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*complimentary meal*

Last week I was very kindly invited down to Poole to visit the Inn in the park. I was not familiar before hand and honestly never really go to Poole much so I was looking forward to trying somewhere new!

We were greeted with plenty of smiles and shown to our table. The interior inside is beautiful and you can see its not been long renovated with a cosy feel from the minute you walk in. You can see they are very welcoming to families with board games piled high, blankets to cuddle up with for their outdoor area and even dog biscuits available at the bar for your furry friends!

We had our drinks order taken and read out the specials which all sounded amazing! The drinks were very quick (and I noted they were all through the night – even when they got busier, a glass of wine arrived within a minute of my friend Maria asking for another.)

We decided to share starters as who doesn’t love a board of cheese and meats! We also decided on a plate of halloumi fries. Crispy on the outside and perfectly cooked on the inside with that signature squeak drizzled with a sweet chilli sauce.

Our sharing board was unreal, freshly baked bread, a slightly spiced butter complete with a selection of cured meats, sun blushed tomatoes, old Winchester cheese, mixed olives and finished with a bowl of oil and balsamic vinegar to dip with! Absolutely divine and would one thousand percent recommend!

Next up were our mains – Maria went classic with the 10oz rump steak – which was cooked to perfection and a very generous portion of it too, served with grilled tomatoes, mushrooms, and beautifully thick cooked chips and a huge side salad!

I was sucked in by the specials and went for the pie of the day! Chicken, ham and leek. I was a little disappointed to cut into my pie to have been given chicken and mushroom instead, as I’m not a fan of mushrooms, but they were very apologetic, I decided to not swap the pie as Maria and I would have been eating our mains at different times otherwise- so definitely a little disappointing but I can vouch that the mash, greens and gravy were excellent – and once I had removed the mushrooms, the pie was delicious with a crunchy shortcrust pastry.

We happened to go when they had some live music on, so we were offered our puddings down by the tables closer to the bar so we could hear.

Whilst waiting for our deserts and with another drink in front of us, it was clear to see the musician they had in was well loved by the locals, he was excellent and had us tapping our feet and singing along with him!

Puddings arrive next- Maria went for the sticky toffee pudding which looked great, and was surprisingly light served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

I went for the pavlova filled with exotic fruits. The meringue had the crunchy outside and Melt in the middle inside topped with chunks of fresh pineapple, mango and kiwi. A scoop of refreshing mango sorbet on the side – my only qualm would be that the cream tasted a little bitter, but that could have been my personal preference as I have a huge sweet tooth.

Overall we had such a brilliant evening, excellent food, drink and service, and the music topped it off perfectly! I would definitely recommend visiting next time you’re in the Poole area whether you go for a drink in their beautiful garden or sit in for dinner with a few of their board games. And definitely try a sharer board if cheese and meats are your weakness like ours!

A huge thank you for the inn in the park for having us and letting us enjoy a wonderful evening!

*we were given a complimentary meal in return for an honest review. All thoughts, opinions and pictures are my own.*

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