The Ollerod in West Dorset

Absolutely fabulous food and service. We had a great easter sunday brunch and if you are a sticky toffee pudding lover like myself, get ready to try the ultimate best STP in your life.

This is a restaurant review and not a hotel review. Very tasty food and perfect service. All the staff are knowledgeable about allergens and take food sensitivities very seriously. They are able to easily recommend and accommodate dishes based on specific dietary requirements. The atmosphere inside is also very cosy with rooms tastefully decorated. All in all a fantastic experience. Just be aware that parking can be an issue. Their car park is small and this is a popular place, so there is every chance that parking will have to be found outside in the village.

Spent a wonderful Saturday evening celebrating my husband’s birthday with my family . What an amazing time we had. Staff, service, accommodation, dinner, breakfast, ambiance were outstanding and we will definitely return. Thank you

Tastefully decorated interior, friendly staff, and an excellent value lunch menu: two courses for £20, 3 courses for £25. The food was delicious, and with good-sized portions, not too much and not too mean. Well worth a visit, and indeed s return visit.

This is how you do a hotel. This is how you do food. Lovely rooms, a very good breakfast and a charming, smiling and positive team. We stayed for two nights while we completed on our new home then came back with family for a celebration dinner. Everything we tried was delicious and beautifully presented. Of special note were the hake with soft shell crab and the steak. We’ll be regular visitors in future

Went for a special leaving do. Very pleasant setting. Good food, albeit nibbles, but well presented.

The Ollerod is our absolute favourite restaurant in our area. The staff are amazing and the food never fails to delight. It is also very fairly priced. We go there on a regular basis and elements of the menu do change pretty frequently, but at the same time they keep some of their outstanding dishes. Try the Prawns with Ollerod Dipping Sauce for a starter or the Bao Bun with Crispy Duck. Their curry is wonderful (although it always causes a bit of a fight between me and my husband as I try to steal bits of his poppadum). The chef certainly knows how to cook fish and as a dedicated canivore, I have never yet been disappointed by a meal here. They also do quirky pizzas on some nights. My best so far was the Hoisin Duck - loved it! This is definitely not a place where you would struggle to find something of interest on the menu - there is an excellent choice. I recently tried an English white wine from the Tyleigh Estate which was delicious. It was pricey at £40 a bottle, but somehow tonight I think I might be getting another bottle! Why not, tomorrow is another day! 5* rating - I wish more restaurants were as good as this. Thank you to all the team for you ongoing dedication.

Christmas lunch was a lovely experience very relaxed atmosphere, lovely staff, well presented and tasty food. Thank you.

The restaurant had a great atmosphere. Staff were very attentive. Food was excellent. Really got the taste buds going. Only downside the people in the bar were rather loud !! Plus the background music wasn’t that appealing.

From the minute we walked through the door we were made to feel so welcome by Silvana and her team Our room, on the ground floor; was spacious and the bathroom with walk in shower was lovely Drinks in the cocktail bar were 10/10 and dinner was absolutely delicious - there was a great buzzy atmosphere all evening Breakfast in the conservatory the following morning was a delightful way to end our short stay - and we are looking forward to our next visit!

Food excellent, service excellent. Asked to sit in bar before table ready - no seats. Dining room we were in quite noisy.

We arrived by mistake after a day trip in Dorset snd discovered a Gorgeous Place. ! Everything was just perfect

Amazing place and very attentive staff - beautiful 👏

Absolutely delightful gem of a place! Quirky and calming with beautiful outside space

What a fabulous restaurant, Food was fantastic and the service also. Party of 12, celebrating a family member’s big birthday! Will certainly return to the ollerod, very much recommend this restaurant.

Great central spot for travels to many other attractions in the area. Generous room, very clean. All interactions with staff members very positive & helpful. We had dinner on the Tuesday evening was an outstanding feature of our stay, best food we'd had in ages, the arancini was the best I've had anywhere, Lamb and sea bass cooked to perfection. The restaurant doesn't open for food in the evenings on Wednesday but we enjoyed the Mexican van that offered food on site, very fresh tasting, something different. Would definitely recommend to others in this charming part of the country.

Food good , but service was very slow . Tried to book a certain time over the phone, was told could only fit at another time . We took this time , the place was empty!!!

