After months of planning and preparation, Rick and Jill Stein have officially opened the doors to their biggest restaurant yet, in Sandbanks, Dorset.
Friends, family and local businesses joined the Stein family to celebrate the opening with Rick commenting, “A restaurant in Sandbanks is pretty special due to its fantastic location with the beach on one side and Poole harbour on the other.
"I fell in love with the area in 1999 when I was filming for the Seafood Lovers’ Guide to Great Britain and Ireland. It had such a sandy feel and thought at the time wouldn’t it be great to have a restaurant specialising in fish and shellfish and celebrating seaside life there. Now I’m very happy to say I’ve opened one.”
The menu includes a wide selection of fish and shellfish dishes, along with classics from the flagship seafood restaurant in Padstow such as turbot hollandaise, fruits de mer, hot shellfish and lobster thermidor. Meat dishes such as sumac chicken, chargrilled lamb cutlets and chateaubriand will also feature.
The restaurant will open every day seating 200 for lunch or dinner and is positioned across two dining areas, split over two levels. The upstairs restaurant area, with panoramic views across Poole harbour, seats 120 and takes reservations.
On the ground level there is a more casual dining area with a drinks bar and seafood preparation bar where you can watch chefs assembling platters of oysters, langoustines and sashimi. Reservations are not required in the ground floor dining area and guests can enjoy anything from the a la carte menu or simply pop in for a glass of wine, cocktail or coffee.
Business partner and interior designer, Jill Stein, was the creative vision behind the restaurant’s stylish design together with their eldest son Edward and daughter-in-law Kate. Jill comments “Our inspiration for the contemporary design has come from the local coastal surroundings.
Inspired by the mosaics in Bournemouth and Swanage, we have a beautiful hand-made pebble mosaic from artist Maggy Howarth, menu artwork from Dorset artist Jon Adam and historical nautical charts from Imray. It’s great to see it all come together. Sandbanks is a beautiful place, I have fond memories of visiting as a child so I’m thrilled we now have a restaurant here.”
The Sandbanks opening comes at the end of Rick and Jill’s 40th year since opening their flagship seafood restaurant in Padstow. The family are currently growing the business, with recent restaurants in Winchester, Hampshire as well as Porthleven and Newquay in Cornwall. The Rick Stein Group now employs over 450 people across its sites in Cornwall, Hampshire and Dorset.
