We pride ourselves on serving fresh oysters and seafood, with delicious specials. Pop in for coffee & cake or join us for lunch, dinner, cocktails or hot drinks and a slice of cake (or two!).
We have indoor and outdoor seating available and whilst booking is not essential, in peak season it is highly recommended.
Please use our website for all booking requests, we will respond via email. Sorry, we are unable to take telephone bookings at this time.
Yes we are a dog friendly restaurant.
Just wanted to thank you all for my visit on Saturday with my family and friends.
We were only here for a long weekend, Pier Head was by far our favourite. Why? Simply tastier meals with a more relaxed atmosphere and better value for money.
Thanks again, don’t go changing and see you next year.
Kind regards, David 2026
We got inside! We shared the most beautiful seafood platter and loved the care and acceptance your staff shared with us too.
Your stunning panoramic restaurant is so classy yet so inviting, welcoming and cosy once you are nestled under it's arches. Our meal was perfected with a sunset stroll along the pier!
Thank you so much for treating us!
Sarah, Rich and Beth x 2025
Good morning Emma,
this is just to say thank you and the team so much for looking after us so well on Wednesday.
The food was excellent, the service impeccable and we were extremely grateful when you ran some of the party to the station.
That was way beyond the call of duty but very much appreciated (although the train was then 40 minutes late!). Regards and many thanks,
Anthony, 2024.
Just wanted to say thank you very much for a totally enjoyable meal! You were all accommodating and friendly and service & food was top class. We will be back next year.
Natasha 2024
A Hidden Little Seafood Discovery in Swanage - From the outside, you would hardly guess what is waiting for you inside. Perhaps that is part of the charm. Right by the water, in a place that could so easily have become purely tourist-driven, there is a surprisingly careful and restrained kind of cooking here. What impressed me most was the way the kitchen handles fish and seafood: nothing feels overworked, but everything feels precise. The scallops arrived still in their shells, hot and fragrant, with butter and herbs. The whole fish was beautifully cooked, lightly crisped on the outside and still delicate and juicy within. And then there were the moules: such a classic dish, and yet prepared with such care that you are reminded how extraordinary simplicity can be when it is done properly.
The wine list deserves a special mention, too. It is thoughtfully chosen, elegant without being showy, and very well suited to the food. What I liked most is that the restaurant is not trying too hard to present itself as fine dining. It is understated, almost hidden, and that makes the quality of the kitchen even more surprising. The attention is where it should be: on the ingredients, on the fish, on the balance of the dishes, and on the pleasure of eating them.
A very special little oasis, and one of those discoveries you remember because you were not expecting it. Sublime in this picturesque ambience.
Food: 5, Service: 5, Atmosphere: 5
Catrine Google 2026.
People do not normally come to Swanage from outside to find a restaurant, but the Pier Head changes all that. With Old Harry in sight along the bay, right next to the pier, this small family restaurant has European star quality, every bit as good as France or Italy.
Open for light lunches and afternoon teas the restaurant has a tiny kitchen offering good value seaside dinners. By 6.30 its daytime customers have left, but then the vibe changes dramatically. Customers arrive from out of town to savour the best fish in the bay. The cars outside get bigger. The simple tables and place settings remain the same, being similar to their European counterparts where the patron knows what really matters.
The patron, Peter, has cooked at the most discerning sporting estates around England's shores and knows exactly how to cook fish perfectly. Their second secret weapon is a fisherman who supplies the very best that Swanage Bay can offer. My sumptuous skate came from a huge fish, 450gm soles and hand dived scallops come into the kitchen on a daily basis. As the seasons change so does the choice of fish - brilliantly fresh halibut, and bass to serve three, arrive as the season progresses.
Unusually, the Pier Head has no phone (it is not a priority!) and booking must be made by email - but this offers great advantage - lobster, turbot and monkfish from Cornwall can be ordered with a few days notice, which is the most reassuring way I can think of, ensuring the fish will be fresh when making a booking.
Peter’s wife Emma makes the third magical ingredient, smoothly running this immaculate restaurant without bling or fuss and which boasts the cleanest lavatory on the peninsular. The writer must add that their daughter, Sydney, makes a decent Margarita and not many people know that. The Pier Head is very simply a delightful surprise on every level and serves Swanage well indeed.
H Guard, 2024.
