Top 10 Free Things To Do and Attractions in West Cowick

"You’ll have to pay an entrance price for York Castle, but the reward is the best view you’ll see of the city below. The tower itself is also pretty on the outside for a second bonus photo. View this post on Instagram"

"Things to Do, Attractions"

"As the name implies, York’s Merchant Adventurers were merchants. They traded along the English coast, northern Europe and sometimes as far as the Baltic and Iceland, bringing back an assortment of desired goods to York. The city was an important river port and the wealthiest city in Northern England, second only to London for most of the Middle Ages, allowing the merchants to make enough money to build the Hall between 1357 and 1361."

"St Mary’s Abbey is a picturesque ruined Benedictine abbey in York, located in York Museum Gardens. Once the richest abbey in the north of England, it now tells the story of York’s influential ecclesiastical past, and its degradation through Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries. The first church on the site of St Mary’s was built in 1055 and dedicated to St Olaf of Norway, and following the Norman conquest was refounded by King William Rufus in 1088 during his visit to York."

"Once one of the richest abbeys in the North of England, St. Mary’s used to rival York Minster in terms of its size and splendor. Nowadays, its extensive and impressive ruins are protected as part of the York Museum Gardens that lie just on the edge of the city center. Founded in 1088, the abbey prospered for centuries until Henry VIII’s edict in 1536 that dissolved and disbanded monasteries, priories and convents."

"The park also serves as a romantic backdrop to St. Mary’s Abbey… or what’s left of it. The monastery was first built in 1088 and was among the wealthiest and most powerful Benedictine monasteries in England. In the 1530s King Henry VIII banned all monasteries in England in 1530s and St. Mary’s gradually fell into the medieval ruins you can see today."

"When to go: When you want a touch of elegance, without breaking the bank. What to have: The ‘Vale of York’ pork belly, served with black pudding bon bons, celeriac, confit potato and Yorkshire cider jus, is a true taste of Yorkshire, and lets the local ingredients shine. Located within the sumptuous settings of the 5 Star Grand York Hotel, The Rise uses locally sourced, fresh and seasonal produce to prepare modern British dishes with a Yorkshire twist."

"Humpit Hummus was never really a place I’d thought of eating at until I was invited to review it last year. I’m so pleased that I did give it a chance though, as it’s one of the best vegan places in York!. The premise of Humpit is almost like a ridiculously healthy kebab; you choose from a selection of dishes including pitas and salad bowls and then add all the fresh ingredients alongside your hummus!"

"Head to Church Street to Humpit, the Hummus and Pita Bear where the menu is totally vegan!. Their menu has three items; salad bowls, hummus bowls and loaded pitas. You can choose your ingredients for the salad bowl, and the hummus bowls and loaded pitas come with chickpeas, pickles, olives, falafel and more."

"I usually get the filled pitta which is a good place to start if you're not sure what to order. The staff are lovely, very energetic, and happy to accommodate to your preferences if you do not like specific items. yorkpitasaladstuffedcauliflower"

"If you want vegan goodies then this is a fantastic place to visit. Billed as Cottingham’s only vegetarian coffee shop, Blondes, caters incredibly well for vegans. They do vegan cakes, vegan freakshakes and also sell a range of vegan products which you can take home with you."

"Blondes in Cottingham was voted number 1 vegan choice in a local Vegan Facebook group. It’s not one that I’ve tried as yet, but you can see how good it looks from the photos so it won’t be long before I check it out!"

"Bella Italia’s bottomless brunch offer is absolutely amazing, and you can make the most of it from Friday to Sunday for just £27.99 per person, which is great!. For that price you not only get bottomless bubbles, you also get two delicious courses of some of Italy’s finest. How about bruschetta and a lasagne?"

"09/06/2021: We had an amazing lunch at the Bella Italian in York. The food we had was delicious, and brought to us quickly. The waiter, Danish, was attentive and even brought us some discounted drinks!"

"If there was one serious oversight in my original 2009 “budget eats” guide, it was not paying full due respect to this vegan veteran. Its soups, dhals, top-ranking falafel, hummus and tinas (fried carrot patties of remarkable ersatz-creaminess; it’s the coconut milk apparently), are the stuff of local legend and tasty enough to have persuaded many sceptical carnivores to come around. You can eat in of course, in the bright, surprisingly Andalucian-styled cafe-restaurant (El Piano has sister branches in southern Spain), but the takeaway hatch is where you will find a serious bargain."