Harden's survey result
Summary
The cornerstone of Lady Bamford’s organic empire, this farm shop and café (juggling Michelin Green Star dining room ‘The Trough’; pizza and small plates joint ‘The Old Spot’; and ‘The Legbar’ for snacks), “remains a modern oasis amidst all the pubs serving the same menu” in this bucolic corner of The Cotswolds. It “can be a bit haughty” given its Chipping Norton set clientèle (and it remains “pricey”), but then again “perhaps the greatest plus is people-watching and seeing how the other half sometimes behave!”.
Summary
The original farm shop and café in Lady Bamford’s organic mini-empire celebrated its 20th birthday in 2022, and now contains three dining spaces: the Michelin Green Star ‘Trough Restaurant’, ‘The Old Spot’ for sharing plates and wood-fired pizzas, and the more casual ‘The Legbar’ – all of which showcase an aesthetic that’s “quite Nordic but still warm”. The “child-friendly” (and Chipping Norton set-friendly) spot was praised this year as a “perfect location for a late breakfast” – and, while there are still those for whom the “high prices are not justified”, more sanguine reporters feel that they’re “not so shocking now that other restaurants have caught up!”
Summary
Lady Bamford’s two-decade-old farm shop and café may be “home to the Chipping Norton set” but it’s “delightful” nonetheless, especially “when the weather is pleasant enough to sit out under the brollies in the courtyard and people-watch while having something tasty for lunch”. Popularity doesn’t come cheap, but one reporter found it “very reasonably priced” this year, bucking the usual critiques.
Summary
Lady Bamford (wife of JCB heir, Anthony Bamford) opened this chic farm shop and café near the family’s 1,500 acre Cotswold estate about twenty years ago (and later on, spin offs in London). Fans love it, declaring: “it may have a reputation for being pricey, but the interiors are great and the food is just not as expensive as you might expect, given the exquisite perfection of the place”. Critics can’t get over the lack of value though: “the popularity is undeserved: it is just an out-and-out very expensive tourist trap”.
For 34 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).
Have you eaten at Daylesford Organic Farm, Trough Café?
Restaurant details
Prices
 Drinks |
|
|---|---|
| Wine per bottle | £30.00 |
| Filter Coffee | £4.50 |
 Extras |
|
|---|---|
| Bread | £0.00 |
| Service | 12.50% |
Opening hours
| Monday | 8 am‑4 pm |
| Tuesday | 8 am‑4 pm |
| Wednesday | 8 am‑8:30 pm |
| Thursday | 8 am‑8:30 pm |
| Friday | 8 am‑8:30 pm |
| Saturday | 8 am‑8:30 pm |
| Sunday | 9:30 am‑4:30 pm |
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