There are some places that seem to capture North Norfolk particularly well. Good food, familiar faces, plenty of character and, somewhere nearby, the sea.
For our Burnham Market team, The Ship at Brancaster is one of them.
Just a few miles along the coast from our Market Place office, it is a favourite place for the team to get together away from the working day. Senior Property Specialist Wendy Utting, Property Specialist Simon Hempsall and New Homes Specialist Amy Felgate are among those who enjoy heading over for good food, a catch-up and, whenever the weather is on their side, a drink outside.
And it is easy to understand the appeal.
The Ship has been part of Brancaster since 1790, evolving over the years from a traditional village inn into the relaxed, food-led pub with rooms it is today. There is history here, but it doesn’t feel preserved behind glass. Instead, it is woven into somewhere that still feels very much part of village life.
That sense of place extends to the menu, with modern British cooking and Norfolk produce taking centre stage. For a team whose working days take them into homes and villages across this stretch of the county, it feels particularly fitting.
After all, working in North Norfolk means getting to know much more than its property.
It is knowing where to stop for lunch, the villages that come alive when the sun is shining, the walks worth taking when the beach is quiet and those places you find yourself returning to again and again.
Brancaster has plenty of that character. Its story has long been tied to the coast through fishing and sailing, while just offshore the wreck of the SS Vina remains a reminder of another chapter in the village’s history.
For Wendy, Simon and Amy, however, a visit to The Ship is rather more about good food and good company.
It is somewhere to switch off, catch up and enjoy the part of Norfolk they spend their working lives helping other people call home.
And perhaps that is why it has earned its place as one of the Burnham Market team’s favourites. Sometimes knowing an area isn’t about what you can find on a map. It is knowing the places you would choose to go yourself.
This article first appeared in the Autumn 2026 edition of Sowerbys’ at home magazine. You can read the magazine in full here.