Unmissable Foodie Experiences in Bury St Edmunds

Bury St Edmunds is a prime destination for food and drink connoisseurs from the UK and beyond, fast gaining a reputation as a centre of culinary expertise.

A thriving conurbation since Saxon times, Bury St Edmunds today is well regarded for its fresh and abundant supply of locally reared and cultivated produce.

Bury St Edmunds has a firm reputation as the county’s centre of foodie heaven, with a plethora of award winning restaurants, the only Michelin starred restaurant in Suffolk, outstanding gastro pubs and even an annual Bury St Edmunds Food and Drink Festival. It’s no wonder then that visitors flock to Bury St Edmunds to learn a thing or two about the food on offer and how to create culinary masterpieces of their own.

Here are just some of the foodie experiences you must try on your next visit.

Bury St Edmunds is home to Suffolk's only Michelin starred restaurant, Pea Porridge. An independently owned restaurant, Pea Porridge is located on a square which was once called Pea Porridge Green.

The restaurant is tucked away in a quiet residential area on Cannon Street. The building was originally two cottages built in 1820 which later became a bakery. The restaurant now comprises three delightful unpretentious dinning rooms with old pine tables, an open fire and a splendid bakers oven.

As big food and drink lovers, very much hands on owners Justin Sharp (head chef-proprietor) and his wife Jurga (front-of-house), like to keep things lively, fresh and exciting. They are not at all into gadgetry and tricks in the kitchen and favour a very much “produce” driven approach. They love to cook what they themselves would like to eat, prioritising local, seasonal produce. Whatever is on the plate, their aim is for a combination of simplicity and flavour. “Nose-to-Tail” dishes are also regular staple on their menu, which changes almost every day.

The historic town of Bury St Edmunds is a culinary hotspot!

Make sure you book a table early at one of the town's fabulous award-winning restaurants on your next visit to Suffolk's foodie capital!

Lark, Maison Bleue, 1921 Angel Hill and The Angel's Eaterie are a few that have won awards for their culinary experiences.

For those seeking a more hands on learning experience, head to ICE Cook School's popular ICE Lunch Bar is a chance to enjoy pure culinary theatre – you sit back, relax and enjoy your favourite tipple whilst their chefs prepare, cook and serve an 8-10 course taster menu to tickle your taste buds. Prepare for the unexpected as they tease your senses with different flavours and textures and present it all using cutting edge techniques. Their exclusive Lunch Bars seat 15 guests and are normally booked up months in advance.

ICE's popular Date Night foodie experience is equally as popular. Whether it’s a first date or some long-overdue quality time with your partner, let ICE Cook School give you a night to remember with their Date Night interactive dining experience. Working together as a pair you will cook, eat, laugh, and love in their relaxed kitchen. This is an evening you will not want to miss!

ICE also offer cookery classes and courses guaranteed to take you to the next level when it comes to making gourmet feasts at home. Choose from half day, full day, evening or weekend courses in almost any type of cuisine you can think of. Channel your inner Heston Blumenthal and take a class in ‘Modern cookery techniques’ where you can experiment with creating strawberry spaghetti, instantaneous ice cream and futuristic liquid spheres. More traditional aspiring chefs can choose from courses in butchery for beginners, barbequing, breads of the world or Sous Vide.

Specialist diets are also catered for, with courses in vegetarian and vegan menus and gluten free cooking. There really is something for everyone and too much to list here, whether you want to focus on a certain national cuisine such as French or Spanish food or concentrate on a single aspect of the craft such as stocks and sauces, there is something for everyone. Young food lovers are not excluded either, with weekend courses for kids in doughnut making, pizza and fresh pasta.

To view all the experiences and courses visit the ICE website.

Immerse yourself in exquisite tasting menus at Forage Kitchen, where talented chefs showcase the best of wild-foraged ingredients and ultra-seasonal creations; from the mouth-watering 10-course tasting menus to the innovative “Future Flavours” nights, blending the current menu with exciting new dishes.

Discover the magic of their open kitchen, where you can witness the chefs in action and learn about the artistry behind each dish.

Forage Kitchen offers 10-course tasting menus in the evening and 6-course tasting menus at lunchtime and they change their menu in full each month to showcase the very best of what the season has to offer.

You can also embark on a one-day culinary adventure at Forage Kitchen that intertwines the primitive with the modern, the wild with the cultivated. Forage Kitchen's ‘Wild Harvest’ course invites you to experience the essence of nature, captured in every foraged leaf and berry, and honed through the rustic yet refined art of bread making, preserving, smoking, and outdoor cooking. This expedition is not just about cooking; it’s about embracing the wild, understanding its offerings, and transforming them with both age-old and contemporary culinary techniques.

Perhaps you know a connoisseur of a different ilk, who is far more suited to sampling a libation than lunch! They too are catered for by Bury St Edmunds’ 1000 year long history of brewing traditional real ale.

Pay a visit to Greene King Brewery for a guided tour of the Westgate Brewery and find out about the natural ingredients and brewing methods they employ.

You can even pause to take in a panoramic view of the town from the roof of the brew house before making your way to the beer café to quaff a classic pint of Abbot Ale, or one of the more recent creations such as the punchy East Coast IPA.

Historic Bury St Edmunds is the perfect place to experience delicious real ale and unique craft beer! Real ale and craft beer enthusiasts can explore 20 of the town’s licensed premises with the Bury St Edmunds Ale Trail, giving visitors the chance to try ales brewed in the town itself or from further afield.

