The Royal Oak in New Forest

A lovely pub serving tasty food with a good menu choice. Nice interior and atmosphere inside. Staff very helpful and friendly. There were just two ladies serving when we went which was fine at 6 pm but as we were leaving at 8 it was very busy and I felt for them running around like crazy. Would be 10/10 if enough staff but will give 9/10. Would recommend and return.

lovely little dog friendly boozer

Just back from a meal with my husband and underwhelmed is understatement of the year for The Royal Oak! Orders are taken, I went for the burger which doesn’t come with cheese. Okay fine I will ask for a slice, an additional £2! I asked for sweet potatoes instead of normal chips, another £2! My husband ordered arancini for starter, it came out on a cold plate with no garnish - just 3 arancini balls, looked less than appetising! When the mains came out my burger was drier than a stale ashtray, the bun was cheap and floppy, and the overall presentation was like a Rustlers burger with a side of frozen sweet potatoes (£2 for the privilege) and warm coleslaw. My husband, again, had no garnish and 2 very solemn and sad looking meals were sat in front of us. We were so hungry we ate our meals, I shared my issues twice with the manager and she said my “feedback would be passed to the kitchen”. A very sad state of affairs, and £50 for the privilege…

Thank you so much to Matt and the team for accommodating us yesterday. We were let down by another local establishment for a friends 40th birthday with no notice! The Royal Oak Downton put on a lovely spread for us and gave us our own private part of the restaurant. Great communication from start to finish and we had exactly what we asked for! Highly recommend!

Sorry but food was not good .I had scampi it was overcooked and tasteless. Very disappointed. As uts a week before Christmas I thought a bit of Xmas background music would have been nice.

Went in for Sunday roast on the way home and it was excellent. They didn't scrimp on the meat and the turnip crisps were great. Had a good chat with a few of the bar staff and can't wait until we can get back down there for some more good food. Glad your back open

Tasty food, good company, lovely hosts (cheers Brenda)...glad to see the pub open again. A really good welcome a cosy comfortable please to meet and eat.

Staff very friendly and the food was very good. Nothing to fault. Haven’t been here for a long time but we’ll be coming back soon…

Visited for Sunday Lunch and the food was amazing. Very accommodating as we didn’t book, the staff were welcoming and friendly and it was a great atmosphere. Also dog friendly!!

Used to go here often for dinner and drinks before it closed down so when we saw it was reopened would go to try it out , I’m sorry to say we will not return the food was lukewarm and bland and the whole place lacked any warmth very disappointed

Good to see this pub back open again. The Sunday roast didn't disappoint!

Excellent country pub at the New Forest . Fab food !! . Can’t wait to visit again… met with family and friends for the reopening on 27th November and was so impressed !! Decor fab and the owner welcoming ! , we couldn’t have asked for more .

So pleased you are open again. We missed you. The new owner Matt and his manager Brenda and the team were very welcoming and friendly. The place looks much the same as it did but super clean and freshened up. The menu is very different and shorter than before, much more like pub food, which we like. The chicken, leek and cheese pie of the day was delicious. There is also a pizza menu with children’s sized ones, a vegan menu, lunch menu (paninis etc, something that wasn’t available before). We will definitely be back. All the best to the team, I think you’ll prove popular with the locals and holiday makers. Trish and Julian

Went to the opening of this pub today. As we arrived, we were given a warm and friendly welcome. It has a lot of character. The food was excellent. The staff were cheerful and helpful. You will miss out if you don't visit. Will definitely be going here on a regular basis. Well done, everyone at the Royal Oak.

Great food and friendly service. The steak pie was delicious

Positive: Lovely food, tasty, well presented, hot when served, good choice on the menu. Services was good. Portions are large. Negative: Tables, menus and cutlery dirty. Very quiet and little expensive. Positive: good parking.

On Thursday 19/01/2023 at 19:00 I arrived there and place was closed. Although on here the information was that it was open.

Absolutely amazing meal again in a lovely setting with the friendliest staff. Nothing is too much trouble. The food is 10/10. Beef stroganoff was one of the best meals we have ever eaten anywhere. You really are missing out if you don't give it a try. It was perfect

Very big thank you to izabel and her team for making us feel so welcome and appreciated, will definitely visit again and will recommend to friends

My wife and I have visited twice in December with friends, and my wife hosted a Christmas meal here for twelve members of our streets ladies coffee club. On each occasion, the food was great, the prices were reasonable, the staff were very friendly and the atmosphere was great. We will definitely be back in the New Year.

