Great British Menu winner Emily Watkins working on new gastropub

Emily Watkins, whose Oxfordshire gastropub the Kingham Plough came ninth in this year’s Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropubs, is currently collaborating with Tremayne Carew Pole, founder of travel and restaurant guide book series A Hedonist’s Guide​, to open the Carew Arms in Antony, Cornwall.

Watkins has taken on the role of consultant chef, working with the pub’s new head chef Jack Clayton, who previously worked at fellow Top 50 Gastropubs-ranked site the Gurnards Head, to create the site’s menu.

'Fantastic array'​

She said: “It is a dream for many chefs to have such a fantastic array of local, seasonal ingredients at your fingertips. Cornwall really offers us the chance to put the freshest ingredients on our menus.

“Our ethos in the kitchen is to cook simple things beautifully and let the quality of the produce really speak for itself.”

Much of the produce used at the pub will be grown on the nearby Antony Estate.

Destination diners​

Carew Pole said he wanted to make the site appealing to destination diners, but it was fundamental to keep the price point affordable and to cater for the village community.

The building will also house a general store, hybrid farm and community shop offering a range of Cornish artisanal products and community services. The store will feature a café serving barista coffee and snacks.

Watkins recently spoke to Top 50 Gastropubs about her career as a chef and the journey that led her to opening the Kingham Plough. Read the exclusive interview.​