The Counter by Robin Read

Robin Read at The Counter, Tunbridge Wells, Kent (credit Stuart Mack)

The Counter by Robin Read

The Counter is the debut restaurant of ex-Firmdale Hotels Executive Chef Robin Read, launching on Thursday 2nd May in Tunbridge Wells, Kent.

www.thecountertw.com
Reservations open on 22nd April

Images available to download, credited to Stuart Mack HERE

After years of planning, whilst building up a strong customer base through pop ups and private dining, The Counter is the fruition of the long-held dream of Robin Read to have his own restaurant. Born from a long family history of serving the best produce over a counter, Robin’s maternal grandfather was a Master Butcher in Rugeley, Staffordshire, while on his paternal side, his great-grandfather was a Greengrocer in Lewisham, South London. Together with his wife Greta Boccia, they have taken on a 200-year-old Georgian building in the heart of Royal Tunbridge Wells, which includes the main restaurant with table and counter dining, private dining room, small wine bar and courtyard garden, with raised beds and pots growing herbs, salads, and brassicas.

Offering a choice of five-, eight- and ten-course tasting menus, costing £60, £95, and £125 respectively, Robin has years of experience sourcing the best seasonal and local produce, predominantly from Kent and Sussex, but also within the British Isles. His menus are created from a love of classical cookery and a curious mind for new techniques, with dishes such as Cured mackerel croustade with broccoli purée, Birchden asparagus and seaweed; Cavolo nero cavatelli, Old Winchester & sage; Steamed brill, lobster mousse, caramelised cauliflower, and seaweed confit potatoes; and rosemary & fennel granita on the opening launch menu. The ten-course menu is offered at the counter and gives diners an interactive experience watching Robin and his team of chefs cook and plate up at the pass; the menu is more experimental, taste-testing dishes that are in development for the next month’s menus.

Robin’s vision of a modern-day restaurant is that of a responsible and sustainable one with seasonal cooking, few food miles and using every part of an ingredient. He seeks out and nurtures a strong network of small, independent farmers, growers, and producers from farm to sea and takes great care and pride to meet all his suppliers and visit their farm, forest, river, warehouse, or barn across the country. This ensures he has first-hand knowledge of the produce, and relationships with the people whose hands create, grow, or farm them.

Suppliers at The Counter include Kentish fruit and vegetables from T H Brown & Son, fish from Chapmans in Sevenoaks, meat from Fullers Butchers in Eridge and charcuterie from Beal’s. The wine programme is headed up by Greta Boccia and is a curated edit of English and European wines alongside several English spirits, such as Hepple gin and vodka and Vault vermouth and botanical spirits, on the list.

The restaurant features original artwork on display, and for sale, by Venezuelan artist RAA, a close friend of Robin and his former sous chef. The multi-media works combine acrylics, oil pastels, colour pencils and spray paint in bold and graphic shapes.

About Robin Read

Prior to opening his own restaurant, Robin was Executive Chef of the Firmdale Hotel Group for 16 years, overseeing six new Firmdale openings, including four hotels, a bakery and training academy, all with great success. He worked with head chefs in eight sites (UK & internationally) with over 200 kitchen staff, to maintain the highest of standards.

Robin began his cooking career at the age of 16 with work experience at the Roux Brothers’ London patisserie, where he trained in 1990. His love and passion of the industry continued to grow, working and training with some of the best chefs this country has produced. He spent two years at Chez Nico under Nico Ladenis as sous chef, which held three Michelin stars, before working with Marco Pierre White at Mirabelle, becoming Head Chef, and retaining their one Michelin star. Robin also spent time in the kitchens at Le Gavroche, The Square and Restaurant Paul Heathcote.

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Notes to editors
The Counter
77 Calverley Road
Tunbridge Wells
Kent, TN1 2UY

www.thecountertw.com
@the_counter_tw
@robin__read

For more information about The Counter and Robin Read please contact Hannah Blake at The Dining Room on 07730 039361 or hannah@thediningroompr.co.uk

Jenny Huddart has been appointed Head Gardener at Water Lane

Jenny Huddart at Water Lane

Jenny Huddart has been appointed Head Gardener at Water Lane

Having previously been Head Gardener at The Small Holding in Flimwell and Sarah Raven’s garden in Perch Hill plus four years with the National Trust, Jenny joins Water Lane with a huge amount of experience in both growing vegetables for kitchen gardens, cut flowers and ornamental gardens.

Jenny joins Water Lane at an exciting time of growth and development of the historic site. The two-acre site is a long-term restoration project, led by custodians Ian James and Nick Selby, who are slowly bringing back the garden to its original purpose of growing fruit and vegetables. With a deep respect for the garden’s roots, Water Lane far from a pastiche of Victorian walled garden; it is a garden that will be accessible to all and have many different functions, where people can gather and learn, and where skilled teachers can share their knowledge around horticulture, floral design and artisan craft and food.

Gardening is a second career for Jenny, who after 10 years in television media research, went part-time to study for a RHS Diploma. Once qualified she started her first professional gardening position at Sissinghurst Castle Gardens, working in the vegetable garden.

Jenny comments, “Gardening has always been part of my life. From a very young age I have always enjoyed the creative element of gardening - working with nature to create something beautiful, evoking all the senses. One of my earliest memories is watching my Taid (Welsh grandfather), who was a market gardener, tend the tomatoes in the old glasshouses.”

About Water Lane

The site of Water Lane with its 13 Grade II Victorian glasshouses dates back to the 1800s, on what was once the Tongswood Estate. Working alongside Jo Thompson Garden Design and RX Architects, the whole site is being sympathetically transformed into a productive garden with 72 no-dig vegetable and cut flower beds for the restaurant and shop, and wholesale to local florists, stock and trial beds, restored vinery, outside spaces and a pavilion for dining and events. There is a weekly Produce Market & Kitchen every Saturday and seasonal fairs in Spring, Autumn, and Christmas.

Tongswoods Gardens

Water Lane was previously known as ‘Tongswood Gardens’. It belonged to the Tongswood estate, its name deriving from the Old English ‘Twang’ or ‘Tang’ meaning ‘fork of water’ in reference to the two streams of the river Rother which ran through the estate. Having passed through many families, the estate was bought by Charles Gunther in 1903. In its heyday the garden employed nine gardeners who tended the 13 Victorian greenhouses, including a vinery, peach house, melon house, fern house, fruit house and carnation house. The garden produced beautiful flowers, fruit and vegetables providing ample for the main house, the house in London and even a van of surplus for the local hospital.

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For more information about Jenny Huddart’s appointment, interview with Ian James and Nick Selby, images or to arrange a visit to Water Lane, please contact Hannah Blake at The Dining Room on Hannah@thediningroompr.co.uk | 07730 039361

April at The Small Holding

Seedlings in the poly tunnel at The Small Holding, Kent (credit Key & Quill)

April at The Small Holding

The Small Holding’s farm is a hive of activity in April. Alex and Nick in the Farm Team will usually be found in the potting shed, planting seeds in earnest and playing a never-ending game of Tetrus to find space for more trays of seedlings, giving them warmth and light, ready to plant out into the ground in May. Gardening is only for the patient. The Farm and Kitchen teams planned the whole of the 2024 growing season in October last year, and only now are we starting to see green growth and germination. Favourites for the menu include Broccoli ‘Red Blaze’, Cucumber ‘Passandra’, Radish ‘Viola’, Runner Beans ‘Scarlet Emperor’ and Courgette ‘Midnight’. The team grows harder to come by herbs such as flowering cumin, hyssop, purslane and Summer and Winter Savory, while the double-width polytunnel will house tomatoes, strawberries, fennel, peppers, and aubergines. With the very real chance of a late frost only the hardiest mustards and mizuna have been planted out so far in the beds, but it won’t be long until the whole farm is abundant with new vegetables, fruits and herbs.

