Grand day out from our Suffolk Holiday Cottages
I write a lot about things to do, places to go and all things Suffolk but this will be the first in a series of ideas for a great day out from our Suffolk holiday cottages. I spend a great deal of time talking with guests about the places they’ve been in Suffolk, as well as where they’d like to go so I figured I’d start pulling together some ‘whole days’.
We’ve all been on holiday, whether it’s a UK Staycation, or further afield and if you’re anything like me it’d be great to have ideas of things to epitomise the area I’m saying in. And that’s what I try to do for guests to my holiday cottages. As you may be aware, we have more ideas and info than you could ever get through in a hundred holidays in Suffolk but I thought it’d be useful to suggest a few of my favourite days out.
Suffolk Food Hall, Pin Mill & Jimmy’s Farm
All within half an hour of Woodfarm and within very easy reach of each other, this day out is a great mix of food, drink, Suffolk sights and fun. You can easily get round all of these in a nice chilled-out day, taking as much time as you like at each place. They are all within 5-15 mins of each other so there’s no harm bouncing back and forth a bit if you want to.
From Woodfarm, take the A14 towards Felixstowe and take the junction before the Orwell Bridge towards Ipswich. It’ll be signposted for all of the above! The first two are off the first exit at the bottom of the hill and Jimmy’s is round the roundabout, taking the third exit.
Suffolk Food Hall
There’s a clue in the name! This is a fabulous development on the edge of the river Orwell, near the base of the iconic Orwell bridge. The main part is a huge, open food hall with their own butchery, fishmonger, bakery, deli and greengrocers, as well as a plethora of local and artisan foods, which are sure to whet your appetite.
In addition there is a fabulous a la carte restaurant, coffee shop, garden centre and gift shop. This is one of my favourite places to shop as there is an abundance of wonderful Suffolk foodie bits, all of excellent quality.
It’s a great one for kids too as there is a giant inflatable ‘pillow’ for them to bounce around on.
It’s open every day as follows;
Food Hall, Home & Garden and Café:
Mon to Thurs & Sat – 9 til 6
Fri (exc Cafe’) – 9 til 7
Sun 10.30 til 4.30
The Cookhouse restaurant:
Mon to Thurs – 8 til 3
Fri & Sat – 8 til late
Sun – 8.30 til 4.30
Check out the Suffolk Food Hall website for lots of things to entice you over there.
Pin Mill and The Butt & Oyster
At the end of a well signposted little lane just around the corner from the Suffolk Food Hall, further along the road. Pin Mill is a quaint little hamlet on the edge of the village of Chelmondiston, along the road from the food hall. At the heart is a great riverside pub called the Butt & Oyster.
The Butt & Oyster is what I call a proper old Suffolk pub; bare floorboards, a mish-mash of wooden furniture, beer barrels behind the bar and great food, particularly specialising in seafood. The pub is part of the local Deben Inns Group, who own some of my favourite pubs in Suffolk!
There’s a fabulous 3-mile walk there if you want to work that into your day. It goes along the river and through the surrounding farmland and of course you can always start and end at the pub! They’ve put the walk on their website here.
Open all day, every day from 10am (9am at the weekend).
Jimmy’s Farm
Made famous by his TV series, childhood friend of Jamie Oliver has built a strong Suffolk business now incorporating a farm park, farm shop, butchery and a fabulous restaurant. I remember going there when they had only just opened the butchery and it’s certainly developed since then! They cater superbly for all the family and have an array of fascinating animals. Don’t try to stare out an Alpaca, you won’t win!
Jimmy’s Farm is open every day, the restaurant serving food from;
- Monday to Sunday 9.30am – 5.00pm
- Breakfast 9.30am to 11.00am
- Lunch 11.30am – 3.00pm
- Afternoon Tea 3.00pm to 5.00pm
You can even try out some of their recipes on the Jimmy’s Farm website.
They accept dogs on leads as there are lots of animals there!
So hopefully you’ll like this day out, all within half an hour of Woodfarm and all of these are on top of each other so you can focus on eating, drinking and sight-seeing
If you’re reading this and haven’t got yourself booked in for a stay then check out our prices and availability and remedy this!!
