Step into the BridgeHouse and you can sense the 700-year-old former priest’s house ooze its character. With crackling log fires in centuries-old inglenooks, stone mullioned windows, oak beams and candles, there’s time to relax and be waited on without fuss or hurry in an environment that is both ancient and modern.

At the heart of the hotel is its celebrated AA starred Dorset restaurant, where you’ll find a rare blend of old Dorset recipes, with modern cooking techniques and presentation. The style is traditional English, sourcing ingredients from all over Dorset and beyond. Recently featured in the BBC’s ‘Good Food Magazine’, Bridge House’s philosophy is ‘keep it simple: no compromise on quality.’

The à la carte menu changes with the seasons along with individually priced Daily Specials singling out the freshest or most exciting produce that day. All stocks and sauces are homemade. Bread is baked in house along with scrumptious biscuits, ice-creams, sorbets, and delicious truffles!

For more informal dining, the Beaminster Brasserie was launched in May 2008 and makes for a comfortable, relaxed and more family friendly environment. You can also experience Al Fresco dining under the canvas awning, with heat lamps to protect from the vagaries of the English weather.

The Brasserie takes it food cues from France, but with a British take on what a brasserie menu should contain. With the menu changing seasonally, the list of local, organic suppliers is ever increasing. West Dorset is particularly blessed with fantastic organic produce, which has the chefs chomping at the bit.

The wine list is carefully selected to complement the dinner menus, and balanced between old and new world. Regularly revised by Brasserie manager Mark Pielesz in liaison with local suppliers, the list is arranged by style and very reasonably priced. There are no less than 10 house wines to choose from, with a further 100 fine wines from some of the world’s top producers.