WHAT
Pub
WHERE
M4, Junction 15; 10 minutes
WHEN
Farm shop: Mon-Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 9am-3pm.
Pub: Mon-Fri 8am-8pm, Sat 8.30am-8.30pm, Sun 8.30am-7.30pm (last food orders)
Dog friendly
Kid friendly
Disabled access
Free WiFi for visitors
Gluten-free options
Organic
Parking available onsite
Electric car charging
Recycling/sustainability practices
'Live for today, farm for tomorrow' is the raison d'être at the organic Eastbrook Farm on Wiltshire's Marlborough Downs. Run by Helen Browning (CEO of the Soil Association), the farm and its shop have a genuine connection to the land and the team's farming practices are designed to condition the soil for future generations. You'll find veggies aplenty plus home-reared beef and pork for sale - lamb if you're lucky - along with filled rolls, snacks and drinks.
The Royal Oak is the boutique hotel and dining pub at the centre of the farm: a Good Hotel Guide Inn of the Year in 2022 and one of Alastair Sawday's personal favourites. Helen's team love looking after their guests in what they call their 'gently eccentric pub and mini-hotel'. The lion's share of the kitchen's produce is home-grown, with neighbours' welcome wheelbarrows of watercress, rhubarb and courgettes making the odd appearance. The milk is their own - the butter is staggeringly yellow.
This is a rewarding re-route from the M4 near Swindon and a marvellous midway point if heading west from London or the east.
Helen Browning's Royal Oak,
Cues Lane, Bishopstone, Swindon,
SN6 8PP
Tel - 01793 790481
Email - Send email to Helen Browning's Royal Oak
Web - helenbrowningsorganic.co.uk
Buy The Extra Mile Guide
The Extra Mile: Delicious Alternatives to Motorway Services is your essential glovebox guide to good food on the move. The guidebook is a great gift for motorists and foodies who prefer to avoid motorway services and boring, big-brand food. Find independent cafes, pubs, local coffee and tea shops and lovely farm shops near motorway junctions and main roads. To improve your journey, support small businesses and discover real local flavours, order your copy today (edition 4 published March 2023 and available now).
