Lovely Local Food- Going West

Back in March we did a blog post on 'Lovely Local Food- Going East', which gave a taster of foodie things in a Barnstaple and Braunton direction. This time we are going West, to give you a flavour of lovely things available in Ilfracombe and Mortehoe. It feels to us that we need to treasure these little food havens and encourage more options to flourish and grow, to nourish our  community and our guests.

Ilfracombe is a fishing port situated 8 miles along the coast. The high street, it is fair to say, has seen better days, but the harbour and Fore Street in particular are on their way up. Ilfracombe's heyday was in the Victoria era when droves of holiday makers came down on paddle steamers from Bristol to 'sample the sea air'. The beautiful but ageing architecture of the houses give hints of its splendour in days gone by. It remains a popular holiday destination to this day. The Ilfracombe shops are an eclectic mix from typical holiday 'bucket & spade' and gift shops through to lovely galleries and craft shops (4 new galleries have sprung up in the last 6 months). 

The Deli is one of my favourite Ilfracombe treats, with great coffee and yummy food. 

Lisa the owner and chef, seen here peaking out over the crisps, has created a vibrant hub in the high street. 

This is a taster of what they have to offer plus....

 a host of delicious and interesting other things too.

Next is an extraordinary shop 'The Walkers Chocolate Emporium' . When you go inside you will see what I mean. They make all their own chocolate in all sorts of shapes, sizes and mixtures. There is even a chocolate museum out the back and you can, at times, see them making their next batch.

For something a little healthier go to 'Nana Sue's Sunfoods'. They have a wide selection of health foods, gluten free products, supplements and all things natural and organic. The owners are on hand for helpful advice if needed.

Now to the most excellent Mike Turton and his butchers shop. He not only sells meat but a wide selection of homemade pies, pasties and cheeses.

Mike makes all his own sausages and burgers. There are so many sausage options the choice is almost overwhelming. We have been known to have a couple of each and do a BBQ 'pick and mix'.....the meat equivalent to a packet of Revels (you don't know what it is until you bite into it!!)  If you are doing a large shop and you know what you want, Mike is even happy to deliver out to Pickwell (you will need to give him a few days notice). This would mean, however, that you don't get to see his lovely shop!

The 'Harbour Deli' is a delightful little shop, nestled in one of the side streets leading to the harbour. Again the deli counter has meats, cheeses, quiches, etc and the shop stocks a host of jams and other lovely items. They are a cafe too, serving all sorts, but the meat or fish platters look particularly delicious. I keep meaning to go back there for lunch.

Down on the Harbour side is S and P Fish Shop. A family run business who have 2 fishing boats that supply their fish. 

If you like a lobster then here's your spot, sadly I am horribly allergic so have to keep well away!

What is more you can sit on the tables outside and sample the fresh delicacies whilst.....

enjoying the view and the bustle of the harbour.

Next stop Mortehoe. No ordinary fish and chip shop, 'Mor-Shellfish-T-Eat', sell lots of amazing seafood to take away. This father and son team (who also have a boat catching some of the Seafood) have recently opened, having moved from their restaurant around the corner.  

Rich took this photo of the lobster and crab platter that he bought last week. He said it was scrummy (he didn't eat the whole platter himself!!)

Last, but not least, is Little Comfort Farm, which is situated between Ilfracombe and Braunton. In their farm shop they sell their own organic meat, anything from large joints to their home made sausages. They also have home made 'ready meals' to take away, the price list and more information is available on their website. 

We hope you enjoy perusing round some of these local eateries. Happy Eating!!

Lovely Local Food - Going East

We have been struck since we moved to North Devon by the array of good quality local food shops that surround us. So we thought it might be nice to give you a whistle stop tour of some of our favourites in case it inspires you to make a visit and try them out. There are so many wonderful local places to shop, I am going to split the post into two parts....'Going East' covers Barnstaple and Braunton and 'Going West' will cover Ilfracombe and the surrounding area.

South Molton is a lovely little market town about 30 minutes drive from us (or you will pass it on the A361 from the M5). It is well worth a visit as it has some lovely little shops including antiques, interiors and clothes boutiques.

Some of my favourite food shops are the old-fashioned sweet/ chocolate shops; the delicatessen specialising in cheese; Griffin's Yard (photographed above) which is a health food cafe and shop selling lots of great local produce; and last but not least, the Thursday morning market, selling all sorts including local meats such as Exmoor venison.

Now to Barnstaple, our closest market town. Butchers Row is one of Barnstaple's treasures. This historic row of little shops can pretty much sort all your culinary needs in one sweep, with everything from local game to Devon wines; locally caught crab to Devon grown chillies.

