Berkshire


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/valarie-jerome-op1-1.jpg" alt="Dr Valarie Jerome, Optometrist Newbury Berkshire" class="wp-image-64062" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/valarie-jerome-op1-1.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/valarie-jerome-op1-1-800x800.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/valarie-jerome-op1-1-400x400.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/valarie-jerome-op1-1-768x768.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/valarie-jerome-op1-1-500x500.jpg 500w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-abouts-in-berkshire-are-you-based">Where abouts in Berkshire are you based?</h3>



<p>I live in the middle of Newbury right near the racecourse. I moved here from St Petersburg in Florida 14 years ago to be with my partner.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-do-you-love-about-where-you-live">What do you love about where you live?</h3>



<p>I absolutely love that I can walk everywhere &#8211; I can walk across town in half an hour, including work at my opticians in the town centre. We&#8217;re in walking distance to Greenham Common where we take the dog out, and I&#8217;m also super close to the train station so can easily hop on for day trips to places like London or Reading.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-come-on-then-any-local-insider-goss-right-now">Come on then, any local, insider goss right now?</h3>



<p>Visit Newbury always put on amazing free events in the school holidays. Being a mum with a young kid I have to constantly keep up to date with all the local little activities. There&#8217;s lots around for a market town &#8211; there&#8217;s music, there&#8217;s sports events, there&#8217;s you name it, and always lots happening at the Corn Exchange.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-are-the-best-things-to-do">What are the best things to do?</h3>



<p>I love just walking along the high street and sticking my nose in all the different, little independent shops. It just adds a little diversity and a lot of culture to Newbury. We have one big department store as well, so I do like to go wander about in there for a little retail therapy every now and then. Then after you&#8217;ve done all the shops, you can walk around to Victoria Park and have an ice cream or a cup of tea, and let the kids play or just sit and people watch.</p>



<p>When the weather&#8217;s just right, and I&#8217;m talking absolutely perfect, I do go paddleboarding on the canal. But again, I&#8217;m a fair weather paddleboarder and it has to be perfect conditions for me to get out there. I do it on my own which can be a little scary, but it&#8217;s really peaceful.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1186" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/02/Lusso.png" alt="Lusso Newbury" class="wp-image-60684" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/02/Lusso.png 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/02/Lusso-675x800.png 675w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/02/Lusso-843x1000.png 843w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/02/Lusso-337x400.png 337w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/02/Lusso-768x911.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Lusso Newbury</figcaption></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-anywhere-you-love-to-go-for-a-special-meal">Anywhere you love to go for a special meal?</h3>



<p>Our absolute favourite place to eat in Newbury is Cobrizo Lounge. We have a family with kids of all different ages who have their own unique tastes and preferences on food. So we found that Cobrizo Lounge has a great variety of choices and it&#8217;s a fun atmosphere as well. We&#8217;ve always had really good service from the staff when we go.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-if-you-re-grabbing-some-local-produce-where-do-you-get-it">If you&#8217;re grabbing some local produce, where do you get it?</h3>



<p>I don&#8217;t have to go very far because our property backs up to an allotment where a lot of our neighbors and friends have a space, so we tend to get free, local produce from them.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-best-spot-for-an-evening-out-with-the-girls">Best spot for an evening out with the girls?</h3>



<p>Lusso Pizza is a lot of fun in Newbury on Weavers Walk. Again, the food&#8217;s delicious, the service is great, and it&#8217;s one of those places you don&#8217;t feel bad about sitting around forever, just having a good time with your friends. They don&#8217;t rush you at all. It&#8217;s very chilled.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-there-are-so-many-places-to-get-fresh-air-around-newbury-anywhere-you-particularly-love">There are so many places to get fresh air around Newbury. Anywhere you particularly love?</h3>



