The Lord Nelson in Poole

On works night out. We were going on a boat and went to The Lord Nelson for a drink first. Bar girl asked us to quieten down (one other couple in the bar) as she said we can't be louder than the music and also the landlord was upstairs sleeping. Unbelievable! You couldn't make it up. Suffice to say we did not go back after being on the boat.

Nice pub located on the quays in Poole with friendly staff, serving nice food.

So very disappointing. Went for Friday Fish & Chips which we’ve done before and it’s been so good. This time the fish was soggy and swilling in grease. The top batter was crispy but underneath was slime. Neither of us ate much at all. The barmaid asked if all ok when she saw what was left on the plates so I said it was very soggy. There was no response or aftercare! It felt like it was defrosted fish which had been put into batter while wet - the fish slid out of the batter whole when cut into. The actual pub also looked a bit grubby- we went in 20 minutes after it opened and the floor needed a mop and there were a lot of crumbs under our table. There’s also flies hanging about in the bar which are annoying. Sad really as it used to be a lot better until recently. We’ll vote with our feet.

Wanted ticket, wouldn’t provide it, even though we paid

Drinks were ok but the bar staff were the most miserable I've ever witnessed, embarrassing , it's totally unacceptable and I won't be going back

Amazing Friday fish deal. Small Fish, chips and mushy peas - all cooked to order and just ££5.50 . Great polite staff and good background music. I purposely travelled here today for a special solo lunch. Always this outstanding standard. Highly recommended.

Not somewhere we'd go back to any time soon. We both felt like we were something of an inconvenience to the person who served us. The food was edible but I've eaten better microwave meals at 1/4 of the price. The atmosphere was non existent and we won't be returning

A lovely pub regardless but their recent rescue of a poorly fox struggling in the water is a real testament to the people working here. Well done guys 👏

Whenever I am in Poole I always like to come here for a few pints. It is a 'locals' type pub. This visit I had lunch & ordered a Crab sandwich from the specials board with a side order of chips. Both were nice with good Tanglefoot & Fursty Ferret beers.

We ordered 2 large fish and chips. What was delivered was anything but. I would hate to see the size of a small portion. For the first time ever, we had to go somewhere else to top up afterwards. The portion size was ridiculously small, the fish tasteless and watery, we had to leave most of it! I can honestly say this was the worst meal we have ever had anywhere! We certainly wouldn’t recommend it. On the positive side, there was a nice atmosphere and the staff were friendly, but that, sadly, is the best we can say about it! Would definitely not rrecommend.

Bad food. The seafood stew offered was watery and only had a few rubber shrimps in it. The service was indifferent.

The staff were very good with my daughters dietary requirements and couldn't do enough thoroughly recommend

Lovely Pool oyster! Clams with bacon ( with the black pudding) Was great on the summer lunch today a regular customer told me the Crab salad is outstanding here … so we may come back ….

A 3-course meal for £12.50 - unbelievable in 2024 but true at The Lord Nelson. It wasn't the best food I've ever had but it was far from the worst and I would happily eat it all again: salmon and prawn cocktail to start, fish and chips with mushy peas for main, chocolate ice cream with toffee sauce for afters. The service was rather slow but the hot food was piping hot, just the way it should be. The staff were attentive and someone came to check if we liked our mains. The pub is a typical old-fashioned pub, everything wooden, even the window frames: no UPVC. They even have a menu for dogs.

As soon as I walked in the land lady made me feel unwelcome. She was incredibly under the influence; barking and screaming at her staff. The toilets were unclean and absolutely tiny! A nice bar in a nice location, however I shan’t be returning.

Awful experience! Man handled out of the pub for asking why our drinks were thrown away. Had gone out for a cigarette, gone less than 10 minutes and when we came back in, other people were at our table: my jacket was not there and our newly bought drinks were gone. When asking the bar staff where my jacket was and our drinks, they told us we hadn’t been there for an hour. What rubbish! We’d spent 2 hours previously drinking and spending money and dancing to the live music. When we challenged the staff, a large-set woman proceeded to grab hold of my partners Tshirt and told him ‘you’re not welcome in this pub’ - and ushered us outside - we are still absolutely gobsmacked at our treatment! We stayed calm as I think we were just so bemused and very confused! Bizarre. Would never ever spend another penny here again. The staff clearly need lessons on customer service.

