10 places for Pies, Stilton, Hunt Cake & more

When visiting Leicestershire, getting intimate with pork pies and Stilton is not obligatory. However, if you’re a pastry and cheese fan, ignoring them is like attending a gourmet feast and skipping the main course.

Both the Melton Mowbray pork pie and Stilton cheese enjoy protected status, meaning they must be made in the local area and produced to specific traditional methods. 
 
But how did Stilton and pork pies come to be associated with Leicestershire? And more importantly, where should you try them?  
 
We can thank Leicestershire’s fertile landscape, which is ideal for grazing. This led to Stilton and Red Leicester as farmers diversified. Soon, pig farming joined the party, with whey – a dairy byproduct – providing nutritious feed. Next, we add fox hunting to the mix, another result of Leicestershire’s verdant fields. Hunters needed portable sustenance, and thus the iconic Melton Mowbray pork pie was born, its jelly and pastry offering protection and durability. 
 
If you want to try Leicestershire’s legendary pork pies, you may want to start at Ye Olde Pork Pie Shoppe in Melton Mowbray, crafting pies since 1851. Or try Clarkes of Queniborough, a pretty independent village butcher and pie maker. Then there’s March House Farm Shop in Great Dalby, which raises the pigs and bakes the pork pies in-house. 
 
Cheese connoisseurs will also be delighted. The Melton Cheeseboard focuses on Stilton and carries over 160 varieties of cheese. Long Clawson Dairy, established in 1912, is one of six remaining Stilton producers. And Leicestershire Handmade Cheese Co near Market Bosworth produces exceptional Red Leicester, and their cheese shop and tearoom are open on Fridays and Saturdays.