Hotel Hit Squad: Mad dogs and Englishmen alike will find a warm welcome at the Lord Poulett Arms in Somerset
First the pain. On a bleak midwinter morning, a small, bedraggled group of us stood on Exmoor’s Dunkery Beacon at the start of an eight-mile hike. The temperature was arctic, the visibility was almost zero, and the rain was sluicing down.
Among our number, a QC dressed for the ocean in bright red yachtsman’s oilskins and a peer of the realm in fetching headgear fashioned from a Tesco shopping bag stood out. We were accompanied by a shivering spaniel which had to be cajoled from the car. Mad dogs and Englishmen… but definitely no midday sun.
And then the pleasure. Things, as they have a habit of doing if you stick at them, only improved and despite the weather, the walk was exhilarating. Outwardly dishevelled, inwardly glowing, we made our way from Exmoor to the pretty hamstone village of Hinton St George, cushioned in quiet south Somerset countryside yet just five minutes from the A303. If you want that delicious feeling of opening a door in a gale and finding a sanctuary, look no further than the Lord Poulett Arms. Glasses of brandy and lovage at the bar, hot baths, a good dinner and a snuggly bed… how can there be greater luxury than that?
I last visited the inn well over a decade ago. In 2002 it had been bought and revamped by a London couple who did a great job of creating a stylish yet genuine dining pub, full of character. When they decided to sell up last year, the property nearly fell victim to one of the ever-present pub groups that circle like sharks looking for bait to gobble up, standardise and leave for dead. Instead it went to exactly the right buyers, who have done exactly the right thing with their new acquisition.
Which is to leave it, for the most part, well alone. “I fell in love with the place the moment I saw it,” says co-owner Charlie Luxton. And if you know his other two estimable hostelries, the Beckford Arms in Wiltshire and the Talbot Inn at Mells, also in Somerset, and you saw the prettily papered hall, the beams hung with hops, the roaring open fires, the carefully sourced collection of country furniture in three user-friendly areas – one for locals in wellies to drink at the bar and two for dining – you would know exactly why.
Charlie and his business partners Dan Brod and Matthew Greenlees (backed by Nick Jones of Soho House) create the sort of inns I love – stylish but full of character; appealing to Londoners, yes, but never forgetting locals wanting a pint after work (there’s a “happy hour” each evening from 4pm-7pm at the Lord Poulett Arms). These landlords, unlike so many today, are independent and individual, preferring to rely on high standards and value for money rather than fluctuating room prices, social media impact and public relations. As a result, each of their places stands out from the crowd. Their monthly newsletter is often laugh-out-loud funny and Charlie’s wife, Chloe, makes the prettiest and most fragrant of bath products, Bramley, which are found in all of their rooms.
They are gently, carefully, expanding. Apart from the acquisition of the Lord Poulett Arms (or “Chicken” as they refer to it) they have also launched Beckford Bottle Shops in Tisbury and now Bath (“a modern wine shop with old-fashioned values”, also serving British cheese and charcuterie and other small plates) which are sure-fire hits.
The installation of better lighting aside, Charlie has left the ground floor much as he found it. Upstairs, the six bedrooms – two with bathrooms across the corridor that only add, in my opinion, to the character of the place – have been treated to fresh paintwork, new rush carpeting, luxury beds with woollen throws, simple Roman blinds, attractive lamps and upgraded bathrooms.
As at the Talbot Inn, the pictures on the walls add a contemporary vibe. The geometric drawings, simple but effective, are in fact by Charlie and Dan. Need pictures but can’t afford to buy them? Create them yourself – if you have the talent, that is.
As for the satisfying food, pretty much everything is made, cured or smoked in-house. Outside, there is a new gravelled terrace and beyond that two gardens – one planted as a parterre, with a boules court, the other punctuated by a high wall.
It’s a curiosity: a pelota wall, one of five in the area, most probably built by workers from the Basque country in the 16th century.
Our friend with the Tesco shopping bag on his head was a momentary curiosity too, when we burst into the pub and found sanctuary. We all loved the place, especially the very reasonable prices.
Double rooms cost from ￡85 per night, including breakfast. The accommodation is not suitable for guests using wheelchairs.
Read the full hotel review: The Lord Poulett Arms