The Elm Tree in Fareham

I visited today after being on the road for a while and asked the staff behind the bar if it was ok to use their toilets - I noticed that it was customer only toilets so assumed I'd either be allowed or told no but thought I'd still try. The lady behind the bar was lovely and advised it was ok too. TMI but I was desperate for a wee but also wanted to know if they sold coffees to go but thought I'd ask after. Before I got to ask, as I came out of the toilet - I was immediately screamed at by the 'owner' who told me that I'm not 'in the real world' and 'do I know how much toilets cost to pay for' and that it's 'common decency to offer to buy a drink' as I'm 'clearly an adult' - as you can imagine, I was in shock and never once in the 20 odd years of my life have I been spoken as rudely as I was today. The 'owner' was pointing in my face, storming over to me whilst her staff and the little customers she had (not surprising) watched. The 'owner' advised I was told yes by Jane as she's nice, but she's (owner) not so nice and runs the place. I offered to buy a drink and was about to tell her that I was going to ask for a coffee to go, and explain I was too desperate to use their toilets before I could ask, but I was told no and to leave, whilst she shooed me off with her hands in my face again. I'd like to say, no wonder you moan about the cost of your toilets if your pub is as dead as it was today, every day. Maybe work on your people skills and manners, then you might have a few more customers and you won't need to belittle or be nasty to new potential customers that you could receive, that pass by. I'd also recommend enforcing your rules onto your staff, so they aren't put in this predicament in future. To be screamed at and embarrassed in front of people, whether their customers or workers was not okay, and I dread to think how you treat your staff - maybe you should get in the real world yourself or do something that makes you happy because you're clearly miserable and obviously need to learn how to treat other human beings. Owning something has clearly given you a superior complex that makes you feel like you can speak to people like crap - it is a human right to use a toilet, and I shouldn't feel wrong for doing so. I could've had a medical problem or suffered from mental health issues and being spoken to like that, and in a situation like that could've triggered me - luckily, I don't. I dread to think how they'd feel, being treated that way for politely asking to use the toilet. Overall, I do not recommend and will never recommend. Whether the 'owner' was having a bad day or what, I do not know - but if you are an 'owner' of a business, you should learn to put that aside. I say owner in quotations as that title for you is not believable. Go to another job if it makes you that unhappy - instead of spreading your horrible, bitter, and awful nature to everyone else.

Tuesday Night is Steak Night! Two steaks and the trimmings plus a bottle of very drinkable wine for each couple @ £25.00, a no brainer really as the steaks were delicious. We have done this a number of times and never been disappointed. Same goes for Wednesday nights which are Pie nights, same format. Lorraine the boss runs a tight ship, they have great beers on tap, and the atmosphere is warm and friendly. The garden is lovely in the summer too!

There for friend's birthday party. Fabulous buffet, excellent quality food. Friendly and attentive staff. Nice ales.

A big thank you to Lorraine and co for all their hard work and support for my fantastic birthday party event! This is a lovely, cosy venue to enjoy great food and drink with friends and family. The buffet was superb and all my guests came away saying they'd had a wonderful time. My wife and I will be back for lunch in the near future!

We were taken aback to be charged £3.40 for a glass of lime and soda. This is the latest in a number of price rises in this pub. Surely the Elm Tree should be encouraging drivers to buy non alcoholic drinks. Very poor value compared with other pubs.

We came across this cosy little pub on are way home, reasonably priced lovely staff cosy inside

Lovely traditional pub, great ales, great food, great staff what more can i say. Oh lovely and clean, and loved the decor. We'll be back😁

Bar snack of chicken curry and chips was excellent value and very tasty. Fantastic choice of real ales at the bank holiday Beer festival. The steak nights are really good value for money.

After spending over £100 over the bar with some biker friends, we were asked to leave the pretty much empty pub as we were blocking the car park. Won't be coming back.

A lovely country pub with incredible food and excellent staff.

We were staying in the area for an over night stop, this pub was recommended by our hosts! We had a lovely meal with amazing service! Will def visit again if in the area. Thank you

Service was absolutely appalling. Glasses were not clean at all, I had someone’s lipstick all over my glass. It’s always quiet for a reason I guess, won’t be coming back.

