The dining options are limited in the Beaulieu area.  There’s the Master Builder’s pub and then in Beaulieu village there’s Monty’s and The Terrace at the Montagu Arms.  The latter is their michelin starred restaurant.

We’ve eaten at both the Master Builder and Monty’s this year.  Monty’s was an excellent experience.

Midsummer’s eve Beaulieu

Monty’s
Some friends of ours met us at Beaulieu on mid-Summer’s day to help celebrate the longest day. This meant we were chauffeured to Monty’s rather than walking.  We’d originally wanted to dine at The Terrace but it was fully booked for a private party.  My memory is a little hazy on what we ate and drank but I do remember that we were delighted with our experience at Monty’s.  The atmosphere was welcoming and not too formal.  We sat around oak tables that were laid with fine cutlery and glasses.  The menu was brief but with a good balance of options so even our vegetarian friend was catered for.  The wine list was excellent.   We were back on the boat to watch the sun go down on a beautiful mid-summer’s day and plans to repeat the trip soon.

Master Builders 

We had an impromptu stop in Beaulieu later in the Summer  We’d planned to spend the night on the River Hamble because we’d thought that fixing the hydraulic system would take most of the day.  In the end the work took an hour so we had the afternoon free.  We set off in strengthening Westerly for Beaulieu.  When we moored we saw some dark clouds on the horizon but decided to walk over to the Master Builder for a quick drink before supper.  We arrived just as the first drops of rain started to fall.  So a quick drink turned into a longer stay with pub food included.

The Master Builder’s food has varied over the years and the service has been known to be variable with stories of long waits especially when it’s busy.  They have a dining room as well as the pub.  We choose to stay in the pub and had burger and fish and chips.  Both were good and arrived quickly.  We even bumped into some boating friends who keep their boat on the Beaulieu river and had been out taking their dog for a walk.  Sadly they got soaking wet so decided to try to dry out by having a drink with us.

Would we go back?  Yes of course, we’d think carefully about whether we’d eat at the pub based on current word of mouth as the food and service have been so variable over the years.