stem!!) and was perfectly balanced and paced.  This latter aspect was expertly choreographed by the charismatic Mariolaine , whose guiding hand ensured  immaculate front of house whilst her husband produced culinary masterpieces.  We will return! PS In order to be truly objective, we did come up with one criticism - the bread was a little overcooked and the amount offered to a table of 4 was slightly meagre (but the celeriac butter was sublime)

Here for the seven course tasting menu, a delight of tasty treats. Beautifully cooked and presented, waiting staff were inobtrusive and attentive. A lovely evening.

I normally find some small but constructive criticism of even the best restaurants but not this time. In my opinion this was as near to perfection as you can get. The service was spot on. It was curteous , friendly polite and extremely knowledge about the food and wine. We had a six course tasting menu originally 5 but the cheese course was added. The food was very inventive and imaginative , perfectly prepared , cooked and served. It was not cheap but I never mind paying for quality so to me it was good value. I look forward to going again. My thanks to all at the Elderflower for a very memorable and enjoyable lunch.

Having been gifted a meal at Elderflower we were torn between the tasting menu and sharing menu but opted for the sharing menu (3 courses and we opted for the Cote de Boeuf main). WOW!!!! We’ve been lucky enough to visit restaurants with ‘celebrity’ chefs at the helm and they’ve been fab but this was a revelation. It’s definitely a treat restaurant as not cheap but worth every penny. In addition to our 3 courses were a warm, mini sourdough loaf with celeriac butter and apple followed by pheasant Bon Bons with a stunning white chocolate and turnip emulsion. Beef was perfectly cooked and sides were delicious. Stunning pear soufflé was divine and the service from our waiter and the fabulous French owner (her English Husband is the chef) were warm and welcoming. We will be returning to sample the tasting menu and the amazing cheese course we saw served to other diners that looked inventive and delicious.

Everything was superb: the high standard of quality cuisine; cooked to perfection; served in an artistic and creative way; served by people with respect for both the food being served and those of us devouring it. A thoroughly enjoyable experience and evening. We will most definitely be back.

Marjolaine and team greeted us warmly. We enjoyed a 3-course roast menu centred around a delicious chateaubriand of venison including sides of cauliflower cheese with truffle and curried butternut. Our starter of tandoori cauliflower done in a wood-fired oven made this ordinary vegetable super sexy....

Special restaurant for a special treat. A fantastic welcome with warm bread and celeriac butter. We then enjoyed a bottle of valpolicella with our 3 course roast menu. Great experience. We’ll be back!

Very disappointing. Went for a special Sunday Lunch, ANY pub would have been better. Beef tough, Yorkshire pudding like cardboard, vegetables soggy.

Absolutely superb meal, outstanding food and ingredients sourced locally, what more can you ask for. Thank you to our lovely friends who treated us and the attentive and friendly serving staff.

The 4 course Christmas tasting menu was sublime. A clever nod to the 12 days theme without becoming a cliche. Every dish was superb from the creativity of construction and presentation to the balance of flavours and textures. The service team were excellent - warm,...

Once again we returned to sample the 8 course Christmas menu as we were delighted last year. And once again we were astounded by the menu. Each course was a true dining experience. Food was excellent, service was excellent and there is no doubt that...

Absolutely brilliant food atmosphere service fantastic ,spoil yourselves at least once and experience this amazing restaurant

The Elderflower certainly deserves its rating of 3 Rosettes and cannot be far from even more prestigious awards in the future. Booking was simple, reception on arrival - friendly and attentive. Service throughout was impeccable - timely, attentive, knowledgeable and friendly. The food is outstanding....

Love the enthusiasm and dedication to creating and delivering visually gorgeous and very tatty food.

This is the finest dining experience we've had in a long, long time. We opted for the 8-course "12 Days of Christmas" tasting menu and it was simply exquisite. Each offering was unique and a work of culinary art. There is some amazing skill at...

Went back to The Elderflower for a Birthday Lunch,great experience. The Elderflower is tucked away down the quaintly cobbled Quay Street at the bottom of the High Street, just a few minutes from the main car parks in Lymington. Service was a s always friendly,engaging,...

Simply fantastic food, drink and service. This is a very special fine dining experience which is relaxed and warm. The care, attention and expertise is matched by their selection of the best food and wine

We had the four course set lunch which was excellent with imaginative flavours and presentation. The desert was brilliant, it looked like a cup of coffee with a fat cigar in an ashtray with convincing ash….the ‘cigar’ was a roll of chocolate, the ‘ash’ was...

