Hardens Guide to the Best Restaurants in Christchurch
Hardens guides have spent 33 years compiling reviews of the best Christchurch restaurants. On Hardens.com you'll find details and reviews of 32 restaurants in Christchurch and our unique survey based approach to rating and reviewing Christchurch restaurants gives you the best insight into the top restaurants in every area and of every type of cuisine.
Featured Christchurch Restaurants
1. Chez Fred
Fish & chips restaurant in Bournemouth
10 Seamoor Rd - BH4
The “freshest possible locally caught fish, as many chips as you can eat, free plain and fizzy water” – sounds pretty much like the ideal chippy. “An utterly reliable local institution through the decades” under three generations of the Capel family, it’s the sort of place where you need to “turn up early” to secure a table.
2. The Jetty
British, Modern restaurant in Christchurch
95 Mudeford - BH23
“With large floor-to-ceiling windows providing a great view of Christchurch Harbour”, Alex Aitken’s “stunning modern restaurant on the shore” is extremely popular and backs up its “delightful” location with “reliable locally sourced seafood” and – notwithstanding one or two reports of “average” meals – typical reports say “the high standard of food and service mean it comes recommended”.
4. Cambium
British, Modern restaurant in Brockenhurst
Lyndhurst Rd - SO42
2023 Review: ‘Dylan James’s dishes pay homage to the British countryside, and embrace the nature of the seasons’ – well that’s what the website says! – at this “lovely restaurant in a beautiful hotel”: a New Forest destination that started life as a royal hunting lodge and is nowadays a luxurious spa complex. Reports in our annual diners’ poll agree, all of them applauding its attractive, light interior and brasserie food from an all-day menu that’s “carefully cooked, and good value”.
5. Arbor Restaurant, The Green House Hotel
British, Modern restaurant in Bournemouth
4 Grove Rd - BH1
For a decent meal or afternoon tea, this seaside hotel is worth considering thanks to its large array of menu options and very dependable food, overseen by chef Andy Hilton.
7. Chewton Glen
British, Modern restaurant in New Milton
Chewton Glen Rd - BH23
A division of opinion reasserted itself this year regarding the main dining room of this famous and supremely plush Relais & Châteaux property, set on the edge of the New Forest and about half an hour’s drive from Bournemouth. To its fans it is a “high-class establishment that never fails to please”, and that goes too for its gorgeous, light-filled traditional dining room, where roasts from the trolley headline a selection that’s more luxe brasserie than it is ‘haute cuisine’. Ratings were dragged down this year, though, but a couple of all-round disappointing experiences.
8. The Kings Arms Hotel
restaurant in Christchurch
18 Castle Street - BH23
A good position in the town centre and on the River Avon only adds to the appeal of this substantial Georgian property – nowadays a luxurious four-star hotel. The restaurant is overseen by Alex Aitken of the nearby Jetty and provides some surprisingly affordable options, including “a daily changing £17.50 two-course market menu with ingredients sourced within 15 miles”. (Some change may be afoot, though, as in June 2023 the owners since 2005 put the property on the market.)
9. Captain's Club Hotel & Spa
British, Modern restaurant in Christchurch
Wick Ferry, Wick Lane - BH23
Unrecognisable from its days as a Pontin’s in the early 90s, this slick, nautically themed spa hotel has a striking setting overlooking the harbour and River Stour, making it a “lovely place to dine” (perhaps after enjoying a pre-dinner drink on the terrace). The dining area is split between a convivial lounge bar and more formal dining room, both serving the same classic, fish-centric menu that “never disappoints”. Top Tip – if you’re feeling adventurous, it’s possible to arrange a trip to the Isle of Wight, just a 45-minute journey by boat.
10. Restaurant Roots
British, Modern restaurant in Southbourne
141 Belle Vue Road - BH6
“Jan and Stacey are still amazing as their empire expands!” – the Bretschneiders’ small venue is celebrating its 10th year of operation, continuing to deliver a ‘Discovery’ tasting menu for £130 per person, with a less expensive option available earlier in the week. Feedback was more limited this year, but for those who comment it remains a highly rated all-round favourite.