<p>One of our favorite places to go for a walk is Greenham Common. We went this past weekend and really enjoyed going into the museum. It&#8217;s been a while since I&#8217;ve been into the museum. Obviously I&#8217;m American, so love all the American history in there, and it&#8217;s nice reading about all the history from when the military base was there. I also enjoy just going up to the top of the control tower for the views of Greenham Common. There&#8217;s a really good café as well with good cakes, so that&#8217;s always a plus.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2021/01/Greenham-Common.jpg" alt="Greenham-Common" class="wp-image-36061" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2021/01/Greenham-Common.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2021/01/Greenham-Common-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2021/01/Greenham-Common-720x480.jpg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2021/01/Greenham-Common-150x100.jpg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2021/01/Greenham-Common-768x511.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2021/01/Greenham-Common-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Greenham Common</figcaption></figure>



<p>Our other place to really get some good fresh air is Beacon Hill. It holds a lot of special memories for us. We&#8217;ve gone up there when the kids were really little, gone sledding down it, and had dog walks and picnics up there. It&#8217;s easier said than done when you&#8217;re walking up that big trek to the top of the hill, but when you get to the top, it&#8217;s nice. The views of Highclere Castle are amazing.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-have-you-tried-anywhere-new-recently">Have you tried anywhere new recently?</h3>



<p>I went to a new coffee shop recently called Rufus &#8211; it&#8217;s the old Banjo bike shop, but it&#8217;s now a coffee place. The owner is obviously a keen music fan because there&#8217;s lots of vinyls up on the walls. It&#8217;s really cool and has a lot of character. The Sweet Box recently moved into the old Mint Velvet space too, and they&#8217;ve got a lot more seats now. They have really good lunches, great hot drinks, yummy ice cream, and my 9-year-old loves it.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-you-re-going-out-for-brunch-where-are-you-headed">You&#8217;re going out for brunch. Where are you headed?</h3>



<p>Again, I&#8217;d definitely have to say Cobrizo Lounge. I get avocado on toast or eggs benedict, and sometimes I get the pancakes. The American-style pancakes are always a favourite of mine with some maple syrup all over. Yum.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/02/traderscrowdatnewbury.jpg" alt="Newbury things to do" class="wp-image-61511" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/02/traderscrowdatnewbury.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/02/traderscrowdatnewbury-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/02/traderscrowdatnewbury-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/02/traderscrowdatnewbury-768x511.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Newbury</figcaption></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-kids-are-in-tow-where-s-your-favourite-place-to-take-them-for-the-day">The kids are in tow &#8211;  where’s your favourite place to take them for the day?</h3>



<p>I&#8217;ve got a 20-year-old, a 17-year-old, an 8-year-old (going on 18), and a husband &#8211; does he count as a kid? My oldest is at uni, but lately what we&#8217;ve been doing is riding our bikes a lot. We take them up to Greenham Common and ride them around.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-do-you-get-your-retail-therapy">Where do you get your retail therapy?</h3>



<p>As a small business owner for the last 5 years, I understand the challenges small business owners face and I know the uncertainty of different economic climates. I try to support local businesses every time I can so I do love just shopping independent on the high street. You know, if you don&#8217;t use it, you lose it. I love No 96 Home and Gifts in Newbury, I also like Isabel&#8217;s Retro &#8211; she has a lot of quirky stuff, and I like Luna&#8217;s clothes too. </p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-should-be-on-everyone-s-berkshire-bucket-list">What should be on everyone’s Berkshire bucket list?</h3>



<p>People should really log on and check out Visit Newbury, follow on social media as there&#8217;s so many activities we have in our community for kids and people of all ages and interests. A lot of it is free too. I&#8217;d just say our communities can offer so much so just shop and visit local when you can.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/Valarie-Jerome-Optometrists_09.jpg" alt="Dr Valarie Jerome, Optometrist Newbury Berkshire" class="wp-image-64063" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/Valarie-Jerome-Optometrists_09.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/Valarie-Jerome-Optometrists_09-533x800.jpg 533w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/Valarie-Jerome-Optometrists_09-667x1000.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/Valarie-Jerome-Optometrists_09-267x400.jpg 267w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/berkshire/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/Valarie-Jerome-Optometrists_09-768x1152.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p><em>Dr Valarie Jerome is an award-winning Optometrist with an independent opticians in Newbury. Find <a href="https://www.drvalariejerome.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Valarie Jerome Optometrists</a> on 49 Northbrook Street.</em></p>


My favourite places: Dr Valarie Jerome, Optometrist

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