The Royal Oak in North Dorset - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

Ate here both nights while we stayed in the area. Great food, friendly staff but try to book in advance! We were very lucky to be served.

Just how a pub should be! Welcoming, friendly and chatty staff and a great food menu. Best halloumi bites ever and a delicious meaty pie. Nothing but positives about this place.

Found this delightful pub whilst searching for a place for evening meal as we were staying in the area. Lovely staff. Excellent choice on menu including plenty of gluten free options. Had to make room for pudding too!!! Pleasant setting. Food arrived promptly and tasted delicious.

Best ploughman's we've had in a very long time. Excellent service too

Friendly staff, quick service, good food.

We had drinks, dinner and then stayed over in our motorhome and it was absolutely wonderful! The food was exceptional, the service was excellent and the pub and beer garden are great. We were made to feel very welcome and would definitely recommend!

Very kind and helpful when we broke down in their car park. Thank you for your kindness

It's a shame other pubs are not like this. We had the carvery, which was one of the best we have had. The staff were excellent and nothing was too much trouble. Price was good, food amazing. If you choose to go here, book in advance. We will visit again soon.

Good value and agood family pub

Just stopped for a quick baguette lunch en route to the coast. Very friendly pub and staff. Good value lunch. Thoroughly recommend.

Well worth a visit for the Sunday carvery. Very good choice of roasts and plenty of different vegetables and extras. The main menu was available for those who preferred to opt for other meals. Service very accommodating and friendly. All our meals were well cooked and fresh. The cost was very reasonable for both the carvery, curry and burgers. Traditional approach to hospitality, we would visit again.

The manager is very welcoming, she made us a tailor-made meal.

Wow the food and the service was exceptional We love coming out here for a Sunday carvery and this is the first time coming out for an evening meal The reason for this was to celebrate our wedding anniversary The food portions are definitely what you pay for The staff are so friendly, helpful and full of fun I would truly recommend coming here for a meal Thankyou guys xx

Staff great. Great choice of food... some dishes can be overwhelming though... just too much! You will not leave hungry... but at same time, I never made it as far as a dessert.

Fabulous lunch 😋 perfectly looking after

We did a motorhome stopover here (to view a property in the village) and reserved a table for dinner, the staff are SO welcoming, the pub is lovely. It was a Saturday & "steak night" so we both ordered a fillet which came, cooked to perfection and with all the trimmings, the service was absolutely faultless as was the food, if you're driving through this village, stop off, you won't be disappointed....btw, we offered on the property and are moving soon, so can't wait to call this little place our local 😁

Very friendly, efficient and helpful staff, especially as we got our booking time wrong! Lovely food, presented well, very tasty. Hubby had pork belly and struggled with very crackly crackling on thd pork belly, But otherwise fab.

The Sunday Carvery Roast is one of the best in Dorset. It's a favourite of mine and my partners on a Sunday, pub is cosy and the staff are so welcoming and friendly

Visited as a party of 14 for a family gathering. Occupied the skittle ally so our young children could play without upsetting other patrons. We had starters, mains off menu and carverys. Excellent service, excellent food, huge portions. Absolutely no complaints.

This was the best meal out I have had in ages,would highly recommend

Great food, nice beer garden. Good ale, even let you stop in the carpark

Very cool pub. Very good food, service was excellent and atmosphere very good. Highly recommended if you are around.

Saw this lovely pub when we we searching for somewhere local to eat. We stopped off on the way back from Stourhead in the middle of the afternoon. Food served all day, with a lovely extensive menu. I ordered the Ploughman’s and I wasn’t disappointed. Lots of ham and beef, Brie, Stilton, and cheddar cheese. Plentiful salad, pickled onions, pickled egg and lots and lots of crusty bread and butter. Plus, coleslaw, chilli jam and pickles. Absolutely delicious. OH had pork belly, black pudding potato croquets, griddled broccoli. It looked lovely and OH said it was really tasty. We sat in the garden and our food was served by a really friendly lady. Thanks so much. We will definatly be back. PS. You wont go wrong stopping by this really lovely pub. 10/10

Amazing place every body should go and try it out

Called for lunch after a long country walk. So glad we chose to stop here. We received a warm friendly welcome and were shown an impressive well priced menu. The food arrived quickly and was excellent, tasty and well presented. The whole atmosphere of the pub was welcoming and we will definitely return very soon. A final point the toilets were some of the cleanest and well presented I have visited in a pub recently. Highly recommended

Proper pub with great beer, good food and friendly service, all at a fair price.

