Family-run Dartmoor pub celebrates major success with double gold award wins

The Dartmoor Inn at Lydford has added two more accolades to its growing list of achievements, receiving both a Taste of the West Gold Award and a Food Drink Devon Gold Award in the Dining Pub category within the same week.

The recognition marks another milestone for the family-run business, located on the edge of Dartmoor National Park, which has become one of the region’s most respected dining pubs under the ownership of Jay and Tess Barker-Jones.

After several turbulent years for the hospitality industry, The Dartmoor Inn has quietly re-established itself as one of Devon’s best-loved dining pubs, and its owners say the success has come down to consistency, community, and doing things their own way.

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The Inn was named Best Pub in Devon at the 2023/24 Food Drink Devon awards, adding to a growing list of gold awards and shortlistings since the couple took over in 2019.

“Once you win something like that, you’re unlikely to win it again,” Jay said. “But we’ve just carried on doing what we do, keeping a settled team and staying consistent.”

ABOVE: Awards won by The Dartmoor Inn (Credit: Jamie Townsend)

The couple bought the Dartmoor landmark six years ago and immediately closed for ten days of much-needed TLC.

“We did a lot of fixing,” Jay explained. “We sanded floors, repaired the roof, redid the bar and tables, everything needed attention. Tess was pregnant at the time, and we were living on site, so it really was all-consuming.”

Over the following months, the team trained to match the couple’s own high standards.

Jay, formerly head chef at Tanners in Plymouth and with experience at Michelin-starred kitchens in the Isles of Scilly, built a small, uncompromising menu around local produce.

“We had about eight months of training before Covid hit,” he said. “Then two years of disruption, not great from a business sense, but it gave us time to fix problems properly.”

Today, The Dartmoor Inn is a small, family-run operation, managed by Jay, Tess, and Tess’s parents Andrew and Jo Chisholm, who oversee management and finance.

ABOVE: The Dartmoor Inn at Lydford is located just off the A386 (Credit: Jamie Townsend)

The team of around 22 to 28 staff run the pub five days a week, serving up to 60 patrons alongside three guest rooms on the top floor.

The inn proudly champions Devon produce, with local suppliers listed on every menu page.

“We work with people like Phillip Warren for meat and Brixham for fish,” Jay said. “We also stock Dartmoor and Tavistock breweries, and spirits from local artisan producers. Some of our old suppliers have sadly disappeared, but we’re lucky to have long-standing relationships with the ones still here.”

The Inn has now featured in the Michelin Guide for five consecutive years and the Good Food Guide for four, and although proud of those listings, Jay said they have chosen to step back from chasing awards.

“A lot of it’s moved towards tourism rather than hospitality,” he said. “We’re more interested in maintaining our own identity.”

Much of that identity comes from the people behind the bar and in the kitchen with several chefs who have been with the pub for over four years, and front-of-house staff for five or six. “That’s how we keep the standard,” Jay said. “Everyone’s trained the way we want to do things. It’s about being inclusive and making sure everyone feels comfortable.”

ABOVE: The Dartmoor Inn staff (Credit: Tess Barker-Jones)

The pub’s busy schedule, particularly in the colder months, is another sign of its enduring appeal. “The Inn really comes to life in the winter,” Jay said. “It’s warm, cosy, and full of regulars by the fire. Bookings for Boxing Day lunch are already close to 100, and the pub will close for ten days on 2 January to give staff a well-earned break.”

Jay admits that running a business of this size can be demanding. “Margins have shrunk and costs have gone up. Chefs have always been underpaid, but we’re trying to keep things affordable for our customers while maintaining a good work-life balance for staff.”

Tess’s connection to the building runs deep, she first worked at The Dartmoor Inn between 2006 and 2011, starting as a kitchen porter before moving into management. “It’s come full circle,” Jay said. Their daughter, Willow, now five, has grown up in the pub and already knows the place inside out.

For the Barker-Jones family, the aim is simple, to keep serving honest food and welcoming faces through the door. “It’s really good to be busy,” Jay said. “Exceptional demand is a nice problem to have.”