Reef Encounter

In Star Wars, Han Solo shoots Greedo probably over a bad meal in a terrible bar restaurant.
If they’d have visited Reef Encounter they have probably skipped off into the Tattooine double sunset.
Reef has a local vibe, with tourists heading beachside for refreshment. Reef offers fantastic staple food — think grilled chicken, ribs, stacked burgers, fantastic mussels and delicious crisp French Fries.
My personal favourite is the chicken and rib combo or, the fresh and fishy tuna Niçoise salad with a juicy succulent steak and dressing to die for!
In addition Reef has a diverse and changing bar and awesome live music on a Friday — better than the Mos Eisley Cantina!
Staff are super friendly and efficient and bend over backwards to please.
A good bar makes a neighbourhood and Reef is a vital part of beachside Boscombe!

One of our favourite places in the world! We have been half a dozen times in the past year and never been disappointed. I can’t speak for the quality of the burgers because we don’t eat meat, although we do eat fish, which has always been excellent. Quite a varied menu, price is reasonable. But the best thing about the place is the atmosphere and super friendly staff. Oh, and the surfing/​skiing videos — and live music some nights. It might not be to everybody’s taste, but definitely worth a try.

The transformation of Boscombe with the construction of the surf reef has led to this café bar setting up (rising from the ashes of the lamented PierPoint). It’s a groovy place for a hungry surf dude to catch a beer and burger. There’s an outside deck for when it’s nice, with oblique views down the road to the sea. Service is friendly, but the food is basic to say the least. Despite the ‘home made food’ tag, the burgers are ghastly slabs of compressed mechanically recovered stuff. There’s a wide range of other similar fare — surf and turf, BBQ chicken etc. The place is open all hours, but like many it has forgotten to put its hours on the website! Food is served 12 – 3 & 5 – 10. Beers are keg or bottle, including Star.