The Best Restaurants in Melbury Abbas, Dorset, United Kingdom (2025)

I can't thank the team at Breezy Ridge enough for all their efforts to make a Maid of Honour proposal go smoothly! Becky's communications were fab prior to the evening and everyone was on board to make sure the dinner went ahead without a hitch. The food is fantastic and the place is a real asset to the local area, there aren't many places like this around without having to travel quite far out. The team are super friendly and the atmosphere in the restaurant is gorgeous, beautifully decorated and wonderfully intimate. I can't wait to come back!

Beautiful place, will be fantastic in the summer... Really recommend the charcuterie board. Graze board pictures... Fab wine 👌🍷 we will definately coming back soon

We had a night of celebrating our 50th birthday here at Breezy Ridge,the location is absolutely stunning, the food was delicious our guests all commented on how good it was and the cocktails where just perfect staff are so friendly and polite.. could not recommend this place enough.. makes for a perfect location to celebrate any occasion... You won't be disappointed 🥂❤️

We were in the area and stopped by this lovely vineyard restaurant for dinner. The food was delicious, the sparkling wine was lovely and the service was friendly. The food was tapas style. My favourites were the croquettes (we tried ham and crab) as well as the tomato and mozzarella salad. Highly recommend.

We just love this place, if you like a really good hike then this is the place for you, many many footpaths, extraordinarily beautiful views, sheep and cows, fabulous birds of prey, we watched 6 red kites below us as we sat up high, just so beautiful. And for an added treat, Compton Abbas airport is next door so the low flying very interesting small planes fly over as they take off.

An enjoyable walk from the NT car park on the main road to Melbury Hill down to Fontmell Magna and back through the Fontmell Down Nature reserve. Great views on the Blackmore Vale.

The most amazing views of our beautiful countryside, on this great little walk

I was enroute to Portesham for a mini break with Max my dog. It's about midway so ideal for a wee/poo break. It was a really blustery day, just right for blowing out the cobwebs. He was flat out afterwards.

Visited without a booking they were able to squeeze us in. Very busy for a Monday night, which was a good sign! Outstanding food, really tasty and well presented, and attentive waiting staff. Would recommend booking as they were turning people away!

A good solid restaurant for a team meal out.... Initially a letdown because I'm calling there was no menu available in PDF. Food was all good. Tandoori mixed grill a little dry, only let down by high prices of the beer..... Service was brisk and the peshawari nan, excellent.

Been a customer for many years. Standards inevitably go up and down, but the food on my last visit was best ever, lots of fresh flavours, really tasty. Bit of a shame the prices have gone up so significantly, today, but they are probably only catching up with the rest of the sector, post-covid.

Nice pub ... good selection of real ales and some nice keg Gritchie session beer. Only 4 stars because its hard to get in.. customers standing at the bar block the entrance. Plenty of room inside though.

Friendly local free house pub. Nice staff, large beer garden. A bit awkward for wheelchair users because of steps, but staff will help if asked. Often crowded on Sundays, so booking is advised. Car park is on opposite side of road, so you need to be careful when crossing.

Warm, friendly inviting pub. Open fires, welcoming and informative staff. Good clean real ale and good friendly company, staff and locals alike. Sports, juke box, pool and a 'free house' range of Alcohol, satisfied......See you again. 👍👍🍺🍺

We stumbled across this place on a short visit to Shaftesbury. Such an amazing building and interior, but by far the best bits are the staff and the food. Absolutely delicious food and incredibly friendly and helpful staff. It was quite quiet during our visit which can have an impact on the atmosphere - depending on what you're after - but I'd definitely recommend a visit!

A group of us went here for a meal to celebrate a birthday. I messaged beforehand to check they were able to provide a vegan alternative. They replied quickly with a list of different items they could adapt to be vegan. I opted for the Calzone as I haven't had the chance to have one since going vegan. It was absolutely delicious! The man (who I presume owns the place) was incredibly helpful and attentive. I fully recommend eating here! I'm looking forward to returning.

Wow had a fabulous meal and dessert last night 05/03/24 here. Look at the pics and decide yourself. Wonderful service too. Love and thank you.

