Free-range bronze turkeys, geese, ribs of beef, gammons and the trimmings, booked from October until the book closes on the fifteenth of December
The Christmas order
The Christmas book opens on the first of October and closes on the fifteenth of December, and this website says which from the clock. Free-range bronze turkeys from a farm near Usk at £13.50 a kilo, turkey crowns, geese, three-bird roasts, ribs of beef from the cabinet, gammons we cure, pigs in blankets, stuffing and the stock bones. A £20 deposit; collection on the twenty-third or twenty-fourth.
Christmas is a third of the year's turnover in three weeks, and the book that makes it work is kept to the day: it opens on the first of October and closes at the end of the fifteenth of December, after which the farm has counted its birds and we cannot add a name. This website reads the clock and says whether the book is open; the order page takes the order while it is.
The turkeys are free-range bronzes from a farm near Usk, slow-grown over six months, hung for a week, delivered on the twenty-second. Sizes from four kilos, which feeds six, to ten, which feeds sixteen; the Christmas page has a table. Crowns for a smaller table, boned and rolled turkey breast, geese, a three-bird roast we bone and stuff here, and for the people who would rather have beef, a rib from the cabinet or a fillet. Gammons we cure in the back from October; cooked hams by the kilo on the day.
The trimmings are the same recipes as the rest of the year: chipolatas wrapped in dry-cured streaky for the pigs in blankets, sage and onion stuffing made here, cocktail sausages, and bags of stock bones for the gravy. A £20 deposit is taken when the order is placed and comes off the bill. Collection is on the twenty-third from eight until six and on the twenty-fourth from seven until one, in half-hour slots you choose when you order; the queue on the pavement is part of Christmas in Pontcanna, and we hand out mince pies.
What you get
- Free-range bronze turkeys from near Usk, four to ten kilos
- Crowns, boned breasts, geese and a three-bird roast
- Rib of beef and fillet from the cabinet
- Gammons cured here; cooked ham by the kilo
- Pigs in blankets, stuffing, cocktail sausages, stock bones
- Collection slots on the 23rd and 24th; a £20 deposit off the bill
What it costs
Bronze turkey £13.50 a kilo (a five-kilo bird feeds eight, about £68), crown £17.50 a kilo, goose £16.50 a kilo, rib of beef £28.50, gammon £9.80. Deposit £20, off the bill. The counter list has every cut with its price per kilo; the order page prices a joint by weight before you ring.
Questions about christmas
When does the Christmas book close?
At the end of the fifteenth of December, every year, because the farm counts the birds then. The Christmas page and the order page say whether it is open; after it closes we keep a short list of unclaimed birds for the twenty-fourth, first come first served.
How big a turkey do I need?
About six hundred grams per person for a bird on the bone, with leftovers; a five-kilo bird does eight, a seven-kilo bird does twelve. The Christmas page has the table with prices.
Order ahead and skip the Saturday queue.
Pick the cut, say the weight, and the order page tells you the price before you ring. In by Friday noon and the joint is cut, wrapped and under your name on Saturday morning. Delivery within four miles on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.