Restaurants in Lincolnshire: The Six Bells, Witham on the Hill
This month we’re enjoying a return visit to The Six Bells, a country pub restaurant which retains its long-standing Michelin Bib Gourmand status for 2026, offering quality, value and a very friendly welcome
I’ve always thought it curious that French dining, as a restaurant genre, hasn’t permeated the British consciousness in the same way that restaurants offering Italian, Indian, Chinese or Thai cuisine have established themselves in our towns and cities.
It’s a common idiom to ‘go out for an Italian,’ for example, but it’d sound odd to say that you were ‘going out for a French.’ The lack of such a colloquial phrase is even more puzzling given that our continental copains are renowned across the globe for their contribution to good food.
Personally I adore good bread, tonnes of cream and butter, good cheese, the judicious use of herbs and salt, glossy sauces… and a decent glug of red wine from the Rhône.
The nice thing about French dining is that it doesn’t need to be pretentious, expensive or fussy; just hearty and well-executed. Hence France’s auberge restaurants, renowned for serving classic dishes like steak frites and moules marinière in a comfy, relaxed and rustic setting.
Joyfully, that’s exactly what’s available at The Six Bells at Witham on the Hill, every Monday evening. The pub restaurant serves a dedicated, fixed-price auberge menu offering a choice of three starters, main courses, and desserts each, all for £28.
Fewer local restaurants are open on a Monday, so it’s perhaps for this reason, and for the fact that the pub restaurant’s auberge offering is such decent value that, during our visit on Monday afternoon (when most places would be closed or deserted) the place was packed.
But inexpensive Monday dining is by no means The Six Bells’ only selling point. In February the Michelin Guide for Britain and Ireland announced this year’s ratings, and reaffirmed the pub restaurant’s Bib Gourmand status, defined as ‘recognising restaurants that serve high-quality food at great value, helping diners discover outstanding meals for every occasion and every budget.’
The Six Bells was built in 1908 and commands a Grade II listing. It has been owned by the Trevor family since 2014, though Jim and Sharon previously ran The Jackson Stops inn at Stretton, Jim’s Yard in Stamford and The Beehive in Peterborough prior to their arrival in Witham on the Hill.
The two have long since handed over the day-to-day running of the place to son and daughter, James and Lauren who had been running The Queen’s Head at Bulwick until rejoining The Six Bells in 2020. Last year, too, the family opened a sister restaurant, The Rose & Crown, in Thorney, whose feel, philosophy and food ethos is generally similar to that of The Six Bells.
The pub restaurant’s statement of intent, as quoted on its website, is ‘simple foundations, honest food, prepared and cooked with care, using quality ingredients, combined with warm and welcoming hospitality.’ Beyond that, The Six Bells’ good value, and its long-standing Bib Gourmand status probably explain The Six Bells’ popularity. Another reason, though, might be its reputation for consistency.
As well as being under the same family’s ownership since 2014, and retaining its Michelin Bib Gourmand status for 12 years on the trot, Head Chef Ben Poulton has been in post for over a decade. It’s all but unheard of for a chef to stay in one place for so long, unless they own the restaurant.
His presence has ensured consistent quality year after year, but with a second child on the way and a desire to spend more time with family, Ben will this month give way at the pass to his Sous Chef, Phil Evans, who has also worked at the pub restaurant for over a decade.
Given that fact, we expect the quality and consistency of The Six Bells’ dining to endure, and with Ben’s partner, Danielle, the long-standing and much-loved General Manager of the place, you can still expect to see Ben popping into The Six Bells… probably pushing a pram.
Monday’s auberge menu gives way to an à la carte menu served from Tuesday to Saturday and offering four seasonally-changing dishes during lunchtime and evening service. The menu also runs an offering of Napoli-style wood-fired oven-baked pizzas, and the availability of half-rôtisserie chicken, brined and flavoured with fresh herbs snipped from the pub restaurant’s in-house allotment.
Residual heat from the same wood-fired oven that bakes pizzas on Saturday evening is used to slow-roast the 28-day-aged sirloin of beef and loin of lamb for Sunday lunch. The dry, slightly smoky heat from local kiln-dried logs lazily imparts exceptional flavour and ensures a tender, rosy-pink and succulent roast.
Across The Six Bells’ menus, butchery is supplied by Derbyshire-based Owen Taylor, who works with farmers across the East Midlands, including those in Lincolnshire.
Lamb is supplied by Sophie Arlott of Lavinton Lamb who also supplies a number of one, two and three-Michelin starred British restaurants.
Sustainable line-caught fish is supplied by Wild Harbour, game is from local shoots and veg is sourced from the Fens via Accent Fresh.
The Six Bells bakes its own no-knead eight-grain bread. Surplus loaves of this are available to purchase and take home. Truffles and fudge served with coffee are made in-house too. Local ales are supplied by Nene Valley, Oakham and Grainstore breweries and local spirits include Multum Gin Parvo.
The Edwardian pub is also traditional and comfortable, with wood burning stoves if it’s cool this month. Meanwhile, a timber and glass canopy with patio heaters at the front of the building, as well as outdoor seating enables diners to hedge their bets in terms of the weather. Dogs are welcome under the canopy too.
The bar and two restaurants provide a total of 55 covers with an additional 25 covers on the terrace. Private dining for up to 12 diners is available too, ideal for family celebrations. Last year’s new car park isn’t exactly the sexiest thing to mention, but it does make life easier, given the restaurant’s popularity.
Overall, The Six Bells is excellent, and excellence is never an accident. A great setting, attentive, friendly service and seasonal dishes with locally-sourced ingredients all make this lovely pub restaurant a highly recommended experience, one that’s a credit to its lovely team and to the lovely family who own it.
On the Menu at The Six Bells
Starters
Soup of the day, £9.Chicken liver pâté, tomato and pear chutney and toasted sourdough, £12.Lincolnshire Poacher soufflé, creamed leeks and wholegrain mustard £14.
Oak-smoked salmon, lemon & capers, £13.
Chicken and smoked ham hock terrine, homemade chutney plus wood-oven bread, £13.
Burrata mozzarella, fig, rocket and parma ham, £13.
Main Courses
Smoked haddock, Norfolk Keeper potatoes, monks beard, leeks and lemon butter sauce, £26.Roast rump of lamb, minted new potatoes, seasonal vegetables red wine sauce, £30.
Cornish monkfish with wild leeks, lemon, parsley and aged Parmesan risotto, £29.
Dry-aged sirloin steak with green beans, French fries and peppercorn sauce, £30.
Honey-glazed pork collar with black pudding, mash, Bramley apples, seasonal vegetables and a red wine sauce, £27.
Roast rump of beef, with mini shin cottage pie, dauphinois potato, seasonal vegetables and smoked bone marrow sauce, £32.
Desserts
Chocolate Nemesis with crème fraîche.
Bramley apple and plum crumble, vanilla ice cream.
NB: Sample menu and featured dishes, subject to availability and change.
The Six Bells, Witham on the Hill
The Pitch: “An independent family business, a village pub with bedrooms, a south Lincolnshire institution and a restaurant serving locally sourced, seasonal dishes, seven days a week. Awarded the coveted Bib Gourmand from the Michelin Guide in 2014; retained the accolade for 2026.”
Opening Hours: Open seven days. Lunch Mon to Sat, 12 noon-2pm, Sunday 12 noon-5pm. Dinner served Monday to Saturday 6pm-9pm.
The Six Bells Main Street, Witham on the Hill, Bourne, Lincolnshire, PE10 0JH. Call 01778 590360 or see www.sixbellswitham.co.uk.