Amazing carvery fresh vegetables home made Yorkshire pudding , pudding too just had room for it. Highly recommended friendly staff

Excellent Food , staff and service, highly recommended .

Typical little British pub but the food was great. Fish and chips were spot on. We came right as the kitchen closed but they still insisted on serving us from a full menu. Great stop if you are passing through.

Fantastic carvery on a Sunday for under £15, would advise booking

Cannot find fault with anything really. The four of us enjoyed our Sunday lunch. We were amazed how everything ran like clock work given the fact that it was packed. We will definitely return soon. 😁

Was booked up but fitted six of us in bowling alley. Put heaters on to keep us warm as well.

All five of us went for the carvery although the duck was a close second for me. Lovely leek bake to go with the very generous portions of meat amongst a number of vegetables on offer . Really enjoyed the roast parsnips . My grandson was well looked after as he loves interacting with the staff and they responded beautifully with him. The staff are so friendly ; they made the evening for us.

Staff very friendly and polite the carvery was amazing. Great atmosphere.

Excellent pie night well worth it

Terrific little pub just a short drive from Blandford. We are most probably their least regular, regular customer they have. Started going there about 12/13 years ago when holidaying in Dorset we always pop in when in for a meal. A Great little pub with a lovely garden and a great restaurant / bar area. Food is all homemade and excellent. They have daily specials and themed evenings, like Steak Night and Pie Night. Puddings are to die for ! - Highly recommended.

Enjoyed a delicious meal here with friends. Food was hot and fresh and served in a friendly and professional manner

Wonderful food and excellent valuefor money, nothing was too much trouble, we were happily supplied a knife so we could cut our own cake up. Get there early as car park on the small side for such a popular pub

Popped in a visit to the area, great service and food options, even going to the trouble of making an off menu GF sauce for one of our party. Highly recommend and well worth a visit. To top it all, great value, too.

What a brilliant gem of a pub. Visited here mid-feb for a family gathering, including young children. Really welcoming, everyone was friendly towards the children, the food was amazing, and the staff were genuinely really nice - something that is rare in this day and age. Highly recommended

A friend and I ate dinner here last night and were so impressed! The staff were really lovely and the food absolutely delicious. The portions are enormous and the prices incredibly reasonable with a huge range of choices on the menu. It was lovely to see a village pub so busy on a Monday evening and just shows what a great little place this is! Many thanks to you all, we’ll definitely be back!

Just had the most amazing food.. portion size very generous.. and tasted absolutely beautiful.. 5 stars all the way..😁💚

My family and I have eaten at the Oak numerous times since moving to a nearby village four years ago. We have recommended it to many of our friends and family, and we have knowingly introduced at least eight of them to the pub after they ended up dining there on our recommendation. Up until now, we have always been made to feel welcome and it has been our pub of choice, for the good food (chef Sam is great), reasonable prices, and the fact it is family run. In the past year, my family has eaten here for all our birthdays and collectively we have visited on another 4-5 occasions, though not necessarily all together. We have never had reason to complain about anything until now, and they swiftly came up with a solution when they lost my birthday carvery booking. However, I will now move on to explain why we will not be returning to the Oak again in the future. Our most recent, and final, visit was this week for their Asian theme night; at £13.50 a head, we thought this seemed to be good value. I visited with my husband and six year old daughter. We explained that she had already eaten dinner (they don't offer their standard menu on theme nights and we weren't sure whether she would eat what was on offer, based on a previous theme night experience), but asked if we could have a side plate to offer her a few small bits so that she didn't feel left out. We thought the food was delicious, but, in the end, she didn't eat anything at all, and her dad ended up eating the small amount on her plate. When it came to paying the bill, we noticed that we had been charged £6.50 for a child's portion. We queried this and explained that our child hadn't eaten anything at all. The price was then reduced to £4, but they wouldn't budge from this, saying that they had to charge "when a plate had left the kitchen" and they were sure we would "understand". Unfortunately, we do not understand why we were charged for a plate; from their perspective, there was no food wastage and she hadn't eaten a bean. I would possibly expect this "computer says no" attitude from a chain, but we were saddened to be met with this reaction at the Oak. It wasn't as though we had ordered her a meal and could then take it home with us, because it was a buffet set up. Equally, this wasn't offered to us. Suddenly, the £13.50 a head for me and my husband became £15.50 - no longer such good value. Although the charge was not significant, it was the principle that upset us, and we felt like we had been taken advantage of. In a way, I am loath to leave a negative review, but after a few years of being happy customers, I'm afraid this disappointing experience has marred our feelings towards the Oak. I understand that people are always more inclined to voice their opinion when they have something to complain about, rather than to give praise. Bearing this in mind, I will score 3/5, considering I probably should have left a 5/5 review before now, and I feel it is only fair to balance this out. Luckily for us, we have had a nearby pub reopen recently and we will be taking our custom there from now on.

