Nest, UK Hotel

UK

The panoramic views from the dining room windows are of Seago’s Norfolk: flat farmland and morning light glinting through thick hedgerows – an East Anglian idyll.

Indoors, Nest Farmhouse’s breakfast follows suit. There are Staithe kippers and ‘farmhouse cures’ (roast ham, cured trout, hard cheese, milk bread). An enamel teapot on a cast iron trivet is filled with good, strong tea. There is a profound sense of place.

The setting is a working farm - it’s a long way from the rustic neighbourhood restaurant that opened in Hackney back in 2017, but fitting for a restaurant group that has made its name through seasonal British tasting menus.

The past few years have seen the team expand to two grown-up sites in the capital and scoop both a Michelin and Green Star (at the Smithfield outpost, St Barts). It’s a story of good people doing things well and being rightly rewarded.

The opening of Nest Farmhouse follows pop-ups in Burnham Overy, and on a Friday night, the dining room buzzes. News travels fast here. The site is unlike anywhere else nearby – the dimensions of an old cowshed remain, but a wraparound veranda, porch tables for drinks and a low-hipped roof give the building a ranch feel.

The food is confident: a Pie of the Week (pork, smoked bacon, apricot and sage), well-dressed salads and Earl Grey crème brûlée. The five rooms (more to come) boast lofty proportions and great views. It’s by no means a rustic farmhouse aesthetic, but curated, modern, purposeful and delightful.

Doubles from £200.

Words by Rachel Walker.

This article was taken from the December 2024 issue of Food and Travel. To subscribe today, click here.