Slate

Aldeburgh

A gunmetal grey colour palette complements the brackish North Sea that batters the end of the street this deli sits on while, inside, you’ll find a carefully curated shrine to all things curds and whey. Walk down the cobbled streets past antique and vintage clothes shops to be welcomed inside arguably the best specialist cheese retailer in Suffolk.

When Clare Jackson and her father John Ormerod took over the deli in January 2017, their aim was simple: to set up a cheese shop that provides residents with high-quality local produce. The slate floor makes it feel like you’re stepping into a life-size cheeseboard peppered with an array of British cheeses, 40 of which are sourced from Neal’s Yard Dairy.

Scan the walls for farmhouse classics such as Montgomery Cheddar and Cornish Yarg, which is encased in nettles, giving a citrussy taste. Next up, try Dorstone goat’s cheese, whose ash coating gives it savoury and nutty notes – its light-and- fluffy texture works perfectly drizzled with local Suffolk honey. Be sure to try Julie Cheyney’s award-winning St Jude buttery cows’ milk cheese. Produced in Fen Farm, Suffolk, the soft and creamy blend has subtle hints of tobacco and hay.

Join the deli’s Cheese Club and receive a parcel on your doorstep each month containing three different varieties of cheese and a box of crackers to stack them onto. Inside, you’ll discover the Cheese of the Month as well as personal favourites and unique varieties that you’ll be among the first to try.

On a leisurely Saturday or Sunday morning, grab a steaming cup of Monmouth coffee and pick up a Pump Street Bakery fresh, buttery croissant and an Eccles cake for good measure. Jam-packed with plump Vostizza currants and laced with armaganc, they’re an indulgent, sweet start to enjoy on the windswept pebbly beaches of the East Anglian coast, while sucking up the restorative coastal air. SD.