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Forget Cornwall and the Cotswolds, Somerset is the UK foodie break you need

Simon Calder’s Travel

There’s a burgeoning food community here, and we wanted to be early adopters,” says Nicholas Balfe, the owner of Holm restaurant with rooms in the village of South Petherton in southern Somerset.

“We’re at the beginning of something new,” he adds. And he’s right. Somerset is starting to cement itself as one of the go-to destinations for UK stays – it’s more affordable than the nearby celebrity-favoured Cotswolds, and less touristy than Cornwall. But how did it get here after long being considered just a drive-through county? Through its food, of course.

For Balfe, South Petherton, which is sandwiched between Ilminster and Yeovil, has the makings of some of its nearby more well-known towns such as arty Frome or bouji Bruton. It’s easy to see why South Petherton is on the brink, thanks to its honey-coloured historic buildings, which are draped in multicoloured bunting when I visit ahead of the carnival in September. There are also thatched cottages, with neatly potted pastel-coloured flowers in their front gardens; a grand 15th-century church; a market square with a village hall; and a busy village pub – all the hallmarks of a quintessential English countryside village. And being mere minutes off the A303, the main artery road through the South West, makes it far easier to access than it looks on a map – meaning it’s just a matter of time until this part of Somerset is an in-vogue area.

Nicholas Balfe opened Holm Somerset in 2021

Nicholas Balfe opened Holm Somerset in 2021 (Ed Schofield)

Balfe will be ready. His Holm restaurant opened in 2021, and late 2023 saw the addition of seven rooms upstairs, adding to the lure of spending the weekend there. Rooms have a muted, earthy palette, with lime-plastered walls and mismatched furniture – a world away from a classic country house hotel. “I wanted to create a metropolitan restaurant but in the countryside,” he says.

Thankfully, the restaurant isn’t out of reach for his bread-and-butter locals, nor does it only cater for the DFLs (Down from London). Lunch is £29 for three courses (£25 for two) – a price that hasn’t changed since its opening. There’s also an a la carte in the evenings, plus a tasting menu at weekends, which at £69 is fantastic value considering the impressive level of cooking.

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