Then our much loved bakery 'East and West'. Everything they do is delicious, our current favourites are their low GI bread and a loaf called 'Pantique'. They are both delicious wholemeal loaves with lots of seeds and yumminess. Graham and Claire, who run East and West, are delightful and they supply all of our scones for the cream teas we host for our guests in the school summer holidays. They have recently won the prize of 'Best West Country Baker'. Well done guys, it is well deserved!

If you are a cheese lover, like me, you will think you have died and gone to heaven when you enter this shop. Wall to wall deliciousness! Debbie Priestley the owner has a passion for West Country cheeses, why not go in and try some!

They have a deli, as well as cheese, and a fabulous website where you can pre-order or have a local cheese selection sent to you.

'Passmores' is a great fish shop with a wide range of locally caught fish most of which is landed from small boats at Ilfracombe and Bideford. In season they sell Lundy crab and lobster as well as mackerel, turbot, brill, gurnard, sea bass, mullet, cod and haddock. They have a 'wet fish van' that visits the village car park at Croyde on Thursdays at 11am (ish). They also do home delivery in our area on Thursdays, ring 01271 343677 to make an order.

Opposite Butchers row in Barnstaple is the 'Pannier Market', a magnificent indoor hall dating back to 1827. On Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays there is a mixture of stalls including fruit and vegetables;  Wednesdays has largely antiques; and Fridays has most of the local food suppliers.  Keep a look out for the 'Food Festivals' they hold which are a wonderful showcase of local produce. Their website lists up and coming events.

So a little closer to home is Braunton. Above are the boys from Reed's Butchers who as well as meat do the most yummy homemade pies.

'Cawthorne's' is a small family run private supermarket who sell a great range of products including local food, organic and health foods. I am always surprised at how much I can source for an obscure recipe from here. 

'Devon Made' specialises in local nibbles. There is a super range of local preserves, oils, chocolate, bread (from East and West Bakery) and much more. Why not pop in and have a coffee and cake whilst you take a look around.

Just outside the main village of Braunton is 'The Great Field' a source of much of our very local veg. It is treasured as one of the only two surviving medieval open strip field systems in England and is believed to date way back to the 1200's.

Local Farm Box is an online shop and box scheme that sources from 'The Great Field'. We have weekly deliveries as families and also stock up on dairy products, meat, preserves, bakery items and eggs from them from time to time. A veg box delivery is ideal if you are coming to Devon on holiday. Pre-order and it will be here for your arrival.

Last but not least is our 'Georgeham Stores'. Tracey and Paul, the owners, are really helpful and friendly. They have a good selection of provisions including local bread, meat, cheese and milk. If you are coming on holiday and would like to pre-order a shop to be delivered as you arrive, then please ring 01271890534 (they can email you a list of produce on request).

So why is it helpful to shop locally? I love this list produced by the 'Crystal Palace Transition Group' outlining 10 great reasons........enough said!!:

1.       More money stays in the community: When you spend £100 at an independent business, £68 returns to the local community, compared with £43 if you buy from a national chain

2.       More jobs are created for local people, including architects, designers, sign-makers, accountants etc.

3.       Local businesses offer a greater diversity of products and there is more scope for innovation

4.       Local businesses are more likely to get involved in community action and to offer financial support for community initiatives

5.       Local shops help maintain the area’s distinctive character and flavour

6.       Local businesses are more likely to source from the local area (including edible gardens)

7.       The more people that are employed locally, the fewer need to commute, saving on energy consumption

8.       Fewer people will use their cars

9.       Local traders are more likely to chat to their customers to find out what their interests are and to respond to their needs and their values

10.   We can build up a relationship with local businesses that will help support them in a transition towards sourcing more locally, sustainably and fairly

Happy shopping!!

Anne and Tim's wedding- greens, whites and some woodland magic.

We recently hosted the most gorgeous wedding of Tim and Anne. Tim is from Canada and so had family and friends flying in and 2 of the bridesmaids flew in from Brazil and Ireland. So all in all an international celebration.

 

 

They had some wonderful ideas for keepsakes, from the wedding guest finger print tree above to....

 

these anniversary bottles. Guests write messages and put them in a bottle for you to read on your anniversary. What a lovely thing to read messages from your wedding on your 20th Anniversary!!

 



These gorgeous hearts hung in the windows and the jars were hand tied around the outside with jute string.  These jars on the windowsills were designed to hold the bridesmaid's bouquets.
 



 

These simple decoration details allowed an undisturbed view of the garden in the day, whilst in the evening (as you will see later) they gave the most gorgeous candlelight.

