East End Arms

I was staying in the New Forest, as a Dire Straits fan (John Isley from Dire Straits owns the pub), I thought I would visit. It would have been nice to seen more Dire Straits memorabilia in the pub, though appreciate, it’s not set up, as that type of pub! It’s a very quaint pub, which thrives on it’s food. I didn’t eat there, though I looked at the menu, I felt the prices were high for pub food, but the pub serves, ales and regular lager. I was there during lunchtime and it got fairly busy, if you just want drink, I found it could be a chore trying to get served at the bar, whilst people ordered food at the bar, other than that an ok visit.

This pub you need to know about, otherwise, you wouldn't know it was there. This pub is owned by the Dire Straits bass player, John Illsley. Unfortunately, there is no hot food at present at this pub, as the pub does not have a current chef. So check first if you are planning to eat there. Also, the car park is tiny so parking on the front road is necessary, if you can find a spot. Be advised that the road is quite narrow.

Popped in for dinner with friends. Food was excellent but atmosphere and service poor. There seemed to be a large party / function on and this clearly distracted the front of house and her demeanor seemed to spread to her team. Hopefully just a bad day because the food (even though we were told they had problems in the kitchen as only one chef available) was some of the best we'd had for sometime.

I was looking for a nice place to stay in the New Forest, close to Beaulieu and Exbury. I found the East End Arms on Google maps which had good reviews so booked direct on their website for 3 nights. Its a few miles outside Lymington but easy to find. There is a car park for 8 cars at the side of the building and another 8 in front in a lay by. We were shown to our room by a nice efficient lady. It was room no 2 which is at the front right as you look at the pub. Its a light bright and spacious room with views over farmland. It has its own bath/shower room with washbasin and loo. Admiring the view, You get the odd new forest Donkey wandering past! There was a good quality tv installed and a kettle with choice of several varieties of tea coffee and milk. The restaurant is a nice size but only serves lunch and dinner from Wednesday to Sunday. Breakfast was really good with Yoghurt, fruit, cereal and the full english available. Most of the cooked breakfast is sourced locally. Apparently it is owned by John Illsey, one of the founding members and Bass guitarist of Dire Straits. The restaurant is adorned with pictures of other music and film stars of the era. Unfortunately he did not make an appearance whilst we were there. We can thoroughly recommend the East End Arms and really enjoyed our stay.

Consistently, fabulous. The food is always off the scale, delightful staff, lovely ales. They deserve every ounce of success. We arrived on a Saturday afternoon, 3 minutes prior to the kitchen closing and without a booking. They could not have been more welcoming and accommodating. We will be back! X