The special ale trail map can be found at pubs and bars throughout the town centre, the tourist information centre at The Apex and can be downloaded from the Our Bury St Edmunds website.

Many of us have visited vineyards outside of the UK but how about one just down the road from Bury St Edmunds?

Giffords Hall is a family owned Vineyard in Hartest where they grow Bacchus, Madeleine Angevine, Reichensteiner, Rondo and Pinot Noir varieties. Their sandy/clay soil produces quality grapes, high in natural sugars and acids, that lend themselves particularly well to both sparkling and dry aromatic still wines.

East Anglia is fast becoming a recognisable wine growing region. UK vineyards in southern Britain import nearly half their grapes from East Anglia, particularly the Bacchus and Pinot Noir varieties which require drier weather to fruit and ripen. East Anglia has consistently won more gold medals for Bacchus than any other region.

Giffords Hall Vineyard is a beautiful place to visit in the heart of the Upper Stour valley. Hartest is one of Suffolk’s prettiest villages, with a hump backed bridge, thatched and painted houses and a large green.

They offer entertaining tours of the vineyard with a talk on the grape varieties they grow and the wines they produce, followed by a tasting and presentation of three wines and three liqueurs. The cafe is open for cakes, coffee and ice creams and the shop is full of lovely things to buy!

Find out more about the tours on Gifford's Hall Vineyard website.

Wyken Vineyards is a lively and creative community situated in beautiful Suffolk countryside. With a vineyard restaurant and country store that is situated in the middle of a 1,200 acre farm, in a converted Medieval barn.

With a focus on sustainability, much of the meat such as venison, hogget, pork and game are reared on the estate, and salads and vegetables are grown in the kitchen garden. Most of their electricity comes from our own solar panels, and all the heating is supplied by chip and firewood from rotational coppice from their ancient woodlands.

They were the first vineyard restaurant in the UK and produce award-winning wines served in their restaurant.

Their vision is to tell the story between Suffolk farm, English vineyard, garden and plate.

Wyken Vineyards has won multiple awards including Best Restaurant in Suffolk in 2016 and 2020. They have held a Michelin Bib Gourmand for 22 years and for the past two years won a Michelin Green Initiative Award.

Their much loved, Suffolk destination offers something for everyone including: a restaurant, lifestyle shop selling our wines, sourdough pizza café, magnificent Royal Horticultural Society garden and weekly Farmer’s Market.

Burnt House Vineyard is a family run business in the heart of the Suffolk countryside and just 30 minutes from Bury St Edmunds.

Situated on a south facing slope, the vineyard consists of four varieties; Chardonnay, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir and Bacchus. Established in 2017 the vines are planted over a total of 22 acres.

Burnt House produces grapes for traditional method sparkling wine and still wine. While the vineyard has been operating as a commercial vineyard supplying other brands with grapes, Burnt House has now created their first release of Bacchus.

In 2022 Burnt House opened its cellar door and tasting room which is nestled along a quiet country road in Little Finborough, Stowmarket. Open for tours, tastings, various events, or just drop in to enjoy the vineyard and wines with local produce and food pairings.

The Cellar Door and Tasting Room is open to visitors, please note opening times vary during the seasons.

The regions of Suffolk and Norfolk boast some of the best produce in the UK, and with Bury St Edmunds known as Suffolk's Foodie Town, you can not only enjoy a gastronomic feast when dining out, you can also enjoy fine dining from the comfort of your own holiday cottage with Bury St Edibles. Using the best locally sourced ingredients, they provide restaurant quality home catering to private individuals throughout the region.

With a range of menus on offer, including a vegan menu, there's something to suit all tastes. Dishes available include Mushroom and truffle scotched Pakenham egg, Antipasti platter of Suffolk salami’s, Hams and cheeses and Chilli and garlic squid salad with pickled vegetable for starter; Risotto of foraged and seasonal vegetables, vegetable crisps, farmers hand cheese, Day boat fish with a fine herb risotto and beurre blanc and Wild nettle tagliatelle, roast tomato sauce and Pangritatta for main and Beetroot chocolate brownie with raspberry sorbet, Coffee panna-cotta, hazelnut brandy snap and White chocolate mousse, dark chocolate “crunchie bar” raspberry sorbet for dessert.

This may be the perfect souvenir of your visit to Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk's Foodie Town!

Craft a bespoke bottle of gin that’s tailored to your taste, with an Adnams Make Your Own Gin experience. Our Bury St Edmunds Make Your Own Gin sessions take place in the Gin Lab, located in our Bury St Edmunds store. During this fascinating experience, an Adnams Gin Maker will guide you through the process of making your own unique bottle of gin. Using our mini copper stills, they will and teach you all the secrets of distillation.

You will learn about how to craft a great tasting gin, from balancing a wide variety of flavours and aromas, to understanding the influence of the distillation process. We will help you develop your own recipe from a selection of provided botanicals and you will go on to distill, fill and name your personal bottle. The experience also involves a tasting session showcasing our spirits range, including a selection of our best-loved brands, and any current seasonal releases available at the time of your visit.

This exciting experience lasts approximately 2, to 2.5 hours. As well as the opportunity to create your own full-sized, 70cl bottle of gin to take home with you.

Visit our Food and Drink Directory for more yummy food and drink businesses in Bury St Edmunds and Beyond!