I stumbled upon Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s first TV series A Cook on the Wild Side while trawling the Internet for fishing related material that has nothing to do with salmon, but more about that some other time. I liked the philosophy that Hugh was living as it was eerily close to my own views on food and life. Later, when I saw the first episodes of Escape to River Cottage I realized that the first series was not a fluke, that the whole thing was really different and, that was it, I was totally hooked.

So what is this River Cottage, you ask. Well, it’s show about a philosopher chef from London who moves out to live on a small farm in Dorset, to live a life that dances to the rhythm of the seasons, where food is life, and life is honest and altogether sweeter. Hugh is a chef and a restaurateur, and there’s lots of cooking in it but it’s not a cooking show. Hugh is a gardener but it’s not a gardening show either. Hugh’s pig Delia wins a prize at a livestock exhibition but it’s not a farming show. It’s not foraging, hunting or a fishing show either. It’s none of these things and yet they are all in it all the time. River Cottage  is definitely not a reality show but the whole place is totally real so what you are looking at is really happening and you can witness the whole thing develop from a humble experiment in country living to a movement and took the “grow your own” idea to a whole new level.

And why am I then talking to you about it here? Because the locality and deliciousness of life are at the epicenter of the whole River Cottage philosophy. Eat locally, know your food, share knowledge, resources and local culture with friends and neighbors, be a part of and take part in your community. And don’t for a moment mistake monetary wealth for well-being.

Local. Delicious. Get it? Check it out, you’ll get it.