WORK has started on expanding a popular gastropub as the owners celebrate their fifth anniversary there.

Husband and wife team Victoria Collins and chef Alasdair Clifford are took over the reins of their critically-acclaimed restaurant and pub with rooms, The Barrington Boar, in the summer of 2018. 

The team recently acquired a large site for development adjacent to The Barrington Boar, in the village of Barrington, and have just commenced work.

Baker’s Farm, a 3000-plus square foot period farmhouse, is set within a plot of approximately 0.38 acres.

It comprises a large garden and several outbuildings, including a former cider barn and hayloft.

Work on the buildings started this month, while work on the land, including the planting of native Somerset fruit trees, will begin later this year.

Subject to planning the couple hope to build a bakery, further accommodation and a market garden, which will supply Clifford’s kitchen. 

The Barrington Boar has recently been featured in The Michelin Guide United Kingdom 2023, Harden’s Guide and Top 100 Gastro Pubs (at number 97) and was a finalist at the 2023 Trencherman’s Awards for Best Pub. 

On Saturday, July 15, the team are throwing a one-off event in honour of this year’s Somerset Food Trail Festival, which celebrates the farms, landscapes, people and places behind the county’s wealth of incredible produce. 

The five-course menu, including welcome aperitif, at £70 will feature some of the team’s favourite South Somerset producers, including Pitney Market Garden, West Country Water Buffalo, Smith and Evans, Burrow Hill Cider and many more.