A Stockport father and son duo are touring local waterways with the The Waltzing Matilda Boat, serving coffee, cakes, and hearty meals from the canalside.

The kitchen boat's most recent trip was to Macclesfield - our colleagues at Macclesfield Nub News spoke to co-founders Paul Edwards and his son Chris Edwards. 

"We came up with the idea during a COVID lockdown. My dad lived on a narrowboat, we were all on furlough in our bubble and really bored.

"So we came up with the idea of The Waltzing Matilda Boat. It is named after my niece, and we waltz up and down the canal serving great food and drink.

"The song Waltzing Matilda used to stop our niece from crying, so it has special meaning for us.

Stopfordians Paul Edwards and his son Chris Edwards own The Waltzing Matilda Boat. They've just celebrated the three-year anniversary of their business. (Image - Alexander Greensmith / Stockport Nub News)

"When we first opened, it was great for people to come down and see us as people were really isolated; we became known for an ethos of building a community around the boat.

"We started off as just a café, but then added a pizza oven to the boat's kitchen.

"There's plenty of tables and chairs for customers to eat at and bask in the sun, just feet away from where your food is made."

As well as Macclesfield, the boat makes stops in places like Marple, the Bugsworth basin and a wedding venue in Adlington.

Lotus biscuit and Biscoff billionaire shortbread brownies are top sellers. (Image - Alexander Greensmith / Stockport Nub News)

"The pizza is me and my dad, but as he works full-time and sometimes has to work weekends, we can't always offer the pizza every weekend", says Chris.

"So we have invited local Korean food trailer BAB to come and cook on our boat every so often, like in Macclesfield this past weekend."

BAB, as it happens, are running a stall today (26 May) at Foodie Friday, and also tomorrow (27 May) at Stockport Market. 

If enjoying some hearty canalside food and basking in the recently-returned sun sounds appealing, Chris explains how to find the Waltzing Matilda. 

"We post where we are going to be docked at the upcoming weekend at the start of each week. You can book a time slot to get a table, and we post the location of where we are precisely located with the help of What3Words.

"Pre-booking is recommended, as it is getting to a point where we don't want to send people away, but we are serving 120 pizzas a day, and it is just me [and sometimes Chris' dad] making the pizzas."

Pizzas include pumpkin and sausage, prosciutto and rocket, or a white base mushroom with smoked cheese and crispy bacon pizza.

There are vegan cheese options, and a goats cheese pizza that is raising money for charity. The boat can be booked for events.

The pizzas are entirely made on board. The business takes cash and card. (Image - @thewaltzingmatildaboat)

"Over winter we are going to do a refurb of the boat," explained Chris.

"We're probably competing with some of the busy restaurants in Manchester in terms of numbers, which is insane to think about for a small narrowboat.

"The canals are what this country is built on. You forget how under-utilised canals have been in modern times, but since COVID we have seen canals have a rebirth with people coming out and using them.

"Especially locally, I feel we are part of that movement. People come to see us and then realise they have this really beautiful spot around them, and they're all up and down the country. You can go anywhere on a canal.

"Sometimes we have queues way down the canal, and it is nice to see the public use them again.

"Summer nights are the best here, we have reggae music and you can just soak in the beauty of the canal with some great food.

"My favourite thing about this job is as I've worked in kitchens for 13 years, you have no contact with the outside world. But through this, I've met so many interesting people whether its serving them, seeing different boaters and even through social media.

"Thank you everyone for your support so far. We can't wait to be here for many more."

In the near future, the boat eatery hopes to make a £7000 donation to a local children's charity, and they will also launch a summer pizza school.

The boat is open from early spring to the end of October.

To keep up to date with the whereabouts of the boat, follow on Facebook HERE and Instagram HERE.

The vintage boat is 57 years old, with a unique wooden top. It used to be a working boat, then a house boat. Now, it is a thriving floating pizzeria and coffee shop which serves authentic wood-fired pizza and homemade bakes on a charming narrowboat. Occasionally you can get Korean food too, and guests can eat just outside. (Image - Alexander Greensmith / Stockport Nub News)

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