Beautiful pub. Will certainly visit again.

Have been using The Elm Tree for many years and have never been disappointed with the food, service or atmosphere. Really lovely old pub/restaurant

I am an 82 year old woman and hard of hearing. I arrived early for a group lunch booking and ordered a drink. The landlady, for reasons she wouldn't fully explain, took issue with this and after shouting and physically throwing my money on floor, ordered me to leave her pub. I tried to explain that I wear hearing aids and couldn't understand what issue I had caused, this made no difference. I ended up leaving when the rest of the group had arrived as I felt so upset and could still not understand why the landlady had been so belligerent. Would give 0 stars if I could, this woman should not be in front of customers.

Visiting here after a two year break. We always try to visit as many pubs in the area as possible. This was the last one remaining in the area around Universal Marina. Decided on the Friday morning to try this pub for a dinner. Had a look at the website to get an idea. To my absolute surprise they had some food offers. Namely £25 for two meals (on Tuesday and Friday it’s steak and on Wednesday it’s pie.) AND a bottle of wine (red or white)! Somewhat curious we booked and arrived early (45 minute) and were greeted by a friendly barmaid who “checked” us in. They advertise the pub food as good and home made. No doubt there! I would go as far as to say honest, tasty and exceptional value! Served by Julie who was very friendly, polite and a credit to the pub. Also had the chance to meet the landlady, Lorraine, who is naturally very proud of her pub and today was doing the cooking. The pub has a great ambience with a lovely eclectic decor. Great garden with plenty of seating. As to the food it was tasty and generous. Sirloin steak (cooked to your liking) served with chips, garden peas, mushrooms and half a tomato! Bottle of Merlot (I think). Extras like blue cheese sauce, onion rings etc are available. Thoroughly recommend the place. Will be back and looking forward to the pie on another occasion.

Visiting here after a two year break. We always try to visit as many pubs in the area as possible. This was the last one remaining in the area around Universal Marina. Decided on the Friday morning to try this pub for a dinner. Had a look at the website to get an idea. To my absolute surprise they had some food offers. Namely £25 for two meals (on Tuesday and Friday it’s steak and on Wednesday it’s pie.) AND a bottle of wine (red or white)! Somewhat curious we booked and arrived early (45 minute) and were greeted by a friendly barmaid who “checked” us in. They advertise the pub food as good and home made. No doubt there! I would go as far as to say honest, tasty and exceptional value! Served by Julie who was very friendly, polite and a credit to the pub. Also had the chance to meet the landlady, Lorraine, who is naturally very proud of her pub and today was doing the cooking. The pub has a great ambience with a lovely eclectic decor. Great garden with plenty of seating. As to the food it was tasty and generous. Sirloin steak (cooked to your liking) served with chips, garden peas, mushrooms and half a tomato! Bottle of Merlot (I think). Extras like blue cheese sauce, onion rings etc are available. Thoroughly recommend the place. Will be back and looking forward to the pie on another occasion.

This was a favourite independant pub where 6 of us dined regularly. Our last visit produced real ale that was "off" and when complained about was met with shrugged shoulders. The usually excellent food was distinctly less than average, we did notice that the usual cook was off duty and the pies didn't taste nice. Another one that we'll not be visiting again anytime soon.

Don't bother with this place. The landlady Lorraine has a foul mouth when you question the cooking. Was going to book a works leaving lunch here for a colleague (12 people). Not now. This lady (if you can call her that) needs her mouth washing out. Terrible, terrible. AVOID!

A first class Sunday lunch. It’s difficult to serve vegetables and meat hot at the same time, but they excelled. A tribute to Lorraine, the landlady, who has put in a lot of work to make this one of the best in the area.

Had a lovely evening with friends, great staff and fantastic food the mac n cheese was delicious and really great prices

Very good food… but spoilt by the apple pie! They were individual pies that had been put in the microwave. The pastry was all stodgy & I couldn’t eat it. Yucky!