Carvery for the family was very nice. Plenty of quality food and very good value.

Really friendly pub, good menu and range of drinks. Decent portions without overfacing you and they are quite happy if you order smaller portions. Will definitely go back. We all had 3 courses.

Food was amazing.. very friendly, and the beer was great 👍

Just moved to the area so after a quick visit one day for some amazing “ dirty fries” …we decided when family were visiting to sample their award winning Sunday carvery …wow ! Gorgeous, plentiful, tasty food and friendly staff made it a great experience . Booking essential at sittings 12/2/4 &6pm ….I didn’t how they do it ,but the “ sittings” work brilliantly and all the staff work their socks off! Great to find something so good virtually on our doorstep. We will be back when our waistlines have recovered!

Tried the royal oak for the first time after seeing it was good according to various websites. It certainly didn't disappoint. We had the sunday roast and it was delicious and plentiful too. Well done to all the staff who were very helpful during our experience. Many thanks to all concerned 👍

Having read all the good reviews we weren't sure whether it could live up to our expectations but it most certainly did. Agree with other reviews that parking is a bit tight, but to be expected due to the popularity (we still managed to squeeze into the last space available though). We were made to feel SO welcome, there were obviously regular customers and some pubs can treat regulars/newbies differently but not here, it was lovely to see and hear. We had pre booked a table for 2 with a dog and had been allocated a fab table, tucked away by the window which let our dog be tucked out of the way. Super dog friendly with water bowl provided. We both had the carvery which was AMAZING, Sam served the generous portion of meat and was so chatty and helpful, quality of food was excellent and all home cooked (so hard to find around here now with all the chain pubs taking over). It was all very well organised and managed, the serving staff were lovely and great value too, we will definitely be returning. Wishing we had brought home a slice of the Dorset Apple cake.... next time! Thank you everyone for making our Sunday a lovely one!

A lovely pub, serving a vast array of very tasty food. The bar & restaurant service and quality of the food were only surpassed by how exceptionally tasty my food was.

Great place to eat and drink. I stop in every Friday on my way home from work just for a pint.

Absolutely wonderful lunch with super friendly service from a wonderful team! They have toys, puzzles, and games for kids, excellent food, fantastic service with a smile and will definitely be going back when we're in the area again.

The best pub in Dorset. Great atmosphere and service

Great Sunday carvery..relaxed atmosphere..friendly staff and amazing food.

Booked this pub for an 18th birthday celebratory meal based on recommendations. We were all impressed with our meals, and the portions! Staff were brilliant, very attentive. Look forward to trying the Sunday carvery next.

Updated: back for meals on 2 other occasions and the food and service was just as high rated👏👏 will definitely revisit if in the area again. Fantastic carvery today, food was absolutely mouth-wateringly delicious! Warm and extremely friendly setting. Not just dog friendly but dogs were made as welcome as us. Top marks 👏👏

Nice pub warm and cosy good selection of beer lovely staff we didn't eat but the food looked good

Lovely food great atmosphere staff very 👍😊

One of the best carvery meals we have ever had! The price was so cheap for such a decent meal, the staff were lovely and really friendly too. They fitted us in late notice which we really appreciated. Well worth a trip 😋 x

Really friendly staff, dog friendly very welcoming

Absolutely amazing food I have never seen so much meat on a Sunday and they were still offering more.

