Fantastic local cafés to explore this festive season

Two Burgate are a food-led café bar serving quality local produce during the day and serving tapas, pizzas and sharing platters on a Friday and Saturday evening in a relaxed atmosphere as well as also serving a large variety of gins, cocktails and wine.

During the festive season, the kitchen is busy and bustling providing the usual homemade festive goodies whilst the bar area serves incredible local coffee, flavoured with a range of syrups as well as good old Yorkshire tea. The team are two Burgate are happy to share that they have managed to mull a variety of alcoholic beverages, which are appreciated by locals and visitors alike. “Although ‘tis the season to be jolly’, here at two Burgate we pride ourselves on being pretty jolly all year round!”

Hospitality has suffered, and continues to face, some challenging times. Staff have strived to adapt and have practiced COVID-secure safety precautions throughout the pandemic, including mask wearing, social distancing and sanitising everything in sight. To this day, table service and the above mentioned procedures are still in place. Outside seating area has proved incredibly popular whatever the weather!

Still on the look out for a Christmas treat? All year round, you can purchase gift vouchers to treat a friend or family member to a special lunch out. These have been highly popular this year and come with no expiry date, which makes them a safe bet during a turbulent time. Their range of biodegradable speciality teas have proved popular as Christmas gifts, as have the miniature gin sets.

Janet Hunter at Two Burgate, “Shopping with us means that you’re also supporting many fantastic local businesses - such as the butchers, local greengrocers, bakers, local coffee roasters and alcohol producers. We pride ourselves on the service we provide and keeping our staff and customers safe. We welcome regular customers as well as visitors and have an excellent relationship with neighbouring businesses. It’s important to us that in 2022 our local business community can continue to thrive and work together.”

2022 see’s the business aiming to reduce their carbon footprint even further too. Their main suppliers are opposite the premises, reducing food miles and providing amusement in the form of Janet and her team dashing across the road for emergency supplies! Takeaway food and drink containers are biodegradable and we keep food waste to a minimum.

Keep up to date with everything going on their Facebook page ‘two Burgate’ or visit their website twoburgate.co.uk and find out more about their range of delicious, local products.

Cedarbarn Farm Shop and Café – A ‘Whatever-the-Weather’ place to visit!

Cedarbarn Farm Shop, Café and Miniature Railway began was established as a small PYO business by fourth generation farmer, Karl and Mandy in 1995. The produce in the shop and the menu in the café follows the farming year, from asparagus in the spring through strawberries, raspberries, plums, apples and rhubarb to pumpkins in the autumn.

The festive celebrations started early for the team at Cedarbarn Farm Shop and Café with a record four wins at the Deliciouslyorkshire Taste Awards in November! The wins included a Local Food Hero Award that was given in recognition of the lengths that business owners, Karl and Mandy Avison and their team of 38 went to, to keep the people in the area fed safely during the lockdowns.  This year has seen above average footfall to the Thornton Road, Pickering farm shop as Cedarbarn’s reputation as a safe, family friendly place to shop for everything from Christmas trees, decorations and gifts to home reared meat and homemade cakes has grown following the award wins and an increased desire for consumers to shop locally.

The team from Cedarbarn receiving their award at the Deliciouslyorkshire Taste Awards.

The extensive gift range includes inspiration for all the family and unique items that you won’t find in a supermarket: hampers, local ales and gins, food gifts from Yorkshire’s best artisan producers Yorkshire jigsaws, DCUK decorative wooden Ducks and Garden Birds, candles and planters – an amazing way to shop local and support independent suppliers. There really is something for everyone!

The teams have been spreading festive cheer by wearing Christmas jumpers and facemasks, and visitors are made to feel Covid secure due to screens between the tables in the café and at the farm shop counters, regular testing, distancing and sanitising measures.

Praising the team, Mrs Avison said: “The last 18 months have been incredibly challenging year for many businesses, but our amazing team rose to every challenge that we set them and helped us to flex our business to provide food and drink for the local community.”

The farm shop and café sell and serve a wide range of home grown or locally sourced goods and the business promotes impeccable provenance and its eco-friendly initiatives that include solar panels, energy efficient lighting and a heat exchange system.

Other businesses who were also nominated for a spotlight in Pickering were Pickering Antiques, The Black Swan (visit www.blackswan-pickering.co.uk where you can book a room for a cosy weekend away or a table to treat yourself in their restaurant), Brown’s The Greengrocers where you can find a wide range of seasonal fruit and veg for the Festive season and The White Swan in Pickering.