When you start exploring Bridgwater, you discover there's a lot more to it than the willow man landmark beside the M5 and the town's annual carnival, which is the largest illuminated procession in the world.
We're offering stargazers the chance to stay with us during Exmoor's first Dark Skies Festival, which runs from October 19 to 29 this year (2017).
Our co-owner Candida is a beekeeper and she is helping support the vital role of the honey bee to the environment as part of National Honey Week from October 23 until 29 (2017).
Party organisers from Bridgwater looking for a venue for a works or office Christmas meal this year (2017) can now book up with us.
National Chocolate Week takes place on October 9 and runs until October 16, and applauds all things chocolate and the expertise of pastry chefs.
Candida's homemade granola, which we serve at breakfast, is extremely popular and Candida often gets asked for her recipe, so we've popped it together below for you to try out at home. Enjoy!
If you're looking for a luxury base to try some country pursuits, then head our way this autumn/winter (2017).
Brides and grooms are demanding more than the traditional cream or pink floral arrangements from their florists.
As we're just off the M5 at junction 23, Bridgwater, we're becoming a bit of a stop off for holidaymakers motoring on to Devon or Cornwall.
Couples getting married this year (2017) are going for weddings lasting a few days to allow them to spend more time with family and close friends.
Our co-owner Candida has had bees on-site here for four seasons and has five hives with around 40,000 bees in each.
Our chef Dan Lay has been promoted this month to Senior Chef de Partie after working his way up from the pot wash.
Here's our chefs' handy kitchen herb guide to help you select the ones you need when cooking. Or if you're growing your own plants this year, the below should assist you with ideas for how to use them in your dishes. Enjoy!
Calling all wildlife lovers! We'd like to lure you to Somerset to get close to some of the county's furry and fluffy favourites as well as enjoying some hearty fare too.
Simply come in for a meal, drink or just come and stand outside in our garden and take a photo of yourself with our signs in the background, or take a picture of your meal or drink when you dine with us and comment, share it on Facebook with all your friends, ask them to share it too and tag us to be in with a chance of winning a 25 voucher.
Same sex couples tying the knot this year (2017) are going for rural venues like ours.
If you read our blog last week about how to create the perfect wedding or party table and you want to be sure your table looks the part, and you're dressing it yourself, then here are a few more additional handy hints from our team:
We are offering you our top tips on how to dress a table for a special celebration this year (2017) as creating the right atmosphere is key for the success of any event.
We're celebrating after being named as one of HotelsCombined best places to stay in the UK and within the top 3% of hotels worldwide.
If you're struggling with getting a decent night's sleep, then you're not the only one. We've become a nation of poor sleepers.
Birders and twitchers keen to get a glimpse or to hear one of the UK's rarest birds can now do so in Somerset.
The second annual Quantock Walking Festival takes place this month (June, 2017) hosted by Sedgemoor Ramblers and Stowey Walkers.
If you've noticed a drop in your attention span, you're unable to sleep well and you're struggling to get jobs done at home and work, then you might be experiencing a digital overload.
We're inviting families with children to explore interactive story trails in the county this year (2017) - combining 21st century technology with our ancient landscapes.
If you're new to cooking and have often wondered what dishes you should master that will be instant crowd-pleasers, our Head Chef Thomas Jones gives his advice below.
Our Head Chef Thomas Jones says when planning your meals to think about what is in season and to make the best of it.
Walkers who take a trip to Somerset this summer (2017) can participate in a 725-year-old perambulation, ramble on an extinct volcano or enjoy 360 degree views from The Burrow Mump.
We're inviting children to enter our potato modelling competition with a dog-theme.
Somerset is not often described as foodie heaven but it is somewhere away from the hungry hoards that's ripe for exploring.
If you're expecting guests for Easter, then it's really important to plan ahead for the long break and make lists galore to ensure that everything is covered.
Being the venue for many special events all year round, whether bijou bashes or much larger weddings, we know a thing or two about entertaining here.
Baths mean different things to different people, but for most of us they are a means of grabbing some 'me time' as well as washing off the dust of the day.
Fancy trying one of the dishes our Head Chef, Tom Jones loves to prepare?
Tom has popped together the recipe for his braised lamb shank wrapped in Savoy on a bed of tomato and aubergine concasse with a spiced red wine reduction (serves 4) for you to have a go at preparing below.
We're offering visitors to Somerset looking for a more active getaway a guide to some of the county's lesser known but adventurous attractions.
