When my boyfriend suggested going to the Isle of Wight to pay an overdue visit to his grandparents I decided to tag along. In just 3 hours door-to-door we arrived at our B&B in East Cowes . I conducted the necessary Google search and discovered what the Isle had to offer - I stumbled across the Garlic Festival which, predictably, took place the weekend before we were due to go!

Not one to be deterred we set out to the farm. The Garlic Farm is owned and run by the Bowsell family, who have been running this little haven since the 1970’s. The farm is located near the middle of the island, ideal for access from any direction, as crossing the Isle takes no time at all from coast to coast. Every year in August the island hosts a festival celebrating locally grown garlic. The event is so popular it is the second highest attended event behind Cowes Week.

The café was our first point of call as the aromas wafting from that direction were too inviting to avoid. There is a real rustic feel to the place, wood features heavily throughout, with lovely beams and chalk boards hanging from the ceilings, revealing the days specials. The weather was glorious so we parked ourselves outside next to the garlic weaver. We sat watching the young woman expertly weave garlic into the kinds things you see dangling from a ‘Parisian’ man in the cartoons. There was definitely an art to it and her patience and rhythm set a very relaxing atmosphere.

Back to the important bit, the food! Matt opted for the special – Goats cheese and roasted vegetable terrine with smoked garlic. Matt’s mother and I decided that everything sounded too good to restrict ourselves to just the one dish so we opted to share. We chose homemade lamb kofta balls on a bed of Tzatziki, topped with spicy roasted sweet potato wedges. Our second dish was the cheese ploughman’s with a selection of their homemade chutneys, many of them garlic infused. The food was sensational, it was extremely flavoursome, visually attractive and made you want to try more of the menu.

After a much needed stroll post-lunch, our final stop was the garlic farm shop. Here you can taste every variety of chutney they produce (garlic/ tomato/ginger and the pear/rhubarb being my favourites) as well as purchase the many varieties grown and indulge in endless homemade cakes and pies. Tempting as it was to buy up the whole shop, unfortunately our luggage was already full to the brim, something I greatly resented when making my plain cheddar cheese sandwich for the lunch the next day!

Eddie