Pub of the week: The Pony & Trap

The Pony & Trap, on a quiet country lane outside the sleepy Somerset village of Chew Magna, is Michelin-starred dining in a country pub that also serves ham, egg and chips. It is a contrast drawn sharply into focus with a tractor parked next to the pub on a Thursday lunchtime, and a rugged and windswept farmer ordering a pint of bitter at the bar as in the dining room at the back of the pub, the food that gained chef Josh Eggleton his place in the red book was being enjoyed by a clientele that may not have done a hard day’s physical labour in their life.

I count myself in the latter category, although during one summer at university I did work in an ejector seat factory, but that’s another story. Whether your palms are the consistency of leather after years toiling the soil, or smooth as my baby daughter’s bottom, the Pony & Trap is so far removed from the stereotypical Michelin-starred establishment that it can be enjoyed by anyone, for a lunchtime pint midway through ploughing a field, or tucking into the six-course tasting menu which is exceptionally good value at £45.

You will be hearing more about City of Bristol College-trained Josh and his team at the Pony & Trap as Queen Square gets ready to host what promises to be one of the Bristol events of the year, Eat Drink Bristol Fashion. For 12 days and 12 nights, tipis in the square will host dining from some of the Bristol area’s best restaurants.

Josh is one of the principal brains behind the project, hosting the first night’s dining on April 25, with the Pony & Trap team also preparing the tapas that will be served during the day as well as two Sunday lunches.

It will be a unique opportunity for the wider Bristol public to be able to appreciate the spectacular cooking that is happening not seven miles away from Asda Bedminster, but when I visited last week felt as far removed as Za Za Bazaar is to Casamia, holder of the Bristol area’s only other Michelin star and who will be hosting their own night in the Queen Square tipis on May 1.

Our table for lunch was in the bar area, a bar which has on tap Butcombe, Cheddar Ales Bitter Bully (the farmer’s choice) and Doom Bar, alongside cider from Ashton Press.

Befitting a visit to such an establishment, Joanna and I began our meal with a glass of Prosecco as our daughter Mersina explored her surroundings. Away from the bar area, there are many other seating possibilities, and Mersina explored them all.

Without her David Hempleman Adams tendencies we definitely would not have found the garden so swiftly. But find it we did, took in the views, and after our first two courses were out in a flash, soaking up the sun and the views, walking off our meal and saying hello to the poultry.

I also contrived to lose a shoe down a well, something I previously thought only happened in fairy tales; but once again that’s another story.

My starter was smoked salmon terrine with piccalilli and baby capers (£7). The back of the menu helpfully lists every one of the Pony & Trap’s suppliers, with the salmon coming from Chew Valley Smoke House, aka Jon the Smoke.

While Joanna plumped for a “pub classic” done in the Pony & Trap’s inimitable style, a beef and venison burger with tomato and chilli jam, hand-cut chips and salad (£10.50); I decided to be a little more adventurous.

My whole roasted wood pigeon (£16.50) came with potato cake and what the menu described as red cabbage ketchup. It was an absolute treat, and I can confirm that it can also be enjoyed by a 13-month-old as well as a 30-year-old.

When not losing pink shoes down wells and chasing chickens, there was also time to enjoy our puddings. Joanna is rather a crème brûlée snob and has been known to make waitresses whimper if the crack of the caramel is not cracky enough, so for her to proclaim her spiced crème brûlée with apple puree, granola and apple sorbet (£6) one of the best she has ever tasted was quite something. To add something special to this particular pudding, it was really three deserts in one, the crème brûlée in its own ramekin, the granola in a miniature jam jar, the sorbet on the side of the plate.

My rhubarb and custard trifle (£6) had some way to compete with that. It couldn’t quite compare to its delights, but as my spoon delved down further into the oversize glass, more and more treats were revealed.

An espresso from Brian Wogan Coffee gave me an extra burst of energy to chase my energetic but now shoeless daughter one more time around the garden, before our marvellously long lunch unfortunately had to come to an end and it was a short taxi ride back to Bristol, vowing to return soon, and one day sooner looking forward to seeing just what Josh and the Pony & Trap team can create for Eat Drink Bristol Fashion.

The Pony & Trap, Newtown, Chew Magna, Bristol, BS40 8TQ.

www.theponyandtrap.co.uk