Our part of the Westcountry and its Heritage Coastline is a hardcore rambler's idea of heaven but if you're new to walking, here's why this part of the world is worth striding out for.
We're offering dog lovers and their well-behaved pet pooches a place to stay.
Whatever the time of year, Somerset is the perfect spot for a romantic break.
If you're in the area, enjoy gardening and fancy spending some time in the fresh air, here are our top three garden walks on the Quantocks.
If you book two consecutive nights stay during the pre or post Valentine's weekend (February 11 and 12 and 18 and 19, 2017) you will be given a free room upgrade where possible from a cosy room to a luxury one and a luxury one to a supreme.
If you want to come good with your New Year's resolutions this year, take a look at your sleep routine and how much rest you are getting first.
Dine with us throughout this month (January, 2017) and help raise funds for charity by buying a dessert.
Here's our guide to having, hopefully, a stress-free Christmas lunch.
Love them or hate them, Brussel Sprouts are a festive foodie classic. But did you know:
We've appointed Thomas Jones as our Head Chef and we'd like to officially welcome him to the team.
The 33-year-old previously worked as Head Chef for Cricket St Thomas Warner Hotels and has been employed as Chef de Partie at The Grange in Sherborne, Dorset.
In the run-up to Christmas we're inviting children to write their wishes on a cardboard star in return for a charitable donation to Dogs 4 Adoption and The National Animal Welfare Trust (NAWT).
We will place our Christmas wishing tree in our bar area as we thought it would be a great way to raise money for our two charities of the year, Dogs 4 Adoption in Taunton and The National Animal Welfare Trust (NAWT) in Langport.
Somerset and its historical significance is often overlooked in favour of the more glamorous counties that surround us, such as Dorset and Devon but we've got lots to shout about. With lots of firsts.
For example, not many people know that we have one of the oldest engineered tracks in the world at Avalon Marshes. Our pre-historic ancestors made their way around the moors on these wooden tracks that they devised and built, and 21st century travellers can step back in time when they walk the Ancient Sweet Track, which is not far from us.
We start this romantic ramble (which is eight and a half miles in length) on the beach road from Kilve, which is a pleasant drive from us along the A39. Use the OS 1:25,000 Explorer 22 Map 'Quantock Hills and Bridgwater'.
Dorothy Wordsworth lived in the area in the late 1790s with her brother and poet William and the pair spent most of their time walking with fellow poet Coleridge, who also lived nearby.
Dorothy lived with her brother William, the famous Romantic poet, on the Quantocks at Alfoxton House, which was then owned by the St Albyn family, near the village of Holford in the July 1790s, which isn't far from us here on the edge of Bridgwater.
The pair spent a great deal of time with fellow poet Coleridge, who was then living with his wife Sarah in Nether Stowey.
There is very little written about Dorothy Wordsworth but we're doing our best to celebrate the sister of the celebrated Romantic Movement poet.
From next month (December, 2016) onwards we're offering guests details of Dorothy's walks in the Quantocks when she lived in the area in the 1790s with her brother.
THIS month (October, 2016) we've been declared Highly Commended by the Bristol Bath and Somerset Tourism Awards.
Our award-winning boutique hotel, restaurant and pub was entered in the Small hotel, boutique accommodation of the year category for the new award scheme run by Services for Tourism.
We've recently launched details of our 2016 New Year's Eve party that will help raise funds for two animal charities in the area.
Tickets can be booked now and collected from December 5 for our annual event on December 31, which this year is supporting Dogs 4 Adoption at Wrantage and the National Animal Welfare Trust (NAWT) near Langport.
Calling all party organisers! Are you tasked with finding a venue for a works Christmas party this year (2016)?
Our Christmas Party Menu is focused on Westcountry-sourced ingredients wherever possible and we make every dish on-site. To add to this, we've added some vegetarian and gluten-free dishes too.
Following more than 70 years' experience collectively in the catering and hospitality industry, our owners, husband and wife team Candida Leaver and Peter Starling, purchased The Bower Inn in 2010.
The pair set about revitalising the business and have created an award-winning vibrant pub, restaurant and boutique hotel.
Those wishing to hang up their oven gloves this Christmas Day (2016) can dine with us and enjoy a three-course menu.
We've unveiled our menu for December 25 and are now able to take bookings for the day.
The Quantocks has a chequered history making it the perfect place for an intriguing weekend break this autumn and winter (2016).
Here you can find fossils, hear about smugglers, poets and spies and visit the places where they frequented while making your own happy and interesting memories to take home.
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