Christmas Day lunch at the Dorset pubs here costs £90 to £155 a head, with deposits and deadlines, plus five festive menus from £27. Checked October 2026.

For Christmas Day lunch in Dorset, most searches land on four kinds of place. The Acorn Inn in Evershot serves the longest menu, at £155. The Greyhound Inn below Corfe Castle charges £99.50 for four courses. Hall & Woodhouse, the Blandford brewery, serves one menu at £112.50 in its own pubs, from the Smuggler’s Inn at Osmington Mills to the Olive Branch in Wimborne. Every entry was checked against the venue’s own site on 29 October 2026.

We have not eaten at these places for this guide, and nothing here is a review. Each entry sets out what the venue publishes about its Christmas menu: the price, the courses, when it serves, and what it asks for up front. It also gives the Food Standards Agency hygiene rating, and all fourteen hold the top rating of 5. The first nine take Christmas Day bookings. The last five serve festive menus in December but are closed on the day, or keep it for hotel guests. The guide covers the Dorset Council area; Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole are not included.

Book soon at Hall & Woodhouse pubs: a Christmas Day booking with the deposit paid by Saturday 31 October 2026 earns a £20 voucher to spend in January, the brewery’s terms say.

Christmas Day: west and north Dorset

1. The Acorn Inn, Evershot

The Acorn is an inn on Fore Street in Evershot, 12 miles north-west of Dorchester. Its festive page promises “a festive feast of seasonal favourites, from Dorset roast turkey and indulgent desserts to homemade mince pies and a warming welcome drink”. The Christmas Day menu runs from the welcome drink through soup, a starter, a main, a pre-dessert and pudding to coffee and mince pies.

Mains include the turkey, Devon venison loin, brill and a leek and mushroom wellington. Before Christmas, the inn’s party menu is for groups of eight or more.

Open Christmas Day lunch, 25 December 2026
Price Christmas Day £155 a head; December party menu two courses £38, three £45 (minimum eight people, 12.5% discretionary service charge)
Booking online through the inn's website
Call 01935 83228
Address 28 Fore Street, Evershot, DT2 0JW
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 16 January 2025
Website acorn-inn.co.uk/festive
Good for Christmas Day, seven-part menu, game and fish mains, vegetarian main

2. The Kings Arms, Dorchester

The Kings Arms is a pub with rooms on High East Street in Dorchester town centre. Its Christmas page says “Christmas Day has its own special three-course menu”, served from 12pm to 3pm, and that “full payment is required when booking”. The pub does not put the price on its own site.

Visit Dorset’s Christmas eating-out page gives £115 a head and £60 for children under 10, so confirm it when you ring. From 27 November the festive menu is for parties who pre-book and order ahead.

Open Christmas Day 12pm to 3pm
Price Christmas Day £115 adults, £60 children under 10 (Visit Dorset's figure; not published on the pub's own site)
Booking full payment when booking; festive parties of more than four pay a £10 a head card authorisation
Call 01305 238238
Address 30 High East Street, Dorchester, DT1 1HF
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 5 November 2025
Website thekingsarmsdorchester.com/christmas
Good for Christmas Day, town centre, three courses, children's price

3. The Grosvenor Arms, Shaftesbury

The Grosvenor Arms is a pub with rooms in the centre of Shaftesbury. Its Christmas page uses the same wording as the Kings Arms: a “special three-course menu” on Christmas Day, served from 12pm to 3pm, with “full payment … required when booking”. The price is not on the pub’s own site.

Visit Dorset’s Christmas eating-out page gives £115 a head and £60 for children up to 10. The festive menu starts on 27 November for pre-booked parties.

Open Christmas Day 12pm to 3pm
Price Christmas Day £115 adults, £60 children up to 10 (Visit Dorset's figure; not published on the pub's own site)
Booking full payment when booking; £10 a head charge for cancellations inside 72 hours or no-shows
Call 01747 850580
Address The Commons, Shaftesbury, SP7 8JA
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 19 February 2026
Website grosvenorarms.co.uk/christmas
Good for Christmas Day, town centre, three courses, children's price

4. The Crown Hotel, Blandford Forum

The Crown is Hall & Woodhouse’s hotel on West Street in Blandford. It serves the brewery’s Christmas Day menu: three courses at £112.50, with a blood orange sorbet between starter and main.

