Prices from:
£85 per night
Inn Places PerkA glass of Prosecco on arrival and a room upgrade if available
The Inn at Cranborne is the central focus of this pretty Dorset village with links to Thomas Hardy, who was once a frequent visitor to the pub. It even featured in Tess of the d’Urberville, where it is called the Fleur de Luce (it used to be the Fleur de Lys in real life). Despite its wonderful history, this characterful hostelry had been condemned when Aussie Jane Gould came visiting…looking for a pub to run in the UK and a lifelong ambition to fulfill. She’s brought the place back to life and created something that surely enriches the lives of the locals and brings in visitors to the area. The main bar has low ceilings, open beams and a wood-burning stove (in front of which you’ll likely find Mikey, the Jack Russell, on chilly winter days). The tongue-and-groove bench seating, woollen throws and cushions in natural shades of grey and green, scrubbed wood tables and kitchen chairs give it an engaging shaker-style appearance, and there are echoes of Jane’s Australian heritage shining through. There’s a long wooden trestle table at the far end of the bar designed for sharing. The village bar is smaller, with more tongue-and-groove and another wood burner (surrounded by piles of logs), plus a discrete TV screen for viewing rugby and Wimbledon throughout the year. With the kitchen sourcing food from a 30-mile radius, and contemporary accommodation, the Inn at Cranborne is a classic British pub with a sprinkle of Aussie charm.
Children are very welcome and those under 12 can stay in the larger rooms for an additional £8. There’s also a kids’ menu offering the inn’s beef burger with skinny chips, sausage with mash or chips, or pasta with cheese or tomato sauces.
Jane’s dog, Mikey, loves to meet visiting canines, and there are no access restrictions as long as they remain on the lead and are ‘well spoken’. Just ask if you’d like a water bowl, and there are dog treats on the bar. There are two bedrooms in which they can be accommodated at an extra charge of £15, with a breakfast of bacon and sausage included!
There is a grassy area out back, plus a few tables on a terrace, but the garden remains a work in progress, with big plans afoot. Jane intends sprucing it up with pots and adding a boules pitch and pizza oven.
The inn is very much a part of village life, with Six Nations rugby and Wimbledon tennis on the telly in the bar, live music every Friday night, and special evenings such as a Burns night supper. The private dining room – the Lamp Room – can be used for village and charity meetings at no cost. There’s a three-day micro-brewery festival in June, and a Christmas festival with carols.
What’s the Damage?
9 doubles/twins – £85-£140
What Else?
Gongs
AA 4 Star Inn
There are nine attractive first-floor bedrooms, with the mix of doubles and twins offering views out onto the quiet village. There’s a hint of New England neutrality and style to the spaces, with crisp white linen, scatter cushions and wonderful Welsh milled wool blankets in shades of stone, dove grey and cream. Tea and cafetière coffee comes with fresh milk. Each room is named after somewhere in the local area, and there’s a framed history describing ‘nice thing to know about your room’. And each room has a canine ‘friend’ – a dog doorstep, with a different breed in each one. The high standard of finish is maintained in the bathrooms in the shape of roll-top baths (in two rooms), lights that come on automatically and lots of shiny chrome. The sense of luxury is added to by Bramley toiletries (in large bottles) and white fluffy towels.
Bramley bathroom products; goose down duvets with 9 tog and/or 4½ tog options; Welsh wool blankets; fresh milk.
Free Wi-Fi; Sony radio alarm with iPod docking; Flatscreen TV; DVD player.
Danish pastries and croissants; a selection of Matthew Algie teas and coffees; naturally smoked haddock and poached free range eggs; poached, fried or scrambled eggs on toast; full English – smoked bacon, sausage, fried bread, field mushrooms, tomato and black pudding and eggs (fried, poached or scrambled); homemade baked beans on toast; not forgetting the inn’s Doggie Breakfast….a slice of bacon and a sausage.
What’s the Damage?
9 doubles/twins – £85-£140
What Else?
Gongs
AA 4 Star Inn
When Jane took over the Inn, as someone new to the industry, she decided to give her chef the space to be creative, which turned out to be an exceedingly good idea. Chef Matt Clemence has focused the menu around ingredients sourced within a 30-mile radius of the pub, which luckily includes the pub’s own kitchen garden down the road, and a host of lovely things from the green and pleasant counties of Dorset, Wiltshire and Hampshire (check out the map on the back of the menu), not to mention the South Coast. But Matt and his team have sensibly kept things relatively simple, delivering a menu that works in the pub setting and offers the sort of comforting, rustic food people want to eat. You can eat anywhere you like – inglenook bar, village bar or snug – and you’ll find local estate pheasant with quince jelly, pumpkin, cavolo nero and chestnuts, alongside classic pubby options such as haddock and chips on the menu. Everything is done well, including lunchtime open sandwiches (ham knuckle with vegetable piccalilli, say, or smoked salmon and cream cheese), and, when it comes to pudding, make sure you leave room for dark chocolate mousse with orange curd, torn poppy seed sponge, honeycomb and chocolate oil.