April menu at The Small Holding

April can be an even crueller month than March for farm-fresh ingredients. The forced rhubarb is over, but there are larder stores of ‘rhuboshi’, salted and pickled rhubarb, to be served with an oyster cracker on this month’s snack plate, and a croustade of hogget tartare from Bluebell Farm and smoked goats’ curd. A beautiful dish of cuttlefish agnolotti is served with a brown crab bisque, made with the farm’s lemongrass and fermented chilli and finished with pickled fennel and tarragon oil. On the meat courses there is a dish of Wagyu x Sussex Angus beef from Trenchmore Farm in Sussex. The underrated and extremely delicious Denver cut has been chosen, which is a well-marbled and tender cut from the shoulder. To serve, head chef Will Devlin brines the beef in shio koji, before barbecuing and basting with beef garum and beef fat and served with potato terrine, roast and pickled onions and a beef sauce finished with smoked bone marrow, wagyu bresoala and fermented wild garlic.

The April Full Acre menu at The Small Holding

Snacks, Sourdough and Hinxden Butter

Tomato, Wild Garlic, Yoghurt
Asparagus, Preserved Citrus, Coppa

Cuttlefish, Crab, Fennel
Cod, Yoghurt Whey, Douglas Fir

Pork Cheek, Turnip, Apple
Sussex Wagyu, Potato, Alliums

Rhubarb, Buttermilk, Fennel
Chocolate, Chicory Root, Pumpkin

The Small Holding is open Wednesday to Sunday with an eight-course Full Acre menu costing £95 per person and a five-course Half Acre menu costing £75 per person, with the option of a wine flight. The drinks list also includes housemade soft drinks, kombucha and non-alcoholic wine, beer and spirits.

Soap & Salvation launch garden range at Water Lane

Jo and Barrie McPherson at Soap & Salvation in Rye (photo credit Mark Cocksedge)

Soap & Salvation launch garden range at Water Lane

Water Lane, the Victorian walled garden, restaurant and events space near Hawkhurst in the High Weald of Kent, has partnered with Soap & Salvation, to sell a bespoke edit of vintage and antique garden furniture and pieces, which have been exclusively sourced for Water Lane. 

Launching on Friday 29th April at Water Lane, there will be time worn French iron tables and chairs mixing colours and styles for sale, vintage hand-woven basketry in all shapes and sizes, galvanised planters with hand painted blocks of green, cream and egg-yolk yellow, and a collection of beautiful urns from the eastern Mediterranean with naïve hand-painted patterns, half-glazed necks, and simplistic scribed decoration. 

Soap & Salvation was founded by Jo and Barrie McPherson; they source from the heart, mixing antique, vintage and 20th century design finds to create their modern rustic style. The partnership at Water Lane brings their passion for sourcing and collecting unique treasures, with a joint reverence for functional everyday objects that combine beauty and solid craftsmanship. 

About Water Lane

Water Lane is a walled garden on what was once the Tongswood Estate in Hawkhurst, in the High Weald of Kent. A long-term restoration project, led by custodians Nick Selby and Ian James, there is a restaurant, a large and productive garden growing vegetables, fruits, herbs and cut flowers, a small shop of useful and beautiful pieces for the home and garden, select garden plants for sale and event spaces, a weekly produce market and quarterly fairs.

For more information about Water Lane, interview with Nick Selby and Ian James, high resolution images or to visit the walled garden, please contact Hannah Blake at The Dining Room on hannah@thediningroompr.co.uk | 07730 039361

Senior hire at The Small Holding

New Restaurant Manager Suzi-Mona Milne at The Small Holding

SUZI-MONA MILNE JOINS THE SMALL HOLDING AS NEW RESTAURANT MANAGER

THE SMALL HOLDING
Ranters Lane | Kilndown | Kent | TN17 2SG
www.smallholdingrestaurant.com

Suzi-Mona Milne has joined The Small Holding, Will and Matt Devlin’s Green Michelin star restaurant in Kent, as Restaurant Manager. The appointment further strengthens the senior management team with Suzi bringing her commitment to outstanding levels of service for guests, and her passion for wine training and education to The Small Holding; she is currently completing her WSET Level 4 Diploma.

Reporting directly to Will and Matt Devlin, Suzi’s role at The Small Holding includes the smooth running of restaurant operations, in addition to managing budgets, hiring, team development and profit control.

Having studied Applied Linguistics at the University of Portsmouth, Suzi’s career in hospitality began working at high street chains Patisserie Valerie and Cote Brasserie, before progressing to General Manager of the Cirencester site, and then moving to The King’s Arms in Prestbury, a 200-capapcity brasserie and village pub and part of the Raymond Blanc Company estate, as General Manager. In 2021, Suzi’s interest in wine took her to Tofino, Canada to The Pointe Restaurant at the Wickaninnish Inn, a Relais and Chateaux property. She joined the resort as Restaurant Manager, at what was her first foray into fine dining. Taking over several outlets in the Inn, Suzi was responsible for a team of 46 with her role including recruitment, scheduling, budgeting, labour control, developing the team and standards and ensuring guests were accommodated for in any capacity needed.

About The Small Holding

The Small Holding is a Michelin green-starred kitchen and farm on a country lane in the village of Kilndown on the Kent and East Sussex borders. Run by brothers Will and Matt Devlin, as Chef and Head of Operations, respectively, The Small Holding is part of Acre, which also includes Birchwood in Flimwell, East Sussex.

The 36-cover restaurant and farm are set in one acre of land, permitting a unique connection between the land and table. Growing, foraging, and cooking the best ingredients is at the core of The Small Holding, with monthly changing Full Acre and Half Acre tasting menus, using home-reared and home-grown ingredients from the farm, which is less than 10 feet from the kitchen.

March at The Small Holding

Will Devlin picks wild garlic at The Small Holding

March at The Small Holding

The transition from winter to spring is the longest wait, but with the beginning of March, the seasonal shift is clear to see. Daffodils and primroses line the banks of the entrance up to The Small Holding, but for all the optimism in the air and a hint of warmth in the sun, March is the ‘hunger gap’ in the kitchen. The winter produce is almost gone, and ingredients associated with Spring aren’t ready to harvest yet.

In many ways the Full and Half Acre March menus at The Small Holding are some of the most exciting of the year, as Owner Will Devlin and Head Chef James Chatfield call on the well-stocked pantry of preserved, pickled, and fermented foods, while looking to nature herself for wild food. The team makes use of the previous summer and autumn gluts, especially when there is an almost empty natural larder. The clocks will soon change, the evening light will linger just a little longer and wild food such as young nettles and the first wild garlic shoots can be found. Come April and May there will also be wild rocket, sorrel, and elderflower – all of which will be on the menu.

On the March menu snacks plate are the first English asparagus, served with raw scallop in a croustade of smoked crème fraiche, lime kosho and coal oil dressing, smoked roe, and primrose flowers, while the new season tender wild garlic leaves are pureed with buttermilk for fried chicken nuggets and hot honey, made with fermented chilies from the farm. March calls for creativity from the pastry team while waiting for seasonal fruit. One of the desserts this month is an incredible sorbet of fermented Crown Prince pumpkin, sea buckthorn, chicory root crumble and pumpkin seed oil.

The March Full Acre menu at The Small Holding

Snacks, Sourdough and Hinxden Butter

Lion’s Mane, Horseradish, Sourdough
Potato, Onion, Three-cornered Leek

Cuttlefish, Barley, Fennel
Halibut, Mushroom, Purple Sprouting

Lamb, Wild Garlic, Raw Yoghurt
Pork, Cabbage, Apple

Pumpkin, Sea Buckthorn, Chicory Root
Rhubarb, Raw Buttermilk, Honey

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The Small Holding is open Wednesday to Sunday with an eight-course Full Acre menu costing £85 per person and a five-course Half Acre menu costing £75 per person, with the option of a wine flight. The drinks list also includes housemade soft drinks, kombucha and non-alcoholic wine, beer and spirits.

