‘Is it time to stop shopping at Waitrose?’
How a move to the Cotswolds turned me into a new kind of food snob
I grew up in London’s suburbs, moved to another city for university and lived within a central London postcode up until the beginning of this year. But four years ago I visited a friend who’d swapped Clapham for the Cotswolds and I fell in love the the place. On reflection, a large part of that was probably because it was summer and the UK always shines more brightly when the sun comes out. And my friend - who had a stunning apartment in a huge Georgian split level - is almost always laughing and unendingly positive about everything. So I admit, initially I probably just wanted to be her new flatmate. But like many people at that time, I was stuck to living within a reasonable commute to my office.
Then came along the plot twist that is The Pandemic (as it shall henceforth be known), and at the beginning of 2021, when it was confirmed that remote working was now part of my company’s work policy, I made the jump. Ironically, my friend had since moved back to London to be closer to her boyfriend so I had to find my own Georgian mansion apartment which, as everyone wants them, was no mean feat.
So I arrived and started stomping around in my Dubarry to make sure I really fit in. Second on my list of important things to do as a new Cheltonian was to look for a sourdough bakery. The popular choice especially in 2020; any other type of bread now proves too basic for my taste buds. I actually picked up a loaf the other day thinking it was SD and was horrified when I went to cut it open and found it was a rye/spelt/wholemeal and white flour mix. My body gave it 0 out of 5 stars and after an operation to remove a cancerous tumour earlier this year, I’m much more careful about my diet. (More about that season in a future newsletter!) Real Sourdough bread, meat that hasn’t been pumped with chemicals and vegetables that don’t come with a side of pesticides. Is that too much to ask?
There’s also the matter of packaging. A few years ago I sent a photo of my groceries on the conveyor belt, showing off how much veg I could buy with £10 at Aldi to my friend who is a vegan chef eco-warrior (probably not how she would describe herself but true, nonetheless). Her reply: ‘That’s great but there’s a lot of waste there. All that plastic!’. I felt suitably chastised. Ok I’m not an eco-warrior but I am as concerned about the future of our planet as I’m sure most of us are. I also started looking at where my food was coming from. Spain, Italy, Morocco, France - all great places, but with almost 60% of the UK being farmland (although it doesn’t feel like that when you’re looking out from a tower block in London), doesn’t the UK grow anything?
Apparently it does! I drove out to a local farm on the weekend and bought eggs which came in a plain cardboard container, local honey, carrots still with their tops* literally pulled from the ground and covered in mud, and sticker less apples from English soil. This of course made for a perfect IG moment but when I got home and cooked with some of the veg I bought, I realised there was a taste benefit too. No more watery cucumber or flavourless bell peppers. Everything had a taste and only the meat and cheese had any kind of packaging. I felt positively virtuous.
Having said all that, I did pop into Waitrose before I headed home which seemed only fair as I had used their car park for the hour I was swanning round the market. But I’m definitely a convert! As soon as I’ve finished writing this post I’m off to make an omelette with my new eggs so I’ll report back on that in a future newsletter. That is if I’m not busy hand rearing chickens to get my own.
*Apparently you can use the green tops of carrots to make pesto. You’re welcome.
Doll x