The Ship Inn — Restaurant in England

A Comedy of Errors, or Just Plain Awful?

Stepping into this pub felt less like entering a warm, welcoming local and more like stumbling into an amateur improv night gone horribly wrong. The man behind the bar, presumably the manager (50ish, and definitely living his best "I’m the boss, deal with it" life), greeted us with the charisma of a wet mop. By "greeted," I mean he didn’t. No smile, no welcome, just a frosty silence. Naturally, I asked if they were open – the emptiness of the place should have been a clue (a glaring red flag). His reply? "No," however, his younger, visibly friendlier colleague gave a confirming nod. Hope glimmered.

Undeterred, I ordered drinks. Cue the manager’s attempt at humour: "I told you we’re closed." Confused, I pointed out his colleague had nodded. "He’s got a twitch," he deadpanned. Ah, the cutting-edge wit of Basil Fawlty.

If that wasn’t enough, this walking HR incident proceeded to harass his staff, demanding someone refill the dog water bowls. When I helpfully pointed out the bowls were already full and our dogs were fine, he quipped, "They’re filled with vodka." That’s when the wheels fell off entirely, as he turned to publicly ridicule his poor colleague in a manner that was neither funny nor appropriate.

This man is not a character – he’s a caricature of everything wrong with bad hospitality. Rude, bullying, and clearly under the impression that customer service is optional. Sure, it’s tough to find staff these days, but frankly, a chimpanzee with a crash course in politeness could do a better job. Avoid this place unless you enjoy being insulted and witnessing a masterclass in how not...

Very welcoming and pleasant service.

Our very first visit to Swanage, during a very nice and sunny day, full of visitors. Despite it being lunch time, we asked if it would be acceptable for us just to have drinks. Bar tender politely said, of course, no problem. The Inn was very busy both outside and inside, with people of all ages having their lunch. We opted for a little table and two stools, we collected our drinks. I asked a young man, whom I now know to be Alfie, asked him where the toilet were, he showed me the way, in such a nice way that I thought he had experience of customer service of a person a lot more mature. I observed Alfie clearing tables and cleaning under them, was offered to us by the staff, with the same familiarity as his customer service. I couldn't help but comment on this young man's attitude, I think he'd go a long way. The clientele appeared very satisfied with what they were offered, there was a general buzz of satisfaction about the place. I had hoped to sample a crab sandwich which was about £9, what put me off was that there was a charge for chips by the side of it. I definitely would have had the sandwich had it been offered with some chips on the side, but I opted not to because of it. All in all, I definitely would go back to the Ship Inn and fully recommend it. A pleasure to...

Decent food, no complaints really. Service was OK but even when it's cold outside they would open the doors and when I asked them to close it they responded by saying the ceiling would end up dripping through condensation so had to leave it open - freezing the paying customers.

In regards to the price, we visited this place twice. Once before Carnival Week (which starts on the last weekend of July each year) and the other time in Carnival Week. On the 2nd visit (in Carnival Week) we noticed that the menu was slightly different in layout from our 1st visit, but this wouldn't be obvious to a general observer as it was ever so slightly changed. But just like everything else (hospitality, restaurants (Romeos Piri Piri) etc.) in Swanage, they are pricing themselves out as all the prices for the dishes were more expensive, and portion sizes smaller. (The photo of the menu is from the 1st visit, if you go there in Carnival Week compare and contrast). It looks like this has now got to a point when people are choosing with their feet and are not coming in as there were plenty of empty tables behind us (see photo) at 7:30pm in the middle of Carnival Week. Not everyone has plenty of disposable income to pay the 'Swanage Carnival Week tax'.

Would go again but definitely not in...