History

Cheddar cheese takes its name from the Somerset gorge village 45 minutes south of Bristol, where cheesemakers matured wheels in the caves from at least the 1100s. The ploughman's lunch as a pub fixture is a 20th-century invention, but Bristol sits closer to the source than any other big city, and its cheesemongers and micropubs treat cave-aged cheddar with the seriousness other cities save for wine.

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Common allergens: Dairy, Gluten

Make it at home

Yield Serves 2Hands-on 15 minTotal 15 minDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 250g cave-aged or farmhouse cheddar, in one piece
  • 4 thick slices of crusty white or sourdough bread
  • 4 tablespoons ale or apple chutney
  • 2 pickled onions
  • 1 crisp eating apple, quartered
  • A handful of watercress
  • Salted butter

Method

  1. Take the cheddar out of the fridge an hour ahead; cold cheese hides half its flavour.
  2. Cut the cheese into thick wedges rather than slices, so each bite has the crumbly centre and the denser rind edge.
  3. Butter the bread generously and arrange everything on a board: cheese, chutney, pickled onions, apple and watercress in separate camps.
  4. Serve with a glass of still cider and let everyone build their own bites.

Tip from the editors. Buy a cloth-bound cheddar from a cheesemonger rather than plastic-wrapped block; the crumble and the sharp finish are the whole point.

Where to eat cheddar ploughman's

Cheddar ploughman's in Bristol

The Cheese Connection ★ 4.1

££ DeliWapping Wharf

The Cheese Connection curates South West and British artisan cheese from a Cargo 2 container, Bristol's harbourside cheesemonger with tasting events.

Why locals goA one-container cheesemonger tucked among Cargo's louder kitchens, curating South West wheels.

TipOrder a platter to eat on the wharf; the counter leans hard into Somerset and West Country wheels.

Directions

Snuffy Jack's Ale House ★ 4.1

£ Cocktail barFishponds

Snuffy Jack's pours gravity-served casks in a Fishponds micropub named after a snuff-mill ghost, east Bristol's destination for proper quiet ale drinking.

Why locals goA Fishponds micropub in a former shop, invisible unless you ride the 48 bus and watch for the sign.

TipIt is a bus ride from the centre and worth it; card behind the bar, cheese board on the counter, no screens anywhere.

Directions

The Drapers Arms ★ 4.2

£ Cocktail barGloucester Road

The Drapers Arms is Bristol's first micropub, a one-room former draper's shop on Gloucester Road serving cask ale and conversation, nothing else.

Why locals goBristol's first micropub, one converted shopfront on Gloucester Road with no music and no fuss.

TipNo music, no phones encouraged, no lager: order a cask third and talk to a stranger, that is the point.

Directions

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