Best Places for a Picnic in Dorchester
Monday, July 25th, 2016The summer holidays are here and with the end of the school term many families will be looking forward to getting out in the warmer weather and enjoying the open spaces on offer in Dorchester. Packing up a picnic in Dorchester and heading off to one of the lovely green spaces in the County Town is one of life’s little pleasures. We showcase some of the best places to picnic in the town…
The Borough Gardens
The beautiful Victorian Borough Gardens near the centre of Dorchester is where many choose as their number one picnic destination. With so many great facilities alongside all the free events happening there is not difficult to see why. The gentle slopes around the manicured gardens make ideal back rests too. There are plenty of benches and picnic tables in the gardens to use for your spread as well.
Maumbury Rings
The Roman Amphitheatre of Maumbury Rings lies to the south of the town near the skate park, it provides a great location for a spot of picnic lunch. Grab a blanket and bottle of your favourite tipple claim your spot in this great area. Once inside the bowl which was built up by the Romans around 100AD, you could be anywhere as the steep slopes cancel out most of the nearby road noise. There are plenty of free events that are hosted here each year as well including The Anonymous Festival on 27th August 2016.
Fordington Green
The triangle shaped green in the middle of Fordington plays a crucial part in helping to create a village atmosphere inside Dorchester’s boundaries. If you are looking for a quieter spot to stop for your picnic in Dorchester then Fordington Green might just be the place for you. There are also regular events such as the St George’s Day Fair for all the family to enjoy.
Salisbury Field
Not far from Fordington Green is the lovely green open space that is Salisbury Field. Here there is an enclosed play area set within the large grass field with play equipment suited to a mixed age group. These include a large and small climbing frame, activity net, standard and baby swings, a seesaw, roundabout, slide and rockers. The area has seats and picnic tables so not a problem if you didn’t bring your own seating.
Picnic food heaven
Whether you are local to the area or enjoying your holidays in Dorset, when looking to stock up with all your picnic food goodies there are a number of great delicatessens and bakeries in Dorchester for you to choose from:
The Fridge is located in Tudor Arcade. Wayne and his team at The Fridge have been serving tasty locally sourced food for over 20 years. Quite simply they have the best selection of cheeses in Dorset. They also provide complete hampers so you can get the full picnic service from these guys.
Top End Deli opened in 2015 and is based at the top of Antelope Walk is a traditional delicatessen using only Dorset purveyors and produce. Owners Wayne and Lucy produce some lovely freshly cooked pastry items, their sausage rolls are our favourites.
The Celtic Kitchen makes the best pasties in Dorchester – Fact! Their genuine Cornish Pasties and hand made cakes are freshly baked in the heart of Dorchester. So if you’re looking for the perfect picnic, lunch on the move or a fun and tasty family supper then come and try their Cornish Pasties. We particularly like the steak and stilton.
