National Picnic Week
As you can imagine from a food blog based in a museum that has beautiful gardens, grassy fields and lots of nice open spaces in general, we love a good picnic in the great outdoors. Luckily so did the Edwardians so it is something I find very easy to talk enthusiastically about for National Picnic Week, starting on Friday, 16th June.
And, as chance would have it, we have been putting a new summery window display in Joseph Herron’s Bakery in our 1900s Town, which has taken a lot of inspiration from this foodie past time; the display is so good it looks as if a local Edwardian has just left their picnic spot in the bakery window!
The staff have been popping into the window their favourite treats that would be perfect for a picnic, complete with original crockery and even some sporty items for a game of tennis after their cheese and onion pies, lemon biscuits and endless cups of tea! If a visiting Edwardian happened to stroll past our display, they would feel right at home; the idea of picnicking was very popular in this era and the sight of a family or group gathered round a picnic basket was increasingly common in local parks and at society events. Shops like Fortnum and Mason started to tailor their wares to suit this new trend, and claim to be the inventors of the scotch egg in 1738 – a firm picnic favourite.
If you fancy a picnic at the museum, there are plenty of places to set up your rug and hamper, whether it’s the grass around the bandstand, the events field, or any of the picnic tables that are dotted around the whole site. If you forget your supplies there are plenty of options to pick up some bits and bobs; from the pork pies and pasties in Sinkers’ Bait Cabin, to sponge cakes and bread in the bakery, there is something for everyone to make your picnic a true success!
