A city less than half an hour from Liverpool attracts “more Scouse accents” thanks to its stunning scenery and many cafes, bars and restaurants.
Situated just north of Ormskirk, Burscough lies along the West Lancs section of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal and is becoming a popular spot for boaters, cyclists and dog walkers who are charmed by its picturesque character.
Like many country towns, Burscough has old-world architecture and traditional pubs, but it’s also embracing the new with trendy craft beer pubs and quirky cafes popping up.
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The most beautiful way to enter Burscough is via the canal path, where a colorful procession of boats line the waterway. Here ducks paddle their first strokes while fishermen sit hoping for a catch.
Heading into the city along this route you will come to Burscough Wharf, a picturesque cluster of heritage buildings that is home to a vibrant hub of independent businesses.
This includes Hugo’s, a family-owned café-bar serving brunch, lunch, coffee and drinks. Owner James Smith, originally from Liverpool, continues his family’s catering legacy, which includes the former Bramley’s Cafe on Tarleton Street and the now closed Café 53 on Bold Street.
James said: “We started building this place during lockdown and our first opening month was ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ – which was just crazy, but also a really good learning curve. And we’ve been the go-to breakfast and brunch spot in the area ever since.
“Right now we do brunch and lunch consistently, seven days a week. Depending on the weather, we do small plates. We alternate between small plates and barbecues.
“An evening trade is something we are looking at. At the moment we are only open during the day, except for Friday and Saturday evenings when we are open late. We have a late permit and it was always the plan to do dinner in the evening – snacks, tapas, small plates.”
He added: “We are very dependent on the weather here. We get a lot of dog walkers, cyclists and people from the canal. There are also a lot of regulars, a lot of locals – all good, honest people.”
“There are actually quite a lot of Scousers here, especially with the new houses. So there are more Scouse accents coming to Burscough, which is great.”
Just steps from Hugo’s, craft beer lovers will enjoy discovering The Thirsty Duck across the courtyard from the Wharf.
Offering an extensive selection of beers from the UK and around the world, as well as wines and spirits, this establishment opened its doors in 2020 and has quickly become a favorite among ‘locals’ and visitors alike.
Manager Jay Davies shared: “This place is designed more for craft and international beers like Belgian and German.
“A lot of the brewers we use are based in the area and we have good connections in Bristol, so quite a few come from that side as well. Whatever customers recommend, we’ll look at it.
“A lot of locals come here, but also people from the area who hear about us through word of mouth. This is a very nice area. The people here are nice and all very friendly. 99% of the time there is just a very nice atmosphere.”
What would a rural Lancashire town be without a quality bakery?
Luckily for Burscough, they have The Lancashire Bread House Bakery on Liverpool Road North, which offers a variety of pies, cakes and other pastries.
Debbie Hilton, who has run the establishment for ten years, said: “We were in the Wharf for about two years until we moved here. We have been at this location for about eight years now.
“We make fresh cream pies and more traditional things like gingerbread, brownies, rocky roads, chocolate fudge. And we also have pies, sausage rolls, hot and cold sandwiches, salad boxes.
“With the exception of a very small number of things, we make everything in-house.”
Even though it’s June, that doesn’t stop Debbie from selling a certain Christmas treat all year round. She revealed: “We still sell mince pies. We get complaints when we stop them but I personally would have stopped them.”
A little further afield, but still technically within Burscough, is The Farm on Martin Lane. As the name suggests, it is a farm, but there is also a farm shop, tea room, bed & breakfast and a campsite.
The farm, which has been open for 16 years, even houses retail units housing individual small businesses. Owner Catherine Grice believes these businesses are “doing a good job” with what they offer at The Farm.
Speaking to the ECHO, Catherine said: “I grew up in the house across the road. It’s a family business and we’re all on the family property.
“We continue to move the business forward little by little. We now have outdoor seating and the campsite has a pod and a shepherd’s hut.
“We try to use local produce, we make a lot of ready meals and the like ourselves. We bake everything ourselves and make many of the products served in the tea room.
“We also do the farmers markets, so we try to use a lot of the suppliers from the markets in the shop and the tea room as well.”
She added: “We are right next to the Martin Mere Reserve so a lot of people come here to walk and see wildlife. We’re very accessible to many places – we’re handy for Liverpool and Southport; we’re always full for the Grand National, always full for fireworks in Southport, there’s lots to do in the area.”