What a disappointment of a Sunday lunch at the Bankes Arms. The building is stunning as is whole of Corfe Castle, but forget ordering any food. Shown to a table with a very uninterested young lady, who pointed to a box with clip board menus. Bar area looked a mess, piled up glasses with no room to move. Staff chatting rather than clearing up. It's the first view for anyone entering the place! We had to ask to order drinks, placed our order for 2 roast lamb and 2 beef....... then we sat and waited. Oh and we waited. And waited for over 40 mins before 'we' had to ask can we have a drink & how is food order going. Food was poorly presented piled high topped with a yorkshire pudding. Meat on top of red cabbage & some other unrecognisable shredded vegetable. A carrot ? or suede 'baby food' puree spread across the plate. The roast potatoes were dreadful, clearly re heated in a deep fat fryer. The carrot & the parsnip were the highlight of the plate. The Yorkshire pudding was rubbery, cold if not stale. Meat was poor. Had the look for pre packed sliced meat. The cauliflower was lovely & cheesy. It was not busy, just seemed a bit chaotic and unorganised. The staff need to be given a bit of direction! The only thing we didnt need to sit waiting for was the bill, which arrived promptly after asking for it. I would suggest a calculator for behind the bar. Maybe a quick look before at the food hygiene certificate rating would have helped us. Such a shame 😪 in a prime location within this historic village with a bit of TLC, organisation, and a good Chef this could be a Star Attraction in this beautiful area. Come on 'Bankes Arms Hotel' - step up and show the visiting world how we can do things in the UK 🇬🇧
Having looked forward to our holiday away , I was really disappointed on arrival as the hotel appearance is nothing like the out dated pictures on the website. We had reserved 4 days and when shown to our room , was disappointed to say this was dirty, grubby, and no tlc taken in the up keep. The kettle lead does not reach the plug , so in the end you boil the kettle on the dirty carpet. Cobwebs behind the furniture, mold in the toilet and shower. When mentioning to Travis about the room and were any more available due to the room not being to the standard shown on website , he did offer us a upgrade , however over breakfast another couple also asked him if the room for upgrade was ready .. so on hearing this, we said that we were told the room was ours, thankfully this was sorted and we were given an upgrade to the bar room .. The bar room was spacious and and better than previous , however still had mold , loose toilet seat , old sofa that needs replacing with a well stained white chair. I would not even consider paying the advertised room cost for this . Good points - Breakfast excellent ( apart from day when chef was off , cremated bacon and glued beans , not the best ) Staff were considerate and think embarrassed at times due to lack of leadership (non) It's a shame this place is not being given the lovecand attention as the location is the best in Lulworth. Swimming pool and outside area could also need the tlc , beautiful views from garden but unfortunately the furniture needs a revamp and tidy . So much tat left around the garden ..