From April, the price per person of the Full Acre and Half Acre menus will increase to £95 and £75, respectively. This price increase reflects rising prices from the producers and suppliers we work with and our commitment to always pay a fair price to farmers to help protect their livelihoods, while continuing to produce outstanding quality ingredients.

About The Small Holding

The Small Holding is a Michelin green-starred kitchen and farm on a country lane in the village of Kilndown on the Kent and East Sussex borders. Run by brothers Will and Matt Devlin, as Chef and Head of Operations, respectively, The Small Holding is part of Acre, which also includes Birchwood in Flimwell, East Sussex. The 36-cover restaurant and farm is set in one acre of land, permitting a unique connection between the land and table. Growing, foraging and cooking the best ingredients is at the core of The Small Holding, with monthly changing tasting menus, using home-reared and home-grown ingredients from the farm, which is less than 10 feet from the kitchen.

The menu is defined by the farm’s own produce. Vegetables and fruits are harvested within hours of guests arriving; while charcuterie, sourdough and cultured butter and zero waste animal cookery from the farm’s own livestock, are made on site. The kitchen team works directly with growers, farmers and fishermen who share the same core values, and the team forage in the nearby hedgerows and woodland.

“Growing our own produce on the farm brings an understanding and honesty back to the kitchen, and vital freshness. Making the most of our harvests when the ingredients are at their prime - whilst also preserving and conserving them to use throughout the year, keeps us concentrated on the natural cycle of the land and helps us to create full flavoured and imaginative dishes.” Will Devlin

Spring at Water Lane

6000 tulips and bulbs have been planted at Water Lane

Spring at Water Lane

Water Lane Spring Fair 4th and 5th May
All About Tulips and Designing a Border workshops with Jo Thompson
The Cutting Garden, Season by Season workshops with Ian James

Spring at Water Lane sees over 6000 bulbs burst into bloom, along the borders, cutting garden and the incredible Melon House border that runs nearly 30m long and 3m deep. Designed in collaboration with one of the country’s best garden designers and plantswomen, Jo Thompson, the planting scheme with its peach, pink, purple and mauve palette, starts the new season with Fritillaria, Narcissus, Crocus and Alliums, culminating in a show of Tulips including ‘Black Hero’ and ‘Rococo’.

Water Lane Spring Fair

The Water Lane Spring Fair is on Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th May, for what is sure to be a brilliant weekend of food, flowers, and friends. Taking place all weekend, and across the whole walled garden site, the fair will host stalls from makers and creators for great shopping, food stalls, textiles, and craft. Shop naturally dyed homewares and accessories from Natural Dye Works; lighting and mirrors by Charlotte Packe; wooden chopping boards by Tim Plunket; French tableware and homeware from Norse Vintage; photographic prints by Katya de Grunwald; folk-inspired textiles from Susie Petrou and Turkish home textiles from Luks Linen; Scagliola bowls and vases by Paul Hale; sustainable and recycled jewellery by Alba Jewellery; pressed flower art by JamJar Edit; fresh flower bouquets and accessories by Bloom & Burn and Spring-time flower crowns with Sasha from Amongst Us.

Stallholders from Water Lane’s regular Saturday Produce Market will be at the fair on both days including Halstead Bakery, LAM, Zak's Kombucha, Basil's Funghi Farm, Cold Blow Coffee Roasters, Nightingale Cider and Water Lane’s own produce stands.

All About Tulips
With Jo Thompson & Ian James
Wednesday 24th April 10.30am to 12.30pm
Tickets £55 includes light refreshments and a bunch of tulips

A workshop to celebrate the tulip! Led by Water Lane's flower grower, Ian and garden designer and tulip lover, Jo Thompson, this morning session will look at 'all things' tulip and include a bunch of freshly cut tulips from the garden to take home.

The end of April is peak tulip season at Water Lane and the workshop will start with a guided tour of the cutting garden, with over 4000 tulip bulbs and the Melon House Border with over 2000, before sitting down in the Pelargonium House with Ian and Jo to share their knowledge of growing tulips for cutting; from where to source your bulbs, interesting and unusual varieties to look out for and different options for planting, as well as tips for harvesting. Jo will discuss some of her favourite tulip varieties and planting combinations, how to choose tulips and other spring bulbs for the border, pots, and containers.

Designing a Flower Border with Jo Thompson
Friday 21st June 10.30am to 3.30pm
Tickets £150 for the day including refreshments and a light lunch

If you have ever wondered how to go about designing the planting for a flower border in your own garden, enrol for one-day workshop, where Water Lane’s Garden Designer, Jo Thompson will be taking us on a journey through planting design, explaining methods and offering tips and tricks as well as sharing border designs she has worked on over the years. Jo has created some of RHS Chelsea's most memorable and award-winning show gardens over the last decade. This one-day workshop will use The Melon House border at Water Lane, that Jo designed and planted in 2023, as a resource and point of inspiration throughout the day.

Topics covered will include starting from scratch, reworking an existing border, position, aspect as well as soil conditions. There will be exploration of structure, seasonality, and plant selection, including shrubs, perennials, annuals and bulbs well as one of Jo's favourite topics - the use of colour. 

The Cutting Garden, Season by Season
Early Spring - 15th March 10am to 4pm
Tickets £55 including drinks and light lunch

A series of workshops throughout the year led by Water Lane’s Ian James about growing flowers for cutting, offering a practical guide to what’s to be done in the cutting garden to give you a flower filled garden, using the Water Lane cutting garden as a resource.  The series consists of 5 workshops held throughout the year; Early Spring, Late Spring/Early Summer, Mid-summer, Late Summer/Early Autumn and Winter.

From advice on seed sowing, taking cuttings and looking after your soil to harvesting and seed collection as well hints, tips and resources that give you the tools to create your own cutting garden. 

Each of these sessions (3.5 hours morning tutorial based and 2 hours practical in the afternoon) are intended for those who are new to gardening or new to growing flowers for cutting. Each session will be practically based and allow you to follow the progress of a cut flower garden throughout the year. Those attending are also invited to join a practical gardening session in the afternoon following the morning tutorial.

Subjects covered in the Early Spring session include - Planning for the year ahead, bed preparation and seed sowing, plant types to grow, Spring bulbs, Planting out, Dahlia cuttings.

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About Water Lane

Water Lane is an idyllic walled garden with a vinery and Victorian glasshouses on the Kent/Sussex borders. A long-term project over many years to come, the site is being sympathetically transformed into a productive walled garden, by custodians Nick Selby and Ian James, with the help of Garden and Landscape designer, Jo Thompson, with vegetable beds, cut flowers, restored vinery, outside spaces and a pavilion for dining and events. The Grade II Victorian glasshouses date back to the 1800s, including a Melon House, Cucumber House, Pelargonium House and Peach Case and a Vinery, on what was once the Tongswood Estate. Water Lane’s restaurant opened in 2021, alongside select garden plants for sale and a small shop. There is a weekly food market on Saturdays, workshops and events and seasonal fairs in Spring, Autumn, and Christmas.

February at The Small Holding

Rhubarb at The Small Holding

February at The Small Holding

The green shoots around The Small Holding’s farm and along the hedgerows are starting to emerge. While still in the dead of winter, the start of the growing season is already underway, the farm and kitchen teams have confirmed the growing plans for 2024, and seed sowing has started in the polytunnel. There is much excitement when the seed packets arrive. With relatively limited space, the team maximise every inch of soil with succession, underplanting and companion planting, and grow vertically to extend the season and produce the greatest yield. Flavour is always king, but it’s a balance of so many factors with constant learning, questioning, and tweaking; there are as many mistakes as successes.