I have been here before, and again food was incredible, service from the American manager was top class. I definitely will be back next year😉.

Great menu and meal. So much improved on 12 months ago. Will be going back!!!

The service was good and the food was excellent, best meal + pudding I've had in a very long time. Totally recommended

Dog friendly, good range of food options (vegan too) and nice staff

Had a lunch here and it was busy and full of atmosphere. The service was fantastic and the food was very good. We’d definitely come back.

The staff on duty outnumbered the guests arriving for Sunday Lunch! Not a Good sign! Overpriced and Underwhelming Sunday Roast. There are other establishments locally that are perhaps offering a better choice and value for money!

Absolutely delicious meal tonight. All food first class and so fresh. Lovely atmosphere and fab service. We all had different mains and all of them were piping hot and very tasty. Can't recommend it enough.

Have eaten here twice. Both times food was good and service friendly. Would describe it as pub grub rather than restaurant. Only complaint is the music is played everywhere so if you want a quiet table to chat you're out of luck. Warm and cosy interior and plenty of parking.

My wife and I enjoyed a terrific Sunday lunch at the Royal Oak. The beef was very tasty and the vegetables were very well cooked. Slightly Al dente which I prefer. Lovely traditional pub/restaurant and all at a very reasonable price given all the economic pressures these places have to absorb these days. We certainly will be going again.

Third meal lovely friendly staff dogs welcome good parking food fabulous reasonable prices

Steak and Guinness pie was very nice. Friendly staff, nice old style pub. Good pint of Guinness 👍

Lovely old village pub with open fires. Really lends itself to the Christmas vibe. The food was very good, and there is a good selection of menu choices for every taste

I can't praise the whole experience highly enough. We were a party of 8 and every meal was served piping hot without any mix ups, the beers and wines were quickly served, the staff were all happy and helpful. Thoroughly recommended.

Lovely meal and fantastic customer service from the moment we walked in. Lovely atmosphere. Dog friendly:) My dog was made a fuss of which made me happy. Would highly recommend.

excellent sunday roasts. portions were generous. service as friendly , and quick. i also had a chocolate brownie which was yummy.

Dropped in one luchtime last week on a rather gloomy damp day. Luckily on the £12 for two courses lunch menu there was a warming bean cassoulet with mash and very tasty veggie sausages, followed by a great choice of puds that you could have with custard - perfect comfort food to raise the spirits, and great value. Rather quiet, though hardly a day to venture out, but very friendly and efficient service. Will return (even if it's sunny!).

Good service, good food, pleasant staff

Beer was very good. Venison was very good. Gammon was OK. Coffee and desert also good. Staff lovely.

Great pub, old style bar along with a more modern restaurant! Good local food specials...

One of the best pubs I have ever visited has such a lovely atmosphere and the staff there are absolutely amazing made me smile the whole time I was there and made my evening great Isobel Kelsey was great got things done instantly food was amazing has so much flavour and cooked to perfection would 100% recommend to other people and definitely coming back

Great atmosphere and friendly helpful staff. A good range of vegetarian food as well as several specials. Will recommend to family and friends. Enjoyed the local Ringwood beers.

Lovely pub/restaurant. We hadn't booked, and it was very busy but they were very accommodating and fitted us in. The food was delicious and the service was great. I would definitely recommend a visit.

We were staying along the road last week and visited the Royal Oak for an evening meal each day. Our dog was made very welcome and was made a fuss off. The service was very friendly and quick. We enjoyed the food and because of the specials board we were not able to make our way through the menu. All the meals were excellent.

Absolutely lovely. We booked last minute as we were visiting the area, the response was very prompt. The pub is very comfortable and welcoming. The staff were friendly and the food was fantastic. We had the Sunday lunch, with some dessert and coffees. The menu looked great for other days too.

Service was brilliant,made feel welcomed and appreciated ,very warm by Manny very polite and efficient,congratulations to Izabel for a fantastic team, will be back soon

Popped in for lunch, service was friendly, courteous. Inspite being alone, didn’t see anyone else, nothing was too much. We had curry as it was curry week, it was Amazing. Definitely worth a visit. Thank you

Fri 14th Oct. 16:45 Visited the Royal Oak for the 1st time. We were the only folks in. The staff were very welcoming & friendly. The food was very good, the portions were enough, the food was hot. Isabel was a pleasure to speak too. We will certainly be going back, maybe for the Sunday Roast. 9 out if 10( minus 1, sticky toffee pudding, to long in microwave, but custard made up for it)

Called in for a drink very old and interesting pub.

