The Pony Chew Valley announces plans to mark 20-year anniversary
The Pony Chew Valley has announced plans to mark its 20-year anniversary in 2026.
Josh and Holly Eggleton will celebrate the milestone with an archive menu, Josh’s debut cookbook and a limited-edition perry made with neighbouring producer Wilding Cider.
Josh and Holly, who took on The Pony & Trap in 2006, built a reputation for seasonal British cooking and community-focused hospitality, with the original business holding a Michelin star before the pandemic.
Following a major restoration, The Pony has since evolved into a rural restaurant and cookery school with gardens and orchards on site. The wider Pony Family has also expanded into a restaurant group with multiple sites across Bristol, Bath and Somerset.
The Pony from the Archives
At the heart of the anniversary plans is The Pony from the Archives, a special menu running from Wednesday, May 6 to Saturday, September 26, 2026, replacing the usual à la carte offering on Wednesdays to Saturdays for both lunch and dinner.
According to the restaurant, the menu will revisit some of its best-known dishes from the last 20 years, alongside produce from the garden and ingredients from long-term local suppliers including Newberry’s Smokehouse, Strode Valley Organics, Homewood Cheeses and Yeo Valley Organic.
Sample dishes include The Valley Smokehouse smoked salmon terrine with cucumber and piccalilli from 2010, spiced crab soup with fresh white crab meat and saffron mayonnaise from 2015, and whole lemon sole with brown shrimp, lime and caper butter from 2018.
Debut cookbook and limited-edition perry
The anniversary year will also see the launch of The Pony Cookbook, Josh’s first book, which will be released in June. Priced at £35, it will bring together signature dishes from The Pony alongside stories of the produce and suppliers that have helped shape the restaurant over the years.
Also launching in May is Pony x Wilding Perry, a limited-run collaboration with Chew Magna-based Wilding Cider using local pears from the Chew Valley. The release will be served across The Pony Family restaurants and sold online with nationwide delivery, priced at £34 per 750ml bottle.
Anniversary celebrations begin in May
The celebrations will begin with an Anniversary Garden Party on Bank Holiday Monday, May 4, with further plans, including a guest chef series at the Cookery School, due to be announced.
Josh said: “Being at the forefront of the Michelin-star pub movement taught us so much; but it had never been the goal.
“Now, we’ve taken everything we’ve learned over the years and distilled that into what The Pony is. Yes, a country pub and restaurant providing local, tasty food; but also somewhere that inspires the people around us, from our staff to our neighbours. Somewhere that really benefits the community we are part of, for the next 20 years and beyond.”
Holly added: “The best thing about staying in one place for this amount of time is the relationships you make along the way, and the people who show up and support you.
“There’s a real localism to what we do, which translates down through generations - we’re now welcoming the great-grandchildren of our first customers! Those roots are something we’ll always nurture, even as we evolve.”
Bookings for The Pony from the Archives are available via The Pony website for lunch and dinner from Wednesday to Saturday, from Wednesday, May 6 until Saturday, September 26, 2026.
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The Pony Chew Valley announces plans to mark 20-year anniversary
