A TOWN near Winchester hosted a local food event recently, after it was cancelled three times.

Bishop’s Waltham Bites in April 2020, October 2020 and April 2021 all had to be cancelled due to the pandemic.

However, on October 16 people had the chance to sample the food of Bishop’s Waltham’s eateries and food shops.

They were able to sample items such as pigs in blankets, giant chocolate chip cookies, local cheeses and hams, Prosecco with fish chowder and smoked salmon twirls, local ice cream, chocolates, Bruschetta and mini pies.

The participating food outlets were: The Southern Co-op, Grover Butchers, Any Fish, The Barleycorn Inn, The Crown Inn, Hoxton’s Bakehouse and Sweet Corner with the Bishop’s Waltham Country Market in Red Lion Street.

Sophie and Jean from Sweet Corner said: “After so many years of providing bites to others, it was wonderful to see Bishop’s Waltham Bites from the other side.

“It was great to see the effort all the traders put into it and the creativity of the bites on offer. We had a wonderful day”.

Barry Nicholson, Chairman of the Chamber of Trade said: “It is such a good village event which attracts regulars and newcomers alike. It is great to welcome people into our outlets for the first time and to have this opportunity to give them a flavour of what we offer.

“The benefit reaches non-food retailers in the town too. They tell us that footfall is always greater in their shops on Bishop’s Waltham Bites days.”

This year the event was financially supported by The European Regional Development Fund as part of the Government’s Welcome Back Fund created in the aftermath of lockdown restrictions.

The participating outlets generously cover the costs of their bites which means that all the money raised through the ticket sales can be put towards a community event for the benefit of the area.