The pub called “almost certainly the best in England” is just an hour from Bristol

The Horse and Groom, an 18th-century pub in the idyllic Cotswolds village of Bourton-on-the-Hill, has been hailed as “almost certainly the best pub in England” by renowned food critic Giles Coren.

The pub, which is located in a village of less than 400 people, which last year was named one of Britain’s “most desirable” by Savills, is likely to see an increase in bookings and advertising.

Under new ownership by Nathan Eades and Liam Goff, who previously secured a place in the UK’s top 100 gastropubs for 2024 with their other venture, The Halfway at Kineton in Cheltenham, the Horse and Groom is making waves.

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Coren, a seasoned restaurant critic for The Times, visited the pub with his family and gave it a perfect score of 10 out of 10 for cooking, service and location.

During their visit, Coren said he and his family enjoyed a “huge” meal. Starters included Atlantic shrimp cocktail (“two layers of fat, flavorful wild shrimp in a cut-glass whiskey glass”), monkfish scampi (“freshly breaded and fried with a dark golden crumb”), and scotch egg ( “shiny like a brass finish, warm, porky and sweet, the yolk a sun gel”).

Coren described the double cheeseburger main as a “masterpiece of its kind” and likened a ham dish to “Jesus rising again on the third day,” the Express reports.

The Horse and Groom was named Pub of the Year by the Good Pub Guide in 2016, so it’s no stranger to acclaim. But back then, while Coren admitted it was “a cozy place with amazing views and nice people,” he considered the food “pretty average.”

However, under the leadership of Eades and Goff, he now believes the establishment has turned “with their huge cooking linked to the old space and fantastic gardens” into “almost certainly the best pub in England”.

In his review, Coren noted, “Not much has changed inside, nor should it. It’s lived-in and pretty, but on a rare warm summer day I walked into the two-tiered garden with its mature trees and shrubs. and shaggy lawns and… we climbed the tall grass and to a not-so-guano-splattered picnic table under a tree.

“Eating out I can grab or go. But I eat under a tree – the dappled shade, the birdsong, the faint hum of insects, the view of yellow stone buildings, old slate roofs, bent chimneys, cobalt skies, fields slowly browning to harvest. , all framed by a good, sharp hedge – which is really alive.

Giles Coren, brother of TV host Victoria Coren-Mitchell and brother-in-law of comedian David Mitchell, rated the pub eight years ago as seven out of 10 for cooking, six for table service and just five for atmosphere, but its latest scores show a dramatic change.

Speaking to the Cotswold Journal, new owner Nathan Eades remarked: “We haven’t done any seismic changes, all we’ve really done is add a new coat of paint. We also tried to tidy it up and throw in as much love as possible. In the pub, there’s not much need for change, to be honest. We have good wine and a good environment and we’ve been very encouraged by what we’ve seen so far to get better.”

What is on offer at The Horse and Groom?

Some dishes from The Horse and Groom’s sample menu.

Beginners

Atlantic Prawn Cocktail, Bread & Butter Milk Soda, Bloody Mary Sauce £11.50

Marinated Evesham tomatoes, bitter leaves, burrata, basil pesto £11.50

Monkfish scampi, saffron aioli, pickled shallot and watercress salad £11.50

24 Months Rare Comte and Donnington Ale on OandB Sourdough Toast £9.50

Beef tenderloin carpaccio, wasabi mayonnaise, parmesan and arugula salad £11

Network

24 Month Comte Cheese Souffle, House Salad £19

Double Cheeseburger, Otis & Belle Brioche Bun, Home Fries £18

Huntsham Farm sausage, cream potatoes, buttered cavolo nero, onion sauce £21

Glazed ham hock for two, cacklebean eggs, home fries £19.50pp

Desserts

Black treacle and date pudding, clotted cream £9.50

Tiramisu, our style £10.50

Lemon posset, strawberry compote, crushed meringue £10

Affogato, pistachio biscotti £7