A favourite among Windermere locals, this award-winning, third-wave coffee spot (a rarity in the Lakes) serves speciality brews from its salvaged-ash counter. People-watch from a window stool or find a spot on a bench for brunch. The huevos rancheros is good hiking fodder while the sourdough sourced from nearby Lovingly Artisan is deliciously tangy.

Staveley’s avant-garde Mill Yard Industrial Estate counts galleries, bike shops, bakeries, hydroponic farmers and Hawkshead Brewery among its residents. Set within the brewery, The Beer Hall lets you enjoy Hawkshead’s freshest range and small-batch tipples alongside surprisingly good sliders, ribs and other small plates. Best paired with a brewery tour. Fans of craft ales should also try Tweedies Bar in Grasmere.

Whether you’re glugging down a post-hike pint or seeking refuge from the rain with a glass (bottle) of vino, you’ll find a warm welcome at the Lakes’ many, often well-worn, pubs and inns. Surrounded by fells, the Wasdale Head Inn is a mecca for walkers and climbers. Bowness’ low-slung Hole in t’Wall has quenched locals’ thirst for 400 years, while the Mason Arms in Cartmel dates back to the 1500s.

Get into the Cumbrian spirit at The Lakes Distillery, where Dhavall Gandhi practices so-called “holistic whisky making” that makes the most of cool, pure water from the surrounding national park. Opt for a tour and tasting its renovated Victorian farmstead on the shore of Bassenthwaite Lake before soaking up the booze at its on-site bistro.