Farm shop cafe reopens with menu celebrating local produce

The Apley Kitchen – formerly known as the Creamery Café at Apley Farm Shop – opened on Monday with lead chef, David Ames, having created a menu that celebrates locally-sourced sustainable produce, and supports family businesses in the community.

He said: "In the café, we’ve always tried to use produce sourced from the Apley Estate and our local area. Our customers want their food to be fresh, local, and sustainable as well as delicious.

"Caring for the environment is crucial in ensuring a better future for everyone and we have a role to play by choosing responsibly grown food and keeping food miles to a minimum.

“Our new menu includes our signature hand-battered fish and chips and more contemporary dishes alongside a superb afternoon tea, all made with produce from the Apley Estate and local, independent artisan makers.

"All our meat comes from our onsite butchery. Our beef is a rare breed of British White Cattle (the Oldington Herd) from our estate farmers who are only one mile away.

“We have our own blend of loose-leaf tea and coffee from Tilley Green, along-side Apley Ale, which is brewed at Hobsons Brewery, both served in the café and available from the farm shop.

"The Delicatessen has a wide range of handmade pies and pasties which will make up our Deli board along with a small selection of our 45 kinds of cheese and a range of chutneys.”

The menu is not the only thing to have been given a new look.

Apley has taken advantage of the lockdown to give the café a fresh new interior, and the inspiration for the design also came from close to home.

Interior design team, Dean and Caroline, are tenants on the Apley Estate.

During lockdown, they approached Apley with some ideas on how to transform the café ready for the re-opening as restrictions are eased.

The main design ideas of the café are based around ‘bringing nature and the outside indoors’.

General manager John Wesley, said, “Apley Farm Shop has stayed busy during lockdown serving the local community by providing the high-quality locally sourced produce that has become our hallmark.

"As well as the shop opening with social distancing rules applied, we have also introduced home deliveries and a ‘drive thru’ collection service to meet everyone’s needs.

"The ‘drive thru collection service will continue to be available.

“With our café closed, however, it seemed like the ideal opportunity to re-invent not only the menu but also the whole atmosphere.

"We’re delighted with the contemporary look that our tenant designers have created, and we look forward to welcoming both our loyal and new customers to enjoy some delicious, local food and drink.”

The premises is also part of the government's 50 off scheme, on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, designed to encourage people to support restaurants.