Arrived in Poole after a lovely day in other pubs such as The Quay Inn in Wareham. On arrival got turned away as “he saw me come off a boat party even though I literally had just walked up the road from the bus. Clearly just didn’t want “my type” in the pub. After managing to persuade him he had not seen me come of a boat (which proved he was lying), told me I can’t come in as I’m an England football fan. I didn’t have a football shirt on or say anything about football, but used it as an excuse to let me in. Travelled for the live music and got turned away because of some random rules that didn’t make sense. Avoid this place if possible.

Bouncer was odd - didn’t let anyone in, accused everyone of coming off a boat party when no one did - then said no one can come in with an England shirt.. I’m not a hooligan I just wanted a beer 😂 pub lost out on money for no reason, silly behaviour

Beautiful place, cheap and delicious food, the staff are wonderful.... i really cant recommend it enough.

Great quality badger brewery on tap lovely pub really well kept and I found the lady behind the bar very friendly great choice of drinks I really recommend great for dropping in for a drink

Great time coming in here with my friend from Bournemouth Need to find some nice pubs as ive just moved down to Poole Sam behind the bar was brilliant and yay luckily they wernt showing the football Amazing pub

Great pub food very good.Zoe barmaid so friendly thankyou x

Also great music....very friendly

Ace pub, great staff and nice food

I had heard the poor reputation but as it has a great location opposite a bird boat tour I was attending I thought it would be worth a quick visit whilst waiting for the trip to start. Sat inside next to a plug socket I decided to charge my phone whilst waiting, what I wasn’t expecting was for a staff member to tell me not to use it & then grab my property & threaten to physically escort me out of the pub. To say I was shocked is an understatement when I explained the aggressive behaviour was unwelcome whilst clearly packing my stuff away I asked not to be touched & that I had a chronic lung condition - the staff member then started to mock my condition making fun of disabilities. I found the man’s behaviour absolutely disgusting behaviour. I fear for Poole Quay that tourists could see this & think this is reflective of the area.

Aggressive rude staff. Went in to get a drink whilst waiting for a boat tour for 20 minutes. Left after being threatened with physical violence from the staff member. Never in my life have I ever been threatened in this way. When I asked that the staff member refrain from touching me & explained I had a disability the staff member then started to mock me & people with disabilities. Despite its location I will never ever give this place a penny - they deserve to be shut down. Much better options along the quay.

A pub with a lovely atmosphere. The gentle burble of conversation and rattle of cutlery. A lovely guest beer and lovely food.

We were in Poole for an event at the RNLI, but had arrived far too early, so we looked for somewhere to have lunch. We only wanted a sandwich and coffee, but most places along the Quay didn't seem to do that. Then we discovered this lovely little pub. We had a wonderful enthusiastic welcome from the very friendly young chap behind the bar, who was very helpful regarding our selection of sandwiches and nothing was too much trouble for him. His only fault was calling us "guys". I'm not a guy, never have been and never will be. I absolutely loathe this Americanism and had he referred to us as anything but "guys" I would have given 5 stars. Anyway, back to the purpose of our visit. The sandwiches were huge, on fresh granary bread and tiger bread, with very tasty fillings and nicely presented with a small side salad. The coffee was a little bitter for my liking, but a couple of sachets of sugar soon made it perfectly palatable. My request for tap water was dealt with instantly - nice to see a sign behind the bar advertising tap water available. Would we visit again? If we are ever in Poole, then yes, we certainly would, provided no-one called us "guys".

Friendly pub. Just stopped for a drink. Dogs welcome

Staff was lovely and was made to feel welcome. Good selection of drinks. Unfortunitly the food had let it down for us. Ordered the fish and chips witch was ok but nothing special. And natchos that for £12. Was terrible. Luckily they was a very small portion as didnt want to eat them in the end. The lady on the bar was very lovely about it when we said and delt with it appropritly.

Great pub, visited on a very quiet Thursday in February and was made to feel very welcome. Came back the next day to eat and the food was very good, I'd highly reccomend it.

Had music when we went, and it was awesome! Recommend!