  

 

Each table was named after a place from their travels together. You can really see the work that went into these jars for the flowers.

 

 

This was a brilliant idea! A site called 'wedpics' allows all of your wedding guests to upload their photos directly from their phone using an app (or from your computer later). Their suggestions in the form of a  'photo scavenger hunt' gave everyone lots of ideas for photos to upload.
 



 

 

Tim especially loves his coffee and each man at the wedding was given a bag of his favourite coffee beans as a favour. The  most wonderful aromas exuded from the bags around the room.

 

 

 

The tables looked gorgeous. I loved the hessian table runner and the slice of tree trunk under the flowers and candles. It all gave a rustic, relaxed light feel.

 



 

At the beginning of last year we teamed up with the amazing shoe designer Emmy Scarterfield of 'Emmy' shoes.  We gave a pair of Emmy shoes to brides who booked at the designer wedding fair. So here are Anne's gorgeous 'Emmy' shoes. I am so jealous as they are completely lovely!! Anne was delighted with them and said the whole experience of choosing them made you feel very special and treated. Thank you Emmy!!

 



 

The bride and groom 'chick' motif were a little extra theme and appeared on all the stationary even the door signs (and later the cake).

 



 

 

The fabulous bouquets, button holes and corsages were by Kelly from 'Offshore Blooms'.

 



 

 

So with everything ready it is time for the men to have a 'scotch' and steady the nerves!!

 



 

Croquet provided a welcome distraction in the build up to the ceremony (and I'm sure the Scotch helped give a steady hand!?)

 



 

 

Anne looked so beautiful in her dress... last buttons and she is ready for her 'first glance' photos.

 

 

A tradition from across the pond 'first glance' photos are done before the ceremony. We cleared the garden of guests and Anne and Tim met for the first time on their wedding day. It was so so romantic and they loved having that bit of time together to connect before the ceremony. A great idea that I think needs to become a new British tradition.

 



 

After hoping for an outside ceremony and much moving in and out of chairs the naughty drizzly rain brought us inside. Despite Anne and Tim's aspirations to be outside, the gorgeous view and the woodland stumps down the aisle truly brought the outside in. The atmosphere was warm and intimate.

 



 

There was not a dry eye in the house. The mums read a poem together, which was very moving, and then Tim and Anne did their own vows. Oh gosh so many emotions! Love, laughter, intimacy and true friendship were all so evident, wow!

 



 

The very happy couple as confetti rains from above.

 



 

 

JJ, the MC for the day, did a splendid job and looked the part in his kilt.

 



 

 

Dinner time!! Linzi, Anne's friend who is a baker, made these utterly delicious and beautiful macaroons as the table plan.

 

 

I will just take this opportunity to introduce Joseph Yarrow, their lovely and very talented photographer. He previously photographed Kat and James's wedding at Pickwell and we were delighted to have him back. James gave me some very helpful photography tips, one of which was to always wipe my iphone lense. Ironically in this photo I clearly didn't and it has a visible smear.....I feel ashamed!!

 

 

Crab tower starter, mmmm!!

 

 

Then onto  Devon beef (or pan seared salmon) with vegetable bundles and dauphinoise potatoes. I am feeling hungry just looking at the photos!! I need to thank Patrick Kua for all of the best photos on this blog post. He was one of the guests and a brilliant photographer (check out his blog at http://www.thekua.com/rant/)

 

 

The speeches were hilarious. I love it when bridesmaids give a speech, as it is good to hear some extra funny stories about the bride too!!

 



 

Then outside for Eaton Mess on the terrace...

 



followed by coffee by candlelight and an amazing Canadian biscuit called  'Naniamo Bars' (Lee our chef followed Tim's recipe). It was delicious, a bit like caramel shortbread with a chocolate coconut base, yum!!

 



 

Whilst the guests finished their pudding, the bridal party headed to the footpath for photos with a backdrop of the sea including panoramic views of Hartland to Morte Point and Lundy Island. Later they had these rather dramatic photos taken on the way back up the drive. 

 



Cutting the cake kicked off the evening celebrations.

 



 

 Anne loves cheese and this cheese cake was magnificent. Local cheeses specially selected by Lee (our chef), topped with the cutest bride and groom chicks....

 

 

and little pottery mice.

 



 

Another mouth watering photo by Patrick!

 

The ballroom looked magical and cosy in the candlelight.

 



 

JJ hits the dance floor with kilt a twirling!!

 

 

A thoughtful and kind gesture to tired feet!

 



So many were very grateful and looked fab!!

 



Anne and Tim what lovely friends and family you have!! Such a gorgeous weekend, we so enjoyed having your wedding at Pickwell Manor!!