Taking place every Saturday morning, this multi award-winning market – winning the title of best farmers’ market in the UK more than once – centres on Cornhill Market Place and spills through the surrounding streets.
Rise early to catch the smell of sizzling sausages and beat the queues at Pippin’s Doughnut stall. These sweet, scrumptious doughnuts are filled with the likes of molten chocolate, rhubarb and custard, mixed berries and zingy lemon curd.
Not only is the market a great spot to wander, but it’s also the perfect place to pick up items for a stylish Cotswolds’ picnic. Jonathan Crump and Godsell’s sell Single and Double Gloucester cheeses, both produced within approximately five miles of the market. Single Gloucester has PDO status, meaning it must be produced in Gloucestershire from the milk of rare-breed Gloucester cattle. Double Gloucester is the cheese used at the famously crazy, annual Gloucestershire Cheese Rolling event.
You’ll be spoilt for choice with the quality and selection of bread on display each week. Try a traditional sourdough from Salt House Bakery, an organic focaccia from Hobbs House Bakery (owned by Channel 4’s Fabulous Baker Brothers) or a seeded Nelson Loaf from the Artisan Baker.
When it comes to charcuterie, Trealy Farm attends the market twice monthly and the Cotswold Curer produces a fabulous range of salamis and chorizo. Chris from Fresh Olives Etc. stocks her stall with the juiciest and most flavoursome olives you’re ever likely to encounter, while Jess’s Ladies produce the creamiest yoghurt and milk.
As you wander the streets of seasonal veg, meats, locally produced apple juice and preserves, you might feel the need to take time out for refreshment. Food-on-the-go stalls include Giresh’s Vegan Indian Food, Za’Za Maroc, the Veggie Deli and Niang’s Thai Snacks. Don’t miss the oozy, cheesy Tartiflette from Raclette Raclette.
While locals come to shop at the market, they also come to meet with friends and swap stories. Pull up a chair in the middle of Cornhill Market Place and stop to chat over a coffee or bite to eat. Keep your eyes peeled for the likes of Lily Allen, food-writer Matthew Fort, BBC Countryfile’s Ellie Harrison and, probably the most famous Stroud resident of all, Jilly Cooper.
You’ll not only find food at Stroud Farmer’s Market, but a lovely range of artisan arts and crafts, wine, gin, plants and flowers. Not all stallholders attend the market on a weekly basis. You can check to see who comes when: https://fresh-n-local.co.uk/trader/stroud/
Feeling inspired? Take a look at our luxury cottages in the Cotswolds here.
Images copyright @Nick Turner