My dear late Dad had a comment for when he really enjoyed something..."Su-perb!". Well, the meal last night was definitely "su-perb"! A belated birthday present for me whilst on a break in Lymington (we are frequent visitors to the area) and we thoroughly enjoyed it....

My partner & I booked this restaurant as a last minute decision for last Friday evening as we were staying locally in Lymington for a long weekend away. We enjoyed the seven course tasting menu which is expensive but it was worth paying a little...

We booked for lunch as a birthday treat, travelling by train so we could both enjoy a few glasses of wine. Great service and atmosphere. Each of the four courses of the tasting menu were delicious and explained to us. We also enjoyed a couple of cocktails. It was a really lovely treat.

Delicious tasting 4 course tasting menu with unique tastes and ingredients never tried before, a very accommodating chef to allergies which was appreciated and was beyond expectations. Attentive and friendly staff. Good wine selection with the team providing great insights as to what might suit. Sadly shine was taken off the experience when bubbles were spilled, whilst apologies made, top up was not forthcoming, disappointing as nearly £16 a glass. Seated well away from others diners in the restaurant under a speaker which the music and volume emitted was out of character with the venue, an easy fix for the future.

Excellent food and excellent service, this is the second visit to this lovely restaurant we will definitely be going back

Friends invited us to celebrate our 47th wedding anniversary and what a celebration it was. we had the 7 course taster menu accompanied by the matching wines. The food was exquisite and the wines adventurous. All complimented by superb front of house team. Thank you Elderflower for making our anniversary special.

Midweek trip to the New Forest from London , Fantastic Lunch cooked to perfection expertly prepared with the Wine the Dessert was a show stopper.

Outstanding experience. The food was simply delicious. Every course was a pleasure. The service was possibly the best I’ve ever had. The restaurant team were absolutely fantastic. Definitely worth dining here.

Nice location, attentive staff, good service and the food was great. Little gem by the harbour. We had 7 course tasting menu, well worth it if you want to get the whole experience

Exceptional. Exceptional from start to finish. A warm welcome and environment, well spaced tables, an attentive and engaging team, super creativity and excellent food quality. All made for a great experience. 10/10. Well done Elderflower team.

This was our second visit to The Elderflower and it was just as good as the first occasion. When you decide to dine at a fine dining restaurant, that has a tasting menu it is a leap of faith that you will enjoy what is delivered to your table. Trust me, when I say that you can put that faith into Andrew and the team to deliver a wonderful experience. We had the seven course tasting menu with wine pairing, each course being lovingly described by the young and knowledgable waiting team, guided skilfully by Marjolaine, who took her time with each table to impart further descriptions of the food and wine. Every course was memorable in itself, but special mention needs to go to a mushroom fricassee dish. The mushrooms were foraged in the nearby New Forest and was a taste sensation. There was venison served with an oyster on top, the accompanying sauce had such a depth of flavour, it was spectacular. We were so immersed in the experience that we lost track of time and three and a half hours later decided that we should order the cheese course to share, having seen it be served onto a table of diners next to us. We overheard them talking about how good it was. Expecting a plater of cheddar and stilton, I could not have been more wrong. There was a blue cheese in a mini doughnut and a whipped ewes cheese on a thin biscuit and two other delicious items. Andrew popped out from the kitchen to assist with the service and I took the opportunity to shake his hand and a couple of tables joined me to applaud his special talent. A very memorable dining experience, we will return !

Went for the 4 course taster menu and it was great, packed with different and unexpected flavours. Great presentation and service. Well worth a visit.

Great experience, amazing food. Service very good. We did the 4 course taster menu. It was plenty fir us and we enjoyed it all.

I’ve wanted to visit Elderflower for so long but as we usually sail to Lymington, it’s difficult when relying on weather to know with certainty of actually getting there. I wasn’t disappointed. The staff were friendly and welcoming. Ben is great fun as well as...

The most incredible meal I think I have ever had. And this is from 2 foodies who have eaten beautiful meals in places such as London, New York, Amalfi, Lagos and more. The service was impeccable, professional and friendly. I have not had a tasting...

I treated myself and a friend to the four-course, lunch tasting menu in October 2023 and wasn't disappointed. The staff were friendly and knowledgeable and little touches, such as offering to take our coats and enquiring about our train journey (following previous correspondence with the...

