The Palm Court Hotel

After eating regularly at The Dune Bar & Restaurant inside the Palm Hotel, this last visit has put us off returning. We were told Tom, the head chef, had left, and the difference was obvious. I had the King Prawns with Feta, fennel ect from the new menu. It was awful. All four prawns still had their shells on, and I had to put my fingers into a full bowl of lukewarm peppery liquid. There were only two tiny bits of feta. I couldn’t eat it. We both ordered the slow roasted belly pork for the main. It was a soggy, greasy slab of fatty pork, not crispy at all like the starter we’d had there before. It was as if it had been microwaved until all life was gone. My partner’s rice tasted of nothing but overpowering Chinese 5 spice. My chips looked awful, and tasted just as they looked, a greasy, warm, soggy mess. We mentioned the food to the waitress and bar lady when paying, but got no real interest. We usually have dessert too, but after two disastrous courses we didn’t want to risk it. This used to be our favourite regular place to eat. Such a shame, but we won’t be back.

We’d had a terrible evening trying to get into the Gables hotel down the road, which is now shut, but the staff at the palms court were so friendly and apologetic when we called. Best staff you could hope to speak to. The room was clean and lovely, there was lots to do and the bar was accommodating. They’ve also got an “ancient” lift, as the staff call it, and it was soo cool to use. Lovely place with great facilities.

We held our annual 4 ADTR Veterans Reunion here this weekend (27/09/2025), and couldn’t be happier with the hotel. Vicky & Tessa made everything easy from our first contact through booking and delivery. They provided menus and prices up front, so we could cater for different tastes and allergies while keeping to budget. Our venue room was spacious and comfortable, with a separate bar and a generous dance floor for us. The music had to stop at midnight, but Sam, our barman, stayed on into the small hours to make sure nobody died of thirst. I really can’t praise the hotel enough.

Breakfast was an extra £15 per person, which felt steep, though the location and facilities made the stay good value overall. We used the downstairs bar, restaurant and swimming pool, and the games room upstairs and sun terrace were nice extras. The welcome from the staff was lovely, and they were helpful and efficient. The place was clean throughout. My room was clean too, with a comfy bed, fresh bedding and a working shower with hot water, but it looked very dated, with a pink bathroom suite and old wallpaper. Other people in our party had newer rooms, so it seemed like they were updating them in stages. Mine backed onto the athletics track.