Dinner at The Huntsman of Brockenhurst, New Forest

Earlier this week, I visited The Huntsman of Brockenhurst for dinner. It was my first time visiting the pub (and Brockenhurst for that matter!) and it was a really lovely evening. I’m looking forward to returning in the summer!

I was kindly invited along to taste their new Spring menu – which you can see here. Everything was so good. Let me show you!

First up – the decor. Everywhere you look is a beautifully decorated part of the restaurant. Copper details, vintage light bulbs and wooden clad walls all create a wonderfully cosy atmosphere.

The Huntsman have a pretty extensive cocktail menu, but we ended up choosing the cocktail of the week – The Laverstoke. Ginger Beer is one of my favourite drinks, so adding gin into the mix is a yes from me!

The menu is full of delicious sounding choices, so it took us a while to choose our starters, let along our mains! The first starter we opted for was fresh, light and colourful. Marinated buffalo mozzarella, asparagus, peas, broad beans, mint, lemon and olive oil dressing – the perfect combination for Spring.

The second starter we chose was the ham & mustard scotch egg, which was really, really delicious! Warm and complete with a runny yolk, I’d highly recommend ordering this one.

Bex (my lovely companion for the evening) chose ale-battered fish and chips for her main, which looked very tasty – complete with mushy peas and homemade tartare sauce. A British classic and always a winner!

I chose the pan-fried hake, with tomato & red pepper salsa and buttered crushed new potatoes. It was really, really delicious and a perfectly sized portion – not too big and not too small.

We couldn’t resist ordering a couple of sides – creamed spinach and sweet potato fries. Both were tasty and I wouldn’t hesitate to order either again.

The Huntsman houses a rather cool secret – an old-fashioned skittles lane. As soon as we found out about this, we couldn’t resist playing a few games!

The skittles lane is in a pub area which is separate from the main restaurant – and has the same amazing decor throughout. Just have a look!

After several games, we had a winner – Bex took the match, and we had an absolutely brilliant time! The Huntsman would be the perfect place to spend a leisurely summer afternoon – with drinks in their large garden and a few games of skittles. I can’t think of anything better!

On to dessert – although we were very full by this point! I chose the buttermilk pannacotta, with freeze dried raspberries and raspberry sorbet. The sorbet was the best I’ve ever tasted, tart and refreshing, and the pannacotta was light and creamy. All in all, a really lovely dessert and one I’d have again in a heartbeat!

Bex chose the giant profiterole, filled with salted caramel and topped with honeycomb and chocolate sauce – as per our waiter’s recommendation. The salted caramel filling was surprisingly light and not too sweet.

We had a wonderful evening at The Huntsman of Brockenhurst, and I’m really looking forward to visiting again in the summer!

I’d like to say a huge thank you to the lovely staff at The Huntsman – the staff were so friendly and attentive, and our food was all exceptional.

*I was kindly invited to The Huntsman to experience their new spring menu, but all views are my own*