On the February Full and Half Acre tasting menus there are some incredible new dishes from Chef Owner Will Devlin and Head Chef James Chatfield. From the plate of snacks to settle guests in for their dining experience, including braised Trenchmore beef croquettes and wild garlic mayonnaise; Chalk Stream trout tartare croustade with spruce brined ikura fish roe, buckthorn kosho and smoked crème fraiche; and pumpkin and sage gougere through to the desserts of Douglas fir sorbet, preserved plums and yoghurt when caramel; and finishing with a woodruff custard tart with rhubarb sorbet, poached sorbet and toast hay anglaise, the February menu is a stunning taste exploration of the season.

The Full Acre menu at The Small Holding:

Snacks, Bread & Butter

Brassicas, Cheese, Onion
Potato, Mushroom, Wild Garlic

Scallop, Beef, Kohlrabi
Cod, Mussels, Leek

Chicken, Chilli, Seaweed
Venison, Squash, Spruce

Douglas Fir, Plum, Yoghurt Whey
Rhubarb, Custard, Woodruff

The Small Holding is open Wednesday to Sunday with an eight-course Full Acre menu costing £85 per person and a five-course Half Acre menu costing £65 per person, with the option of a wine flight. The drinks list also includes housemade soft drinks, kombucha and non-alcoholic wine, beer and spirits.

About The Small Holding

The Small Holding is a Michelin green-starred kitchen and farm on a country lane in the village of Kilndown on the Kent and East Sussex borders. Run by brothers Will and Matt Devlin, as Chef and Head of Operations, respectively, The Small Holding is part of Acre, which also includes Birchwood in Flimwell, East Sussex. 

The 36-cover restaurant and farm is set in one acre of land, permitting a unique connection between the land and table. Growing, foraging and cooking the best ingredients is at the core of The Small Holding, with monthly changing tasting menus, using home-reared and home-grown ingredients from the farm, which is less than 10 feet from the kitchen.

The menu is defined by the farm’s own produce. Vegetables and fruits are harvested within hours of guests arriving; while charcuterie, sourdough and cultured butter and zero waste animal cookery from the farm’s own livestock, are made on site. The kitchen team works directly with growers, farmers and fishermen who share the same core values, and the team forage in the nearby hedgerows and woodland.

Garden Photography masterclasss with Jason Ingram at Water Lane

Water Lane, the Victorian walled garden in Kent, is hosting a garden photography masterclass with the internationally acclaimed photographer Jason Ingram. Taking place on 20th September, this is a chance to learn from one of the best in the business with the gardens, glasshouses, vegetable, and flower beds of Water Lane as the participants’ studio. Jason has photographed gardens all over the world and his work is regularly published in books and national magazines. This exclusive workshop is full of practical advice and will dramatically improve your garden and plant photography skills.

The day starts with an inspirational illustrated talk by Jason who will demonstrate the many techniques he uses, show you how to select good subjects, frame effectively and make the most of the light conditions. Using your own SLR camera and equipment, Jason will offer advice and guidance and will give informal feedback on your work. This full day workshop includes refreshments and a light lunch.

Jason works with international garden designers and travels widely photographing gardens. His work features regularly in top garden publications. Over the past year, Jason has got to know the garden at Water Lane as he undertook a project with garden designer, Jo Thompson for Garden's Illustrated. He has been awarded Garden Photographer of the Year by The Garden Media Guild six times and Features Photographer of the Year three times.

About Water Lane

Water Lane is a walled garden on what was once the Tongswood Estate in Hawkhurst, in the High Weald of Kent. A long-term restoration project, led by custodians Nick Selby and Ian James, there is a restaurant, a large and productive garden growing vegetables, fruits, herbs and cut flowers, a small shop of useful and beautiful pieces for the home and garden, select garden plants for sale and event spaces, a weekly produce market and quarterly fairs.

For more information about Water Lane, interview with Nick Selby and Ian James, high resolution images or to visit the walled garden, please contact Hannah Blake at The Dining Room on hannah@thediningroompr.co.uk | 07730 039361

January at The Small Holding

THE SMALL HOLDING

Green Michelin Star 2021/22/23
Number 69, Harden’s Top 100 Restaurants
Number 10, Square Meal’s Top 100 Restaurants
Good Food Guide 2023

January

Despite the bitterly cold weather, there is something deeply cleansing and restorative about January; the thin, cold blue light, frozen ground and the beauty of skeleton trees huddled on the horizon. And of course, the food. While the farm is cold and quiet, it’s a hotbed of activity in The Small Holding kitchen. New Head Chef James Chatfield and the team make full use of the summer and autumn gluts and are constantly inventing and experimenting when there’s such a diminished natural larder. There’s fermented wild garlic stored to add deep umami funk to dishes, and pickled summer currants to add some welcome acidity.

The Full Acre menu at The Small Holding:

Snacks, Bread & Butter

Kale, Sea Beet, Cheese
Potato, Girolle, Leek

Scallop, Gooseberry, XO
Trout, Celeriac, Butter

Game Sausage, Quince, Chilli
Partridge, Parsnip, Plum

Rhubarb, Yoghurt, Sweet Cicely
Chocolate, Cherry, Meadowsweet

The Small Holding is open Wednesday to Sunday with an eight-course Full Acre menu costing £85 per person and a five-course Half Acre menu costing £65 per person, with the option of a wine flight. The drinks list also includes housemade soft drinks, kombucha and non-alcoholic wine, beer and spirits.

Grow the Seasons at The Small Holding

Now is a great time to get out into the garden and learn some of the fundamentals about soil health, the principles of ‘No Dig’ and planning for the growing year ahead. Learn to ‘Grow the Seasons’, a series of horticultural courses held on The Small Holding’s farm. The day-long courses are for people of all skills and ages who are interested in gardening, growing and understanding more about how food goes from plot to plate, as well as giving a behind-the-scenes experience of the day-to-day running of a Michelin green-starred restaurant.

Find out more and book for February, May, August, and November 2024 www.growtheseasons.com

About The Small Holding

The Small Holding is a Michelin green-starred kitchen and farm on a country lane in the village of Kilndown on the Kent and East Sussex borders. Run by brothers Will and Matt Devlin, as Chef and Head of Operations, respectively, The Small Holding is part of Acre, which also includes Birchwood in Flimwell, East Sussex.

The 36-cover restaurant and farm is set in one acre of land, permitting a unique connection between the land and table. Growing, foraging and cooking the best ingredients is at the core of The Small Holding, with monthly changing tasting menus, using home-reared and home-grown ingredients from the farm, which is less than 10 feet from the kitchen.

The menu is defined by the farm’s own produce. Vegetables and fruits are harvested within hours of guests arriving; while charcuterie, sourdough and cultured butter and zero waste animal cookery from the farm’s own livestock, are made on site. The kitchen team works directly with growers, farmers and fishermen who share the same core values, and the team forage in the nearby hedgerows and woodland.

The Michelin Green Star for sustainable gastronomy recognises restaurants with a focus on environmental practices; it encompasses everything about The Small Holding and the teams’ drive for sustainability.

December at The Small Holding

Halibut, salisfy, white asparagus on December menu at The Small Holding

DECEMBER AT THE SMALL HOLDING

The farm sleeps. This is an important time as the soil, every inch of which is maximised for nine months of the year, rests, and recovers. While there are still plenty of hardy winter cropping vegetables, such as brassicas and roots, most of the ground is fallow. There is, however, solace to be found in the bright, clean flavours of the season’s produce, cranberries, brussels sprouts, and red cabbage provide a burst of invigorating colour, taste and texture. There is plenty to brighten the cold, thin days before Spring returns.