Potted treacle-cured salmon and brown shrimps, pickled cucumber, wasabi mayonnaise
West Country smoked pressed ham hock, triple-cooked chips, Fluffet Farm eggs
Beef burger, toasted sesame and onion seed bun, shoestring chips, Dorset Blue Vinny
Sticky shin of beef, heritage carrot, parmesan hash and treacle jus
Vanilla set cream, pistachio cake and rhubarb sorbet
Roast sirloin of Red Devon beef with red wine sauce; roast pork with apple sauce
Hailing from Australia, Jane loves a BBQ, and there’s usually one on the go when there’s an event on such as the summer micro-brewery festival.
Lunch: 12 noon – 2pm (2.30pm Saturday & Sunday)
Dinner: 6pm – 9pm (9.30pm Friday & Saturday)
Meat – P. Keating Butchers, Wimborne (www.pkeatingbutchers.co.uk) / Walter Rose & Son, Devizes (www.walterroseandson.co.uk)
Smoked fish/meats/poultry – Fjordling Smokehouse, Salisbury (www.fjordling.co.uk)
Fish – Coopers of Andover, Andover (www.cooperfoods.co.uk)
Milk – Maple Farm, Martin, Dorset
Eggs – Fluffet Farm, Sixpenny Handley, Dorset
Cheese – Cranborne Manor Cheeses, Cranborne (www.cranborne.co.uk)
Ice creams & sorbets – Buttercup & Daisy, Wardour (www.buttercupanddaisy.org)
Rapeseed oil – Cranborne Chase Oils, Cranborne
Fruit & Veg – Country Fare in Christchurch & Higher Holwell Cottage Kitchen Garden, Cranborne (Jane’s own garden)
Dorset’s own Badger Ales (Hall & Woodhouse) provide the beers – cask and bottled – including The Fleur, which is named after the pub’s original name, and seasonal choices such as Ruby Rustler in winter. When it comes to wine, the list includes a good selection by the glass and there are some interesting options from little-known smaller producers. Jane has gathered together a collection of 17 or so gins, including one produced in Melbourne (her home town), which is made by a women-only team. If you visit in December, look out for the Cranborne Cracker, a spicy perry number made by the chef.
Pork crackling and spicy nuts made by the kitchen
House-baked pitta bread, hummus and olives
House-baked breads, marinated olives, Cranborne Chase rapeseed oil, balsamic
Devilled whitebait, elephant garlic and garden herb mayo
Oyster beignets, Maldon sea salt, pickled cucumber, beetroot and mayo
House-baked beans with jerk sausage on toast with a Fluffet Farm fried egg
Jar of jelly beans on the bar
10.30am-10pm Monday; 10.30am-11pm Tuesday to Friday; 8.30am-11pm Saturday; 8.30am-10pm Sunday
What’s the Damage?
9 doubles/twins – £85-£140
What Else?
Gongs
AA 4 Star Inn
Take it back home
Tour the brewery that brewed your favourite pint, visit the shop on the farm that reared your delicious Sunday roast beef, and seek out the roadside stalls selling the local crab and samphire on the inn’s menu, the Food Trail features the local artisan producers and suppliers where you can buy to enjoy at home.
Change of scenery
Looking for a pub for lunch following a country walk, a different venue for dinner, or a good café for coffee, light lunch or afternoon tea, then the best in the area are listed below. If you find a new and exciting eatery in the area that’s worthy of a mention on the Food Trail, then please to do let us know – .
Inn Location - The Inn at Cranborne
The cafe is the hub of Cranborne Garden Centre, a small private garden centre set in the pretty walled gardens of Cranborne House and specialising in old fashioned roses. The cafe is the perfect place to relax with a cappuccino, cake or other fresh homemade goodies. It is renowned for stocking freshly baked bread and tempting treats from local bakers 'Let Them Eat' and draws devotees from afar!
Cranborne Stores has revived the tradition of the village shop. Formerly a bakery, the shop now provides an extensive selection of fresh and local produce including meat and seasonal game. The delicatessen counter offers a wide selection of English cheeses, home-baked pies, cold meats and pastries - perfect for anyone setting off with a picnic.
Hall & Woodhouse is one of the last remaining family brewers - producing and serving award-winning Badger ales across Southern England for over 230 years. The Brewery’s tours are unique and you’ll not only be taken back to the brewery’s creation in 1777, but soak up the atmosphere of a working brewery, by tasting the malt, smelling the hops and watching your favorite pint of Badger being crafted!
La Fosse is a relaxing place to enjoy good food and quality wine. The menu features traditional British dishes with an international twist, reflecting Chef Mark's passion for fresh, local, seasonal food, as well as his love of Dorset. Mark is also a fan of local cheese and two years running won the 'Dorset Best Cheeseboard' award at the Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival!