Amazing local pub, great food, and a dog menu so you're Fury friends don't miss out

Lovely pub overlooking the harbour great selection of ales and reasonably priced food . Perfect for people watching . We had the small fish and chips which was very nice

Great pub overlooking the Quay Good selection of badger ales and other drinks and food was good value and nice an hot

All good. Reasonable food, comfy surroundings and great service. Certainly recommend

I have never met such a rude and ignorant landlady. This "pub" relies entirely on it's location and tourism. If were anywhere else it would fail. The various online review ratings say it all. https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g190727-d4889689-Reviews-The_Lord_Nelson-Poole_Dorset_England.html

Perfect pub if you want a pub! Good beer, proper pub atmosphere, friendly staff and customers and loads of great live music. 🎶

Great food. Friendly staff.Good value.

Lovely traditional pub on the Quay, fantastic wood burning stove roaring gives it a nice cosy feel. Looking forward to coming back.

Great real pub. Dog friendly plus a dog menu. With gluten free options on main menu. Will return and recommend.

15 of us, adults, dogs and children arrived. We Were met with a friendly welcome. Nothing was too much trouble. All food came out promptly and hot. It was one of the children's birthday. We had a cake and asked if we could sing to her. They were quite happy for us to do this and even provided plates and napkins for us. What a lovely pub .

Was told by the bar manager that our 3 year old could not eat his chips at the table as the ‘kitchen was closed’, so we were ushered out into the rain and the seagulls where my son was able to eat his food This guy, (would assumed the role of some sort of management in this establishment) should resign his post and ambition of a career in customer service and seek a job with South West Train where his dire approach to putting the customer first would be better placed He would do better to concentrate his efforts on cleaning the glasses properly, giving the tables an occasional wipe and generally cleaning up the established that basically is still as grotty as it was 30 years ago, rather than ejecting my 3 year old son!

Ace. Great staff, AMAZING!!!!! door man. Live music fabulous, Super friendly locals. The place to be on a Friday night

Had not been in there for years, after my visit I can see why !

Great pub - with a great one man rock band !

Stopped here for lunch and ordered fish & chips and the pasta dish. Food arrived after about 45 minutes, fish must have been cooked with a blowtorch as it was hard enough to repair boots with, the pasta was dry and solid. We should have checked the reviews before walking through the door.

Lord Nelson pub on the quay side in Poole, great old pub, you can only imagine the amount of sailor's and people that have been in here over the past couple hundred years. Staff were very friendly and helpful, we had a big breakfast, 2 sausage, 2 eggs, 2 bacon, beans and 2 bread and butter for £5, an absolute bargain.

Got turned away on my friends birthday because they mistook our usual outfits as fancy dress. Not happy.

Cool old school biker pub right on the Quay. Great views, beers and vibe. Plus live music.

Absolutely brilliant live music.

Badger beers aplenty, a nice pub on the Quay, good food and drinks offering. Interesting guitar display in cases in the bar.

Absolutely awful. I have never been so gobsmacked by the rudeness of the staff. We waited a long time for the food even though there was only about 3 other tables eating. 2 of us ordered the homemade steak and kidney pudding and requested chips instead of the mash. Firstly this is not homemade, these are sold at the cash and carry. When we asked the young girl how much longer we would have to wait she said it was because we had ordered something different to what was on the set meal. ( so chips instead of mash). Finally food arrived and didn’t look to bad. Oh my goodness the pudding was as hard as rock. The peas were cold. Tried to eat the middle of the pudding as to not wanting to cause a fuss. One of our group said that it was inedible so to get a refund. Well the man who came to us said that as we had eaten the best bits he wouldn’t do a refund and the food was cold as it had been served a while ago. I asked if he was the chef, and he said no he was doorman, kitchen assistant and barman. To which I asked to speak with the chef and he said I couldn’t. I then asked for a manager and he said he didn’t have to tell me who that was. I kept saying to the man did he actually know that a meat pudding should be soft. But he wouldn’t accept any of what we was saying. If you are the manager or owner of this pub I think you seriously need a review of your staff and attitudes. Worst pub I have ever been to in 30 odd years. Bad food and even worse customer service

Excellent live music venue. Friendly staff and good ale. Definitely worth a visit if in the area!