As winter tightens his grip, the menu at The Small Holding moves from ‘just picked on the farm’ to the delights of the pantry. Cherries have been steeping for months in brandy, the hedgerow sloes and damsons have been transformed with vodka or gin, sugar, and the most important ingredient, time, into inky dark liqueurs to use in cocktails, marinades or to make into cherry ketchup for the December turkey main course. Bronze turkeys come from farmer John Howe in nearby Biddenden, which have been traditionally slow-reared with a life spent outside, freely pecking, and roaming. On the Full Acre menu is Kentucky fried turkey, wild garlic mayo, pickled walnut ketchup followed by Turkey breast, sprouts, chestnuts, pig cheek and cherry ketchup. Turkey certainly isn’t just for Christmas Day.

December Menu at The Small Holding

Snacks, Sourdough & Hinxden Dairy Butter

Squash, Kimchi, Yogurt
Artichoke, Cheese, Pickles

Scallop, Pumpkin, Sea Buckthorn
Halibut, Salsify, White Asparagus

Turkey leg, Black Garlic, Chilli
Turkey breast, Sprouts, Pork Cheek

Milk, Honey, Pollen
Chocolate, Cep, Shitake 

The Small Holding is open Wednesday to Sunday with an eight-course Full Acre menu costing £85 per person and a five-course Half Acre menu costing £65 per person, with the option of a wine flight. The drinks list also includes housemade soft drinks, kombucha and non-alcoholic wine, beer and spirits.

About The Small Holding

The Small Holding is a Michelin green-starred kitchen and farm on a country lane in the village of Kilndown on the Kent and East Sussex borders. Run by brothers Will and Matt Devlin, as Chef and Head of Operations, respectively, The Small Holding is part of the Acre Group which also includes Birchwood in Flimwell, East Sussex. 

The 36-cover restaurant and farm is set in one acre of land, permitting a unique connection between the land and table. Growing, foraging and cooking the best ingredients is at the core of The Small Holding, with monthly changing tasting menus, using home-reared and home-grown ingredients from the farm, which is less than 10 feet from the kitchen.

The menu is defined by the farm’s own produce. Vegetables and fruits are harvested within hours of guests arriving; while charcuterie, sourdough and cultured butter and zero waste animal cookery from the farm’s own livestock, are made on site. The kitchen team works directly with growers, farmers and fishermen who share the same core values, and the team forage in the nearby hedgerows and woodland.

The Michelin Green Star for sustainable gastronomy recognises restaurants with a focus on environmental practices; it encompasses everything about The Small Holding and the teams’ drive for sustainability.

“Growing our own produce on the farm brings an understanding and honesty back to the kitchen, and vital freshness. Making the most of our harvests when the ingredients are at their prime - whilst also preserving and conserving them to use throughout the year, keeps us concentrated on the natural cycle of the land and helps us to create full flavoured and imaginative dishes.” Will Devlin 

James Chatfield appointed new head chef at The Small Holding, Kent

James Chatfield has beeb appointed new head chef at The Small Holding, Kent

New Head Chef appointed at The Small Holding

James Chatfield, 28, from Hailsham, East Sussex has been appointed as the new Head Chef at The Small Holding, the Michelin green star restaurant in Kent, owned and operated by brothers Will and Matt Devlin, and part of the Acre group including Birchwood.

James started his new role at the farm to table restaurant with one-acre of productive land growing vegetables, fruit, herbs, plus beehives, ducks and chickens, in early December. Having grown up and worked in East Sussex in restaurants including Gravetye Manor, Restaurant Tristram, 64 Degrees and Murmur, James’ most recent role was Senior Chef de Partie at Tommy Banks’ Michelin star restaurant The Black Swan at Oldstead in North Yorkshire; James and his wife, Gabby Chatfield who worked in Front of House, were in position there for just under a year, with Gabby now joining James at The Small Holding as a supervisor.

Coming from a family farming background, with his uncle and grandfather owning the award-winning Hook & Son dairy and beef farm, James has had hands-on experience of good produce and close relationships with suppliers since a young age. He brings with him to The Small Holding a shared ethos to Chef Owner Will Devlin of sourcing, growing, and foraging the best quality ingredients, combining time-old preservation techniques with modern innovations.

James’ appointment sees the departure of previous Head Chef Duncan Moran who was at The Small Holding for five years and has been a pivotal member of the team. Duncan has joined The Black Swan Oldstead as Chef de Partie.

Will Devlin comments, “Duncan leaving us is bittersweet as he’s been an amazing part of The Small Holding and the wider Acre team. He’s been with Matt and I since the early pop-up days, through lockdowns, catching escaped sheep and cooking some incredible food together. He is on to great things and we’re all really happy and proud of him. We’re excited to welcome James to the team, we share the same passion and values, and he has some fantastic experience and skills; I can’t wait to get behind the stoves with him.”

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About The Small Holding

The Small Holding is a Michelin green-starred kitchen and farm on a country lane in the village of Kilndown on the Kent and East Sussex borders. Run by brothers Will and Matt Devlin, as Chef and Head of Operations, respectively, The Small Holding is part of the Acre Group which also includes Birchwood in Flimwell, East Sussex. 

The Small Holding is open Wednesday to Sunday with an eight-course Full Acre menu costing £85 per person and a five-course Half Acre menu costing £65 per person, with the option of a wine flight. The drinks list also includes house made soft drinks, kombucha and non-alcoholic wine, beer, and spirits.

The 36-cover restaurant and farm are set in one acre of land, permitting a unique connection between the land and table. Growing, foraging, and cooking the best ingredients is at the core of The Small Holding, with monthly changing tasting menus, using home-reared and home-grown ingredients from the farm, which is less than 10 feet from the kitchen.

The menu is defined by the farm’s own produce. Vegetables and fruits are harvested within hours of guests arriving; while charcuterie, sourdough, and cultured butter and zero waste animal cookery from the farm’s own livestock, are made on site. The kitchen team works directly with growers, farmers and fishermen who share the same core values, and the team forage in the nearby hedgerows and woodland.

The Michelin Green Star for sustainable gastronomy recognises restaurants with a focus on environmental practices; it encompasses everything about The Small Holding and the teams’ drive for sustainability.

“Growing our own produce on the farm brings an understanding and honesty back to the kitchen, and vital freshness. Making the most of our harvests when the ingredients are at their prime - whilst also preserving and conserving them to use throughout the year, keeps us concentrated on the natural cycle of the land and helps us to create full flavoured and imaginative dishes.” Will Devlin 

Notes to editors
The Small Holding| Ranters Lane | Kilndown | Kent | TN17 2SG
www.smallholdingrestaurant.com | @the.small.holding

Green Michelin Star 2021/22/23
Number 25, Harden’s Top 100 Restaurants
Number 10, Square Meal’s Top 100 Restaurants
Good Food Guide 2023

Christmas at Water Lane

Festive feasting at Water Lane

Christmas at Water Lane

‘Tis soon the season and there’s much to sparkle at Water Lane in the coming months.

Christmas at Water Lane in Hawkhurst, Kent, sees the three-acre walled garden bedecked with boughs of foraged evergreens and berries, and festoon lights twinkling prettily between the Victorian glasshouses. Visit for festive feasting in the Carnation House, private dining in the Pelargonium House, a festive workshop, and the Water Lane Christmas Market, taking place over the whole first weekend in December.

Water Lane shop
Festive gifts and products in the shop have been curated by Water Lane custodians Nick Selby and Ian James, and shop manager, Pia Carpenter. Their combined intent is to champion the local, the artisan and the small-scale.