On a picturesque farm in Sixpenny Handley, Sixpenny Brewery produces a range of quality cask ales using only the finest ingredients, including traditionally floor malted Maris Otter Barley. The 'Sixpenny Tap' is their Good Beer Guide listed shop and bar where you can try and buy range of ales onsite - to drink in or takeaway!
At The Dorset Larder 80% of their produce is Dorset born, Dorset bred and Dorset butchered! The beef, lamb and pork is high quality and locally sourced from Blackmore Vale.Local cheeses are a strong focus in the deli and the array of sausages and burgers perfect for summer barbeques. The Larder's new sister company 'The Dorset Game Larder' is for seasonal game lovers.
Inn Activities
Shopping
Places of interest - Filter results using pins Inn Location - The Inn at Cranborne
Aerosaurus Balloons offer spectacular flights over south-west England’s stunning landscape. Depart from Sherborne and nearby North Wootton at sunrise or sunset.
Try a hack through the New Forest, one of the loveliest regions in the south of England. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced rider, the Burley Manor stables will ensure you have a great day in the saddle.
The Larmer Tree Gardens is the delightful setting for an assortment of courses with popular themes. Expect perhaps an afternoon tea cookery course or perhaps a picnic basket cookery course. Alternatively, try your hand at making bread or preparing canapes or nibbles.
Close to Salisbury railway station, Fisherton comprises a crafts and gift shop in a restored Victorian grain mill. There’s a fascinating collection of art and exhibits and the chanced to relax over coffee or a light lunch.
Hand-painted furniture, stylish home accessories, vintage finds, home fragrances, handcrafted greeting cards and baby and nursery gifts are just some of the items on sale at Butler Tray in Fordingbridge on the edge of the New Forest.
A wide range of beauty and salon treatments can be found at Vita Skin Spa in the heart of Salisbury. It's just the place for a full body massage, a facial or a pedicure.
A short drive from Salisbury, in a pleasant riverside setting, this courtyard development in the village of Wilton is the perfect spot for a bit of out-of-town shopping, with restaurants and an antique centre included.
Wimborne has the largest undercover market in the south of England offering a range of collectables, antiques, designer jewellery and plenty of fresh local produce.
Set in five acres, this Queen Anne manor house near Blandford Forum was designed by Thomas Archer in 1710. Inside, there’s an elegant oak entrance hall with its two sweeping flights of stairs meeting at a gallery at the top. Stroll in the gardens and take a peek at the nearby church with its early-16th-century tower.
A family-friendly visitor attraction at Wimborne, offering wagon, trailer and tractor rides, straw slides, a picnic area, animal feeding and horse and pony grooming - among other features.
Close to the Inn at Cranborne, Edmondsham House is a fine mix of Tudor and Georgian architecture, with well-established trees, sweeping lawns and a walled garden that's been in use for more than a century. All produce is grown to organic standards. Note: opening times for the house are limited.
Magnificent Kingston Lacy is described by the National Trust as an Italian palace in the heart of Dorset. Inside you'll find paintings by Rubens, Titian and Tintoretto and the largest private collection of Egyptian artefacts in the UK.
Near Tollard Royal on glorious Cranborne Chase, these gardens offer a breathtaking assortment of horticultural riches. In addition to camellias, rhododendrons and a striking hydrangea collection, there are ornate buildings, peacocks and macaws.
The Dorset town's most famous landmark is cobbled Gold Hill, still fondly remembered in director Ridley Scott's famous Hovis television commercial. In a traditional sandstone cottage at the top of Gold Hill you'll find a fascinating museum of local history.
www.visit-dorset.com
www.thenewforest.co.uk
The Wessex region has many miles of great walking. Not far from the inn lies Cranborne Chase, renowned for its stunning views, grand high points and secluded valleys; the area was once a royal forest. Another royal hunting ground is the New Forest, which has its western boundary a short distance from the inn. It’s a great place for gentle walks with ample tree cover.
www.visit-dorset.com
www.thenewforest.co.uk
Dorset offers a huge choice or cycle routes to suit your schedule and fitness. Cranborne Chase is the most obvious destination in terms of scenery but the nearby New Forest is also well worth exploring by bike. With over 100 miles of off-road cycle routes, this is the perfect setting in which to improve your fitness and stamina.
www.visit-dorset.com
Among the highlights are the Christchurch Food and Wine Festival, the Purbeck Literary Festival and, of course, the Great Dorset Steam Fair. There’s also the renowned Salisbury International Arts Festival and the popular Larmer Tree Festival, a 5-day music and arts event that has been running for 25 years.
By Road: From the A31 (M27), take the B3078 north at Wimborne Minster to Cranborne. From the A303 (M3), take the A338 to Salisbury, then A354/B3081 south to Cranborne. The Pub is close to the centre of the village.
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