It’s hardly surprising you get such good food around the Cotswolds – after all, with countryside that beautiful it’s bound to produce some pretty beautiful ingredients too! Whether you’re poring over which cheese to buy in one of the region’s many market towns or enjoying a meal cooked with the finest and freshest local foods, the Cotswolds really knows what its doing when it comes to food. From hearty pub lunches to fine dining at the best restaurants in the Cotswolds, there’s plenty to discover, and one of our cottages in the Cotswolds makes the ideal base to explore from.
Rustic charm meets modern elegance in this old barn in the heart of the Cotswolds, where expert chefs teach visitors how to cook like the pros. The cookery classes in Daylesford lead you through the whole journey of a meal, from the garden where the produce is grown to the final product on the plate. You get to work with a wide variety of organic ingredients, such as cheese, bread and meat, all directly sourced from the farm itself. Course topics include artisan bread-making and cooking with game and wild food. Or you might want to prepare for your next party with a masterclass in cooking canapés or learn to serve the ultimate Christmas roast – the choice is yours.
Price Range: £££
Location: Daylesford Farmshop, Daylesford GL56 OYG, Moreton in Marsh
Book: Online at daylesfordcookeryschool
Wild Thyme Restaurant has established a reputation as one of the best restaurants in the Cotswolds. The food here is best described as Mediterranean-inflected British cuisine, which means your smoked fish might be served with toasted focaccia or your Bordelaise steak accompanied by local winter greens. If you are struggling to choose between the enticing dishes, don’t fret – the restaurant offers fixed-price, multiple-course taster menus so you can sample it all. Topping it all off is the intimate atmosphere: its stone-walled interior has just 35 seats.
Price Range: ££
Location: 10 New Street Chipping Norton Oxfordshire OX7 5LJ, Cotswolds
Book: Call 01608 645060
Spend an evening crafting the perfect personalised gin in one of these lab experiences, where you can create and then take home your own liquor. The distiller classes begin with an overview of the spirit, before you move on to selecting which aromatics you want to add to your self-styled gin. While the flavours are infusing you can design the label, before you submit your creation to a competition for the best gin in the class. It’s educational as well as tasty and the end result is one-of-a-kind.
Price Range: £££
Locaton: Montpellier Drive, Cheltenham Gloucestershire, GL50 1TY
Book: Online at Brennenandbrown
Shop for authentic, earthy Gloucestershire produce in this family-run farm and market. Having started with just a few vegetables, this award-winning shop has expanded over the years and now offers homemade beers, meats and artisan chutneys and jams too. Over Farm is more than just a market, and while you are browsing for organic produce, children can go gawp at the animals that live on the farm – among them pigs, donkeys and even ostriches.
Price Range: £
Location: Over Farm Market, Over, Gloucester GL2 8DB
Book: No need to book just show up!
Named after the best part of any baking process, this chocolatier is all about indulgence. The award-winning confectionery geniuses sell finely crafted sweets with unexpected, rich flavours. Try the golden Aztec chocolate bites, which are laced with chilli and lime, or the truffles infused with champagne. All of their food is ethically sourced and made with loving, meticulous care by a family of cocoa-fanatics. Give in to your cravings and splash out on boxes of the finest chocolate in the Cotswolds.
Price Range: ££
Location: Unit 2 Masons Wharf, Potley Lane, Corsham, SN13 9FY
Book: No need to book just show up!
Half of the appeal of The Wild Rabbit is in the building itself. It’s an elegant mixture of the traditional and contemporary: sleek, modern fireplaces are embedded in old stone walls next to wooden beams. This is the country inn aesthetic at its most picturesque and it demands that visitors get out their cameras. Of course, there’s more to this place than just a pretty décor. The food is equally appealing, with the kitchen delivering twists on pub classics with verve and style. Expect your South Devon ribeye steak to come with Bledington Blue cheese, pickled walnut and triple cooked chips and your fish dishes to feature varied ingredients like avruga caviar and sea herbs. We’d go as far as to say it’s one of our favourite restaurants in the Cotswolds!
Price Range: £££
Location: Church Street, Kingham, Oxfordshire OX7 6YA
Book: Online at Thewildrabbit
Micro-brewing is a major business in the UK at the moment, with craft beer producers popping up around the country seemingly every month. See what all the fuss is about by touring the factory of the Cotswold Brewing Company. The family-owned business was one of the first of its kind to set up in the UK and is happy to let visitors in on the secrets of their trade. You can visit their shop, pick up an IPA, lager or stout, and chat to the owners of the brewery. Tours are available by prior arrangement, and will shed light on the brewing processes, before finishing with a tasting session to better understand the artistry of the production.
Price Range: ££
Location: College Farm Stow Road Bourton-on-the-Water Gloucestershire GL54 2HN
Book: No need to book just show up!
Like many of the independent businesses in the Cotswolds, this store is family-run and proudly celebrates local, quality produce. Set in a converted country barn, it is filled with wooden crates, which overflow with brightly coloured vegetables. Each food is sourced from nearby farms – just ask the shop owners for their origins. The on-site café is a relaxing place to unwind over light lunches and traditional Cotswold cream teas.
Price Range: ££
Location: Nr Longborough Moreton-in-Marsh Gloucestershire GL56 0QZ
Book: No need to book just show up!
It’s perhaps unexpected to stumble across a vineyard in the south of England, rather than say in the warmer climes of the South of France, but the award-winning wines of the Three Choirs Vineyard will soon shatter any preconceptions you may have. The microclimate of the Cotswolds are well suited to growing wines of complex and interesting flavours. You can discover them for yourself on one of the wine tours and tasting sessions, which run each day at the site.
Price Range: ££
Book: Online at Threechoirs-vineyards
Location: Newent, Gloucestershire GL18 1LS
If you’re looking for foodie experiences that tickle your taste buds while supporting the local community, the Kingham Plough can tell you the point of origin of every ingredient in the delicious meals they serve – they are all sourced from local farms. But they aren’t just concerned with provenance, they are also sticklers for quality. The result is that their kitchen, which serves pub staples like pies, steaks and fresh fish, regularly wins awards for its food. The Kingham Plough is also a child-friendly and dog-friendly pub, which means that it in spite of its superior cuisine, the atmosphere is relaxed and refreshingly unpretentious.
Price Range: £££
Book: Online at Thekinghamplough
Location: The Green, Kingham Chipping Norton Oxfordshire, OX7 6YD
Have these foodie experiences in the Cotswolds inspired you to take a trip and sink your teeth in? If you’re looking for accommodation just talk to our friendly concierge team, who can do the legwork for you and find a great place to stay if you let them know what you’re looking for. And of course, they’re on hand for questions and booking too! If you want a little more information and inspiration about the Cotswolds, check out the best family activities in Cotswolds, what our own travel team thought of the region and our guide to the UK’s best market towns.
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