I have never been so impressed at entering a new shop as I have here…read more.. The staff were warm and welcoming allowing us to try as many things as we liked, with no pressure. The concept of Demijohn is that of a liquid deli, selling both vinegars and oils for your cooking, as well as wines and spirits for afterwards. You buy your bottle from them, due to EU regulations, but you can then fill it with anything you like, and take it back for refills. The staff were incredible friendly and welcoming, allowing us to try many different products, even after we'd chosen what we were having, as well as advising us on various combinations we could try. If you're ever in York you simply have to try this place!

From the owner: Demijohn is unique - both its method of selling, which is similar to the continental markets, and…read morethe products it sells, which are all carefully sourced from small producers around the UK. Many of the liquids are only available at Demijohn and are as unusual and distinctive as the British culture. Visiting Demijohn is better than a trip to a bar as customers are encouraged to taste the products before their purchase is bottled for them in the shop. The staff are more than sales people - they are passionate about the quality of the liquids and the provenance. Such is their passion they even close the shops occasionally and all head to the hedgerows to collect elderflowers for Elderflower Vinegar or sloes for the Sloe Gin. Demijohn doesn't just sell alcohol. One whole area of the shop is devoted to unusual vinegars and oils. With flavours such as rich red Bramble Vinegar from Perthshire or beautiful, first class extra virgin olive oil from a small estate in Tuscany. Wild Bullace has only a little left, so get there quick and Rhubarb Vodka is back on tap.... Come and try!

Excellent range of beers, this is where we got the Bitter for our wedding. They also have a nice…read morecheese counter as well. They have a website: http://www.yorkbeerandwineshop.co.uk/beershop%20Site/contents.html

This small shop is a little hidden away on a side street. When coming along the river, look for the…read moresign to the shop about few hundreds meters from the Blue Bridge - that's how we discovered it. Wonderful selection of beers and ciders from small breweries around Yorkshire and the isle, and good selection of wines from around the world. Owner was welcoming and knowledgable. Nice little discovery.

Great local for locals (read, we were the only tourists there) just outside the city center in York…read moreNo food here - just a wide range of draughts, from IPAs to local stouts. Awesome watching the bartender hand pump my stout, over pour it, and let the excess overflow (and, I've read, flow back into the keg). Probably old hat to you Brits but not to us Yanks. Beers cost 4 pounds.

Uber friendly welcome at the door, glorious smell of fresh baked goods and a really polite server…read more We tried a selection of savoury and sweet and all the foods were moreish delicious. Proper food here, quality ingredients, attention to detail and darn good value for hard earned money - which is so refreshing in a world coming down with spivs that want to cheapen food to the nth degree and maximise profit above all else - the multi nationals of the world Mondelez, Nestle who couid t care less beyond profit margins. Betty's is an institution whose origins couldn't have been made up as it began owned by a Swiss baker Fritz Bützer. His life was quite tragic early on with his mother dying when he was young and his father died in a fire at the family owned mill. As soon as he was old enough, Fritz trained as an assistant baker and later travelled around Switzerland and France training as a confectioner and chocolatier. In 1907 he decided to seek his fortune in England. On his arrival in London he realised he'd lost the address of his destination and ended up in Bradford quite by accident. He stayed in the Yorkshire town finding work at a Swiss-owned confectioners, Bonnet & Sons. Not long after arriving he wrote to his sister Ida back in Switzerland saying, "Maybe I will stay a while...." Stay he did, soon settling in the spa town of Harrogate by which time he'd changed his name to Frederick Belmont and styled himself as a 'Chocolate Specialist'. In those days a box of chocolates was for the rich at the equivalent today of £300 a box. It was Harold Mackintosh that brought chocolate to the masses with the green triangle sweet likely the first chocolate, hazelnut noisette they ever tasted. Meanwhile it was in Harrogate that Frederick's luck started to change. Looking for lodgings, he fell in love and later married his landlady's daughter, Claire Appleton. A few years later, in July 1919, with the financial support of Claire's family the first Bettys opened for business. Long may Betty rein.

This popular cafe and tea room is from 1919 and surprisingly I bought many of my gifts to friends…read morefrom this store. We were walking around the area and saw this cafe twice so we walked into one of them and I just decided to purchase a few boxes of chocolates and gifts for a few girlfriends. Overall I thought the stores are really cute on the I inside and outside. There are two stores that are very close to each other. No longer than a 10 minute walk. If your not sure what to buy I would just ask the lady, she was really nice and helpful. Next time if I do have time I would want to stop in here and dine with them as well. Tip- If you want a little snack to munch on grab a cookie while your walking around the area! They have different designs for different times of the year.