The Rampant Goose

The proposed follow-up foraging didn’t happen, Mrs Y having spent a good deal of time in the kitchen working on the fruits of the previous foray.

Rather, yesterday we celebrated the end of Stalin Week by taking ourselves out to lunch. Where to go, as we are still being strict, though not fanatical, about local produce consumption?

We selected the Three Mariners in Oare; the food is grand and it is a walk from where we live, also it has a good selection of dishes based on locally sourced ingredients. It didn’t let us down, the scran was smashing. And, talking to staff it was good to learn there is indeed a local sourcing policy at the pub.

Some eateries in Faversham come to mind as rightly making much of their use of local produce, such as Provenance Restaurant at the Railway Hotel and Read’s (you can’t get much more local than veg from your own garden). Out-of-town the Plough at Stalisfield comes to mind as having an emphasis on local produce.

But, other nosheries seem very opaque about where their ingredients come from. Lesson No. 6 (for local eating houses) . . . use local produce where you can ‑ and tell your customers you are doing so, they will reward you for it.

On the other side of things, good to see Sainsbury’s supporting local producers to some degree. I picked up a bottle of their own-brand Kentish Traditional Ale the other day and was pleased to see it was brewed by Shepherd Neame. The contents were very decent, but the labelling gave me pause for thought. The logo for this traditional Kent drop was an, er, rampant goose, that well-known symbol of the Garden of England. Corporate marketing departments, you do wonder.

But, having said, the involvement of national chains in the promotion of local produce can be said to be key to the whole issue, so more of that another day.