There’s a typical thread to most episodes of Grand Designs. A youngish couple have an incredible idea to create their dream home, they always go way over budget, end up living in a damp caravan for a couple of years and invariably add to their chaos by producing a child or two along the way.
Well, it turns out, that THE PIG-near Bath has a similar tale, though for this ‘grand design’ we are heading back to the early 17th Century where the budding developers are the Popham family, and their forever home is planned on the Hunstrete Estate.
As with all new owners, the Pophams’ wanted to make their own mark on their new home. They didn’t hold back and set to demolishing the pre-existing medieval manor and began building ‘a mansion on a most grand and magnificent scale’ The family though, well let’s say they weren’t exactly the caravan type, so whilst surrounded by stonemasons and carpenters they decided to set up home in ‘the lodge house’ adjacent to the building site.
It's at this point that the development plans don’t follow the usual Grand Designs storyline… The elaborate shell of the new building is in place, but the ongoing vision for the Popham’s Grand Mansion is too extraordinary for what their funds will allow. The family acknowledge that they simply can’t afford to proceed, and instead of holding fire and saving up for the next stage of build works, they make the incredibly dramatic decision - to demolish the lot.
With the building razed to the ground, bar just 5 arches which remain from the front portico, you may be wondering how it is that I am now sipping on an elderflower cordial whilst enjoying a view over the lawns watching a young family play croquet. Remember that lodge house which the Popham’s ‘camped out’ in? Turns out that it is quite the property. The lodge house does in fact form the core of the present Hunstete House, coach house and stables, and as lodge houses go, it’s an absolute corker of a manor house! Welcome to THE PIG- near bath.
Hospitality pioneer, Robin Hutson first began THE PIG franchises in 2010, and came across what would be THE PIG-near Bath in 2013. It had been a hotel for 40 years or so and needed lots of love, so in conjunction with Judy, his creative director and wife, they set out to sympathetically renovate the building before launching it a year later. 2024 sees THE PIG-near Bath celebrate its 10-year anniversary and to mark the occasion they have created two additional rooms in a private area of the grounds. I’m joined on the terrace by hotel director, Steff Jones who is also celebrating a personal work anniversary of ten years at Hunstrete, ‘There’s very few places like it. Although a professional level of service is super important here, we do invite our guests to feel as though they are at home. There is no ‘sir/madam’, and the idea that you need to wear a tie is long gone! We welcome people to come here in their shorts and flip flops, that’s why ‘THE PIG is called THE PIG - it’s to break down the barriers. Yes, we have the most remarkable manor house as our setting but we’re not a stuffy country house.’
We head inside and Steff tours me around the ground floor. A series of reception rooms offers a variety of spaces for guests to relax; a couple are enjoying a pot of afternoon tea whilst reading books, a woman is working on her laptop and two friends are mid-game in the billiard room. The lounge bar has two bartenders mixing cocktails for the family group who are gathered on the patio, and a young chef walks past carrying a heady mix of fresh garden herbs. The overall vibe is relaxed but the house does feel special, the décor feels decadent but in a chilled way; its quirky and stylish, and it’s that unique style which makes a stay at the PIG something to covet. ‘A large number of our guests at the weekend are Londoners seeking a countryside escape, but I can’t stress enough how THE PIG near Bath is as much here for our Somerset community as it is for travelling guests. You can just drop in. You don’t need to be an overnight guest here, come for coffee, lunch, dinner or afternoon tea or to enjoy our spa treatments at The Potting Shed.’
Steff leads me outside and we walk past an outdoor wood oven and bar where a chef is busy prepping for this evening’s alfresco offering, ‘This area has been invaluable for our live music acoustic sessions which run throughout the summer. Local artists set up in the garden and guests and locals alike enjoy sounds from Somerset-based musicians whilst enjoying the surroundings. No tickets needed.’
As we head through to the kitchen garden, passing the potting shed treatment spaces tucked away amongst the trees, the ethos that goes hand in hand with all eight PIG’s is particularly prevalent here as the landscape changes from manicured lawn to a hive of organised horticulture. ‘We have the largest kitchen garden of the whole group and it’s an important focal point of our Somerset hotel. One of our values here is to be generous with our time and so every morning at 11am, you can meet our head gardener, Zack and he’ll guide you through our four-year rotation plans.’ Even to me, ashamedly someone who is severely lacking in the green fingers dept, I am impressed by the vast number of varieties of well, everything. We walk past 4 types of currents alone, red, black, white and pink. There are blackberries and then there are the Chilean Guava berries which Zack tells me, ‘look like red blueberries but taste like strawberries’. The gooseberries are joined by garlic chives ‘grown as a natural prevention to saw fly’ and as we pass a polytunnel bursting to life with eight varieties of tomato, a fruit orchard with quince, pear and apple trees, a 32 tree nuttery of several nut varieties and a mushroom house, it is easy to see how the PIG has created such a name for itself in the foodie arenas.
Whether you’re perusing the 25-mile dinner menu, the home-grown cocktails menu or indeed the wine menu, the focus on Somerset provenance is high. The map on the back of the dinner menu alone includes almost 40 local producers, many of which are small niche businesses who specialise in their chosen fields, be they meat or poultry farmers or small Somerset companies creating bespoke chocolates, homegrown rapeseed oil or craft cheese. Meals are served in the conservatory, unless you are larger party in which you case you can opt to eat in ‘The Old Dining Room’ or ‘The Kitchen Table’ private hire spaces.
The conservatory is decorated with terracotta pots, some growing chillis, aloe vera, geraniums or strawberries. The vibe is relaxed with low lighting yet a healthy buzz. The cardboard napkin rings, made from upcycling last week’s menu card, are a gentle reminder that this company strives to care for the environment, maintaining a high quality but not at the detriment of the larger climate concerns. Tom Ross, CEO says ‘We recognise our responsibility to be a force for good, for our guests, the environment, staff, the industry and our community; making sure ‘our patch’ is looked after. On departure, we want our guests to feel confident that their visit has left the local culture, economy and environment in a better way. We are aware there is more to be done and we are so excited to continue our sustainability journey, doing what’s right for people and planet and having a holistic approach to sustainability is central to the way we operate.’
When it comes to the bedrooms, Steff tours me around the latest offering at THE PIG near Bath, The Orchard Stable and The Nuttery, which you find after strolling past glimpses of the resident deer in the 30-acre deer park and winding through the wildflower meadow. The decor embraces THE PIG’s upcycling principles with larder units cleverly created by repurposing old furniture to encompass bespoke spaces for making hot drinks or late-night tipples. This is repeated in the rooms in the main house, which too are well stocked with local treats and delicacies. Vintage books, well-chosen classic furniture and rugs are all brought together in interiors elegance by Judy’s talented eye for an extremely comfortable night’s sleep.
When you think back to the heritage of this building, how the Popham’s saw it as their temporary abode, their ‘caravan’ as they attempted to build a greater grand design next door, it’s a fortunate stroke of serendipity that Robin & Judy Hutson saw the potential in that original ‘lodge house’ and in turn, masterfully created their very own Grand Design. A homely environment to enjoy delicious food whilst being rooted in the glorious Somerset countryside is what awaits you in Hunstrete. And for those who wondered why they called it THE PIG? ‘Lovable, unpretentious and keen on dinnertime… it somehow felt right for a place that revelled in its connection with the countryside and the local farming communities.’