Very nice roast staff very friendly

Nice friendly staff. Great choice if you go for a menu or special dish. I would recommend this place.

Food was excellent BUT the service was appalling

Just been there for the first time. Really warm welcome beautifully clean .and a lovely meal.steak excellent.lovely service .will be back very soon.

Last week I popped I popped in for some beers with some mates. The staff was banging and so was the beers. Would 100% recommend. Yeee course

Recently, I popped in with a group of friends for a catch up as we hadn’t seen each other in a while. Once we arrived we received a warm welcome from the incredible staff who were very knowledgeable about the beers and wines they had...

Went for a drink with my friends and the staff were really nice and accommodating, even stayed a bit after closing just for us which was very kind. Was served by a guy called mason and another guy both had great customer service

Absolutely brilliant delicious food great surroundings lovely staff and very good value for money ….highly recommend ❤️

Great atmosphere with an interesting interior layout. Low beams (ouch!) padded in places, brick walls. One could almost call it 'snug' Nice beer garden at the back with well tended flowers. The food is interesting, tasty, well cooked and delivered by friendly and polite staff....

All staff are friendly and can have a good laugh. Me and my mates went there for a round and were impressed. Yeeeee course

Should have visited last year but was blocked in and had to cancel. Tried this year whilst on holiday and was very impressed that we booked and went again whilst nearby. Excellent service and although food is a little more expensive portion size, quality and...

Very good value for money, especially the light lunch.Staff very good.

Huge Sunday roast, very tasty and well cooked. Extra cauliflower cheese was a must and tasted great. Very friendly staff and great service.

2 visits, both been good. Fair prices, not sure if that is true for the area though.

Had a good evening at the Royal Oak with friends, staff all very friendly, selected the tempura vegetable for starters from the specials menu, followed by the trout, washed down with their pinot gris wine of the month, thanks for the eggs for breakfast 😉

Had lunch today, poor service borderline insulting to some of my guests, some items turned up half way through our meal, cold food. Definitely not returning.

We have a holiday home at nearby Shorefield Country Park so The Royal Oak is our “local”. There have be a few changes since April; still the same owners but changes of kitchen staff and management. It was good to see that their light lunch...

Service was excellent, very polite and made me feel very welcome.. food was 100% not only presented well and looked great it also tasted great , thank you all at the oak for a great time .I will be back again .

After trying many of the pubs in the New Forest under the same ownership this was our first visit to the Royal Oak and it was not a disappointment. The staff, only 2 that evening were busy due to numbers but attentive and very pleasant....

Dinner at this venue was ok. The service was slow but really friendly. Food was good, was disappointed that the tropical Eton mess consisted of tinned fruit which considering the price was a let down. Was expensive overall but within walking distance to our holiday...

Great place to stop and eat. We were looking for a pub while on a day out on our anniversary. So glad we picked here. Service was first class and food was cooked perfectly . Quality of the food was part of reason too I gave a five star . We couldn't fault anything and staff were polite and friendly thanks guys , well deserved Ant xxx

We were staying locally this weekend and turned up at 8pm hoping to eat. We received a really warm welcome and although busy, were found a table within a short time. The food was excellent as was the service. All the staff were very friendly and interacted with us rather than just serving orders. We felt like locals! Highly recommend ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

£17.99 for roast pork belly. Non crispy crackling, microwaved veg (£4extra if you wanted parsnips, or cauliflower cheese!!) a big sausage comes as extra on every roast-not required and certainly did not go with the roast beef! (£18.99). Potatoes described as fluffy on the inside…they...

I live in Lymington and have popped in for drinks on numerous occasions and always received a warm welcome. Decided to try for lunch, good choice of menu and wine list. The food was well cooked and generous portion size. Unfortunately, let down by the staff, very slow and absolutely no customer service skills.

Meal lovely. Enjoyed by all 3 guests. Relaxed atmosphere. Service professional and helpful.

We were a large group with children, baby & dog, made a booking over the phone, so polite & happy to answer all my questions. On arrival greeted with a warm & friendly smile making great effort to engage in children, dog & adults. The...

