Motorway Services Wins Best Newcomer Award

Opened in May 2014, Gloucester Services have a new approach to motorway dining. As opposed to the fast food and franchises frequently seen at motorway services, it offers locally-sourced seasonal food and produce.

Alternatively, the site hosts a farm shop, a butchery selling meat from the region, and a café serving homemade dishes created daily using local ingredients.

Of the 200 producers from the South West which the services works with, 130 are located within 30 miles of the site.

Gloucester Services is the sister project of Tebay Services, and is owned and operated by the Westmorland Family.

Charles Campion, food writer said, “It used to be that when you pulled up at a motorway services the first thing on the list was finding a toilet (incidentally Gloucester Services toilets are splendid, spacious and fresh). Your visit was what marketeers refer to as a distress purchase. If you wanted to eat, it was some chips or a cake from the coffee shop.

“Gloucester Services sets a new agenda – you might scoff a traditional pie or some of the excellent homemade cake. And then you can wander through to the butcher and buy the Sunday joint, or a sourdough loaf, or a cake from Beau’s Bakery. The mantra used to be that to succeed in business you had to exceed your customer’s expectations; Gloucester Services manages that trick on every level”.

Sarah Dunning, CEO of the Westmorland Family said, “We’re really thrilled to win this award. Local food shouldn’t be considered the preserve of a handful of high end shops, it is at the heart of everything we make and eat.

“We want to give a sense of place to the traveller—to be able to buy and taste products from the surrounding region. Our greatest opportunity is to be able to bring these local products and producers to a much wider audience, and this award will give us wider recognition.”