Parts of London (parts, not all) are in decay, which makes me sad to see. Potholes, council waste bins on pavements, the continuous digging up of roads, temporary traffic lights, route diversions and my pet hate of idiotic cyclists on hired e-bikes which have no regard for human life. My second pet hate is the way these e-bikes are parked, as I come across bikes across pavements on a daily basis.
A weekend away from the city is always welcome. This country is full of treasures: grand estates, beautiful manor houses, fine restaurants, inviting pubs, local farm shops. Having not explored much of Wiltshire before, we enjoyed four days in this county very much. One full day was taken up with looking after the Grand-twins (now nearly 16 weeks young) but we managed to fit a lot in all the same.
Wiltshire Weekend:
Part 1 – Food
Part 2 – Historic Houses
Part 3 – Gardens
EATING IN AND EATING OUT ON OUR WEEKEND AWAY
Unlike our previous trip away to the countryside (Dorset in June, about which I have yet to write) I surprised myself this time by not packing my usual box of small kitchen tools. We travelled on a Friday. I had spent part of the prior few days with San Francisco Cousin and Melbourne Auntie, who were visiting London. It was a lovely family meet-up, but I knew I had to ‘pack and go’ and not think too much about the finer points of the weekend. Thankfully the converted barn we rented (via Classic Cottages) in the small village of Grittleton was superb and we had everything we needed.
Eating In
It was a good idea to sous-vide some duck legs and char siu (recipe later) before the weekend. We used the duck for a dinner with salad and melon/ prosciutto for starters. The char siu went into bagels a la Hoko (see the end of the Whitechapel Road post).
We visited Pipit Bakery in Bradford-on-Avon, listed as one of the best bakeries in Britain. Even at midday most of the bakes were sold out.
Our takeaway items from Pipit Bakery: wholegrain sourdough, milk bread rolls, almond pastry and cookies
Allington Farm Shop has everything you need to eat in very well, whether you choose to cook from scratch or to reheat a ready-cooked meal. Their selection of fresh fruit and vegetables were a delight.
Eating Out
We visited four pubs, and I would highly recommend the Longs Arms in Upper South Wraxall and the Somerford Arms in Little Somerford. The other two were near to where we stayed (Neeld Arms and Salutation Inn) and so fulfilled twin roles of convenience and no washing up.
Outstanding pub lunch at the Longs Arms, with a bonus of fig leaf ice cream and prickly pear cactus sorbet for dessert
Fish and Chips and Beef and Ale Pie at the Somerford Arms
Useful resources:
The Farm Shop Guide – Farm-to-Fork Food by Laura Collacott, published by Printslinger Ltd, ISBN 978-1738481811
Britain’s Best Bakeries (2nd Edition) by Milly Kenny Ryder, published by Hoxton Mini Press, ISBN 978-1917719209
The UK Farm Shop Directory
The UK Good Food Guide
The Michelin Guide