The Chequers, Churchill

Churchill

A proper village pub, worth the short drive

Churchill sits in the honey-stone country just south-west of Chipping Norton, and The Chequers is the kind of place that makes you grateful it still exists in the form it does. One thing worth clearing up first, because it trips people up: this is not the same Chequers as the one on Goddards Lane in Chipping Norton town. That one is in the middle of Chippy; this one is a proper village local a few miles out, on Church Road in Churchill, and the two are run by different hands. The one we mean here is the village pub with the green outside and the church tower over the rooftops.

The room is handsome rather than showy: worn flagstones, scrubbed beams, candles on antique tables and a grand inglenook with a fire going the moment the weather turns. There is a well-used dartboard and studded leather armchairs to sink into, and you could walk in wearing muddy boots and nobody would blink. It is part of the Lionhearth group, alongside The Swan in Chipping Norton, and it carries that same easy confidence: local pints at the bar, a wine list chosen with care, and a kitchen that clearly knows what it is doing. It is about twenty minutes from the cottage, which makes it an easy one for a long, unhurried dinner.

What to expect on the plate

The food is elevated pub cooking built on good British ingredients, the sort of menu where the classics are done properly rather than reinvented. The twice-baked cheddar souffle is something of a signature, the steaks come off a Josper grill, and the pies and Sunday roasts have a real local following. We have had the roast chicken and the beef with crisp potatoes and good gravy, and both were exactly what you want after a walk. It is not the cheapest evening out in the area, so we treat it as a proper meal rather than a casual pint, but the quality generally earns it.

• The signature starterThe twice-baked cheddar souffle turns up again and again in reviews for a reason. If it is on when you visit, order it.
• Off the grillSteaks come off a Josper charcoal grill, and the kitchen is known for its pies. Proper, unfussy mains cooked with confidence.
• Sunday roastThe roasts draw people in from across the valley. Book ahead if you want a table on a Sunday, especially in the middle of the day.
• At the barCotswold Lager and Shagweaver golden ale among the local pours, plus a short, well-chosen wine list. Dogs are welcome throughout.

Timings and booking

The kitchen keeps traditional pub hours, split across lunch and dinner rather than serving all day, so it pays to check before you set off. At the time of writing it serves roughly midday to mid-afternoon and again from early evening, with slightly later last orders on Fridays and Saturdays and a single long service on Sundays and bank holidays. Hours do shift with the seasons, so we always confirm on the pub's own channels and book a table for anything other than a quiet weekday. It is a popular spot and the good tables by the fire go first.

Making an evening of it

Churchill is a lovely village to arrive in early and have a wander before dinner, with its green, its old church and the honey-coloured cottages the Cotswolds are known for. If you are building a run of good pubs into your stay, the wider area is rich with them. The Kingham Plough and The Wild Rabbit are both a short drive over towards Kingham, and The Feathered Nest at Nether Westcote is worth the trip for a special occasion. For the full picture, our guide to eating and drinking in the area runs from village locals to farm-to-table restaurants and everything in between.

“Relaxed, unpretentious, and the food is genuinely good. If you only make it to one village pub during your stay, make it this one.”

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Also nearby

• The Kingham Plough · Gastropub · Kingham
• The Wild Rabbit · Inn · Kingham
• The Feathered Nest · Restaurant · Nether Westcote
• The Blue Boar · Pub · Chipping Norton