Enjoyed a lovely meal today with friends.

Great atmosphere and fantastic food. Good choice - all freshly cooked. Staff are friendly and very willing to help. There is also a great choice of local beers - very well kept

Very friendly service - great with dogs -and large menu with great food but the service is extremely slow. Perhaps too little staff for full restaurant? Three of us (and dog) arrived before 7pm for a 7:15 reservation on Saturday of Bank Holiday weekend - didn’t get our starters until after 8, mains around 9 and had to chase to get dessert and bill around 10 - far later than we wanted. Ribs, specials and seafood tempura were all quite good though.

Lovely family lunch had from Start to finish atmosphere and food And staff brilliant , it’s been a long time since Iv had such a great pub lunch recommend the lemon And Tyme chicken

Nice food and good portion sizes. Friendly staff

Alot bigger than you think really nice pub great food well worth look..

Had an evening meal after traveling back from holiday, meal was excellent from start to finish the food was tasty well presented and Ewan was fantastic to all his customers nothing was to much trouble great personality the team worked incredibly hard all evening definitely...

Great pub. Dog friendly, and friendlier staff. The food was amazing and they have a good selection of beers

What a beautiful building ... very nicely decorated staff very friendly 👌 Margarita was very good .... the problem sadly with this pub is the food! The menu promises amazing the food is very underwhelming! I had the squid to start ... i expect frozen .. so soggy and came with mayonnaise! No tartar sauce ...for main I have the pasta which had no flavour at all ..on the menu said green pesto ... not to be seen on my dish or crispy basil. The husband had the fish and chips which did come with mayo with gerkins in ! Fish soggy... its a good job this pub is close to a holiday park as Im not sure it would get much repeat buisness. If it delivered what it said on the menu...it would be amazing!

A wonderful, warm friendly pub with great food would highly recommend 😋 😁🐾

Had a nice meal but forgot to use my defence discount card

Great food 🍲 and service quality excellent

What a great find, from the moment we entered right the way through the service, we were made to feel welcome, Ewan the assistant manager went above and beyond, couldn't recommend this pub enough, the food was great with a wide selection, great atmosphere and...

Service was pleasant and the food was of a high order. Recommended.

We stopped here for lunch as it was near where we staying. Picked at random purely for its location and it was a great find! The staff were very friendly and the food was delicious! I had the veggie mushroom/halloumi/pesto burger which was delicious (I...

Excellent food and service, dog friendly as well.

The best Sunday roast & the friendliest staff. Couldn’t fault it in the slightest!! Highly highly recommend!

Lovely place, great food and friendly staff, couldn't ask for more 🙂🙂

Lovely pub but disappointing food and customer service. The pork belly was ok but nothing special....the tofu burger like jelly...the chef needs a course in how to cook tofu ....when we complained were more or less told it was our fault for taking a vegan...

Had 10oz rump stake medium rare...Over cooked and over priced.

Exceptional meal today at The Royal Oak, beautifully presented and very very tasty: using locally produced products. The Cheesecake was sublime. All the staff were attentive, knowledgeable and polite. We will certainly go back again and would recommend a visit. Can be reached by foot avoiding roads from the Clifftop Coastal Footpath across the golf course and through a lovely wooded area.

Went for a meal with my daughter. The food was exceptional as was the service. Staff so friendly and knowledgeable. We hadn't booked but they managed to get us in. We were so impressed we booked for sunday lunch the next day. The choice was...

Really enjoyed our meal here tonight, always great to find a dog friendly pub when on holiday and to feel welcome with our dog. Both of us ordered the half rack of ribs, which was one of the best we’ve eaten. Huge portions, fairly priced and good service.

Myself and 5 friends have just dined there and I have to say the food was fantastic. Charlie our waiter was great , every course and dish from starters , to main to Afters were excellent. I would highly recommend this pub/restaurant. Will definitely return again, 5 Stars 🌟

Our local.supper club dined on a busy Friday evening The service was attentive and the restaurant is beautiful. Really nice inside . The food was enjoyed by everyone. Lots of compliments. Several.of us had the belly pork which was divine. Melt in the mouth sweet...

During our holiday in the area , we ate here twice . They have an exciting menu and daily specials . I chose one of my favourites - calves liver over bubble and squeak and a tasty jus on both visits . My wife had...