Kate W
06 April 2021
The Lake District has a rich and fascinating food and drink heritage. The crystal clear waters, rich lowland pastures, isolated upland fells and bountiful coastline all have foodie stories to tell!
Local family-run company A Day's Walk was launched in May 2020 with the purpose of supporting small local producers by giving both visitors to and residents of the Lake District a genuine alternative to supermarket shopping. It aims to combine the modern conveniences of online shopping and home delivery slots with access to an exclusively local food and drink range that celebrates the beautiful locations, people and traditions of the Lake District.
Every item stocked comes from a farmer, producer or business within a day’s walk of the heart of the Lakes. It's their promise to you that when they say local, they mean local, so food is picked up directly from producers on the same day as delivery. That means it's as fresh as can be and clocks up next to no food miles. It also just happens to be some of the finest produce anywhere in the country!
The produce of the Lakes
Lakeland makes for a well-stocked larder and, if you really want to immerse yourself during your Lake District visit, then food and drink is a vital part of the experience!
There's something from every corner of the national park, too. The Royal Warrant potted shrimps of Morecambe Bay are still landed on Cumbria's south coast to this day and the jams, chutneys and ketchups born of the Lyth Valley damsons are famous. The wonderful artisan cow, ewe and goat cheeses are handmade where the mountains give way to the Solway plains and in the Yorkshire Dales to the east of the county. The peerlessly flavoursome Herdwick lamb, reared on the lower fells all over the Lake District, is a succulent treat. For pudding, why not have a try of the unique and iconic Westmorland Pepper Cake, whose origins lie in the Spice Trade of the 1800s?
Supporting local
The Lake District is also where tradition and provenance meet creativity and entrepreneurial spirit. As well as providing you with delicious produce, A Day's Walk aims to support and celebrate the many small local foodie businesses around the county: and there's plenty to celebrate!
Take Tim and Luke from Wigton, for example, who so loved muesli as a pre-fell scramble fuel that they started toasting their own in their mums’ kitchens. And 5 years on, Lakeland Mues is a multi-award-winner and an established regional breakfast table favourite.
Or think of Mark and Maria Whitehead, who started experimenting with homemade relish flavours in their café in Hawkshead. They now employ 25 people in a converted barn in Ambleside where they make more than 100 different relish, chutney and sauce products using locally sourced ingredients!
A taste of Cumbria
Wherever you go in the Lake District you’ll find a food tradition, story or recipe as unique as the landscape itself. If you’d like a Lake District taste experience delivered to your holiday cottage during your stay, A Day's Walk offers over 200 items of produce, all sourced from within a day’s walk of the Lake District.
This is a guest blog written by Colin from A Day's Walk. You can visit their website to book your delivery of local Cumbrian produce.
Book a stay in a holiday cottage in Cumbria for a foodie holiday.
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Disclaimer: Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information at the time of writing,
please ensure you check carefully before making any decisions based on the contents within this article.