please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Why employ staff that clearly don't want to be there. Ten past 2 on a sunny Sunday afternoon four of us stopped for some lunch, ordered our drinks that proved a hardship for the young email staff member, as the attitude was so bad we never bothered with the food order and moved on to another venue,your loss hall and shithouse.
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This pub was absolute disgrace, after spending in the region of £80 on drinks, (very over priced) meals and deserts, we had literally just had our finished deserts taken away from us and where approached by the landlady (?) and basically told to clear off!!! (In a little bit politer way).
In my opinion this is not on, if you pay that sort of money for lunch you don't expect to be hurried out the door so the next lot of money can sit down.
I'd of understood if we had been hanging around long after we had finished, but this wasn't the case.
Will NEVER go back there again!!!
And the 'Luxury Christmas pudding' that was over £5 consisted of three tiny triangles no thicker than a centimetre, I thought it come from the children's, no toddlers menu it was tiny, defiantly not worth over a fiver!!!!!
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OK, I don't do food in the afternoon, just popped in for a pint - the food might be fantastic. Barmaid very busy clearing away lunch tables, and eventually served me. Seasonal beer, as usual in Badger managed houses, overpriced. Only other customer was dribbling into his pint of lager.
For another nearby pub that has some atmosphere, try The Walkford (sorry, it's Greene King), but it has recognisably alive customers, enjoying themselves (in a non-aggressive way).
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Had not been to this pub for a couple of years as got tired of being one of the only people in there...HOWEVER! Things have improved!
Decided to give it another go some 2-3 years later last week, and had a super meal...Tiger Prawn & Crayfish Curry highly recommended!!!! And even moved into the bar area after for a few too many Peroni's! There was a good atmosphere & plenty in drinking....pleasantly converted again & will be returning back soon!
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It wasn't a spider - it was a monkey, or it was when I first went over 20 years ago!! Food good but expensive, staff friendly. Beer well kept in our experience. Slightly lacking in atmosphere.
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Sorry about my previous review which may have put people off from this fine establishment. The "Spider" was a toy on which I think was attached to a pulley connected to a door. But I still want to know what happened to it. They do still have Ring-the-Bull though.
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A pub that meets all expectations. Beer is good, food lovely and atmosphere lively even when the over 85's club is in. Always visit when holidaying in this area.
Just one question - what ever happened to the Spider behind the bar?
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Went here for a meal and enjoyed it. Food freshly prepared and not packet or boid in bag. Large choice from specials board. Badger beers with good selection of real ales. No juke box, no pool tables and no wide screen tv which meant no 'lager louts'. Friendly staff. good selection of wines. No garden but seating available outside and large car park. Customers seemed to be middle aged upwards and locals. Jazz evenings twice a month with a special menu, music every Friday evening. Most meals had the option of large or smaller portions plus a childrens menu. We went over the Easter period and had 2 visits for meals. Traditional roast on the Sunday was excellent and a real plateful! Kids also enjoyed their meals and it was unrushed and relaxed. Another group in the restaurant had very young children and they were provided with high chairs. I have no problem in recommending The Amberwood for its good food, service and friendly atmosphere.
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All Real ale now �2.50 a pint, including Tanglefoot, Only during February. Still a good pub.
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Used to eat here a lot but prices have gone up and portions and choice have gone down. �8.95 (or thereabouts) for a three egg omelette? I don't think so. Having said that, the musical entertainment is brilliant and BJ on New Year's Eve was outstanding value.
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We often go to the Amberwood for a meal (food is always excellent value for money, and quality second to none) or just a drink (the atmosphere is always so friendly & welcoming). It has got to be the best pub around.
For the second year running we had Xmas Day dinner there with all the family... and the second year running it was perfect !
We also spent new years eve evening there - and it was like a party at a friends house ! It was a really brilliant evening.
You'd have to go a long way to find fault on anything at the Amberwood - the pub, the staff, the food & drinks, the atmosphere, its all excellent !!!
