Lovely & Local South Downs Food & Drink
Traditional South Downs fare was largely based around heavy suet puddings. Fortunately today, local specialities now include Sussex lamb, Sussex Charmer cheese and sparkling wine that rivals that produced in Champagne.
Let your taste buds take the lead on your exploration of the National Park.
Kick off your day bright and early with a hearty breakfast at the Slindon Forge Café with an emphasis on local produce, including Springs locally smoked salmon. Make sure to stop by the shop for Slindon bakery bread and handmade Sussex chocolates in the restored blacksmiths forge, now run as a community venture.
Work off some of that fuel with a wander on the Slindon Estate, famed for its spectacular autumn pumpkin display. Keep an eye for the ‘pale’, an embankment designed to allow deer into the park, but not out again. This provided a steady supply of venison. Look out for the spring lambing at the chalk grassland of Gaston Farm too.
Think about getting hands-on with a course at The Cheesemaking Workshop near Arundel. Learn how to make six delicious soft cheeses in just one day – you’ll be a whizz at camembert, ricotta, feta and quark and you can take home the fruits of your labour.
Kick back in tranquil surroundings, you can’t go wrong with the George at Burpham down on the River Arun itself, the place for some top Sussex fare and ales (including their very own house lager “By George”), sparkling from Nyetimber Vineyard, Blackdown Gin, Vermouth & Spirits. Saved from closure by the locals, expect a warm welcome for muddy walkers and man’s best friend.