Excellent Sunday lunch with friends, nice open fire in dining area and very attentive service. Food and drinks arrived quickly. Very nice Sunday Roast and desserts.

Beautiful Inn, for mums 86th birthday. Staff helpful and friendly. Food is fantastic. Will return again we were entertained by 40 Morris dancers on their meal out.

We visited with two friends for lunch on a Friday. The dining area is very attractive, woth oak beams, and starry lights. I ordered a Seafood Medley, with salmon, jumbo prawns, crayfish, peeled prawns, new potatoes and salad. It was very enjoyable, with all the salad crisp and fresh - £16.99. My wife and a friend both enjoyed the crab cakes; another had the 6oz steak, served as requested, with fries, tomotoes and a good pepper sauce. The americano coffees were as good as I have tasted for a while. The service was efficient and friendly.

Great traditional pub. Friendly service with lovely food and quality beer selection. Very happy to recommend, and we'll definitely be visiting again soon!

Friendly service with lovely food and quality beer selection. Very happy to recommend, and we'll definitely be visiting again soon!

Went on a Wednesday, which is pie night. The options are plentiful, with diets considered. Had steak and ale / chicken and leek with chips and pies - both were brilliant. Price is very reasonable and atmosphere / staff great. Looking forward to my next visit!

Nice "ye Olde" country pub. Pork was a little tough.

Have visited this business a few times. Our local. The landlady has obviously had a run in with people in their twenties, we went there as a family of four for the 1st time (parents and two sons). She allowed them to stay for that time only, however she wasn’t at all welcoming or kindly, the lady abruptly spoke to them in an inappropriate manner, pointing her finger in our son’s face. They avoid the place now, we certainly didn’t want to stick around, she ruined our enjoyment. We gave her the benefit of the doubt as parents, plus our men like the ‘Flower Pot Ales’🙌 We went before the Christmas period 2023, it was heaving, myself and sister along with husbands. We had a glass of red wine each, our first beverage of the night. Well, both glasses, Merlot & Malbec were past its date, awful taste of vinegar! The women behind the bar serving must have thought we wouldn’t notice the taste. Poor business ethics. Upsetting. This all boils down to the landlady and her management. They must have known the bottles were dodgy.

Absolutely amazing food, definitely going back, best pub I've been to in ages x

Great pub and the landlady is such a pleasure to her diners,lovely atmosphere,will recommend to anyone to experience this watering hole,with its real ales and lovely hospitality.

Lovely place to spend with friends..staff so accommodating.

Food was very poor, it was over cooked, sausages were hard where they were over cooked, chips were not good at all. My friend had a fish platter and that was over cooked. I will not be going back there at all. Recommend to stay away from here.

Great pup with a lovely atmosphere

Great old world English pub, food and atmosphere were 1st class

We revisited the Elm Tree after we were unimpressed with it about 5 years ago. The pub is attractive and the bar area is particularly snug, with a woodburner (open fire in the restaurant area). Decent selection of ales and the wine was "a lot better than most pubs". However, we were bemused by being told that they didn't serve food in one bar area (where dogs are allowed) but didn't allow dogs in the other bar area (where food was served). We would have eaten but we had the dog with us. Seems strange, and so I wouldn't really describe it as 'dog friendly'. Contrary to some reviews, we found the staff friendly.

We popped in for Saturday lunch after a walk and were so impressed with the food, service and atmosphere. The seafood medley was the kind of dish you’d find in a nice restaurant or on a tropical island. The leek and potato pie was absolutely delicious and came with a large portion of fries and side plate of 4 seasonal vegetables. The staff were very keen to check everything was ok and were very friendly. Definitely somewhere we will come back to, so refreshing to find a pub which isn’t part of a chain!

Had the Christmas menu . All served and cooked to perfection. Staff always welcoming and friendly .

Great cozy atmosphere with lovely fireplace just I've been searching for. Friends meet up bringing their dogs.. Just a wonderful environment.