Mains include a roast turkey paupiette with pigs in blankets, a beetroot wellington, lamb noisette, stone bass and aged rump steak. Under the “Cubs” Christmas Day menu, children eat three courses for £35.

A 10% discretionary service charge is added for table service. From 18 November, every day except Christmas Day, the Celebration menu costs £38.50 for three courses.

Open Christmas Day lunch, 25 December 2026
Price Christmas Day £112.50 a head, children's menu £35; Celebration menu three courses £38.50 from 18 November (not Christmas Day)
Booking online or by phone; deposit by 31 October 2026 for the £20 January voucher
Call 01258 456626
Address West Street, Blandford Forum, DT11 7AJ
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 31 October 2024
Website crownhotelblandford.co.uk/christmas
Good for Christmas Day, children's menu, vegetarian and plant-based mains, hotel rooms

Christmas Day: the coast and Purbeck

5. The Smuggler’s Inn, Osmington Mills

The Smuggler’s Inn is a Hall & Woodhouse pub at Osmington Mills, on the coast east of Weymouth. Its Christmas page invites you to “sit back and enjoy”. The Christmas Day menu is the brewery’s three-course menu at £112.50, with a £35 children’s menu.

The Celebration set menu starts on 18 November at £38.50 for three courses, and is not served on Christmas Day.

Open Christmas Day lunch, 25 December 2026
Price Christmas Day £112.50 a head, children's menu £35; Celebration menu three courses £38.50 from 18 November (not Christmas Day)
Booking online or by phone; deposit by 31 October 2026 for the £20 January voucher
Call 01305 833125
Address Osmington Mills, Weymouth, DT3 6HF
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 18 May 2026
Website smugglersinnosmingtonmills.co.uk/christmas
Good for Christmas Day, by the sea, children's menu, coast path

6. The Greyhound Inn, Corfe Castle

The Greyhound stands on The Square in Corfe Castle, directly below the castle ruins. The pub says its Christmas Day menu has been “crafted with family at its heart”: four courses for £99.50. The menu offers roast turkey, herb-roasted rib of beef, or Romano peppers with a carrot and cashew pâté.

Puddings include Christmas pudding, a panettone bread and butter pudding and a plant-based chocolate orange tart. There is a separate children’s menu.

Bookings are taken by email or phone only.

Open Christmas Day lunch, 25 December 2026
Price Christmas Day four courses £99.50 a head
Booking email christmas@greyhoundcorfe.co.uk or phone
Call 01929 480205
Address The Square, Corfe Castle, BH20 5EZ
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 23 January 2025
Website greyhoundcorfe.co.uk/christmas
Good for Christmas Day, castle views, four courses, children's menu, plant-based pudding

7. Mortons Manor, Corfe Castle

Mortons Manor calls itself “a 16th Century manor house hotel” on East Street in Corfe Castle. Its restaurant holds two AA rosettes. Its Christmas page invites diners to “join us for a wonderfully festive Christmas Eve or Christmas Day celebration”.

It says the Christmas Day menu is still being written, so ring reception for the price. The festive menu is already out.

It runs from 5 to 23 December: the lunch menu is £42 for two courses or £52 for three, and the dinner menu is £62.50.

Open festive lunch and dinner 5 to 23 December 2026; Christmas Day menu to be published
Price festive lunch two courses £42, three £52; festive dinner £62.50; Christmas Day price not yet published
Booking by phone with reception
Call 01929 480988
Address East Street, Corfe Castle, BH20 5EE
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 26 March 2026
Website mortonsmanor.com/christmas-new
Good for Christmas Day, festive lunch, AA rosettes, log fire, listed building

Christmas Day: Wimborne and east Dorset

8. The Olive Branch, Wimborne Minster

The Olive Branch is a Hall & Woodhouse pub on East Borough in Wimborne. It serves the same Christmas Day menu as the Crown and the Smuggler’s: three courses and a sorbet at £112.50, with the £35 children’s menu.