Waited a long time to order, then waited over half hour for the food. Food was disgusting but what was more disgusting was the customer service! Refused to take any responsibility for the absolute state that was served up, with rubbish excuses, no manager to speak to and was dealt with by the ‘kitchen assistant/doorman/bar man’ by his own description. The threat of a bad review didn’t bother them at all, reading the other reviews on here I can see why!!!! Please don’t waste your money here. We were highly recommended the Poole Quay restaurant a few shops along but unfortunately for us we picked very wrong! (I’m pretty sure full on arguing with a customer AND not even listening and talking over them is bad customer service wherever your from)

Thursday afternoon we visited this pub. It was nice, nice food, lovely friendly, smiley staff.

Tomato and basil soup was luke warm, watery , tasteless. Looks like they used a tin of chopped tomatoes, sprinkled with dry basil. Waited a long time for it.

We went there for the Thursday night fireworks. We bought food drinks to the build up to the fireworks, after the fireworks our young children were not allowed to enter the pub after the fireworks to use the toilet. I find this shocking this day and age we refuse children from using the toilet after we spent a lot of money there. It would have been a case of in and out probably the only time the door staff were put to use. I guess that’s why they are hiring door staff to STOP children from using the toilet after the fireworks. Avoid go next door to the sailor as they are more accommodating and the food is nicer.

Wouldn’t come again, pints average priced normal for the area. The establishment itself wasn’t too nice it smelt like old man and had flies buzzing around. Toilets were bad with a used condom floating around in one. Wouldn’t recommend.

Such a shame that such a lovely pub that we visit regularly had bad attitude staff and very unfriendly We had eaten in the pub the previous night and drank and soent in excess of 400 pounds as a group. Returned just for a drink today and the children wanted a small snack from the kiosk next door rather than a full meal. Was asked to leave because we had brought food to the outside area. Only the 4 year old child was eating at this point no adults. As I said it was a jumbo sausage ok it’s own not a meal. They then took the drink and said it had been poured away. 100% would no visit again and will post this all over social media. Rude staff. And lied about pouring the drink away

Paid £28 for scampi and chips twice a beer and a water. Food was disgusting and cold, it was the size of a kids meal,staff weren’t interested when complained. Would not recommend

Lovely atmosphere. Nice to see pubs how they used to be. Not been in here since the 80s but certainly will be back. Brilliant. Oh and love the music.

On holiday from Glasgow, we popped in here for a family lunch with our 3 small kids. Everyone was satisfied with the grub! The staff were all very kind and friendly. There was plenty of rock memorabilia and adverts for live acts which made it obvious this is a local centre for live music. A great location too, on the waterfront. Shame we live so far away, as it seemed like the kind of place I would enjoy a pint* in, while enjoying the music. (*of course, when I say "a pint" I mean about 8 pints! haha).

An awesome pub on the quayside, well kept beers and a good selection too. Live music most nights of the week, a great pub for a cheeky pint or 5 🍻 well worth a visit!

Fantastic pub, great food, friendly staff and fantastic value. Dog friendly, a true gem of a pub!!!

Best pub on the Quay. Great bands and friendly locals 😀

We had a lovely meal here last week . Food was lovely. Staff were very polite.

Tried to order food at 6.50pm and was told that food was only until 7pm. Thought great, just in time. Nope! They checked with the chef and they wouldn't take the order. I think the chef wanted to get out in the sun. Surely they should take ORDERS until 7 or say orders until 6.30 if they want to go for a pint at 7pm 🍺

The barman on duty on me placing my order I told him I will sit inside facing him as I'm diabetic and having a sugar low, he imminently gave me half a glass of coke ,seated me to wait for my food and gave me 3 shortbread biscuits to pick my sugar up.Thank hou for good meal Service and atmosphere Darryl visiting from South Africa

Great local music venue, excellent selection of food and drinks👍🍻

The service is awful. 3 drinking at the bar and there was a chap waiting when I walked in - no staff to be seen. After about 3-4 mins a member of staff arrived to to serve the chap who had been waiting for much longer than I had. Then another member of the public arrived whilst the chap was being served. I then go to the bar expecting to be served next but then the staff member immediately starts pouring a pint of Guinness for one of the 3 chaps who was already at the bar - obviously regulars - then asked who was next to myself and the chap who arrived after me. I was a little bit put out at the procedure here and, naturally, the chap who arrived after me - even though the member of staff knew, or so was thought, spoke up and made his order,that I was next in serving. I just left, thoroughly disappointed at this lack of awareness and seemingly favouritism towards other punters. Not going back - and I live in the Poole area- my custom will be going elsewhere during the quieter months of winter.

