The story
The Pony Chew Valley in Bristol is a modern British restaurant at Knowle Hill, Newtown, Chew Magna, BS40 8TQ, and it holds a 2026 Good Food Guide rating of Good. The site grew out of Josh Eggleton's original Pony & Trap, now extended and remodelled with an event space, a cooking school and landscaped grounds.
Head chef Jim Day, formerly of Casamia, cooks refined, precisely timed dishes. Home-grown herbs and vegetables sit alongside British produce from further afield. In early summer, the menu might open with asparagus and wild garlic emulsion topped with crispy egg yolk. A main course of whole wild sea bass, served to share, comes with sauce vierge, Jersey Royals and a Pony garden salad. The Michelin Guide also lists the restaurant as Recommended for 2026.
The glass-fronted garden room is high-ceilinged and enormous, and it is the table to ask for if you want the views. There is also an outdoor terrace overlooking the landscaped grounds. The interior and exterior were both given a completely new look in the reinvention.
Pub classics and bar snacks, such as local Westcombe charcuterie and Cantabrian anchovies, suit a casual visit. Midweek set menus and Sunday roasts are also on offer. Dessert might be chocolate gâteau with coffee crème patisserie, or lemon set cream with burnt meringue and a jelly made from local Cheddar strawberries. The drinks list leans on real ales, ciders and softs from local producers, with mostly European wines at fair prices.
Recognition
Details
History
Veterans of Josh Eggleton's original Pony & Trap probably won’t recognise this massively extended and remodelled version of the old place, which now boasts an event space and cooking school plus beautifully landscaped grounds and a kitchen garden. It's a multi-faceted and inviting prospect, so ask for a table in the enormous high-ceilinged, glass-fronted garden room or the outdoor terrace if you want to get the full benefit of the fabulous views. Head chef Jim Day (formerly of Casamia) offers refined and precisely cooked dishes that pair the restaurant’s home-grown herbs and vegetables with the best of British produce from further afield. Come in early summer and you might be treated to, say, asparagus with wild garlic emulsion and crispy egg yolk followed by an opulent main course featuring whole wild sea bass (to share) partnered by sauce vierge, Jersey Royals and a Pony garden salad. To conclude, perhaps plump for the chocolate gâteau with coffee crème patisserie or the lemon set cream topped with burnt meringue and a jelly made from local Cheddar strawberries. A short selection of ‘pub classics’ and several appetising bar snacks (local Westcombe charcuterie, Cantabrian anchovies et al) cater for more casual visitors, who are genuinely welcomed by the friendly staff. Midweek set menus and Sunday roasts are worth checking out too. Real ales, ciders, softs and artisan libations (all from local producers) figure prominently on the drinks list, which also features an inviting line-up of predominantly European wines at fair prices.
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