The King Charles, Poole

A traditional and good sized pub just off The Quay, it consists of a single bar in the main part of the pub with a function room up a few stairs to the left. This had an attractive vaulted ceiling and was hosting a RNLI benefit gig on the evening we visited. Despite being one open room, it’s divided in to a few different areas by virtue of the décor. At the front to the left is a small snug reminiscent of a hotel drawing room with a few beams on the ceiling and opposite this was an old grandfather clock. The walls were white washed stone and these had been covered on the lower half with dark wood panelling and there was also some exposed brickwork including an old pillar. At the rear this gave way to red paintwork. A plasma screen was also at the rear showing a darts match and there was also a darts board and some type of miniature snooker table (I’m sure there’s a proper name for it, all the pockets were at one end). Food wise, the menu looked to be a traditional “pub grub” affair with options such as Scampi & Chips, Ham Egg & Chips, Burger, Sausage & Mash, Chilli Con Carne, etc. Most of these were priced somewhere around the £7 mark, although we didn’t sample anything so I can’t comment on the quality. Drinks on tap were Doom Bar and Bombardier whilst the ciders were Strongbow and Thatcher’s Gold.