A unique dinning experience, great food and excellent service 👍

At first glance the pub looks approachable and is in the sea front too. Nice seating outside. The food on the menu sounded great. We tried to order a fish stew which was out of stock, so instead ordered a traditional fish and chips, butchers sausages with bubble & squeak cake and butchers sausages with egg chips and beans. It stated on the sign outside and the menu that it was all homemade freshly cooked food. When the food arrived, the chips were obviously out of a bag of frozen chips and tasted dry. The fish was like mush inside and the supposedly butchers sausages were definitely not from the butchers, they were more like asda's cheapest frozen ones. The bubble & squeak cake was dry and all the portions were very small. We all left still hungry and unsatisfied. Will never return to this establishment for another meal. Should not advertise freshly cooked homemade meals when clearly it is all out of a freezer!!! The bar Staff were very welcoming and friendly though. Not a bad place for drinks but definitely steer clear of the food otherwise you'll be wasting your money.

Had a meal there today 22nd May , sausages and bubble and squeak, not recommended , sausages ok, Bubble and squeak was cold , must of come out the freezer. same with my daughter in law, did not complain as no one came and asked if food was ok.

A nice seafront pub, with lots of history. Both had a pensioner meal, which was of good value.

Always a good experience,.... great friendly service and atmosphere

Nice pub with some great classic rock music.

Nice old pub, friendly staff. Great location.

Lovely pub and food friendly staff with a great view over harbour

Only been twice, but the meals are superb, and the atmosphere and entertainment, (bands) brilliant.

Lovely pub with lovely staff. Poole Quay is awesome enough, but this place had decent live music on the Friday night. Had a great time!

Great venue. Great staff. Great atmosphere. Credit to Anna the only person in the whole of Poole that promotes live music. Keep it alive. 🙏👍❤️

Good atmosphere as with friends. Lunch was ordered and well organised by bar staff. However…….crab sandwiches were a great disappointment! They looked very sad, had expected fresh bread not a plastic bagged limp loaf and not the crab filling expected at a seaside diner. Another...

Order a lunchtime meal of two homemade tomatoes soups. Had to wait 50 minutes before it arrived,well it wasn't homemade, looked and tasted of a watery tin of cheap chopped tomatoes with dried herb on top. If we didn't have a ferry to catch would have sent it back.

Excellent pint of Hop Cross Bun ale.

Nice friendly pub and good service

Amazing Fish n Chips right on the Quay. Light crunchy beer batter and the freshest fish ever. Friday discount even on Good Friday. Lovely afternoon!¡!

Very disappointed. Typical pub menu on the whole. I thought I would try something different and fish stew sounded scrummy. Paid £9 for spicy fish stew. When it arrived it was in a very small bowl and was as runny as water. No spice and...

Staff friendly. Value for money

Very friendly staff and great food, will go again👍

Lovely staff, great atmosphere, friendly people, good beer, great music, dog friendly.

Fish, chips, mushy peas and a pint. Perfect.

Great live music very friendly atmosphere. Since writing this review I have noticed the most friendliest member of bar staff is gone where is he Jamie?

Excellent place for live music, fish and chips looked to be delicious, and a very competitive price

Historic and atmospheric pub right on the Quay. Dog friendly.

What a great pub this is, we visit Poole frequently & this has always been our favorite place, friendly staff & locals, and absolutely fantastic food, beer & entertainment. I would recommend this pub to everybody.

Lovely pub with great atmosphere and always some good band 👌👍😊😍

Nice Sunday afternoon of music at the weekend with Zoe Scwartz jazz on.

Friendly Badgers pub on the quayside. Always busy and regular live music. Cheap food but drinks not so.

Old world cosy pub. Great fish & chips!