Great pub, nice atmosphere and good beer.... didn't stay but looks very nice given decor and staffing

Lovely place to visit for food, drink and to stay. A public bar is available for just a drink and a lovely garden to sit in. Period building with a comfortable bar and intimate dining area.

We stayed at the Ollerod for a wedding and it’s been an incredibly nice stay! Great service, very attentive and kind, nice rooms (stayed at the apartment), great food and an overall very enjoyable time. We will definitely come back when in the region!

Pleasant staff, not sure why the previous bad reviews. Bottle of Palmers 200 and a Good cocktail. Baked Camembert to start, all good. Kofta for main with paprika fries ok. Steak with chimichurri sauce (very very small amount, couldn’t taste it) and balsamic glaze with Parmesan and fries for me. Ok, nothing special if I’m honest. Good undercover dining area with relaxed atmosphere. £90 compared with dining at the Seaside Boarding House in Burton Bradstock for similar prices Id rather go there. I will be back when the Sunday roasts come back on the menu, will probably be better value.

The food is good the service is good but the prices are overinflated .

Fabulous food, great menu, would recommend unconditionally. Staff were extremely helpful and attentive.

The owner and her staff provided an excellent level of hospitality from telephone booking, to meeting our dietary needs - the food is delicious - to lovely rooms and always being available to offer help and assistance in a warm, friendly manner without being intrusive. The food was some of the best that we have experienced. If we were coming to the area again this is the only hotel we would consider. Thank you all for a lovely few days …. you even arranged great weather for us!

Great staff. Good food and drinks. A hidden gem. They should advertise more. What a fantastic place. We'll be back. X

We were holidaying close to the Ollerod and visited the restaurant on 20.07.23. We dined early at 5pm. I have applied some thought before writing this review. And would like to add that I eat out regularly with family and friends the best steak having been at Cafe Shore, Sandbanks in Dorset and the worst being at the Ollerod. At £28 the rib eye came with leaves and fries. It came to order, medium. However, it was lacking in colour, i.e no searing appeared to have been applied and therefore no flavour had been sealed in. ( I know it could not be possible but if I didn’t know better I would guess it had been baked). There was a flavour of garlic that was included in the description of the cooking process. However, there there was no seasoning and there was none available on the table or any other table. The evening was not a total loss my husband selected the lamb which he thoroughly enjoyed. The meal, two mains and two deserts (which we could not determine if they had been made or supplied) and three drinks came to £98

Lovely building in a bit of a funny location. Didn't stay but had dinner on a Monday night and glad we booked. Busy for good reason. Best meal we had on our short trip to Dorset. Food really excellent and service to match. I told the owner carry this on and they would be up for a Rosette. When you get good food like this it just gives you a satisfied feeling. Well done!

Fantastic food, fantastic service. Other places could learn a lot about how people should be treated. Will go again for sure.

What’s gone wrong? Very mediocre food, shame as we’ve always been fans even back to the bridge house days. Food, extremely substandard -gastro pub grub at its best. Wont be returning sadly, reception and serving staff wasn’t as we’ve previously experienced and breakfast was a let down.

First off want to say we have had so many great meals here since it became Ollerod. In the last few years though and especially last 6 months or so the food has really gone down hill. Menu is alot simpler but basics aren't done correctly. Lots of lovely bits like the rye sourdough has been replaced with bought in rubbish. Frozen fries with the very expensive steak is so dissapointing. Basic pub puddings like brownie and cheesecake have been poor too. Ended up leaving most the brownie last time as so dry. Really hope something changes as this use to be such a special treat.

We stayed here for a week, so were able to try several dishes from the menu. A rump of lamb dish and a hake, mussels and tiger prawns dish were both excellent! Good quality ingredients, perfectly cooked. Clearly an experienced chef. Other dishes were good and the only problem were two rib eye steaks, which had too much gristle, but hopefully that was just a glitch. We had no problems with service - perhaps a little slow sometimes when they were busy, but it didn't trouble us. Staff were friendly and attentive. Surprised to find "gratuities" items on room bill - apparently a discretionary service charge that wasn't mentioned on the menu, but pointed it out and so I hope that will be addressed.

