There’s an abundance of local in unassuming Ashburton: fish from nearby ports, artisan bread and cheeses to wash down with local beers, ciders and gins. Where to start.

This small town on the edge of Dartmoor is thriving. Mimicking its larger and debatably cooler hippy, eco-neighbour Totnes, Ashburton has a quirky, boho vibe all of its own.

Cool towns eschew retails chains, from Costa to MacDonald’s. Ashburton’s independent coffee shops nestle comfortably among the town’s boutiques, galleries and Dartmoor chocolate shop. There’s even a hardware shop, a rarity on any high street today. While in homage to its hippy vibe, dress code might be described as interesting – check colourful braids, Birkenstocks and bandanas year round. Even the dogs look cool.

Come for the day, come for the weekend. Enjoy spectacular walks on the moor, stay ‘alternative’ in a vintage American van or more conventional rustic barn conversion, take a course at the cookery school, or just take in the atmosphere.

Foodies though will not be disappointed.

The Fish Deli sells fresh of daily catches from the nearby ports of Brixham and Plymouth. As well as its range of seasonal fish, locally made dishes include pates – smoked mackerel with horseradish, trout and dill and taramasalata – and fishcakes. To inspire customers to cook more fish, owners Michele and Nick Legg have produced their own cookbook ‘Four Seasons at the Fish Deli’.

Ashburton’s delicatessen is known for its local produce as well as international artisan products and rare ingredients. The cheese counter is large and well stocked with tasty morsels from across the county. Best of all, my favourite Sharpham Rustic, one of a range of cheeses made at the nearby Sharpham vineyard. There’s more to choose from, whether it’s a Devon blue, a tongue-tingling cheddar and or mild local brie. A takeout menu for a moorland picnic might also include butternut squash tartlets with roasted garlic & thyme and red onion, or home-made Spanakopita – spinach layered with Greek feta with nutmeg and cheese.

At Jaded Palates they say it’s always gin time. With an impressive range from Devon, Cornwall and Dorset, gins with names like Wrecking Coast Clotted Cream Gin and Dartmoor Beast Gin evoke the history of the region. Others, like Salcombe, Lyme Bay and Plymouth gins, herald their local origins, while some, like Thunderflower Devon Dry Gin, Papillion and Black Dog Gin, go creative to attract customers’ attention. The shop, which has an offshoot in the moor village of Chagford, sells over 100 local beers and ciders as well as a wide range of wine.

Its Old English name meaning ‘farm or settlement with a stream frequented by ash trees’, Ashburton achieved notoriety as the birthplace of, and the first town to register a candidate for, The Official Monster Raving Loony Party in 1982. It may then be more comfortable with past history: it has an entry in the Domesday Book (1086) and served as a temporary refuge for Royalist troops during the English Civil War (1642-1651).

Wander up North Street and the road narrows at it approaches a lane leading on to the moor.  There’s much here to please in this little Dartmoor town and at its heart is food. Ashburton thrives on difference and here, living on the edge of one of the country’s greatest landscapes, provenance is everything.