With the eyes of the world on the phenomenon that is Glastonbury festival recently, it is easy to overlook the surrounding area in Somerset which has its own amazing qualities found especially its emerging food scene.
‘This place has a foodie trail as well as a hippie trail’ says Chef Ayesha Kalaji in her quirky restaurant Queen of Cups in the town of Glastonbury, just a mile or so from the festival site at Pilton. She claims the area here shares the same spirituality and energy found at the festival and the ambience and creativity of her restaurant reflects that perfectly.
Ayesha came to Glastonbury via Jordan, Wales and London to open Queen of Cups, a former 17th century inn which she named after the Tarot card which she feels sums up the magical nature of the location
She is a former MasterChef The Professionals star and the winner of numerous awards including a Michelin Bib Gourmand.
Ayesha prepares Middle Eastern food with her own distinctive twist and relies solely on local Somerset produce, forming a close bond with butchers, fishmongers and farmers nearby in a town with a strong sense of community and sustainability.
We dined on monkfish skewers with tamarind, Aleppo chilli and preserved lemons, and Laverbread falafel (inspired by Ayesha’s time in Wales) with sumac, lime fennel and tahini. Queenofcups.co.uk
The homage to her heritage which is honoured by Ayesha in her cooking is also visible in strong family traditions passed down locally in this part of the world. Jan Scott today continues cider making in a business established by her grandfather and carried on by her father.
Just a few miles down the road from Glastonbury Rich’s Cider Farm is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year. The family owned establishment is well known not just for its famous cider but also its popular restaurant, cider museum and shop.
To commemorate the anniversary Rich’s has created special ciders and apple juices apple juices in distinctive 1954 labelled bottles, and there is also a range of innovative cocktails. These include Apple Cosmopolitan, Orchard Cocktail and a Toffee Apple Martini. Their Somerset cider brandy is as delicious as any Calvados you’ll find in Normandy, and their apple blossom gin is a real taste of Somerset summer.
The iconic Cider Bus at Glastonbury is as much part of the festival as the music and the mud. Many Somerset ciders can be tasted there and Julian Temperley, owner of the Somerset Cider Brandy company, has been selling his wares there since 1970.
This part of Somerset has its fair share of trendy places like The Newt, which has already established a following among foodies. The hotel has recently opened the Creamery restaurant on Castle Cary station itself. But there are plenty of smaller unsung gastro pubs, breweries and vineyards to be found between Glastonbury and Castle Carey, creating a fascinating food and drink trail to entice you to come for the festival, stay for the food.
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