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Another visit to the Amberwood for a meal with friends and it didn't disappoint! The homemade soup starter was a delightful surprise, with a fresh taste indicating that it had clearly only just been made. I opted for the Mediterranean chicken and Chorizo salad for the main course - this was also a real treat showing that some inspired imagination had been put into this dish to produce a really satisfying combination of ingredients, I would recommend this one to anyone! The service was friendly and timely. In fact when we enquired about suitable wines to accompany the food, we had the manager and chef (I think he's called John?) come over and give us his own personal recommendations as to what would go down well rather than presenting a set winelist - this is the kind of added service that can really make it a winning evening! We all enjoyed the food here and stayed for a long time afterwards as there was a good atmosphere going on and no need to feel hurried into leaving.
To my mind, this must be one of the better-managed establishments as the food is consistently good and the pub clientele is a broad mix of people which can make anyone feel at ease and welcome.
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when i walked into the amberwood i expected the barmaid to say are you local? i recently moved into the area and obviously want a tipple every now and then, but each time ive been there it seems like an oap dining hall, no garden, thou smoking area with shelter in the car park,the staff were friendly thou the girl behind the bar takes some stick from the locals, i enquired about a possable large table and was told to talk to the assistant manager who was sat at the bar drinking a pint, she was polite and talked me through the menu if with beer and fags breath. i didnt book the table as it seemed a badly run establishment and didnt want to take the risk with my planned family night out.
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An example of the ideal pub, good beer, friendly staff, good varied menu, though out of my price range, comfortable seating and warm, many pubs seem to be cold, all the smokers going in and out? a lively place on Friday music nights and Monday quiz.
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I made two lunch-time visits recently; one to 'suss' the place out prior to a planned later visit with in-laws followed a week later by the planned visit. On both occasions I was much impressed by the quality of the meals, the welcome of the staff and the real ale from Hall & Woodhouse. Not that I could drink much of it as I had to drive home afterwards. Will definately go there again.
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It always has a great atmosphere and the friday night bands add to the buzz without taking over conpletely in that you can still find a corner to talk in if you want. Lunchtimes are quieter so it's an ideal daytime chill-out venue. The food tables are in a seperate area to the main bar which is better for a large eating group. The food itself has always been excellent and the selection and menus are a cut above the usual pub "fayre" (- well done to the chefs!) This often means that you need to ring and book a table as it can get busy, especially weekends. Worth the effort though, I've eaten here a few times now. The staff are friendly enough and the beers are well kept with some good real ales. In fact it's good to know that you'll get a pint that tastes great rather than tasting like it's name!!!
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The Amberwood seemedto have lost its sparkle, have had two disapionting visits.Hall and Wooodhouse need more choice of beer, or should let their tennent buy out! The pub was creally quiet with no atmosphere.
anonymous - 18 Feb 2005 18:26 |
The Amberwood, still remains a good place to visit. This however must be out of popular hours - away from the weekend. That is because this place has become an economic success. The best aspect of the Amberwood Inn, is that the restaurant and bar area which are seperated. This means that the "foodies" and the ber drinkers are never joined up. Personally, I have been angry about lots of places that confuse the two. Anyway the chef's food is first class - and it is not nouvelle crusine. I recomend it - but real ale drinkers will have to like Tanglefoot as there is no Ringwood 49er there.
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On visiting, I found The Amberwood to be a nice semi-country pub with good vibrations. I instantly saw locals playing cards at a table, which is something that you rarely see. The place is tastefully decorated, and the oak beams are genuine. Dogs seem to be as welcome as outsiders from Bournemouth. The only thing that is missing is a log fire in the winter. The restaurant section was well laid out, and gave the impression of having a bit of class to it. At the time everybody was watching the England-Scotland rugby game - and that section was empty. The biggest drawback to the Amberwood was that we were forced to drink Badger - and I prefer Ringwood. Anyway, thanks to John for suggesting it - I must eat there sometime.
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A couple of contributors to this site - Peter Froude and Mike - had adverse comments to make about the 3 Tuns in Bransgore. Reckon that they might prefer this place as I went there the other night with my wife and two friends and found the food to be excellent with good portions and it wasn't too much of a drain on the bank balance. Plenty of variety on the menu with many 'specials' listed on the board. Only downside is the fact that this is a Hall and Woodhouse establishment with its range of apalling beers. Fortunately I was driving on this occasion.
John - 27 Dec 2003 11:32 |
