Eating Out

Zen Dog doesn’t have any cooking facilities – just plastic plates, plastic glasses, a microwave, coffee machine and a kettle.

But who wants to cook on holiday particularly when Lymington Yacht Haven is close to lots of good places to eat and drink.

There are lots of places to get a good breakfast. The Haven Restaurant (details below) is great. If you follow the sea wall path to Lymington Town Quay, there’s Coffee & Drift – an excellent Takeaway. Walk up the cobbles to the High Street. 777 Motorcycle Cafe is just on the right in Gosport St – motorcycle theme but good food and coffee. Stanwell House Hotel does a variety of good value breakfast options in lovely surroundings. The Larder in Earley Court (opposite Stanwell House Hotel) is excellent – nice outside space. The Tinkers Granddaughter is a vegan cafe halfway up the High Street on the left. Maison Cafe in Angel Courtyard (through the arch next to Angel & Blue Pig pub) is good. Avoid The Huddle (unless you are a teenager)

There are lots of good places for lunches, evening meals and drinks.

The Haven Restaurant and Bar upstairs in the main marina building is usually good for food and drinks. It is one of the few places in Lymington with a sea view. There’s a choice of inside formal tables or the outside deck area shown below. They offer a 10% discount for berthholders if you show them and let them scan the key fob attached to the boat’s keys

Their breakfasts are excellent too.

It can get very busy so you need to book – even for breakfast and even for the terrace. Their website allows online booking. Tel: 01590 679971

The Mayflower Pub is a few hundred yards to the right as you leave the marina entrance. Very nice inside and gets good TripAdvisor food reviews. We’d advise sticking to pub grub – the fancy stuff doesn’t always impress. There’s a nice garden at the back with a kids play area. Worth a try. Tel: 01590 672160

The Fisherman’s Rest pub is 10 minutes walk left as you leave the marina. Good food, small garden space. Tel: 01590 670754.

We’ve eaten at The Ship Inn on the quay a few times – the food is just OK – nothing special but a pleasant bustling atmosphere and outside space overlooking the boats. We wouldn’t rush back.

The Kings Head at the top of the steps up from the Quay is very pleasant – bustling, traditional style, log fires, enormous portions of reasonable food. Good for Sunday lunches.

There’s Prezzo in the High Street for a fairly consistent meal but you’ll get much better pasta and pizza at the excellent Eat Pizza in Gosport Street. 

There’s Brisa Tapas in the High Street – fairly newly opened. We’ve had a couple of good evenings there.

The best Indian restaurant is the very excellent Rivaaz in St Thomas Street

Stanwell House Hotel has recently had a very cool multi-million pound makeover. It is a great place – good for breakfast, coffee, lunch, supper, cocktails etc. There’s a very relaxed bar, a casual dining conservatory, a beautiful sunny garden with outside bar and a smart formal restaurant. We’ve had great meals and great evenings here. If this long list is confusing you, just book a table at Stanwell House (conservatory, restaurant, bar or garden) – it is a safe bet for a good night out.

If you are happy to drive or cycle we’d recommend like The Gun Inn at Keyhaven – that’s about 4 miles along the sea wall to the West. Great food cooked on a huge grill. A mile further on is the excellent Lighthouse Restaurant and Bar on Milford sea front.

Fancier more expensive options in Lymington include the famous and probably fully booked Elderflower, the newly opened High Street Kitchen both of which have left us a bit underwhelmed. We prefer to go to Stanwell House.

If you are prepared to drive or take a taxi, there’s the wonderful Pig Hotel at Brockenhurst, Michelin Star Verveine Fish in Milford on Sea and James Martin’s excellent Kitchen Garden at Chewton Glen

Probably best to look at Trip Advisor for other ideas – Click Here for their top Lymington restaurants