Monday lunch on the road. Very generous portions. Attentive service.

Great quality food for such a reasonable price, all members of staff from bar, to waitress to the chef behind the carvery made us all feel welcome all with a smile on their face ! Food was outstanding down to rich gravy & succulent turkey & crispy roast potatoes ! such a nice family friendly & relaxed atmosphere , lovely local village pub with people visiting from far & wide for a top notch carvery! One of the best meals I’ve had and made for a great birthday meal with family

The food is out of this world so tasty full of flavour good value for money and handsome portions the lady with the red hair was such a good waitress/bar person so kind and welcoming would definitely be back for dinner five star service

We (4 adults, 2 kids) went for Sunday lunch at the Royal Oak in milborne St Andrew and it was amazing! Creamed leeks, mashed turnip plus pigs in blankets and yummy yorkshires! All the food was so good and the staff were really attentive and were lovely! Absolute dream and ended with a git big slice of apple cake and custard 😋 they did the kids make your own icecream sundae and it was a good bargain too, definitely worth a visit! xx

We have just had a carvery and we both agree it was the BEST carvery we have ever had! Service was impeccable and the price was very reasonable. We are here on holiday and would happily come back just for the carvery. Thank you 👏😍 x

give ma boy a raise, very good, the dish washer fella was a pure sound bloke tbh, good stella as well

Best fillet steak ive ever had, the entire plate was perfect, my partners pork belly was incredible too, staff were super friendly...highly recommended 👌 👍 👏

This is our regular Sunday carvery. Can't be beaten in this area for the quality of the food, the friendliness of the staff and the warm Dorset atmosphere. There's even a skittle alley! One MUST book as the carvery is rightly VERY popular on a Sunday. There's a large lounge where most diners sit and if there's no room left in there, a sports bar. One can order a small or large plate for the carvery, and we've found the small plate is plenty for us. We took a friend last Sunday and the bill for the three of us including drinks was only £34. Just great. Thanks to all the staff at The Royal Oak. See you again soon.

Family of 7 booked for Sunday carvary 6pm arrived 5:30pm, one of us ordered a starter, 6 of us watched that person eat their starter, we had to wait nearly an hour. whilst other customers who arrived later were served carvary even though were first there then we were informed that they had very little food left. Absoultly shocking.....

Food here, as all reviews say, is outstanding! My mum lives in the village so we have eaten here a number of times and have never been disappointed with any choice we have made from the menu. The staff are also so friendly. Really does deserve all 5 stars!

I met the owners today. I have not been to the pub so this review is based on expectations alone. I hope the pub is as good as I expect it to be. Best wishes to owners and customers alike. Barnaby

Review amended due to confusion. This is a great pub with good beer, superb food and even better staff. Went to one of their speciality food nights, Italian, great selection and quality. Went back for lunch after a morning 5mile walk. Food again excellent and value for money. Definitely recommend a visit if passing.

Great food, service, atmosphere and prices. Will certainly be returning

We only needed a quick meal on our way home after a day out. This was a really good choice. Good wholesome meals at a reasonable price and with friendly, prompt service. Good size portions and very tasty. Easy to see why it was so popular.

Great staff lovely food and beers

Excellent carvery, excellent value for money, choice of three meats with Yorkshire pud, pigs in blankets and stuffing balls. Selection of new/roast potatoes, cabbage, carrots, swede, green beans, parsnips, leeks in cream sauce. Absolutely amazing will definitely return. So good forgot to take a photo!!

A great place to eat. Lovely staff. Fast service. Reasonable prices. I would recommend it.

Amazing lamb shank and chilled environment 😍

Nice small village pub with friendly helpful staff, did not eat as they were very busy

Another delicious lunch at the Royal Oak, Lsmb shanks, fish and chips, lasagne all perfectly cooked then ice cream sundaes for dessert. Our go to pub for holidays in Dorset. Such a friendly welcoming place, highly recommended - thank you , see you again next year.

We hired the function room for a special surprise birthday party and the team could not have been more helpful from start to finish. The buffet was beautiful, and there were lots of appreciative comments. A wonderful celebratory evening in a brilliant local pub.