The brewery’s other pub on this side of the county, the Angel Inn at Longham, serves the same dishes for £99. From 18 November the Celebration menu costs £38.50 for three courses.

Open Christmas Day lunch, 25 December 2026
Price Christmas Day £112.50 a head, children's menu £35; Celebration menu three courses £38.50 from 18 November (not Christmas Day)
Booking online or by phone; deposit by 31 October 2026 for the £20 January voucher
Call 01202 884686
Address 6 East Borough, Wimborne, BH21 1PF
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 20 May 2026
Website theolivebranchwimborne.co.uk/christmas
Good for Christmas Day, town centre, children's menu, vegetarian and plant-based mains

9. Fox & Hounds, Canford Bottom

The Fox & Hounds is a Chef & Brewer pub on Fox Lane at Canford Bottom, east of Wimborne. Its Christmas Day page offers “three delicious courses from our Christmas Day Menu for £90 per person”, the lowest Christmas Day price in this guide. Bookings need a deposit of £10 per adult and £5 per child.

The balance is due by 1 December 2026, and menu choices by 11 December (18 December for bookings made after the 11th). Deposits are refunded in full on cancellations before 11 December.

Open Christmas Day lunch, 25 December 2026
Price Christmas Day three courses £90 a head
Booking £10 deposit per adult, £5 per child; pay in full by 1 December 2026; pre-order by 11 December
Call 01202 872881
Address Fox Lane, Canford Bottom, Wimborne, BH21 2EQ
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 14 May 2026
Website chefandbrewer.com/pubs/dorset/fox-and-hounds/christmas/christmas-day
Good for Christmas Day, lowest price here, children's menu, gluten-free Christmas menu

Festive menus before the day

These five serve Christmas menus through December. On Christmas Day itself they are closed to the public, or they keep the day for guests booked on a Christmas stay.

10. The Priory, Wareham

The Priory is a hotel on Church Green in Wareham. Its Christmas page offers a four-course festive dinner “with Canapés, Coffee and Priory Mince Pie” for £85, and a three-course festive lunch for £70. Both run from 1 to 23 December 2026, and you pre-order online after booking.

Christmas Day itself is part of the hotel’s residential Christmas programme. The hotel takes children over 14 and guide dogs only.

Open festive lunch and dinner 1 to 23 December 2026
Price festive lunch three courses £70; festive dinner four courses £85
Booking pre-order required, by link after booking
Call 01929 551666
Address Church Green, Wareham, BH20 4ND
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 29 January 2026
Website priorywareham.co.uk/christmas
Good for festive dinner, festive lunch, over-14s only, guide dogs only

11. Plumber Manor, Sturminster Newton

Plumber Manor is a country house hotel and restaurant outside Sturminster Newton. Its Christmas Party Menu 2026 costs £50 for two courses or £60 for three, with coffee £5.

It is served in the evenings from 1 to 24 December, but not at Sunday lunch, for groups of four or more. The hotel says every booking must order in advance. Lunchtime parties of 15 or more can be arranged from Monday to Saturday.

The hotel’s site does not mention Christmas Day.

Open party menu evenings 1 to 24 December 2026; lunch parties of 15 or more Mon to Sat
Price two courses £50, three £60; coffee £5; beef fillet £5 extra
Booking minimum four people; order in advance; by phone or email
Call 01258 472507
Address Plumber, Sturminster Newton, DT10 2AF
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 12 March 2025
Website plumbermanor.co.uk/christmas
Listing Our listing
Good for festive dinner, country house, groups of four or more

12. The Thimble Inn, Piddlehinton

The Thimble is a village pub in the Piddle Valley, north-east of Dorchester. Its Christmas page sets a three-course festive menu at £39 a head, served from 27 November to 24 December. Mains include roast turkey with duck fat roast potatoes and pigs in blankets, slow-braised beef shin, pan-fried hake and a charred aubergine curry.

To finish there is Christmas pudding, sherry trifle or Piddle Valley cheeses. The pub says booking is essential.

Its Christmas Day hours are not on the site.