Great meal as always. Went for the Christmas meal. Staff and food was great, only criticism there were no Christmas crackers, didn't spoil anything but would have made it more like a Christmas meal

We do not live in this area but our son, who does, took us here for our annual Christmas meal. He had already eaten there previously and thought it good. It is a quaint old original building on corner of 2 roads, and still very unspoilt inside. We had pre booked from the Christmas menu so no hassle with menus - it usually takes me ages to decide what to order! The publican, Lorraine, welcomed us warmly before showing us to table. For a change it was a table that would seat at least 6 people so no cramped feeling. We ordered our drinks and they promptly arrived at our table. Our delicious starters were served, followed by our mains at a very respectable interval. We had ordered the selection of roasts with all the trimmings and the seafood medley; all the necessary sauces were placed on table without having to ask for them. There was certainly plenty of food for each of us, all cooked to a high standard. Our chosen desserts were served after a break, when we told them we felt ready for them! We felt no pressure to finish each course quickly, which can sometimes happen with preordered meals. Lorraine checked on us at intervals, apologising for the loud noise coming from a large party of golfers celebrating at another table. We assured her it was no bother, in fact some of them also kept apologising. The prices of both food and drinks were reasonable in comparison to other establishments. We certainly had an enjoyable few hours here and would highly recommend it.

Lovely place with a cosy feeling. Beautifully decorated for Christmas. Their Sunday roast delicious and their service impeccable.

Really good meal and reasonably priced. Staff very friendly and efficient. Service first class. Very generous portions. Fully recommend.

Excellent food, lovely atmosphere and the staff are soo lovely!

Excellent Sunday roast with a good choice of meats, excellent service, great choice of puddings & great value for money in a lovely cosy atmosphere (with fairy lights). Highly recommended. We all loved it here & will be going back.

Nice pub with generous portions of food. The building itself is nice and the fireplace, this time of year is great!! Service was very good

So pleased we stopped here, were just driving past and fancied lunch. Went inside and it's very cosy with nice fairy lights everywhere & lamps on, definitely my type of atmosphere, staff really welcoming, got a nice table, service was great, had 2 steak & Stilton pies,chips & veg, 2 pints of shandy, food was realy tasty, piping hot, plenty of choice as well, didn't have space for a desert which I was gutted about as had loads of my favourites. Would love to come here again if in the area and would highly recommend, thankyou Elm Tree, Adam & David xx

Hit and miss with the food, sometimes good but sometimes not so.

This is a lovely traditional country pub and fortunately within walking distance for us. We always receive a warm welcome from the locals. Good variety of ales which are not too overpriced so my other half is happy. Moving on to the food side, we tend to visit on a Tuesday evening for their 2 steaks and bottle of wine for £25 deal. Great value ……. but ….., I like my steak medium rare and on each occasion I have ordered it , it arrives well done. Such a disappointment but worth mentioning in this review. Next time I’ll order my steak rare and see what happens.

Lovely Sunday roast big portions lots of veg and extra gravy. Great choice of puddings, the Bakewell tart and custard was amazing. Top service, nice staff. 10/10

Had a great meal on steak night. Excellent value. Attentive service.

Great friendly service, fabulous decor and such a good value steak dinner with wine. Really enjoyable evening in a nice local pub with a great atmosphere (lovely roaring fire too)

Excellent Sunday roast. Well worth the money

I have been to the Elm Tree many times. Lorraine the land lady goes above and beyond for her patrons. She has created a safe environment that a woman can go solo and feel safe to go and have a drink. She has great steak night speacials twice a week and great food other days. Great local pub.

Had a lovely meal at the Elm Tree, very nice tasty pint of beer too. Wish it was more local, best steak and kidney pud my wife and I had had for years. Gorgeous.

Have not had food here, so cannot rate it, until I've eaten in this place

Visited this pub as visiting family who lived nearby. Warm welcome from landlady and food and drink was very good. We would return when visiting again.

Fabulous traditional Sunday roast, including cauliflower cheese and choice of veg and excellent roast potatoes, all served on hot plates, had the trio of meats, so a bit of each, no room for dessert. Very welcoming staff, will be back for sure

Well kept real ales, Lovely garden. Didn't eat.