11. The Kitchen at Chewton Glen
British, Modern restaurant in New Milton
Chewton Farm Road - BH23
“Such a fun place that coped so well with a mixed-age group of ten people” – the ‘dressed down’ option at this famous country-house hotel occupies a contemporary, pitched-roof space overlooking the kitchen gardens and complete with outside terrace and cookery school. The brasserie menu includes burgers, pizza, steak and other grills, plus a good selection of other options; and reports say “it’s just really good food backed up by friendly, informal but efficient service in a convivial environment”. Not cheap perhaps, but “well worth the price”.
12. WestBeach
Fish & seafood restaurant in Bournemouth
Pier Approach - BH2
2022 Review: “Top-notch fish, chips and alternatives” plus a “lovely location” not far from the centre of town make this modern seaside café a good choice for breakfast or lunch, with stunning views from the terrace.
13. Pebble Beach
French restaurant in Barton-on-Sea
Marine Drive - BH25
“Fresh local fish” is the star turn at this beachside restaurant – in “an excellent location with wonderful coastal views on a good day”. Chef Andy Waters worked under the great French chef Paul Bocuse early in his career. Top Tip – “they also serve an exceptional breakfast”.
14. Branksome Beach
British, Modern restaurant in Poole
Pinecliff Rd - BH13
2022 Review: A “beautifully situated restaurant” in an Art Deco solarium overlooking Poole Harbour, and where “drinks on the upper deck are an extra delight”. One or two off reports on the food front this year, but also plenty of plaudits for its “really good breakfasts and lunches”, and “service has improved” of late too.
15. Harbour Heights Hotel
British, Modern restaurant in Poole
73 Haven Rd, Haven Rd - BH13
“The view overlooking Poole Harbour makes this a romantic location” for an Italian meal – although it’s “very much a good-weather venue”. The hotel is at the heart of a long-running planning dispute, with vocal locals opposing a plan to convert it into an ‘aparthotel’ under a £300m redevelopment of Sandbanks.
16. Rick Stein
Fish & seafood restaurant in Sandbanks
10-14 Banks Rd - BH13
An “absolutely amazing” view over Poole Bay and Brownsea Island elevates a visit to this Rick Stein group outpost. This is a much commented-on destination, and we’ve rated it positively on the good volume of praise for its fish and seafood, which hails “food so consistently good, without frills from excellent ingredients in delicious combinations”. Given the “aspirations and expectations linked to the name” not everyone is convinced, though, and it’s more recommended as a good all-rounder for a fish supper with fab view attached than it is for next-level cooking.
17. Shell Bay
Fish & seafood restaurant in Studland
Ferry Road - BH19
With its “excellent range of fish in an idyllic setting”, this “cavernous shack on the Studland side of the chain ferry” solves the perennial problem of “somewhere to eat in Poole” – the “honest and simple local fish dishes” are “very nicely done”, and are accompanied by “great views” over Poole Harbour and Brownsea Island.
18. Verveine Fishmarket Restaurant
British, Modern restaurant in Milford-on-Sea
98 High St - SO41
“I might have walked past if I hadn‘t been looking for it” – David Wykes opened his small contemporary fish bistro supplied from a “small, one-man open kitchen” in 2010. Despite its modest size, it’s nowadays one of the top-100 most commented-on venues in our annual diners’ poll thanks to its “exceptional fish dishes, presented with flair and imagination”. “You choose the number of courses you want, and say if there is anything you don’t like and then the most amazing fish just keeps coming” to create a “unique and outstanding food experience”. “Chef is keen to emphasise at any opportunity, everything is made in house with lots of interesting spices and flavourings, many made from his own foraging expeditions”. “It’s quite simple in décor and unpretentiously welcoming” (but while “the space is comfortable, when a large group arrives it can become near deafening”). Many reports suggest that “all fish lovers need to experience Verveine at least once”… “I live a couple of hours away, but I’ll certainly be back again soon!”
19. The Guildhall Tavern
Fish & seafood restaurant in Poole
15 Market Street - BH15
2023 Review: This gorgeous old tavern on a corner site near the harbour – newly spiffed-up last autumn and with the recent addition of a conservatory – specialises in “excellent-quality” local seafood, served in a warm atmosphere that is “like being in France”.
20. Samphire at Stanwell House
British, Modern restaurant in Lymington
14-15 High Street - SO41
This two-year-old restaurant in a “boutique hotel on the main street of Lymington” specialises in “simply prepared and beautifully presented fish, straight from the local boats”. Experienced chef Matthew Tomkinson, previously of The Hambrough on the Isle of Wight, took over the kitchen in early 2024.
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