Open festive menu 27 November to 24 December 2026
Price three courses £39 a head
Booking essential, online
Call 01300 348270
Address 14 High Street, Piddlehinton, DT2 7TD
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 13 March 2026
Website thimbleinn.co.uk/christmas
Good for festive menu, village pub, local cheese, vegetarian main

13. The Anchor Inn, Seatown

The Anchor is the pub at Seatown, below Golden Cap and west of Bridport. Its festive page says it is closed on Christmas Day but runs a “Festive Supper Club” every evening from 4pm, from 1 to 23 December. The supper club menu is £27 for two courses and £32 for three, the cheapest festive meal in this guide.

The pub reopens on Boxing Day from 12pm. It takes card payments only.

Open Festive Supper Club from 4pm, 1 to 23 December 2026; closed Christmas Day; Boxing Day 12pm to 10pm, kitchen to 8pm
Price two courses £27, three £32
Booking online
Call 01297 489215
Address Seatown, Bridport, DT6 6JU
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 22 September 2025
Website theanchorinnseatown.co.uk/christmas
Good for festive supper, by the sea, cheapest festive menu here, card only

14. The Pines Hotel, Swanage

The Pines is a hotel on Burlington Road in Swanage. Its Festive Menu 2026 is served for lunch and dinner through December.

Lunch costs £29 for two courses and coffee or £33 for three, and dinner £33 or £37. The cheeseboard is made up of Dorset and West Country cheeses, among them Dorset Blue Vinny. The hotel’s Christmas page names Saturday 5 December as its Christmas party night.

Christmas Day lunch and dinner are part of its residential Christmas package.

Open festive lunch and dinner through December 2026
Price lunch two courses and coffee £29, three £33; dinner two courses and coffee £33, three £37
Booking by phone or email
Call 01929 425211
Address Burlington Road, Swanage, BH19 1LT
Hygiene rating 5, Food Standards Agency, 17 June 2026
Website pineshotel.co.uk/christmas
Good for festive lunch, festive dinner, Dorset cheeses, vegan and gluten-free choices

How we chose

We started with venues that publish a 2026 Christmas menu with a price on their own website, either for Christmas Day or for festive meals in December. We spread them across the county, from Seatown to Shaftesbury and Wimborne. Each was checked on 29 October 2026 for its price, courses, deposit and dates. Hygiene ratings come from the Food Standards Agency register, and we left out anywhere rated below 3. Where a pub does not publish its Christmas Day price, we say whose figure we have used. The Pig on the Beach at Studland lists Christmas Day lunch at £165 a head and £75 for under-13s, but it says the lunch is for staying guests only for now. Prices are the venues’ own and can change. Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@dorsetpost.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@dorsetpost.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.

For the rest of the season, see the Dorset Christmas markets, the Christmas lights switch-ons, the Christmas and New Year swims and Christmas and New Year travel. For an ordinary weekend, read our guides to Sunday roasts in Dorset, Dorset pubs, Dorset restaurants and afternoon tea in Dorset. There is more in things to do in Dorset, what’s on in Dorset this month and the local business directory.

Frequently asked questions

How much is Christmas Day lunch in Dorset in 2026?

At the pubs in this guide that publish a price, Christmas Day lunch costs £90 to £155 a head. The Fox & Hounds near Wimborne charges £90 for three courses and the Greyhound Inn in Corfe Castle £99.50 for four. Hall & Woodhouse’s Smuggler’s Inn, Crown Hotel and Olive Branch charge £112.50, with a £35 children’s menu. The Acorn Inn in Evershot charges £155.

Do I have to pay in full when I book Christmas Day lunch?

Often, yes. The Kings Arms in Dorchester and the Grosvenor Arms in Shaftesbury take full payment when you book. The Fox & Hounds takes a £10 deposit per adult and £5 per child, with the balance due by 1 December 2026 and menu choices by 11 December. Hall & Woodhouse pubs give a £20 January voucher for Christmas Day bookings paid by 31 October.

Which Dorset pubs are closed on Christmas Day?

The Anchor Inn at Seatown says it is closed on Christmas Day, and so are Hall & Woodhouse’s Brewery Tap in Blandford and the Angel near Wareham. All three serve festive menus in the run-up instead. At the Priory in Wareham, the Pines in Swanage and the Pig on the Beach at Studland, Christmas Day lunch comes with a Christmas stay.