Excellent lunch with friendly helpful staff and beautiful food - highly recommended as a special treat

Wow this is simply stunning and the most incredible food and service of the highest quality ever. It was my absolute highlight of my stay in the New Forest I couldn’t recommend this more highly 100 percent 5 star

We had an amazing meal at the elderflower - great surroundings, attentive and friendly staff, and top class food. We don't often go in for fine dining but this was a special occasion and the food really lived up to the experience - incredible dishes,...

Quite simply superb in every way. A gem in Lymington. We loved everything about this remarkable restaurant. Highly recommend.

The food is quite nice although not the hottest, each of the hot courses were just warm at best. Four courses at £65 a head seemed quite reasonable however £14 for a cocktail which came in a champagne flute type glass & only half full,...

The food was delicious and had been created with great care. Each of the 7 courses was stunning. A really good range of different foods, the red mullet seafood fish and the ceps were amazing. We had one small criticism; the truffle in the dessert...

We chose the 5 course tasting menu with the paired wine list. Each dish was amazing; fresh, inventive and very tasty; the wines matched the dishes well and were perfect.

We decided to treat ourselves to an evening at the Elderlower - in fact it was one of the main reasons for choosing Lymington as a short break destination. We selected the 7 course tasting menu which was fabulous. For me personally I would probably...

Fine dining, excellent informative service in a lovely ambient setting. The Elderflower Restaurant was recommended by a friend and it did impress. The hard work of the husband and wife team and their skilled staff have created a fine dining experience that exceeds that of...

We had three courses and one bread roll between us. The first course was rather bland. Our second course of steak which was nicely cooked was served with four chips a small piece of sweetcorn with half a mushroom laid across it and a slightly...

A truly special meal with exceptional service in a quaint location. All four courses were exceptional, a particular highlight was the Wild Sea Bream Tartare (delicious and of an almost buttery consistency, which virtually melted in our mouths).

What a beautiful restaurant. The menu was absolutely gorgeous with tasty treats for every course. We went for the tasting menu and did not know what was coming for each course which was a lovely surprise. The price is good for such a standard of...

Fabulous restaurant. Selected the five course tasting menu and wine pairing. Couldn’t have been happier. Creative, elegant but super tasty dishes and some great wines (biased towards French, but rightly so given the part French ownership). Staff were ‘on it’ - friendly but very attentive....

Great service and experience. Fruit de Mer excellent. Glazed lobster an amazing twist. Crab and scallops 10/10 . A nice balance of hot and cold dishes. We shared a cheese plate and dessert. Both wonderful.

Great restaurant we booked for my birthday. We had a fantastic lunch. Not cheap, but we had a super day. We will be back soon.

We enjoyed a simply sublime meal. A four course taster menu for a celebratory lunch, although wines were recommended for each course Bruce who acted as both Maitre’d and Sommelier combined was helpful in our choosing our own way. Each course was superb with my...

'The Elderflower' in Lymington was recommended to us and as it was a special occasion, and their sample menu appealed it also meant we spent a day in the sunny New Forest. Theirs is the system of Tasting menus from 4 to 8 courses and...

What’s an amazing little gem on lymington Quay . We had the 7 course tasting menu , beautiful flavours and designs on the plate . We also had the wine flight to match , it never disappoints it’s worth a visit .

If I could score this fabulous restaurant 10 I would. We enjoyed Fruits de mer which was outstanding, beautifully presented by staff who really cared and were a joy to meet. This restaurant has a lovely atmosphere. We shall try the tast5ing menu next time.

We had dined at Elderflower in 2019 and have received regular emails in New Zealand since then, so it was at the top of our list when we arrived in the area again and we booked for lunch. Our 2019 experience was perfect as was...

Fine dining in popular seaside town dominated by good gastropub food. We had the full tasting menu. Creative dishes with delicious ingredients. The wine list is more conventional but has a reasonable range of prices. (Good selection of English wines.) The service was friendly and...

We visited for a birthday lunch. We had the 4 course tasting menu. The food was high quality and very tasty. Very well presented. The staff are friendly and welcoming, good service and wine flight recommendations were great. The tables are nicely spaced apart so...

Visited for my partners birthday wasn’t disappointed - excellent service and food will be back again

WOW - I’ve eaten Fruits de Mer all over the world and I have to say I think this was my favourite - a mixture of fresh chilled seafood and hot cooked prawns, lobster and fabulous home smoked mussels - all served with beautiful dips...

