The Cotswolds is usually a quiet place. Rolling hills, honey-colored stone, and the occasional tractor. But if you drive toward Asthall, near Burford, things get a bit chaotic. People are everywhere. They’re queuing in fields. They’re nursing pints of Hawkstone lager while staring at a marquee. This isn't a music festival; it's a pub. Specifically, it’s The Farmer’s Dog, the latest project from the world’s most polarizing farmer, Jeremy Clarkson.
Most celebrities slap their name on a gin brand and call it a day. Not Clarkson. He bought a struggling wedding venue formerly known as The Windmill for roughly £1 million and decided to turn it into a crusade for British agriculture.
It’s been over a year since the doors opened in August 2024, and the dust hasn't settled. If anything, the controversy has only grown. Between the council battles and the refusal to serve a single drop of Coca-Cola, the Jeremy Clarkson farm pub has become a case study in how to run a business with your heart—and maybe a bit of your ego—instead of a spreadsheet.
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Walking into The Farmer’s Dog is like entering a bubble of militant Britishness. Clarkson has implemented a strict policy: almost everything served must be grown or reared in the UK, ideally within a 16-mile radius.
Think about that for a second. No black pepper. No coffee. No avocado toast. Even the ketchup had to go because the big brands source their tomatoes from overseas.
Honestly, it’s a logistical nightmare. Clarkson famously admitted in his Sunday Times column that black pepper alone costs him ten times more to source domestically. He’s also joked—though maybe he wasn't joking—that he loses about £10 on every customer who walks through the door because the overheads of local sourcing are so astronomical.
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What’s actually on the menu?
- The Main Event: Massive steak pies, sausages of the day, and Lancashire-grown potatoes.
- The Sunday Roast: This is the big draw. It’ll set you back about £24 for a standard plate or £26 if you want both beef and pork.
- The Drinks: It’s Hawkstone everything. Lager, cider, and even the "Farmer’s Puppy" bar in the garden for the overflow crowds.
People complain about the prices. I’ve seen the reviews calling £14 for a lamb shawarma "extortionate." But here’s the thing: you aren't paying for a microwave meal from a global supply chain. You’re paying for the fact that the cow lived down the road. It’s expensive because farming in Britain is expensive.
The Planning Wars of 2026
If you’ve watched Clarkson’s Farm on Amazon Prime, you know his relationship with the West Oxfordshire District Council is... strained. It’s basically a long-running sitcom at this point.
However, there was a major breakthrough just this month, in January 2026. After a year of back-and-forth, Clarkson finally won the right to lay hard surfacing on the car parks. Before this, the pub was basically a swamp every time it rained. The council finally conceded that having people park in a muddy field and then drag that mud onto the A40 was a bigger safety hazard than just letting him build a proper car park.
It wasn’t a total win, though. The council slapped him with nine specific conditions. He has to keep the hedges at a certain height (1.5 meters, to be exact), and if a plant dies, he has to replace it immediately. He also has to submit a "transport management method statement" within the next few weeks. It’s typical red tape, but it’s the price of being the most famous pub owner in England.
The "People Banned" List
Clarkson doesn't do "customer service" in the traditional sense. He recently banned a user on X (formerly Twitter) just for complaining that the pie was too expensive.
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Then there’s the legendary "Banned" board inside the pub. The first two names? Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and James May.
It’s theatrical. It’s silly. But it’s also why people drive four hours to stand in the rain for a pint of 4.8% lager. You aren't just buying a drink; you’re buying into the "Diddly Squat" universe.
Why the locals are (still) annoyed
Not everyone is a fan. The Asthall Parish Council meetings are reportedly quite spicy. Residents have complained about "loud music" on Saturday nights—even though it shuts off at 10:00 PM—and the "unusual" volume of traffic.
There was also a bit of a row over a birthday cake. A customer asked if they could bring their own, and the pub said no—unless the cake was 100% British. That means British flour, British sugar (from beets, presumably), and British butter. It sounds extreme, but if you break the rule for a cake, where do you stop? Next thing you know, there’s a bottle of Heinz on the table and the whole ethos collapses.
Is it Worth the Trip?
If you're looking for a quiet, romantic meal with a wide selection of international wines, stay away. Go somewhere else.
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But if you want to see what happens when someone puts their money where their mouth is regarding British farming, it’s fascinating. The food is genuinely good—the "Hops & Chops" butcher shop on-site sells meat that is worlds away from supermarket quality.
Plus, the views are incredible. The beer garden looks out over the Windrush Valley, which is basically a watercolor painting come to life.
Actionable Tips for Visiting
If you're planning to head down to The Farmer’s Dog, don't just wing it.
- Check the opening times: Currently, they're open 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM most days (Sundays they close at 10:30 PM), but the "Farmer’s Puppy" kitchen and the "Farmer’s Dough" pizza stand have different, more limited hours.
- Prepare for the A40: Traffic near the Burford roundabout can be a nightmare. Try to arrive mid-week if you can.
- Book ahead: You can book a table online at their official site. If you show up on a Sunday without a reservation, you’ll be eating a sausage roll in the rain.
- Embrace the Britishness: Don't ask for a Coke. Don't ask for a latte. Drink the Hawkstone, eat the pie, and enjoy the fact that you're supporting a local supply chain that most of the country has forgotten about.
The Jeremy Clarkson farm pub isn't just a place to get drunk. It's an expensive, loud, and incredibly stubborn protest against the way we eat. Whether it survives the financial reality of losing £10 per guest remains to be seen, but for now, it's the most interesting pub in Britain.