Lovely old chapel and the decor was fantastic, ordered onion rings to start and despite the price of £5.90 they were frozen, albeit well cooked and crispy. The Hawaiian pizza was basic and uniform, I was expecting a more hand tossed rustic base but the ingredients were good quality. The chips again were basic frozen fries and quite costly at £5.90. I wasn’t introduced to the specials board which disappointed me too. I’m glad I went to try the place but wouldn’t return.

Popular breakfast spot. Unfortunately the service is haphazard and range of options extremely limited. My friend ordered a bacon and sausage roll and was served a bacon and egg roll. He sent it back and was then served a sausage and egg roll. In frustration he ate it because we were short of time.

My first visit since Guy Ritchie took the Airfield over. The restaurant area has been enlarged and has full glazing from end to end giving panoramic views towards Shaftsbury. The interior is not cramped in any way although it was busy. One has good viewing of aircraft taking off and landing. Outside are plenty of picnic tables so if the weather is good you can sit outside if you want. I had lunch and it was really good. Pulled smoked beef in a brioche bun. Apparently there are only 3 of these 'smokers' in Europe, and they're worth every penny. Not a good menu if you're vegan or veggy. I tried one of Guy's own beers and it was really good. We were in a large party who arrived at different times so I can't say too much about service times, but I had no complaints. The girl who looked after our tables was good humoured, patient and helpful. I shall definitely go back.

I went with a large group who arrived at varying times so service was difficult to judge. However, the young lady who took our orders was charming, good humoured and helpful. Food was excellent, only choice for veggie or vegan was jackfruit. The meat, pork or beef was excellent, as was the Ritchie beer,but as that remains a personal choice you'll have to try it to see. Yes I will go again.

We didn't eat today so can't rate the food. Richie Beer excellent. The coffee from the outside cabin, pretty awful, we poured ours away. McDonalds coffee better... hopefully the coffee in the main restaurant was properly prepared and significantly better. Great day for Spitfire action.

We had a wonderful meal here last night! The pie night was a hit, gluten free Brie and cranberry was one of the best pieces of food I’ve tasted! Really cosy atmosphere and all round great pub! The steak and Guinness was also great! Lovely and friendly staff. Clearly marked gluten free food so felt safe to eat here.

Had lunch here whilst visiting the famous Gold Hill. Had a lovely lunch with large portions. The condiments were in huge portions too although we didn't partake. The ploughman's was especially large and extremely good value. Apparently the beer selection was good too. I stuck to cider which was standard keg stuff.

Met friends here for lunch, was a bit apprehensive as we had read some mixed reviews, turned out they were wrong. The food was lovely, the lady running the bar and food service was very pleasant and it was an altogether enjoyable experience. We will be coming back again. Thank you

We stayed at the Grove Arms for two nights in June of 2024 and have nothing but good things to say about the place. Management was friendly, and bent over backwards to make our stay amazing. Including letting us stash our luggage there well after checkout. Our room was clean, comfortable, and decorated with a canine theme. The food was great, and the breakfast was better than we could have hoped. The dinner menu consists of classic English pub fare, including fish and chips and steak and ale pie. The pub is bright and inviting, and the locals that hang out there made our stay fantastic. If you want information about local walking paths, Phil is your man. His directions got us all the way to Shaftesbury and Gold Hill and back on foot without incident. Thanks to Daren, Andy, Simon and the rest of the local crew for making our time in Ludwell so memorable. We cannot recommend the Grove Arms strongly enough.

We ate here for my wife’s birthday and had a fantastic meal, which included flowers and candles! Heather and Dan are amazing hosts and the food is always top class. With children the early bird menu is ideal and the pub has a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Thursday’s steak night is always good too.

Fantastic place to stay x really welcoming and clean x all staff were super friendly and looked after us so well X the new lass behind the bar x Lisa I think she's called X made us laugh so much and Nigel the chef fed us really well X almost too well 😄😄😄😄 but thankyou to you all for making our stay really lovely ❤️❤️❤️

This is one of the better best western hotels I have stayed in. The staff are friendly and helpful. The food is good, the homemade shepherd's pie or beef stew with dumplings is fantastic, as good as I have had. Just a bit let down with what I assume are frozen veg and chips. Some rooms are ok but some are well in need of modernising. Shower didn't work above bath. Car park is safe. Location is good about 12 min walk to center or supermarket. Good pub across the road.

Lovely carvery. Fresh vegetables and gorgeous cauliflower cheese. Lovely friendly staff. Would certainly recommend.