The food was fantastic, we all enjoyed our meals. The setting comfy. Sadly the staff totally let this place down. No welcome when you arrive, and left waiting for 4 minutes with staff walking past ignoring us. Eventually our table was pointed out to us - we weren't shown to it. Between courses dirty plates and used cutlery were left lying on the table. No finger bowls with lobster course. No one asked if the food was ok at any point through the 3 courses. Numerous different servers served us and only one young man seemed genuine and polite - the rest were bored, uninterested and showed no genuine friendliness at all. Surprising for this area and a place attempting to be this standard. Maybe the good times have past for this place.

Walked into bar and music playing quite loud so asked for lunch with no music as we both have poor hearing and background music makes conversation difficult. Thus sat in Covid tent out the back as it was raining. Service was glacial - water had...

Great atmosphere, I had the scallops as a starter and then the Hake, mussels and prawns. Delicious!

David and Silvania treated us like kings/queens…listening and providing so much for our small family event. The Ollerod has great spaces, great garden, great food and great hosts.. I’d recommend you to get to experience their hospitality. I’m trying to encourage David to hoist a...

We enjoyed a fabulous Sunday lunch there, sitting on the pretty terrace. The service was excellent, without being intrusive and the food was delicious. We will,definitely be returning.

Distinctly average experience but at an above average price tag. Was left generally underwhelmed by our stay

I can highly recommend the food. In particular, the Sri Lankan Curry was of the very high standard. Along with the starter and sweet.

Absolutely love this place. Great for a drink with a friend or meal kut with family. Bar area to relax in with a drink. Restaurant for delicious food. Service is great, staff friendly.

What a great place to stay! Excellent service, delicious food and a great size family room!

Soooo good to have a menu that you don’t find everywhere else. Great selection of starter/sharing plates. Mains , pizza also on menu . We shared hummus and flatbread, charcuterie plate and sausage roll - good portions and presentation. Staff were very welcoming and accommodating....

What a fantastic restaurant and establishment. We didn't stay, but wow the food is excellent. Easily the best roast around and the al a carte menu is superb. These guys are putting out some fantastic food. We celebrated our Easter lunch here with family and children. The team were extremely helpful, organised and the whole day was great! Thank you!

We had a very enjoyable lunch Food was excellent Service very good A great place to eat and catch up Thanks

A year ago I gave the Ollerord 4 stars. This time it is most deserving of 5 stars. It has absolutely nailed for us what was excellent food. The flavours were fab, the portion sizes were great and the price tag was appropriate. Cracking meal...

The new bar and totally new menu is just what the town needed. How lucky is Beaminster?!!! Really affordable menu with a ton of choices and fantastic atmosphere. And….drinks served in gorgeous glasses. One of life's joys. Perfect for just drinks, nibbles, small plates or...

Very warm and welcoming. Well equipped bar and menu had good selection to choose from. Comfey seats and staff where always on hand. Great service and an excellent night out.

An excellent lunch at the Ollerod. Having read some recent reviews we were a bit worried but our meal was absolutely excellent from start to finish. The waitress was really good, cocktails were delicious and the food was all divine. We had a really lovely...

Nice traditional old hotel, with bar/lounge modernized to give a 'cocktail' vibe. Happy hour drinks specials

A Friday night visit with friends with drinks beforehand in the lovely new bar. This is the first time we’ve ever been out for dinner and wanted to have our starters served to us all over again! They were sooo delicious (pork bao buns, crab...

Expected much better. Have visited over several years and different owners. Last visit was excellent - bustlng restaurant, white cloths and excellent, attentive service. Suffice it to say that yesterday we left after only paying for our wine and one starter - the second starter...

The meal was very poor and my wife had to send back her main dish and a vegetable side dish - a seriously overcooked small piece of cod (£31) sitting on an overly acidic broth. Broccoli spears were swimming in a very salty soya-based sauce....

Long awaited meal here after our kids had raved snd and ranted about the food and beautiful building. Firstly need to say the food was wonderful, meat cooked to perfection. Great wine list. Bar area was cosy, warm and inviting these feelings extended to the...

Decided to have a family Sunday lunch and - having last eaten here several years ago when it was still the Bridge House - chose The Ollerod on the basis of its menu. All of us were extremely impressed by our delicious starters, which were...

