Ludlow - Bakers

I've already mentioned the sausage trail, but there's also an ale trail and a bread trail at Ludlow Food Festival. The bread trail is never as popular, which is a shame as Ludlow has some great bakers, but I'm not complaining as it means there's less queueing!

One of Rick Stein's 'Food Heroes', Price's (pictured above) use few automated processes, relying instead on traditional methods. The bread is handmade, the old-fashioned way - with a long fermentation process, quality flour, and no flour improvers or artificial enhancers.

In the Experts’ Choice category, at last year's Ludlow Food Festival, they won best Traditional White (jointly with De Greys), best Wholewheat and best Sourdough.

S C Price & Son
7 Castle Street,
Ludlow
SY8 1AS

Tel: 01584 872815

Web: http://www.pricesthebakers.co.uk

Email: bakers@pricesthebakers.co.uk















I can remember going to De Grey’s 30 years ago to the cafe (behind the bakers). The waitress bought a large plate of assorted cakes and you ate what you wanted and were charged accordingly!

To quote their web site "Every cake, tartlette, pastry and loaf on sale is lovingly handcrafted and baked on the premises by a team of five master bakers and confectioners. Tangy lemon tarts, moist filled chocolate cakes, chewy florentines, flaky buttery eccles cakes, crumbly stollen, classic Victoria sponges, chocolate brownies, oven-warm scones, fresh cream coffee puffs ……..comforting names and enticing smells that ensure friends return again and again".

The building was built some 450 years ago. A young Princess – later Queen Victoria is reputed to have bought a pair of shoes in its shop. There's been a tea room there for nearly a 100 years.

De Grey’s
5/6 Broad Street
Ludlow
Shropshire
SY8 1NG

Tel: 01584 872764

Web: http://www.degreys.co.uk/bakery.htm















I was going to take a photo of Swift's Clee Hill bakery, as I did the delightful drive from Cleobury Mortimer to Ludlow on Saturday. You get fantastic views of the Malverns from the top of Clee Hill on a good day, but on Saturday it was too foggy to take a decent picture just across the road!

Swift's won the People's Choice Festival Loaf at last year's Ludlow Food Festival.

Their French breads have special Artisan Boulanger accreditation. They do some interesting continental breads: e.g. Ciabatta, Focaccia, Stromboli and also speciality breads: Cider, Chilli, Shropshire blue & red onion/herb & garlic, Pi-ado (Mediterranean style bread), Beer bread (Hobsons Donker) and Pesto & walnut!

Richard C. Swift Family Bakers
5 Parkway, off Corve Street
Ludlow
Shropshire
SY8 2PG

Tel: 01584 890003

Web: http://www.swifts.bakery.co.uk

Email: swifts@bakery.co.uk





















Lastly there's Walton's where bread and cakes are made on the premises.

R. Walton Ltd. Bakers and Confectioners
7/8 Market Street
Ludlow
Shropshire
SY8 1BP

Tel: 01584 872088

Also based in Ludlow is Cariad Cakes who make award-winning handmade vegetarian cakes for sale by mail order and at food fairs. They also make cakes for diabetic, gluten free and vegan diets.

Cariad Cakes

Web: http://www.cariadcakes.com

A few miles from Ludlow, at Moor Farm, is the Simply Delicious Fruit Cake Company. Their range includes Totally English Tradition (a rich dark fruit cake made with whisky), Chocolate Lovers (a fruit cake made with chocolate & orange liqueur) and Shropshire Gamekeeper's (a fruit cake made with mixed spice & sloe gin). Several shops in Ludlow sell their cakes, as it's nearly Easter why not buy a Simnel cake?

Simply Delicious Fruit Cake Company

Web: http://www.simplydeliciouscakes.co.uk