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Detail Pages
The Kings Arms Hotel, Dorchester
Dorchester
DT1 1HF
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 4½ of 10) see review guidelines
E TA left this review about The Kings Arms Hotel
Primarily an hotel, it lacks the ambience and atmosphere one would expect in a high street pub, and certainly didn’t feel like a venue of choice. The young staff were over-familiar and cocky, while the majority of customers were over-entitled, under-intelligent tourists. There were pastries and cakes on the bar to supplement the main menu, which was over-priced. The sole real ale on was Piddle Dorset Rogue, in poor condition, and certainly not worthy of a GBG entry. Keg offerings were Lucky Saint, Keller Pils, Kicking Goat, Guinness, Thatcher’s, Freedom Lager and Helles and Wanna Go To The Sun. There are much better bars in the immediate vicinity.
On 30th May 2023
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3289 recommendations about 3254 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about The Kings Arms Hotel
One of the odder Good Beer Guide entries I have visited. 1 real ale on and 8 cocktails on the menu, tells all you need to know.
An impressive, tastefully decorated hotel, with a bar on the RHS. Won Camra awards for sympathetic refurbishment, according to the app. Looked like a fairly standard hotel bar to be, albeit with two log fires on.
The single ale that was on was a Piddle Brewery Dorset Rogue. A decent session bitter, never found before.
On 17th April 2023
- rating: 5
[User has posted 1345 recommendations about 1331 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Blue Scrumpy left this review about The Kings Arms Hotel
Hotel, bar and restaurant on Dorchester's High Street. There is a car park to the rear. It stipulates that it is for residents, but we parked there as drinkers nevertheless.
The public bar is to the left-hand side if you enter from the street. Despite being in the latest Good Beer Guide, there was just the one real ale - Otter Amber. Dorchester only has 3 entries into the Guide, but I could name at least 8 Dorchester pubs better than this one.
The bar and hotel areas are certainly quite impressive and service was both professional and friendly. I know that I've tried to visit here on a previous visit to the town, but had found it under refurbishment. It wasn't really worth the wait to visit.
On 6th March 2023
- rating: 4
[User has posted 2493 recommendations about 2492 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Soup Dragon left this review about The Kings Arms Hotel
This is an impressive early Georgian coaching inn - now a hotel, in cream render, with a nice bow window and columned entrance. The bar is in the GBG 2010.
The interior of the bar room is one long room that is split between dining at one end and more of a bar/lounge at the other. The decor is white and cream wood panel, with ceiling beams in the bar end. The dining area is more restaurant looking, with a fireplace and less of the Victoriana that gives the top end some character - general prints, fish in glass cases, jars and other some ephemera. There was no TV or music and indeed, there was no clientele, so i wandered around looking at the fun stuff in the bar area all alone. The service was fine.
Beer; tap stuff with a decent Otter Bitter and St Austell Tribute on handpull.
I was led to believe, by the GBG there would be a bigger choice of beer, there wasn't. The lack of atmosphere and the fact that this was a dining room shunted onto a fun bar area (a little fakey looking, but non the less, fun) left me wondering why it is in the GBG - but when you think that a pile of Ember Inns make it - i gave up thinking and finished my beer and left.
On 12th December 2010
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3067 recommendations about 3062 pubs]