I’m an ex-vegetarian and still favour veggie meals a lot of the time – I think they can often be more creative and interesting than their meaty counterparts as there are no (admittedly delicious) meat flavours to fall back on. DanMan however, although a lover of many a meatless dish, loves to tuck into steaks and burgers, so finding a place which perfectly pleases both our tastes isn’t always easy. Enter: Source.
Source specialise in healthy, fresh food, slow meats and vegetarian options, so it doesn’t really get more perfect for us. We’d actually tried some of the food from Source before from Deliveroo as they do a tabbouleh and I have been on a quest for many years to find the perfect tabbouleh (specifically, one which lives up to the first one I ever had which was made by my uncle, who just maybe might maybe happen to be a Michelin-starred chef). Dan was impressed with his slow cooked meat dish but I was less than pleased with my tabbouleh, but I still had a hankering to give the restaurant another go because of the promise of its ethos and menu.
Thus, one delightful mid-week evening towards the end of summer, we ventured in for another go.
The atmosphere in Source is just lovely; a mix of cosy and fresh, with low lighting, rustic wooden tables and a bright open kitchen that fills the smallish space with all the right smells to make an empty tummy rumble. We were seated at a small table and had our drinks order taken by a friendly waitress, before pouring over the menu.
As a starter we chose to share the Yorkshire black pudding and golden crispy hens egg. A healthy slice of hot black pudding arrived with a lightly bread-crumbed egg that oozed a completely runny yolk when we broke it open. It was a delicious combination alongside a rich tomato sauce that was light enough that we could barely wait for our mains.
A short wait later they arrived; a pulled pork burger for Dan and ratatouille (or confit byaldi if you’re being fancy) for me. Dan’s burger was filled with the most tender meat and he assured me it tasted as good as it looked, accompanied by a tasty dry slaw and some incredibly salty chips.
My ratatouille was the prettiest I’ve ever seen, served in a cute cast iron pan and smothered in red pepper and tomato sauce. The veg was tender and the sauce thick and rich – luckily I had two hearty chunks of warm bread to mop it up with. It was a generous portion but not too filling as it mostly (entirely?) consisted of vegetables, and I’d have it again in a heartbeat.
Source is the perfect example of a restaurant that caters equally for meat-eaters, vegetarians and vegans, with a host of veggie options from salads to shakshuka, and even vegan fried chicken or a whole baked cauliflower. It’s an example to other eateries, and I think that’s it’s standout feature. They fare they serve is comfort food with a healthy, wholesome twist, and I reckon it’ll satisfy even the pickiest of eaters. I’ll certainly be returning for tabbouleh take two, and I’m crossing all my fingers it lives up to this most recent experience!