We are a family who loves to explore our local surroundings and dine out, whether that be a nice lunch, evening meal, home made picnic or a quick stop off on a sunny day for an ice-cream! Family time is precious and making memories together is what life is all about.

Living on the Isle of Wight we are surrounded by beautiful beaches, coastline, countryside and woodlands so exploring somewhere new or experiencing new tastes is never far from our doorstep. We also have a lot of local produce available to us nearby and I really enjoy having a look around the little gift shops, displays, antiques and other delights we may stumble across.

I have made a gallery of snaphots really into a few of the local places we often go to here on the Isle of Wight.

Starting with Arreton Barns which has a lovely Family pub ‘The Dairyman’s Daughter’, a craft barn, farm shop, various handmade craft shops, a picnic area, pond, old church, live music, a shipwreck museum! and so so much more there really is something for all the family here any day or night of the week. It’s a beautiful idyllic place to come and visit with family and events are also run here throughout the year. Lovely fresh, homemade food served too and a good children’s menu.

https://www.facebook.com/TheDairymansDaughter/

https://www.facebook.com/ArretonBarns/

Another pretty place to visit in the heart of Brading Old Village is Rectory Mansion where there is parking nearby to stop off here for a light brunch, cake or lunch and have a mooch around the Antique, Vintage & Retro Emporium if you wish.

Aswell as the outside courtyard area which is very pretty and relaxing and has a small fish pond, there is also a litte gift shop.

In Brading there is an old church right next door , some little shops and just up the road near the Beechgrove Doctor’s surgery, there is a lovely park! Hidden away with surrounding fields on a sunny day you may even spot small aircraft flying over! You can take the children here for a play in the park or why not take a nice picnic there with you. See photo gallery below.

https://www.facebook.com/RectoryMansion/

We like checking out what local Garden Centre’s have to offer from time to time and one of the places our little boy particularly likes to go to is Honor & Jeffrey’s in Sandown/Lake. He loves to see and feed the fish in the aquatic shop, aswell as have lunch or a slice of cake in the The Bear Cafe, and having a look around the Garden Centre with us. Christmas time is lovely there too! Well worth a litle look in. See photo gallery and video below.

http://www.honnorandjeffrey.com/cafes.html

Vernon Cottage Tea Room is quite a popular place to go for lunch and has a pretty outside garden terrace, sometimes live music and the food and service is excellent. Just look at that impressive seafood platter below in my gallery! A must place to visit if your exploring Shanklin Old Village which has much on offer to see including gift shops, crafts, pubs, restaurants, Shanklin chine and beach, Rhylstone Gardens plus more.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Vernon-Cottage-Tavern/227232993956384

A great family pub on the island is the Fighting Cocks in Arreton where they serve fresh home made food, lots of variety for the family whether you would like a large or lighter bite size meal. Even the children’s menu has an option of children’s meals and toddler size! It’s becoming more popular for pubs and restaurants to follow this trend as the little people are so important too after all.

There is a great outside play park with a sectioned off area for younger children and next to the park some friendly animals on a field which children and adults always love to see!  I’ve added a few photos in gallery below.

https://www.facebook.com/thefightingcocksiow/

The Old Corner Bank in Sandown high street is a hidden gem for food! A quaint little pub/restaurant that was once a bank. They have a really nice menu of fresh homemade food and it’s always such a friendly service with separate dining area away from the bar if you wish to be seated there. The old bank managers office is a little sofa lounge and there are a few toys for the kids in a cupboard which my son always goes straight for.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Old-Corner-Bank/535204306545572

The Victory Tea Bus in Arreton is great for tea and cake or a light lunch. The old double decker bus has been kitted out with a vintage theme and you can sit on the top deck or there is tables outside too. How perfect and a little quirky, especially for my little motor enthusiast of buses, cars etc!   There is also a large craft shop, House of Chilli and antique shop on site so some lovely things to go and have a look round.

https://www.facebook.com/pg/VictoryTeaRoom/about/?ref=page_internal

Farmhouse Pantry along Ryde seafont is a nice little stop off for breakfast, lunches, cooked meals, ice creams and crepes that you can even takeaway! It’s recently been re-decorated with a Retro Diner theme and you can sit in little booths which we liked. See gallery below.

https://www.facebook.com/farmhousepantry/

 

Lastly just a few snaps of us enjoying our beach and ice cream stop offs! A little marshmallow roasting thrown in too which my son loves to have a go at bless.

WE LOVE ISLAND LIFE!

Love Katrina x

Mothersons