A perfect place for a special occasion. Staff are attentive and friendly and the food is really special. At no point do you feel rushed and its refreshing to have this space

It was our first visit to The Ollerad restaurant, and we were not disappointed. The staff were very on the ball, we had a lovely table in the conservatory area ( even though the weather wasn't great, it was lovely to have lots of light)....

Slightly more than we'd usually pay for food, however the food was exceptional, service was good and it was a lovely environment

We stayed for one night on our wedding anniversary. The location was lovely, room was very nice too. The food made it for us though, absolutely exceptional local food and a lovely selection of wines. Arguably the best meal you will have in Dorset. Staff...

Posto molto bello caratteristico. E confortevole. Lo consiglio

Fantastic lunch at this restaurant today. Food you couldn't fault , food tasted 5 star! Flavours great , very impressed as im an ex chef! Only thing we didn't like were the bowls they were served in. Hard to eat from & mine toppled over! But that was a minor thing. Staff lovely. Parking. Quiet atmosphere. Will return

Disappointing dining experience. Food was cold and poor service.

Excellent food, drinks and service. Top notch.

A lovely drink in the garden and looking forward to dining there on Tuesday.

We didn't stay here, but if the accommodation is anywhere near as good as the food, I couldn't recommend it anymore highly. My girlfriend and I had the most wonderful meal here. The food was simply delicious. The local wine from Furleigh Estate was an excellent pairing - thanks for the suggestion. The service was everything you'd want. To top the evening off, I bought a piece of art which was painted by a member of staff

Have been here many times, the food has always been very good. This time not so good, sourdough wasn't its lovely light texture, the small plates lacked in flavour. We always have a dessert, but we're told not allowed to choose one off the main...

Been here a dozen times over the last two years. So many incredible meals here. Visited last week for the first time in awhile and left very disappointing. Greeted at reception then went into the bar. Youngish short man then proceeded to ignore husband and...

This place is in a pretty village set in beautiful countryside We had a lovely room and really good food.

Great friendly welcome thank you

A fabulous time, glorious food and service Thanks to Sam and the team the anniversary chocolate cake was gorgeous very thoughtful to bake that for us, Thank you chef! We'll be back hopefully stay there next time, Thank you all so much xx

Excellent service! Overwhelmed at the special touches they surprised us with. Food was incredible and presented beautifully. Highly recommend a visit.

The most wonderful place. Decorated to the highest standards. The rooms are 5 Star and the restaurant is unbelievable. An absolute must if you enjoy good food, excellent service and a great selection of wines to pair with the chefs amazing creations. We will definitely be coming back.

Monkfish was a small square of fish with no taste. Rack of lamb was chewy and awful. Cost £119 for 2 courses and cheapest bottle of wine we will never return and we live not far from Beaminster

We have going to the Ollerod since it opened for a special but laid back dinner and have never been disappointed. Maybe it’s taking time to bed down since the renovations but the service was very erratic and the food hit and miss. We arrived...

The best beef onglet I have ever tasted. Presentation of the food was beautiful and all the food delicious. I've travelled widely and this was just superb. We loved it.

The Ollerod is a lovely modernised rural pub in the heart of Beaminster. Guest parking. Inside and outside areas. Great service and friendly staff. We had the small plates as we ordered after 2030 and main menu was no longer available. All very tasty and pricing was ok. Recommended.

Really enjoyable dinner at The Ollerod. Really good cookery skills and some very inventive dishes. Our personal favourite was the desserts which were amazing! Really friendly service all evening. Definitely worth a visit!

Lovely hotel which has been tastefully refurbished. Food every visit has been delicious. Only negative is the drink prices which even for such a nice establishment are just too high. One beer and one double g&t cost us £26!

Just popped in for a coffee whilst enjoying some Dorset Art weeks venues. Friendly welcome, good coffee and such a lovely selection of areas to sit and enjoy. Will definitely return ! Thank you

Brought my partner here for his birthday, and luckily he enjoyed his meal! Mine on the other hand was below par; extremely salty chips (sent back and swapped for another side dish), served sea bream instead of sea bass and all just slightly warm. It it wasn't for the surprise cake at the end to celebrate the birthday which was a lovely touch, would have given a 2-star review. Expected a lot more, especially for the price tag!! Have been to other restaurants in the area for less and enjoyed much more. Wouldn't recommend.

