We all like to think we know what we’re getting with a farm shop.
The clue is in the name – local, good-quality stuff made with a loving hand.
You also get visions of the kind of food that comes to mind when one imagines old-fashioned home cooking – big, hearty, warming and tasty.
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Recently, farm shops have been thrown back into the limelight with the revelation that has been ‘Clarkson’s Farm’, the Amazon Prime TV series seeing one-time Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson turn his hand to the farming lifestyle.
His Diddly Squat Farm Shop is one of many that populate the Cotswolds region, it being one of the prime farming landscapes of the South West.
However, it’s not just Gloucestershire that has something to offer the pantheon of farm shops in the South West – Somerset has a few tricks up its sleeve as well.
To try and see whether Somerset has offerings that can compete, I ventured to one of the top-rated food locations in Taunton according to TripAdvisor – the Rumwell Farm Shop and Cafe, located on the A38 just west of the town.
It carries a four and a half circle rating on the review website, so signs were good – and I was not disappointed.
For context, the day I went down there was sweltering – the recent heatwave meant I had been out and about in Taunton in heat approaching or topping 30 degrees for much of the day up to that point.
When I approached the entrance to the cafe, Covid protocols were still in place – waiting outside to be seated, hand sanitiser and staff wearing face masks despite no longer being obligated to – as did I.
Covid safety protocols were still in place
I was very swiftly served with a smile – something that so often goes unacknowledged in hospitality service I find, and even more often is not present at all – and shown to a table in the window.
Tables were well spaced out, giving them plenty of places to seat diners but also giving plenty of social distance and room for people to move about the cafe space without risking bumping in to anyone – the whole place felt roomy, which was saying something given how many people were in there.
Not that it was full – it was probably about half full at the time – but the fact it felt so empty when it had a decent enough number of people was a nice feeling.
Having seated myself, I took a moment to admire the view out of the window. When one looked past the car park of the shop, you were met with rolling hills and green fields across the horizon – exactly the kind of view it feels like you should have at something terming itself a farm shop.
The view out from the farm shop onto the surrounding fields
The whole experience just felt peaceful.
After a quick scour of the menu, I resolved to order the pie of the day (turkey and ham) and a ginger beer.
The waitress taking the order passed a few tests that I would look for as someone that spent many years taking food and drink orders.
She asked if I wanted ice with the drink, which of course I did since it felt outside like it was 37 degrees in the shade, but I have always felt it’s the right thing to do to ask.
She also was very clear on options with sides – choices of potatoes and things like that. So often people are left wondering what the choices are for options like that, but I was given them without prompting and made answering the question easy.
It might sound like a small thing, and it probably is, but it put me at ease.
As I waited for the food, which took about 20 minutes (the drink was out pretty much instantly, as was cutlery and sauces) I observed that the place just felt like a farm shop – in a good way.
A ginger beer served with (gratefully accepted) ice
It felt natural, it felt quaint and it felt warm – both in temperature and temperament.
When the food arrived, I was frankly blown away by the amount of food I had been brought – the pie and chips filled a plate alone, with veg on the side as well!
Considering the meal was £11.99, if you’re someone that likes getting their money’s worth, then you would be rubbing your hands together.
What is more – I was not let down on taste either.
The pastry on the pie was flaky, crispy and perfectly cooked, the filling was bursting with meaty flavour, and the chips were perfect to my tastes – cooked to the lovely point that every one provides a decent crunch but is still soft inside.
(I may have done a mental chef’s kiss at the moment I realised that.)
The turkey and ham pie
Needless to say, I polished off the entire thing, but even as someone that likes their food, I might not have been able to get through all of it – and if something that tastes that good is something I’m struggling to finish, it says to me that you’re getting the best of both worlds.
I had not been paying particular attention to the price of things so when I got up to pay, I checked the till as the bill got racked up and was surprised, given how full I was, that it all came to £15.
There are enough places out there at which £15 wouldn’t even get you a full main that I can appreciate a big meal and a drink for that price.
The receipt from my visit – totalling £15.04
If I could then balance it by saying that the staff were not friendly, approachable and helpful then I would do so – but I can’t honestly.
The whole experience felt like the friendly farmer has cooked you a home dinner – you come away feeling well-fed and like you have just had a nice time.
So there you have it – the Cotswolds may be the place getting all the farm shop attention as the Clarkson’s Farm mania carries on, but Somerset has definitely got at least one place that can compete with the best of them.
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