Lucky to live in Norfolk – Holt and Byfords

During our weekend in the beautiful Georgian town of Holt in North Norfolk, we indulged in a spot of Christmas shopping before the rush really begins in November.  Once the Holt Christmas lights are switched on, which happens this year on Wednesday 23rd November at 6.45pm, the small town becomes a bustling place full of eager shoppers.

Bakers and Larners are perhaps the most well-known local department store and they offer a fabulous array of festive foods, edible gifts and sweet treats, as well as wine, clothes, books and homewares.  We stocked up on some items for seasonal hampers, which are ideal gifts for the difficult to please!

For younger family members, The Pied Piper shop is the perfect treasure trove of gift ideas (and one of our wonderful stockists too!).  Not only do they specialise in Jellycat toys, which are the cutest, most snuggly soft toys in existence, but they have a vast array of small gadgets, gizmos and puzzles which are just begging to be popped into a stocking or two on Christmas Eve.  We just couldn’t resist the Bashful Lamb, so velvety and sweet that we may not be able to part with her when the time comes!

Other gorgeous gift shops include Quest, on Shirehall Plain, with its lovely range of decorations, stationery and cards, and the House and Garden Shop on the Market Place.  And of course, we couldn't resist a quick peek into the famous Christmas Shop, with  it's beautiful Christmas tree decorations from around the world.

After all that shopping and then our walk around Spout Hills with the hounds, we had worked up quite an appetite!  Daniel kindly offered to take us out to dinner at Byfords, Holt’s largest café, restaurant and delicatessen.  What a treat!  With its warm welcome, tempting table of complimentary nibbles and menu of locally sourced produce, Byfords rightly deserves its reputation for quality and service.

We finished off a lovely day by building our own ice cream sundae (one of Byfords specialities) using Sue's famous fudge brownies as the basis for a scrumptious end to a delicious meal!  LouLou and Will x