The Ollerod is a special place where one feels very comfortable and very welcome. The food is unfailingly delicious and the staff are charming.

The bar and restaurant have swapped sides. The food; my words will never do it justice, absolutely amazing. The staff; the most friendly, beautiful people whose pleasure it is to make your evening absolutely perfect. The new bar; why are you still reading this??? Get down there and check it out for yourselves.

Absolutely amazing, the whole experience was so enjoyable. The staff were so helpful and polite and the food was the best I have ever had. Would recommend to anyone.

Beautiful, elegant, great service and amazing gastronomic food!

We went to the Ollerod for Saturday lunch and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We had the pick of the tables and the staff looked after us really well. They were attentive and provided great service. We were blown away by the food and flavours. Also great to see them using local products. We thoroughly recommend going there to eat and we’ll be back soon. Thank you.

It didn't start well with the rather emphatic waitress asking 'have you guys had a nice day?' We're both pretty laid back but being called 'you guys' at our advanced ages is well into the much too casual arena - and it did sound as...

Dinner was absolutely fabulous! Really interesting menu with wonderful local ingredients. Cooked perfectly and beautifully presented. Delicious. Service was nicely relaxed but attentive.

We were lucky enough to be treated, by great friends, to a celebratory meal. It was exceptional. We all thoroughly enjoyed the choices that we made and the tastes when offered of what the others had. There were no problems with anything. And the portion...

We have eaten out at this restaurant several times in the past, but unfortunately this time it did not live up to the usual expectations. My starter of undercooked salmon had to be sent back, but there was very little choice on the menu. The...

We had an exceptional Valentines Evening. The food and service was amazing.

Really warm welcome and a varied menu. Great atmosphere and the food was excellent with good size portions. Well staffed who were extremely helpful and attentive. Will return !

I have battled with this review and how best to write it as well as how best to rate The Ollerod. Ideally I would have given 4.5 stars but this is not an option and I'm afraid for us it is not a 5 star...

Interesting, tasty, food options eg. the crisp prawn in black bao bun. The lamb rack and shoulder main was spot on, the sea bass was enormous and excellent. Friendly, efficient service from the youthful smiling staff. A very good supper!

Great food. Interesting creative and different. Staff were friendly and professional. Fantastic cocktails and chilled ambiance. Will definitely be coming back.

Wow wow wow. Absolutely superb. Could have picked anything from this menu. Had the bao followed by lamb. Broccoli side a must. Top notch. Super friendly staff. Could not fault

A real find. Beautiful, cosy and friendly with superb food and service. Highly recommend.

Excellent food, staff very attentive and a cosy lovely fire, very welcoming in the winter. Bedroom to die for, if you don’t believe me you must try it.

Fantastic food , atmosphere staff and owners 😀

Delicious food in The Ollerod restaurant. The head chef was taken I’ll at short notice so they offered us an opportunity to postpone/cancel. However the sous chef was preparing a “small plates” menu. I had the pumpkin soup and my husband had the crispy prawns and kimchi bao. We shared a portion of triple cooked chips. After this I had lemon posset with ginger snap and some basil ice cream, while my husband had bitter chocolate mousse, baileys cream, hazelnuts and some whisky ice cream. Apéritif of local sparkling wine (Furleigh) and then a local dry bacchus (Furleigh) paired nicely with the savoury course. Wonderful service and the food was a triumph. I take my hat off to the sous chef and the rest of the staff for a great evening.

Excellent, an easy 5 star! I recently stayed at the Ollerod with my wife for her birthday. Everything about the stay was great, from the welcoming staff, the beautiful accommodation to the incredible food. The staff couldn’t be any better, friendly, happy to help and assertive. The room was great with an incredibly comfortable bed and a decent shower. The food was first class from presentation to taste. No hesitation to recommend and I’d certainly go back.

Beautiful restaurant! Such warm and lovely staff....food was superb! We will definitely visit again soon :)

Starting with pre-dinner drinks, my Old Fashioned was sublime. The chicken Parfait was delicious and the lamb was gorgeous. The lounge is lovely for post dinner drinks and the ambience is excellent. We had a beautiful evening.