Festive gifts and products in the shop have been curated by Water Lane custodians Nick Selby and Ian James, and shop manager, Pia Carpenter. Their combined intent is to champion the local, the artisan and the small-scale.

Festive feasting
From 1st- 24th December parties of eight plus guests can indulge in Water Lane’s festive menus, to be shared by the table. Plates include Venison Carpaccio, Sprouts & Capers; Roast Scallop, Pepper Dulce & Lardo or Roast Duck, Carrots & Brandied Prunes. Vegan options include Tempura Sprouts and Christmas Ketchup to start, followed by Chestnut & Cep Stuffed Squash, all served with traditional festive trimmings and optional supplements. And for dessert, Clementine Crème Brulee, a Local Cheese board, and of course Water Lane’s Christmas Pudding.

Christmas Market
1st and 2nd December
10-4pm
£7.50 per car or free entry on bike or foot

On the first weekend of December, make a date for Water Lane’s Christmas Market. All around the site and in the glasshouses will be festive stalls from craftspeople, makers, and artisan food producers. Come to shop from small and independent stalls run by creative and talented people and enjoy festive food and hot mulled drinks.

Christmas Trees and Wreaths | Gifts | Crafts | Cambridge Imprint cards and stationery
Cheese, Charcuterie, Preserves | Mince Pies and Puddings

New for 2023 is the Christmas Market Feast, a communal dining table on both days of the market. Sit down for 12.30pm for a festive vegetarian family style feast celebrating the roots and brassicas which are so special, sweet, and full of flavour after the hard frosts of Winter. Priced at £37.50 per person, this wonderful menu from Jed Wrobel and his team includes Winter chanterelle and pearl barley arancini with quince ketchup; Beetroot carpaccio, sprouts, and nasturtium pods; Jerusalem artichoke and pepper dulce temptation and for pudding, a poached pear and chocolate pavlova.

Festive Workshops
Create something beautiful at one of Water Lane’s festive workshops. Floral stylist Graeme Corbett from Bloom & Burn with teach various sessions to create stunning, naturalistic Christmas Wreaths, made using dried flowers, seedheads and other fresh and foraged materials harvested from around the Water Lane Garden, perfectly complemented with a luxury velvet ribbon. While in the Alternative Willow Christmas Tree Weaving workshop, Dominic Parrette will teach how to weave a robust, beautiful conical plant support that can double up as a Christmas decoration this winter. Using sustainable materials, the resulting support will be both elegant and robust and will last two or three growing seasons.

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About Water Lane

Water Lane is a walled garden on what was once the Tongswood Estate in Hawkhurst, in the High Weald of Kent. A long-term restoration project, led by custodians Nick Selby and Ian James, there is a restaurant, a large and productive garden growing vegetables, fruits, herbs and cut flowers, a small shop of useful and beautiful pieces for the home and garden, select garden plants for sale and event spaces.

Water Lane Walled Garden | Hawkhurst | Kent | TN18 5DH
www.waterlane.net | @water.lane

The Cloudberry, Cranbrook

Set custard, plum and lemon madeleines at The Cloudberry (credit Saltwick Media)

THE CLOUDBERRY

Set in a Georgian townhouse with high ceilings, original wooden floors and tall sash windows, The Cloudberry sits at the end of a stretch of small independent shops, pubs, and cafes in the historic High Weald town of Cranbrook, Kent. Outside and to the right of its handsome façade pokes a windmill from weather boarded houses, and to the left, the line of shops disappears towards the church.  

Run by husband-and-wife team Toby and Beverley Welfare, who run the kitchen and front of house respectively, The Cloudberry is a tiny 16-seat restaurant, inspired by the bistros of Provence and the osterias of Tuscany. Drawing on a varied and informed palette, flavours on the menu also come from Spain, Scandinavia and Asia, and is a homage to a lifetime’s love affair with food, cooking and eating. The pair are well-travelled, well-fed and well-read, with inspiration coming by way of Simon Hopkinson, Richard Olney, Le Manoir and The Silver Spoon.

Toby and Beverley Welfare at The Cloudberry (credit Saltwick Media)

The Cloudberry has taken shape over 14 years, from being just a dream to becoming a reality. Both Toby and Beverley walked away from well-paid careers in London television jobs, with Toby working in restaurants to gain experience. The couple finally left the city for the south coast where Toby’s passion for cooking was persistent enough to take on roles in kitchens, including St Clements in St Leonards on Sea,  before becoming Head Chef at Alistair Hendy’s eponymous Homeware Store’s seafood restaurant, in Hastings.

Toby cooks The Cloudberry’s short, focussed menu solo, while Beverley runs front of house, giving a warm and personal service. The four-course menu is £45 per person, with a choice of four starters and main courses, which change regularly and seasonally. Dinner starts with an amuse bouche, such as potato soup with Jerusalem Artichoke crostini, followed by starters such as mackerel, beetroot & apple puree, horseradish, pickled cucumber & kohlrabi or wood pigeon, chicken liver parfait on toast with spiced pears. Main courses might include sea bass with mussels, potatoes and fennel in a crab bisque or roast pork belly, baked apple, raisin & cider sauce and braised lentils. Vegetarian options might include chive gnocchi, goats’ cheese and leek, roast beetroot, kale & salsa verde. A choice of one pudding or cheese is offered such as set custard, plum compote, ginger crumb & lemon madeleine or a plate of Kentish and Sussex cheeses, crackers, and chutney, alongside a small and considered wine list of mainly English, Italian and French wines.

Head chef and owner Toby Welfare, comments, “The seed of The Cloudberry was first sown when, as a five-year-old, I sat at a restaurant table and wondered how I could possibly recreate the food I’d just eaten. A question that nagged then resulted in years of hot kitchens and long days honing my skills as a chef. A persistent hunger for cooking that has remained since and led to opening this restaurant.”

The Cloudberry is named after the Nordic plant which has small and tart yellow-orange berries, that grows in harsh conditions, but still manages to bear fruit. “What the plucky little Cloudberry has taught me” says Toby, ‘is that small can be beautiful.”

Guinea fowl, fondant potato and black pudding at The Cloudberry (credit Saltwick Media)

Customer reviews

‘Exceptional food in a cosy, relaxed atmosphere with an engaging host who was friendly. The perfect spot for a special occasion - my wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our evening at The Cloudberry and will tell anyone who will listen about this gem of a restaurant.’ TripAdvisor 5 stars

‘Really enjoyable dinner at the Cloudberry. Everything we had was delicious - can’t wait to return!  A gem of a restaurant to have in Cranbrook.’ TripAdvisor 5 stars

‘This is a charming, intimate restaurant with lovely service and very good competitively priced food. It’s well worth a visit and we will return for sure.’ TripAdvisor 5 stars

‘My absolute favourite restaurant! Every dish is special and tastes fabulous. Lovely little touch with their amuse-bouche. Outstanding value for money.’ TripAdvisor 5 stars

‘Book a table now... It is a most welcome different offering to the local food scene... This is a chef that understands food and clearly loves what he does. We will be back soon.’ TripAdvisor 5 Stars

‘The food is wonderful, the room atmospheric and it made for a really memorable evening. Highly recommended.’ TripAdvisor 5 stars

For more information about The Cloudberry, interviews, images or press visits, please contact Hannah Blake at The Dining Room on 07730 039361 or hannah@thediningroompr.co.uk

The Cloudberry, Stone Street, Cranbrook, Kent, TN17 3HE
Tel: 01580 712 336
www.thecloudberryrestaurant.com

October at The Small Holding

October at The Small Holding

October is a month we instinctively start to retreat, and crave warmth and comfort. The smell of woodsmoke is in the air and toffee-coloured leaves crunch underfoot, while root vegetables, wild mushrooms, new season mutton, plump scallops and milky cobnuts, arrive on the menu.