Went here with My Elderly Parents for a Birthday meal. Carvery was Gorgeous, the Portions are generous, Food nice n Hot. The Staff are Very Polite & Friendly

We came here for dinner on Tuesday and Thursday as the meal and service was second to none everything was piping hot service was great nothing was to much bother We were sat at the same table both nights . I would definitely recommend this pub to anyone visiting as it was unreal

A gem in the countryside. Wonderful food, served by wonderful people.

Just average... didn't care for the sauce on the beef stroganoff and the cod in the fish 'n chips had no taste... very bland. Good waitstaff and location. Charming building and setting. Parking lot. Reasonable prices.

Read my reviews and you'll know I love my food..... but this place is THE BEST..... To the point I actually revisited it again in the SAME week!! MENU= good font easy to read and understand not to little info but also not to much to create to much stress when choosing. You can see what your getting and how much it costs. Great for nuro diverse people very clear I liked it 👍I asked for one change (no onion rings and instead chips) you were happy to do this so also nice thank you. FOOD..... ITS NOT SOME FANCY POST TOSH THAT LEAVES YOU STILL HUNGRY...THIS IS EXSTREAMLY TASTEFULLY COOKED HUGE SERVING OF PROPER FILLING FOOD AND THE MENUE CHOICED ARE SPOT ON, MEAT OF ALL SORTS WITH LIGHT OR HEAVY FOOD OPTIONS, FISH OPTION VEG OPTIONS. I CAN HONESTLY SAY THIS PLACE IS IN MY TOP 10. THE SUNDAY CARVERY WAS 1000% BETTER THAN A TOBY CARVERY I HAD SO MUCH MEAT I STRUGGLED TO FINISH IT ALL!!!! GO FIND IT WHEN IN DEVON I GENUINELY RECOMEMED IT. Price: £20/25 will get you a main meal and a drink. So a great option for a date or night our I feel. The pub itself: Plenty of parking (Sunday was a lil harder) kid friendly play area you can also eat in. Toilet are very clean and nice. Pub has oldie world feel but very clean and tidy. Wealchair acsessable. ....but didn't notice a disabled toilet you may wanna check. My only suggestion would be something serious hot and chocolatie for the chocoholics or a good old jam rolly polly or sticky toffee pud and custard 🍮 should be on the menu. If it was this place would have been in my top 5.

It was a very pleasant place and staff was very friendly

What a lovely pub. Such friendly staff and great food. Thank you.

Stopped in for a unplanned dinner and had the most excellent ploughman's! Very child friendly and accommodating

Smashing pub, cracking service ! Best halloumi fries I've ever had and mushroom stilton fries were so good!

This is THE pub for us, on the way back from the beach, fantastic food (value of money for sure) and a kids’ play area outside next to the tables. We’ll be back and make sure our local takes notes 😀

Top top Carvery. Staff very welcoming and friendly. Would like to live closer but will come again.

Top notch carvery and all home cooked. Great choice of vegetables from green beans, carrot, cabbage, cheesy leeks to name a few. Great roast potatoes but also lovely minted new potatoes, We eat here as it's near my mum's and it is consistently very good and lovely friendly staff.

Staff friendly, helpful and experienced. Sports bar was dirty and full of flies. Garden had several piles of dog poo! Was really disappointed considering where we are, such a beautiful area!

Excellent customer service after booking online had failed and ensured table for 8 was found…. Really good food pub food ( carvery extensive) Royal Oak Burgers wolfed down by our teenage boys , only tiny complaint was fillet steak was a touch over medium ( chips , mushroom, tomato, pepper sauce, onion rings ) all good🙌🏻🙌🏻

Very friendly pub. Lovely food - great portion sizes. Ploughman's was massive.

Fabulous Sunday Roast with a great range of sides, as well as excellent, friendly service. We had a lovely lunch in July and we've been raving about it since! Will definitely be back!

Great local pub, family run. Food was great, service was spot on and the added touch of bringing a small tub of sweets out to my son because his pudding didn't have them like his cousins did showed they really do care.

We read about The Royal Oak before we came here on our holiday (we're Dutch) roadtrip through the south of England. I can truly say that we both thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere, kind people and, most importantly the food! Thank you for making our short stay in Milborne St. Andrew so memorable. Should anyone we know visit this area in the nearby future, we'll be sure to recommend you!