Dominic Chapman of The Beehive to take over The Crown at Burchetts Green

Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox

Deputy Editor

The Chapman family of The Beehive in White Waltham are set to take the reins at the celebrated gastropub once occupied by the Bonwicks, The Crown at Burchetts Green

The Crown will reopen for lunch service on June 15th, with Dominic taking to the stoves and his wife Helena running the front of house.

They will continue operating their award-winning gastropub, The Beehive, alongside it, with both businesses kept as "distinctive and individual restaurants in their own right," Dominic said.

Nick Chapman, Dominic's brother, will carry on in his capacity as Chairman of the family company, which has owned Somerset's acclaimed Castle Taunton Hotel for the past seven decades.

Calling the move an "exciting opportunity," Dominic said his aim in the kitchen would be "to build on The Crown’s great culinary reputation, matched of course by the warmth of our hospitality and a beautiful wine list."

'Goodbye Old Gewl!'

The Bonwick family - Simon, Deborah and their nine children - ran The Crown for nine years, during which time it earned a Michelin star, three AA Rosettes and a regular spot on the Top 50 Gastropubs list.

When they concluded their venture in December 2021, chef patron Simon Bonwick said the family business was set for "new beginnings in a bright future."

Announcing the news on social media on Friday, Simon said: "Today we handed the “Culinary Baton” of our little Crown over to Dominic Chapman and his family," who, he added, "will run with the ball and continue its greatness."

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A post shared by Simon Bonwick (@chefbonwick)

Dominic Chapman - known to many as Dom Chapman - is a fourth-generation chef. Prior to taking over The Beehive as chef patron in 2014, Dom worked at Heston Blumenthal’s three Michelin-starred restaurant, The Fat Duck in Bray; for Rowley Leigh at Kensington Place and at The Hind’s Head. As the head chef at Michael Parkinson’s gastropub, The Royal Oak Paley Street, where he spent seven years, he helped earn it a Michelin star, three AA Rosettes and was named The Good Food Guide's Best Pub Chef.

We're unsure what the next move for the Bonwicks will be, but when he released his cookbook last year, Cooking in Pubs, Simon did disclose that he was plotting a second, this time focusing on his time cooking in London's hotels.

Videos with Simon Bonwick and Dom Chapman:

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