Reviews The Poet Laureate

We turned up, a group of four, in the middle of an icy hailstorm in late April, and were immediately met with a warm welcome and a warm atmosphere at the Poet Laureate. What a pub. The food was exquisite, the drink was excellent, and the service was professional and attentive yet friendly and personal. After we had eaten we were surprised, yet delighted, to be asked by the waitress what one of our party had thought of the haddock, as it was a new item on the menu and the first night it had been served, and the chef wanted our honest feedback. Very brave to so publicly ask such a question, but shows how much they want everything to be right. And it was. In spades! A good variety on the menu, with some pub classics (albeit done with a twist, a little bit better) mixed in with some more original dishes. After three courses, and many drinks, it was a pleasure to pay the bill that was extremely good value for the wonderful evening that we had had.

Popped into here yesterday for lunch. Have been before and never disappointed. Friendly staff, nice food and warm atmosphere. Much better than the more recent pub situated nearby.

We had a lovely meal at the poet x all fresh and delicious food was piping hot and we had very good service x very homely and friendly pub x love the new decor too x thank you we will definitely be back �

We always have delicious food here and amazing service tooo. And thank you for being so sweet & caring with my son when he tripped over outside. Plasters were a godsend. AJ x

Best pub ive been to for a long time, great food, nice people and all in all good place to be of an evening

Had an excellent lunch at The Poet on Saturday. Fantastically relaxed atmosphere,and welcoming staff. The perfect place to while away the hours on a cosy afternoon.

Great carvery highly recommended. You will need to book at busy times, we got there at 2pm on a Sunday and there was only one table free. Staff were friendly and cheerful. I had the standard size, they also do small and large. Prices are the same as other carvery pubs nearby.

Last minute booking for the carvery (standard size), they do a small and a large too. Treacle tart to follow and a nicely kept pint of Otter to wash it all down. Great atmosphere, super service. Outstanding experience ! Thanks.

Lovely welcome, food plentiful and hot, drinks reasonably priced. What struck us most was our host - fabulous guy! In fact, all the staff were brilliant.

Visited with family for Sunday lunch. One guest required Gluten free , another poultry free...both extremely well looked after with menu advice and one off portions of suitable gravy provided for them. The waiters were very welcoming and helpful, & chef Simon was happy to answer questions about the food & offer helpful tips re gf menu choices (and how to cook roast beef and pork at home to achieve something approaching their own delicious standards!). I can highly recommend the carvery where roast beef, pork&crackling or turkey breast basted with bacon strips were generously carved to your liking and which were soft, and full of flavour. I particularly enjoyed the roast beef.. slow cooked to be pinkudh and tender (not bloody & chewy like do many). There was a good range of vegetables,roast parsnips & roast potatoes, stuffing balls and Yorkshire puddings & condiments which were then self served. Sadly no gf version of the latter two were available,( torture -as they both looked really great and I was told they tasted as delicious !). However, apparently with advance warning / request a gf cauliflower cheese portion can be made. This was another delicious looking option I had to avoid but that other guests very much enjoyed... (but that dish could easily be made in a naturally gf version if chef swapped from using wheat flour as a sauce thickener to using equally effective cornflour instead & I do hope my suggestion they could try that might be taken on board). The menu choices also looked good with other guests recommending the vegetarian pasta arrabiata dish and the steak & chips. The steak was much enjoyed by the guest and was of a good enough size given the price charged..not always the case elsewhere. However, the 'rare to medium rare' cooking request was actually nearer to 'medium' when the steak was presented..but this is always difficult to judge and the steak was lean and succulent so that was not a problem to the diner concerned. The food was all very well presented and of generous portions. We didn't order starters or deserts but the menu showed a good range of delicious options. One guest gave good reports if the conveniences. The restaurant has a pleasant atmosphere in a lovely square in Poundbury. Parking beside the restaurant wasn't a problem. Highly recommended

Incredible food, staff are super friendly and one of the most cosy pubs with a superb atmosphere.

Absolutely brilliant meal from start to finish, pork tenderloin was amazing, risotto was also very tasty. Sticky toffee pudding and lemon meringue cheesecake were divine. Staff are very friendly and meals were reasonably priced.

Stumbled across the place by not using the sat Nav . What a Gem great Food (Love the chips) great helpful staff and dog friendly can't Fault it.