I stopped here with some disabled friends to day for a drink. The service we received from Lorraine and her staff was fantastic they couldn't have been any better thank you very much we will be back.

Amazing food, amazing staff, landlady is so sweet

Absolutely wonderful evening tonight. Lovey food, lovey staff and the land lady is so sweet. It was amazing atmosphere all night until these very rude ladies at the bar were very rude to the landlady. Would definitely go back as long as they are not there.

The food was very good and bar staff very welcoming & friendly, unfortunately not quite the same for the waitress. We were in a large group and meals were all booked in advance based on the website menu. What a great shame we were not told prior to our visit that deposits were non-refundable and the meal prices had all increased. This was not what we were expecting when presented with a much higher bill at the end of our meal. Our social group was very disappointed and do not feel that we will be able to dine there again.

The landlady totally ruined a nice night. Two middle aged women met there for dinner. A brand new young waitress made a simple small error and the LL decided to come over unasked for and unneeded on our part as we believed it resolved already. She extensively moaned about and blamed her waitress and chef and complained a lot about the quality of staff available. She did very kindly waive a starter cost due to the error. Unexpected but appreciated and we said so at the time. Other minor mistakes were made but we ignored them saying nothing as she continued to be (over) attentive and apologetic about the first one which wasn’t a big deal. It all seemed quite exaggerated and odd behaviour. It actually became a little awkward. The bill then had an unknown unspecified item (turned out to be a charge we were not told about for a swapped item) and when we asked what the item was the LL came out and was outrageous. She seemed to think making any menu alterations in a pub was unheard of and unreasonable despite the fact it was an intolerance issue catered for by every other food establishment we’ve been to with zero issues with a free swap. Making out, hypocritically and hugely inaccurately, we’d been horrible to her staff, quite literally screamed and shouted at us, pushed and shoved. Her staff had to remove her from the busy pub who were watching the spectacle before she lost it any further. She blames her staff or the customer without taking any responsibility. The staff are saints working for this woman and were wonderful. To treat customers the way she did it’s a miracle she has any. And I now understand why there’s always a staff wanted sign outside. Apparently turnover is high. Other patrons even asked if we were ok as we left. I’ll never go back. I just wish I’d read the reviews first. A long history of this extreme aggressive and rude behaviour from this woman -that the manager always seems to have an excuse for - ruins an otherwise nice place. I’ve never left a review before but this drove me to it.

Had a nice sharer meal ploughmans

Came for a roast had chicken was quite tough broccoli was tasteless and watery could have done with more potatoes Cauliflower cheese was rock hard told the lady serving she came back with another bowl wasn't much better was a waste of £16 was a shame

Just wanted to say a big thank you to Lorraine and her staff for looking after our family and friends so well on Tuesday at the Wake we held at The Elm Tree. The quality of the buffet was superb and the service we received was excellent - not that we expected anything else.

Lovely pub, friendly staff. The Steak Night is great well cooked steak and lovely chips. £25 for a couple with a bottle of wine. Make sure you book as the pub is really popular.

Lovely pub, friendly staff and great food for a very reasonable price. Thanks for squeezing us in even though we were a bit late!

A decent pub & restaurant on my doorstep, greattttttt

Warm, welcoming and friendly.Found the food of an excellent quality, well cooked and presented and, served on HOT plates! thank you. Would thoroughly recommend a visit.

First visit in years. What a lovely surprise. The land lady is so lovely, food good, atmosphere so friendly felt so relaxed. Will definitely return in the near future. This is a pub that l would call a gem. Wow l had a fabulous time.

Lovely place, staff really welcome and friendly 😊

We took advantage of the Steak Night £25 per couple offer (2x Steaks+ bottle of wine). Food was fine and service was good. We were very happy overall.

We experienced our first "Steak Night" this week with our friends. The staff are brilliant, the Manager works constantly and the food is exceptional. What more can you ask for.

Good food,excellent service at reasonable prices

Excellent lunch. Friendly staff . Perfect pub food. Thanks

Great pub, lovely local with a good atmosphere. Friendly staff and locals. Made to feel very welcome.