The seven course tasting menu was incredible - every course was delicious and we loved that each course was a surprise

Wonderful lunch to celebrate our son’s graduation. The food was superb and most beautifully presented, the staff were very attentive and friendly. We are real foodies but all agreed that the taster menu was up there as one of the best yet!

Had the 7 course taster menu, thoroughly enjoyed every one of them. The staff explained every dish in detail the service was great, had a nice table and would highly recommend 👌

Wow. What an absolutely amazing lunch. Just to say, thank you Elderflower. The food was gorgeous the service outstanding and the restaurant, beautiful.

An excellent meal. We had the 7 course tasting menu and every course was delicious! Would highly recommend.

Lovely food and the service was outstanding every course was explained. Cant not recommend highly enough. Will be going back very soon

We ate at elderflower with a friend last night having booked in March. Delighted to say the restaurant didn’t disappoint. Each and everyone of the 7 courses was excellent and the wine flight a perfect match for each with plentiful measures. Service was attentive but...

We visited the Elderflower while staying in Lymington. We are becoming a bit tired of taster menus but as the restaurant choice in Lymington was relatively limited we decided to give it a try. We went the whole hog and choose the 7 course taster...

We were served a delicious tasting menu of incredible tasting dishes. It was a birthday celebration lunch with friends from Yorkshire.

Excellent in every respect An inventive and delicious tasting menu, beautiful wine and very, very good staff. Loved it

Absolutely fantastic food. Seven varied, tasty and beautifully presented dishes. Great service with plenty of info on what we were eating and what wines we were drinking. All in a lovely building in a stunning place. Perfect. Thank you!

We had 7 course taster menu with matching wines. Very lovely pace for the evening with great wine selection and wonderful food. Lovely knowledgable staff. Would highly recommend.

My husband booked the restaurant for my birthday. We had the 7 courses with accompanying wine flight. As soon as we arrived we were greeted and I was wished happy birthday. We had a really lovely table with a view down the cobbles to the...

An absolutely beautiful meal. We chose the 4 course option. My mother and I have a few dietary issues and the wonderful chef was so accommodating and managed to tweak the food in order for us to thoroughly enjoy our evening. We really enjoy coming...

Really enjoyed the taster menu. The food was excellant, beautifully presented, portion sizes were perfect for a taster menu. The way the restaurant is laid out is as it should be, plenty of room, not crammed in with loads of diners. All in all a...

Imaginative and interesting dishes, flawlessly executed. Balance of flavour, texture and colour. Focus on local in season ingredients. Well paired with generous pours of very good value wines. A front of house team that were cheerful, attentive, and competent. A cracking evening and well worth...

Great service, excellent food. Terrific atmosphere. Good selection of wine to accompany the Taster menu ….really quite amazing

I haven't been back to Lymington for a good few years so wanted to try out this amazing gem of a restaurant. I had a fabulous birthday celebration dinner here on Friday and the food, service and ambience was absolutely excellent. It was a pleasure...

We had a lovely evening , staff were very friendly and attentive and the ambience was lovely and relaxed. We had the 7 course taster menu and were very impressed with 5 out of the 7 courses. The 2 desserts looked very nice, but for...

This restaurant is not only a place to enjoy a meal, but an entire experience. The tasting menu was presented by our waiter with care, and full explanation of the ingredients. The chef is highly talented in the ingredients, tastes, colours, and textures he prepares,...

We were not sure about the restaurant and just found it on Google. It was situated just off the beach on a very quaint side street. We arrived early and were served with great precision, sensitivity and skill a 5 course meal with expert pairing...

This place is definitely worthy of a Michelin star. The seven course menu with wine pairings was amazing. Excellent service and staff. One of the best restaurants we’ve been to.

It was a “nice” meal but not as good as expected. In and out in under 2 hours with service that felt like people were doing a job rather than excited to work there. The sea bass was beautiful but the other courses failed to...

Fabulous food, many different tastes and components to each course, nicely gelling. Complicated and super interesting food you would never cook at home, quite a culinary experience. Four course tasting menu was more than sufficient. Good attentive and very knowledgeable service

We visited this restaurant on a Thursday, we were a group of 2 couples and I was the only irritation to the full tasting menu in that I can’t eat any seafood ( Not a preference). The lovely Bruce rang in advance to ensure I...

Lovely little restaurant near the quay. Very friendly staff and the food was delicious. Great value considering the quality and elegance of the food

Visited for 7 course taster menu for our wedding anniversary celebration and what a wonderful experience! Lovely venue, fabulous food and service, no wonder you were fully booked! Thank you for a superb evening.