Dunkertons Organic Cider shop in Cheltenham is a proud member of a local scheme called The Foodie Card!

We offer any cardholders who visit our shop a FREE Dunkertons etched glass of their choice when they purchase 12 or more bottles.

The Foodie Card is an amazing scheme for food and drink fans locally, we love the work they do so interviewed the founder herself, Victoria!

 

  • What is the story of and the passion behind The Foodie Card?

Food played a big part in my childhood and upbringing as we ate out a lot and travelled as a family, mainly due to my parents’ business needs. When at home it was very important to my mother to cook meals from fresh and to teach us as children about where our food comes from as well as encouraging us to cook. I have a background in hospitality, events & marketing, and discovered a passion for helping small businesses during my time working for the local Chamber of Commerce.

In January 2017 I decided to start a food blog, under the name Pershore Patty, as a bit of fun and to share some of the great places I had been eating out at across the UK, but mostly in the three counties and West Midlands. It wasn’t long before people were contacting me asking me for local recommendations of places to eat, and restaurants started getting in touch to ask me to write reviews of my visits. The more I shared, the more people seemed to want to see, so I found myself eating out more regularly to keep fresh content on my blog and social media pages. The amount of time and money I invested started to become very demanding, and I felt it was time to rethink why I was continuing with the blog.

I had an idea to try and work with local businesses to help promote them to the people who were asking me for recommendations, but this had to be beneficial for everyone. So in July 2018 The Foodie Card was born. Initially, a platform which was only available in Worcestershire, it quickly became apparent that businesses further afield wanted to be included and that I had a following which extended outside of the county. My husband and I still dedicate a huge amount of time and money to this, alongside full-time jobs, but The Foodie Card is a way to give something back as well as an added benefit to the businesses, and the people who’ve continued to follow my recommendations.

 

  • Where did the name Pershore Patty come from?

Pershore Patty was a quick name that I came up with when I first started my Wordpress site back in January 2017. I had to call it something, so chose ‘Pershore’ as it’s the nearest town to where I live, and ‘Patty’ came from my love of burgers! I’ve been stuck with it ever since.

 

  • How many people work for the Foodie Card? 

I am the sole person behind the food blog Pershore Patty and The Foodie Card. I don’t employ anybody, but hope to someday! The only company I have during the daytime is my Springer Spaniel named Holly. My husband helps me with the eating & drinking, as well as proof-reading pretty much everything, but thankfully he works for free!

 

  • Where are you based?
I don’t have an office as such. I am based at my home in Worcestershire. Sometimes I work from the kitchen table from my laptop, or the sofa updating social media from my phone/tablet.

     

    • Running a business which is involved in the food industry must mean you have had quite a lot of incredible dining experiences? Has there been one experience that has stood out to you?

    There have been several experiences which have stood out to me as exceptional, both locally and further afield. This isn’t a dining experience, but I was invited by Michelin-starred chef David Everitt Matthias to work a shift in the kitchen at Le Champignon Sauvage. You can read the full blog post here.

     

    • And with that you must have experienced some negative experiences? Do you have any tragic stories?

    Yes, several occasions which were particularly tragic, and ironically I suppose, all were with burgers!

    I wanted to take my husband to a local pub which had a reputation for serving up some of the best burgers in the area, and were amongst my favourites, but they completely messed up. After a long wait and several attempts for the chef to cook the inedible burger, the waiter then informed me that the burger which was advertised on the menu as ‘homemade’, was actually bought in as the server informed us that ‘it was too much hassle to make them in-house’. More on this story here… This pub has since changed hands and has a new chef.

    Then there was the time I couldn’t speak highly enough about an incredible burger – I raved on and on about it to a friend, they then rushed along to try it out and subsequently found a piece of metal hiding in the meat!

     

    • How does The Foodie Card Work?

    The Foodie Card entitles the cardholder to exclusively agree offers with independently and privately-owned food & drink businesses based across the three counties. The partners have all been hand-selected by me and are essentially a recommendation for local foodies looking for new places to visit and to seek out local gems. The idea is to help encourage people to support local, and to enjoy a little perk in the form of an offer designed just for them as a way of a little thank you for choosing to spend their money at one of these businesses.

    My blog /website is also a great source of information for people looking for local food & drink events, plus round-ups of where to go for Sunday lunch, breakfast & brunch, riverside pubs etc, as well as going behind the scenes interviewing the chefs and business owners of some of these fantastic places. I’m always looking for ways to add more value to both the partner businesses of The Foodie Card and the cardholders.

     

    • Why do you recommend having one? What are the benefits?

    The main benefit of The Foodie Card is that it allows cardholders to save money when they shop with a selection of local businesses. Owners of The Foodie Card can usually expect to redeem the cost of the card within the first two or three uses, and sometimes less. The Foodie Card can be used at over 200 local food & drink shops, distilleries, breweries, cookery schools, privately owned hotel restaurants, bars, cafes, restaurants, online shops, street food vendors and more. The card costs £15 (or two for £25) and is valid for 12 months.

     

    • Why did you want Dunkertons Cider to be part of the scheme?

    Dunkertons Cider fitted the profile of a family business who are among one of the best producers in the local area. The Dunkertons Cider Company ticks all of the boxes for quality, expertise, and a must-visit for locals and cider lovers visiting the area!

     

    • Your Instagram feed is stunning! Why should people follow your account and keep up to date with your blog posts?

    I try to post daily across my Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts to keep people up to date with The Foodie Card offers, as well as places that I am visiting that may not be on the card. My Instagram feed is essentially a big list of recommendations and is 100% guaranteed to make you hungry!

     

    • Finally, if there was one thing that you would want potential soon to be owners of the Foodie Card to know what would it be?

    If you are based in Gloucestershire, Herefordshire or Worcestershire, you’re a foodie and you love to support local, then this is the only food & drink discount card that you will need. There is no other card in the area that gives you access to as many offers exclusively at independents as The Foodie Card and is without a doubt the best value. The businesses I work with also have the freedom to add one-time offers just for cardholders, which also means special discounts on local food & drink events created just for cardholders.

     

    Thank you to Victoria from Pershore Patty for taking the time to answer our questions. We love hearing all about businesses who are as passionate about supporting locally as we are! You can order your Foodie Card here. 

    To all Foodie Card holders remember that you can claim your free etched glass when you purchase 12 bottles of Dunkertons Organic Cider in our Cheltenham shop. 

    Dunkertons Cider Shop

    Dowdeswell Park

    London Road

    Cheltenham 

    GL52 6UT