The October Full Acre and Half Acre tasting menus at The Small Holding welcomes the new seasons’ ingredients, and starts to look inward to the larder and pantry for preserved oils, vinegars and pickled ingredients, providing points of light and shade on the menu. Scallop, Apple, Gooseberry features a raw Orkney scallop dressed in reduced apple and fennel vinegar with Bramley apple butter, preserved gooseberry and nasturtium oil; while Blackcurrant Leaf, Buckwheat, Elderberry is a sorbet made from preserved blackcurrant leaves, with toasted buckwheat crumble and finished with elderberry balsamic vinegar.

Each month on the menu there is a special focus on one meat, using different cuts in different dishes. This is to showcase excellent meat, but also to reduce any waste across the carcass. Romney Marsh mutton, from nearby Paley Farm, is at its prime in October, after two summers on open grass and pasture, ensuring a rich, full-flavoured sweet and tender meat. On the menu is Mutton ribs, Onion, Wild garlic of slow cooked ribs, wild garlic mayonnaise and pickled onions, before Mutton Loin, Kohlrabi, Tomato with barbecued loin, pickled and fermented tomatoes, black garlic ketchup and creamed savoy cabbage.

October Menu at The Small Holding

Snacks, Sourdough & Hinxden Dairy Butter
Cep, Walnut, Thyme
Potato, Leek, Cheese
Scallop, Apple, Gooseberry
Halibut, Celeriac, Cobnut
Mutton ribs, Onion, Wild Garlic
Mutton Loin, Kohlrabi, Tomato
Blackcurrant Leaf, Buckwheat, Elderberry
Beetroot, Chocolate, Cream Cheese

The Small Holding is open Wednesday to Sunday with an eight-course Full Acre menu costing £85 per person and a five-course Half Acre menu costing £65 per person, with the option of a wine flight. The drinks list also includes housemade soft drinks, kombucha and non-alcoholic wine, beer and spirits.

About The Small Holding

The Small Holding is a Michelin green-starred kitchen and farm on a country lane in the village of Kilndown on the Kent and East Sussex borders. Run by brothers Will and Matt Devlin, as Chef and Head of Operations, respectively, The Small Holding is part of the Acre Group which also includes Birchwood in Flimwell, East Sussex. 

For more information and images for The Small Holding, Will Devlin and The Acre Group,
please contact Hannah Blake at The Dining Room 07730 039361 | hannah@thediningroompr.co.uk

Autumn events at Birchwood

Autumn events at Birchwood, Flimwell.

Autumn events at Birchwood

Autumn is here and so is the new season of events at Birchwood, Will and Matt Devlin’s restaurant in Flimwell, East Sussex. The drinks list at Birchwood is curated as carefully as the food menus and the team always work with producers who celebrate flavour, simplicity, and quality of ingredients.

Brewer’s Spotlight
Lakedown Brewing Co.
Thursday, 19th October 2023
6pm arrival for a 6.30pm start
£35 per person

Brewer’s Spotlight is an evening of specially selected craft beers, charcuterie and cheese plates and a chance to meet the brewer. In this new series, beer maker Jamie Daltrey from Lakedown Brewing Co, a family-run, independent microbrewery, and taproom in nearby Burwash, who make grain-to glass beers, will join the team at Birchwood for a tasting of six Lakedown beers.

On the night, there will be tastings of Silverlake Pilsner, Off the Hook American Pale Ale, Zoot Suit New England IPA, Sussex Pale English Pale Ale and Kicking Donkey Best Better. Included in the ticket price is a half pint of each of the six Lakedown beers and platters of local cheese, charcuterie, nuts, and crisps.

Chapel Down | Wine Dinner
Friday 17th November
7pm arrival for a 7.30pm start
£85 per person

The East Sussex estate of Chapel Down is one of the biggest and best producers of English wine with a multi-award-winning collection of still and sparkling wine. This exclusive wine dinner event at Birchwood offers the chance to try wines that are usually only available to the trade, including the rich and complex Grand Reserve Brut 2018 with notes of ripe apple, fresh red berries, and toasted brioche, to the fresh and elegant Rosé Reserve 2020 with notes of strawberry, cherry, and redcurrant.

The evening will be hosted by Chapel Down’s James McClean with a tasting of four Chapel Down wines, served with a three-course paired menu by chefs Will Devlin and Nick Ryan. Individual bottle and cases of the wines sampled on the night will be available to buy to take home.

About Birchwood

Birchwood in Flimwell, East Sussex is owned and run by chef Will Devlin and is part of the Acre Group, alongside The Small Holding, which was awarded a Michelin Green Star in 2021.

Sitting on the edge of 46-acres of birch and chestnut trees in rural East Sussex, Birchwood is set in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Part of Flimwell Park, a pioneering mixed-use centre of coppiced woodland, Birchwood offers an all-day menu for breakfast and lunch, and is open seven days a week, from 8am-4pm.

Environmental, social, and economic sustainability has been at the heart of the construction of Birchwood, with all timber sustainably sourced and weathering steel used for the window bay cladding. Onsite solar power is generated from 300 photo-voltaic cells located on building roofs, cladding, and canopies, with a grid of solar thermal units heating water directly from the sun. The car park SUDS system is made from local stone, geo-textile filtering layers and recycled plastic open-grid surfacing making up the Truck Pav system. Six Tesla charging points have been installed, with two more charging points available for other electric car brands. 

About Filmwell Park

Flimwell Park, a £6 million pioneering mixed use woodland development, is nearing completion after a decade of consultation, planning and construction. A collaboration between property developer Regalmain and architect Steve Johnson of The Architecture Ensemble and a core team of foresters, ecologists and permaculturists to re-purpose the land, the site has been transformed into an inspiring new model for a sustainable woodland community that blends living, working, recreation and learning. www.flimwellpark.com

Grow the Seasons at The Small Holding - new course dates for 2024

Will Devlin at The Small Holding, Kent

Grow the Seasons

Learn to ‘Grow the Seasons’ in 2024 with new dates announced for chef and grower Will Devlin’s horticultural courses at his Michelin green-starred restaurant and farm, The Small Holding. 

Led by Head Gardener Sara Cushing and Assistant Head Gardener Alex Cairns, Grow the Seasons is for people of all skills and ages who are interested in gardening, growing and how our food goes from plot to plate, as well as giving a behind-the-scenes experience of the day-to-day running of a michelin green-starred restaurant. 

The full-day course starts with coffee and pastries on The Small Holding’s one-acre farm, and is a balanced mix of hands-on practical and theory learning, as guests discover and share in the team’s knowledge on seasonal vegetable and fruit growing, ‘No Dig’ principles, soil health and composting, and how to take sustainable practices home to their own gardens, plots and allotments. 

Each quarterly course is in tune with the growing season, including ‘Fresh Start’ in February looking at no-dig beds and planning for the growing year ahead; ‘Planting Out’ in May looking at sowing, planting, support structures, companion and succession planting; ‘Harvest Time’ in August is about reaping the rewards, composting and organic feeds and finally, ‘Winter Planning’ in November, which will cover the end of the growing season, mulching, lifting and dividing and overwintering crops.

Each full-day course costs £195 per person and includes coffee and pastries, lunch at The Small Holding, learning sheets and a practical gift bag to take home.

Find out more and book for February, May, August and November 2024 www.growtheseasons.com.

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“The menu reads like a list of all that is good in a British Larder. Self-sufficiency, careful sourcing, purity of intent and an absolute focus on flavour. It’s easy to fall in love with The Small Holding for the warmth of the staff, its good intent and deft execution.” Tony Turnbull, The Times

Forge, Fire & Food at The Small Holding

Alex Pole at the forge (credit Tim Booth)

FORGE, FIRE & FOOD

Alex Pole Blacksmith x The Small Holding
Sunday 3rd September, 12.30-15.30
£70 pp including knife making demonstration, cocktail and lunch
Reservation link here.

