Good Food Guy
‘Graze out’ in the Cotswolds
This is the summer we’ve been waiting for, so get out there and tuck in!
As we approach the summer months, you can literally feel the buzz in the air. People are fizzing with anticipation, an eagerness to release two years’ worth of not being able to freely go out and do the things we usually do.
That said, there is still a slight disbelief that this is actually happening for real. I think we’ve all been programmed to wait for the punchline – yes, you can go on holiday… oh wait, no you can’t! Yes, you can go and eat out… oh wait, no you can’t! It’s been a yo-yo couple of years for the hospitality sector – with some pubs and restaurants bouncing back, and plenty that sadly, haven’t made it. But this year, it’s different: this is the summer that everyone’s been looking forward to for the last two years, and we’re going to make the most of it!
I don’t think anyone will dispute that at the centre of most people’s summer days out is food and drink. Whether it’s a bracing walk along the Cotswold Canals where you stop at that little café where they have the most amazing carrot cake, or whether it’s that pub with the view over the Cotswold escarpment you go to for sun-downers – food and drink play a huge part in our enjoyment of the experience.
People come from all over the world to ‘do’ the Cotswolds in the summer, and we’re fortunate that we’ve got diamonds running right through it in terms of food and drink. Whether they’re cafés, pubs, restaurants, farm shops or even local suppliers who have opened up their premises to the public, the point is that here in the Cotswolds, there’s something for everyone, whatever your ideal day out looks like.
Of course, we all have our favourite hangouts, but we can also be in danger of becoming too familiar with our own patch. So, this summer let’s pass on our gems for others to enjoy and give the hospitality sector in the Cotswolds the boost it so deserves. The best way to do this? Pay them a visit, then nominate your favourite pub, café, restaurant and local producers in this year’s Cotswold Life Food & Drink Awards. You’ve got two weeks left until nominations close on 19th June – I’ll show you mine, if you show me yours!
Take part at foodawards.cotswoldlife.co.uk.
Taken from the Summer Special edition of Cotswold Life magazine