A classic English pub, meals were of a generous size, great flavour, reasonably priced

Love this pub, especially after football. My husband and I enjoy the friendly banter over the rival football teams in the area. Lovely to see dogs are welcome too. A real traditional pub that has a dedicated dining area so you don't feel you have to eat every time you want to go out for a drink. Mind the food is excellent too.

Just love visiting The Elm Tree. The staff are all so nice and work really hard. The landlady works hard to keep the pub warm with the lovely fires, conformtable and clean - she is is so sweet to the dogs too always has treats for them. The food is really good recommend the mixed grill what a feast. So lucky to have such a traditional pub on our doorstep. One bar for food and drink and one for drinks and our dog is welcome there too. Perfect.

Be aware that this pub does not allow anyone in under 25 years of age. There should be a sign over the door that says "Anyone who hates animals and children can't be all bad!" If you relish a level of abuse from the landlady...

Wow had a stunning dinner at The Elm Tree today, I had lamb cutlets they were absolutely wonderful, my wife had the most amazing macaroni cheese. service great as usual and good value well done Lorraine and your team top class, thank-you

16 family & friends all thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Thank you Lorraine & Team for a wonderful birthday celebration. Can't think how you could have made it better.

Enjoyed a very enjoyable lunchtime visit ~ with NO Xmas fare in sight ~ to celebrate a birthday with some nice food 😋 and a couple of drinks in front of their cosy log fire. Food/service was a little tardy....... but, in fairness, the restaurant...

We were visiting family in the whiteley area for xmas period , my husband and son visited this pub for a quiet drink before xmas dinner, I had rang previously to make sure the pub was open and member of bar staff said it was....

I love this pub, the owner obviously does too, it is a labour of love, warm, cosy and inviting, with lovely staff and great service. The Christmas dinner was really tasty and gorgeously presented. Thank you for making it a special day for me and...

6 of us (3 couples) booked up for the Christmas menu, we pre ordered the starters and main courses a couple of weeks ago. Yesterday we actually had the meal, it was fantastic! I had the seafood starter which had prawns, a king prawn, salmon...

We have often used the Elm tree for lunch. It is a most beautiful old pub with a wonderful atmosphere. The pub gets a fair number of negative reviews on occasions which seem a little unfair as we have found the staff to be very...

I have never been to this pub before and will never visit again. After walking in to the Lounge bar with my very well behaved dog, I was aggressively met by a lady behind the bar who said dogs were not allowed in that part...

Amazing country pub with lovely friendly staff and superb food. Beautifully decorated with a stunning large beer garden. Accidentally left my wallet behind and the amazing landlady sent someone around to our house with a note to say it had been handed in 😀This pub...

Frequent this pub regularly food is always good service very good and all the staff are friendly and chatty and very helpful landlady is very chatty and friendly the portions are more than enough

Popped in on Sunday for a roast the sun was out so I chose to sit outside and have a pint while I waited for my dinner. (Great selection o ales btw) My food arrived and I must say it was without a doubt the...

We hadn't been to a Steak Night at the Elm tree for quite some time, but the deal was just too tempting. Wow, we weren't disappointed. OK, we did "upsell" with sauces and onion rings, oh, and desserts, and drinks, but the steak offer alone...

This lady really needs to learn some manners , would never go again. And certainly wouldn’t recommend . Customer service training needed for her.

Our first return to the Elm Tree since the Covid restrictions. The same friendly welcome and service. The food was excellent. Once again I can thoroughly recommend this pub

Wow just had stunning lunch, both had the macaroni cheese with salad, chips and garlic bread. Well done all at Elm Tree and especially Lorraine who cooked for us

First time visiting here, we were slightly worried after reading some of the negative reviews, but can only comment on our experience. Warmly welcomed, efficient and friendly service, very nice and plentiful food made for a great visit. The atmosphere was very chilled with nice...

Just been to the Friday night steak night. Great night and value at £20 for 2 steaks and a bottle of wine and Great quality too. For all the landlady's naysayers I reckon she has more fans. We've always had a warm welcome and a...