Feeling hungry while exploring The North Wales Way? Take a tour of local food and drink producers and eateries. You'll taste the very best of home grown, homemade Welsh food and drink.
Bragdy Conwy Brewery, Llysfaen
The Bradgy Conwy Brewery casks and bottles ales using the soft water from the Eryri (Snowdonia) mountains. The team are passionate about minimising their impact on the environment. The beers are all naturally conditioned and unfiltered which means they are less energy intensive to brew and taste amazing. Do a brewery tour to find out more and then sample a few (or buy some to take away if you’re driving.)
Read more: The great beers of Wales
Porth Eirias, Colwyn Bay
Chef Bryn Williams has cooked for all sorts of famous people including HM Queen Elizabeth on her 80th birthday. Find out what all the fuss is about at Porth Eirias, his seafront bistro in Colwyn Bay. It’s a spacious, relaxed kind of place where Bryn’s team turns the freshest local, seasonal ingredients into great bistro-style food. Seafood is the focus but there’s plenty for veggies and farm-fresh meat too.
Gwinllan Conwy Vineyard, Llangwstenin
Against the backdrop of Eryri (Snowdonia) National Park, the three-acre Gwinllan Conwy Vineyard could be confused for rustic Italy on a sunny day! On a guided vineyard tour, you can see their various grape varieties growing on vines at the right times of year, learn about pruning and harvesting and then taste the results from the bottle. They also do amazing food taster boards including local cheeses and charcuterie.
Read more: Vineyard tours in Wales
Penderyn Distillery, Llandudno
After the success of their first distillery in the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons), the team at Penderyn decided to open one up North! Their Llandudno Penderyn Distillery is housed in a lovely restored school building and you can do a tour to see how they distil this special single malt as well as various rums and gins. Of course you get to sample some too! Whisky masterclasses are available - they suggest you don’t come by car if you’re booked on one of these.
Read more: Local Foodie spots around Llandudno
Baravelli’s Chocolates, Conwy
Emma and Mark Baravelli have been crafting amazingly creative chocolates for over a decade. They’ve been featured on numerous TV shows and they’ve won all sorts of awards. Pop into Baravelli’s Chocolates' shop in Conwy and sample a few of these amazing sweet treats. They make the perfect gift – if you can get them home without succumbing to temptation first!
Sosban and the old Butchers, Menai Bridge
Chef Stephen Stevens at Michelin-starred Sosban and the Old Butchers in Menai Bridge doesn’t have a set menu. He just creates a sensational series of perfectly balanced dishes from scratch each day, using the best locally sourced produce and in the least stuffy surroundings. You even get to see him cooking the dishes! Bookings well in advance are essential. Due to the way the menu is prepared, special dietary requirements can’t be catered for.
Read more: Michelin star restaurants in Wales
Hooton's Homegrown, Anglesey
At Hooton's Homegrown the Hooton family have been growing fantastic fruit and veg and rearing their own livestock for over 50 years. Their farm shop is packed with pies, chutneys, seasonal fruit and veg and home reared Welsh black beef, lamb, pork and chicken as well other tasty things from nearby prodcuers – look out for cheeses from Caws Rhyd y Delyn and Y Cwt Caws!
Halen Môn Sea Salt, Anglesey
Made purely from the wild waters of Anglesey, Halen Môn Sea Salt produces outstandingly delicious seasoning in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. At the Halen Môn Visitor Centre on the banks of the beautiful Menai Strait, you can do a tour through the history of salt in the area then take part in a tutor-led salt tasting. After, you can take some home from the gift shop - discover freshly collected salt, spice mixes and more local delicacies.
Llanfairpwll Distillery, Anglesey
The team at the Llanfairpwll Distillery concocts all sorts of spectacular spirits. There are gins flavoured with local rhubarb, a native Anglesey apple called Pig Snout and blackberries harvested from secret locations around the island. They also distil some lovely dark rums. You can pop into the distillery and shop most days, but you’re advised to call ahead just in case.
Read more: Join the Gin Revolution
Melin Llynon, Llanddeusant, Anglesey
When’s a doughnut not a doughnut? When it’s a Mônut of course! Taking inspiration from Môn, the Welsh name for Anglesey, Richard Holt and his team handmake their special Mônuts every day filling them with sweet fondants and creams and dazzling the tops with sparkle and sugar. Bring your own box and you get a discount! You’ll find all sorts of other attractions at Melin Llynon including a Model Safari to keep the kids amused and various unusual historic buildings. Check the website for details of opening hours.
Read more: Some of the finest restaurants on Anglesey
