Exmoor Forest Inn

Verdict: A Michelin-recognised inn on Exmoor that earns a second visit

The most common assumption about a Victorian inn on Exmoor is that the food will be an afterthought to the scenery and the rooms. At Exmoor Forest Inn, that assumption is wrong. If you have been once and left thinking it was a pleasant country stop, go back and pay closer attention to what is on the plate.

Portrait

Exmoor Forest Inn sits in Simonsbath, one of the quietest settlements on Exmoor, which means the produce on your plate has not travelled far. The kitchen draws on organic ingredients from the surrounding estate, and the menu moves between traditional British cooking and more considered modern pub dishes. That combination works because the sourcing is doing real work: local ingredients treated generously rather than fussed over. Michelin's Plate recognition, awarded for two years running, is the clearest external signal that the food justifies the detour.

The fire-lit lounge and 11 bedrooms make this a sensible overnight choice if you are exploring Exmoor in autumn or winter, when the moorland is at its most atmospheric and the drive back to anywhere requires planning. Staying the night also changes what the inn offers you: the bar and lounge become a late-evening space rather than a post-dinner sprint to the car. For returning visitors, this is the angle worth exploring. The kitchen closes at a set hour, but the lounge fire and the inn's drinks offer extend the evening in a way that a day-trip format never allows. If your first visit was dinner and drive, the overnight format is the version that makes full use of what Exmoor Forest Inn does well.

Seasonally, late autumn and winter are when this inn makes the most sense. The moorland setting is stark and genuinely impressive in colder months, the fire-lit rooms become an asset rather than a detail, and the organic produce from the estate shifts toward the kind of hearty, grounded cooking that the kitchen handles with confidence. Spring and summer visitors will find a different mood, lighter and more open, but the inn's character is most coherent when the weather outside justifies staying in.

For a returning visitor, the question is usually whether to push further into the menu or book a room. The answer depends on what you missed the first time. If you came for dinner and left, the residential offer is the logical next step. If you stayed but ate conservatively, the estate-driven dishes are where the kitchen's identity is clearest. Either way, the price point at ££ means you are not taking a financial risk on a second visit.

Among comparable rural dining destinations in the UK, Exmoor Forest Inn occupies a specific tier: awarded but accessible, with a price range that stays well below destination restaurants like Gidleigh Park in Chagford or L'Enclume in Cartmel. If your frame of reference for Michelin-recognised country cooking is Hand and Flowers in Marlow or Pipe and Glass in South Dalton, Exmoor Forest Inn is operating in the same honest, produce-led tradition at a similarly approachable price. It is less destination-driven than either, but the location on Exmoor gives it a distinct context that neither can replicate. See our full Simonsbath restaurants guide for other options in the area, and our Simonsbath hotels guide if you are planning an overnight stay.

Practical Details

Address: Simonsbath, Minehead TA24 7SH, United Kingdom. Price range: ££. Cuisine: Traditional British with modern pub dishes, estate organic produce. Rooms: 11 bedrooms. Booking difficulty: Easy. Awards: Michelin Plate 2024 and 2025. Dress: No formal dress code indicated; smart casual is appropriate for the setting. Reservations: Advance booking recommended, particularly for weekends and any planned overnight stay. Direct booking via the inn is the standard approach.

Also worth knowing

• The 11 bedrooms make this one of the few Michelin-recognised dining venues in Exmoor where you can eat and sleep on-site without a significant price jump.
• If you are driving from elsewhere in the South West, Gidleigh Park in Chagford is the most comparable high-end alternative, though at a substantially higher price point and with a more formal register.
• For other Exmoor-adjacent experiences, see our Simonsbath experiences guide and our Simonsbath bars guide.
• Returning visitors from further afield may also want to consider Moor Hall in Aughton or Ynyshir Hall in Machynlleth as contrasting benchmarks for what estate-driven British cooking can reach at the top end of the category.