Blacksmith Alex Pole will join executive chef Will Devlin and guests at The Small Holding for an exclusive ‘Forge, Fire & Food’ event on Sunday 3rd September.

Alex Pole has worked as a blacksmith for over 30 years and founded Forge Kitchenware in 2015, making traditionally hand-forged kitchenware and cooking utensils, made in the fires of his Dorset workshop. Forging is the ancient art of shaping metal by heating it by fire and hammering. It is a highly skilled art full of tradition and folklore, and with infinite modern applications.

Alex makes pieces for home kitchens, outdoor cooking and bespoke pieces for chefs and restaurants including The Small Holding, L’enclume and Ikoyi. One of Alex’s primary aims is to promote blacksmithing and traditional crafts to show their importance in the 21st century.

This one-off event at The Small Holding will begin with a knife making demonstration from Alex and his senior assistant Jack Pardoe. Each piece of Forge Kitchenware, be it a knife, skillet or coffee scoop, starts as a simple bar of steel, which is heated and repeatedly hit on the blacksmiths’ anvil, until it is the correct size, shape and style. Some pieces can take hundreds of strikes before it is right. Alex will offer insight into the ancient traditions and techniques of European knife making and the creation of pieces that are beautiful and tactile, yet wholly functional.  

Throughout the demonstration Will and Alex will be talking about his craft and how he became involved in the food world, along with serving snacks and negronis, created with The Small Holding’s own house made Campari-style liqueur, made with foraged bitter botanicals. This will be followed by a fire-cooked family style feast of Paley Farm mutton and produce from The Small Holding’s farm, using Alex Pole’s cast iron skillets.

Will Devlin says, “Alex is a true craftsman and artist and it’s a joy to use his hand-forged pieces in both the kitchen and as part of our tableware service. His pieces combine beauty and function and will last a life-time if treated well and looked after. These values of craft, design and sustainability are fundamental to us at The Small Holding, and combined with food and fire is irresistible.”

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About The Small Holding

The Small Holding is a 36-cover restaurant and farm set in one acre of land, on a country lane in the village of Kilndown, on the Kent and East Sussex borders. The farm is less than 10 ft from the kitchen, growing nearly 200 varieties of vegetables, fruit and herbs, permitting a unique connection between the land and table. Native breed Large Black pigs, chickens and ducks roam the farm and sheep for hogget and mutton graze less than half a mile away. The Small Holding was awarded a Michelin Green Star in 2021, and was one of the first seven restaurants in the country to be recognised for its commitment to sustainability in gastronomy and low-impact environmental practices. Growing, foraging and cooking the best ingredients is at the core of The Small Holding, with monthly changing ‘Full Acre’ and ‘Half Acre’ tasting menus, using home-reared and home-grown ingredients from the farm and foraged in the nearby hedgerows and woodland.

Run by brothers Will And Matt Devlin, as Executive Chef and Head of Operations, respectively, The Small Holding is part of the Acre Group which also includes Birchwood in nearby Flimwell, East Sussex.

Summer events at Birchwood

Summer events at Birchwood

Summer events on the terrace at Birchwood, Flimwell, East Sussex

Two new late Summer events will take place at Birchwood, Will and Matt Devlin’s restaurant and event space at Flimwell Park, East Sussex.

Supper club 

The next edition of the Birchwood Super Club series is on Friday 25th August and, weather permitting, will be on the terrace overlooking the Flimwell Park woods. Seated on communal dining tables, the evening will be a glorious way to celebrate summer, starting with drinks from Birchwood’s extensive list of cocktails, wines, beers and soft drinks, before sitting down to a four-course dinner, made from the finest Kent and Sussex produce, cooked by Will Devlin, alongside head chef Nick Ryan and the team.

The late summer menu will include Sungold tomatoes, lovage salt; Rye sourdough, marigold flower butter; Barbecued Sussex beef rib, dill brined baby gem, fermented mushroom, triple cooked potatoes & Chop House butter sauce and for dessert, Brioche summer pudding and sweet woodruff cream.

Arrival from 7pm for drinks, to be seated at 7.30pm.
Priced £55 per person. Reservations are now live and seats are strictly limited

Wellness Day Retreat

The inaugural Day Retreat from Birchwood Studio will take place on Saturday 23rd September, from 10am-3.30pm, costing £165 per person. This unique and intimate day retreat will bring together movement, conscious connected breathwork and ice therapy, alongside a nutritious ginger shot drink, lunch, tea and snack. Led by breathwork practitioner Nicky Carter, the day will appeal to people of all ages who are looking to reset, rebalance and restore. Total beginners through to more experienced are all welcome.

Book here. 

About Birchwood

Sitting on the edge of 46-acres of birch and chestnut trees in rural East Sussex, Birchwood is set in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Part of Flimwell Park, a pioneering mixed-use centre of coppiced woodland, Birchwood offers an all-day menu for breakfast and lunch, and is open seven days a week, from 8am-4pm.

Much like The Small Holding, Will and Matt Devlin’s Michelin Green Starred restaurant, Birchwood is guided by the landscape, self-sufficiency and focused on flavour found in the natural world. Ingredients are local, seasonal, home-grown, and wild. Championing the artisan suppliers of Kent and Sussex, the menu plays host to local cheeses, dairy, wines, spirits, and beer, while many ingredients, such as mushrooms, brambles, elderberries, wood sorrel and birch sap come from the woods, on the steps of the restaurant. 

About Filmwell Park

Flimwell Park, a £6 million pioneering mixed use woodland development, is nearing completion after a decade of consultation, planning and construction. A collaboration between property developer Regalmain and architect Steve Johnson of The Architecture Ensemble and a core team of foresters, ecologists and permaculturists to re-purpose the land, the site has been transformed into an inspiring new model for a sustainable woodland community that blends living, working, recreation and learning. www.flimwellpark.com

Water Lane Harvest Festival Autumn Fair

​​Water Lane Harvest Festival

Celebrate the harvest at Water Lane over the weekend of 16th and 17th September with market stalls selling crafts, vintage, ceramics, candles, and jewellery from independent lifestyle stores for homes and gardens.

Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th September
10am - 4pm
Free entry on foot or bike
£5 per car to park

Water Lane Walled Garden | Hawkhurst | Kent | TN18 5DH

The Water Lane Harvest Festival Autumn Fair will be held over the weekend of Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th September. The fair will bring together independent shops, producers and craftspeople, to sell their wares and will be set out across the site including the Carnation House and under the stretch awning on the terrace. Attending the fair will be The Natural Dyeworks, Raffman & Huckster, Flavell Trading, Norse Vintage, Bloom & Burn and many more. There will be hot food from the Water Lane kitchen team, and food to buy and take home from Water Lane Food Market regulars including Halstead Bakery, LAM and Zak's Kombucha. Bunches and buckets of cut flowers will be for sale, including dahlias and chrysanthemums, in the deep marmalade, russet and raspberry tones of early autumn.

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About Water Lane

Water Lane is a walled garden with a vinery and Victorian glasshouses on the Kent/Sussex borders, on what was once the Tongswood Estate. A long-term project over many years to come, led by custodians Ian James and Nick Selby, the site is being sympathetically transformed into a productive kitchen garden with vegetable beds, cut flowers, restored vinery, outside spaces and a pavilion for dining and events. The restaurant at Water Lane opened in early July 2021, alongside select garden plants for sale and a small shop. There is a weekly food market on Saturdays, workshops and events and seasonal fairs in Spring, Autumn and Christmas.