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!

The restaurant is bigger than it looks on the outside, with a light and modern dining area that extends into a second room at the back, where we were seated and had the room to ourselves (for about 10 minutes, then it quickly filled up). After an agonising deliberation about whether to have the avocado and brie cheesecake or smoked duck salad as our shared starter we eventually opted for the duck salad. It was a delight. Turns out smoked duck is delicious, and it was served with cherries, poppy seeds, rocket and a filo basket, all of which complimented one another and made for a perfectly light starter – the filo might have been a little unnecessary, but it added a nice crunch.

The choice of mains was equally alluring, but we each found a dish that spoke to our particular tastes; mine was the butternut squash, sweet potato, beetroot and celeriac stew which came with an oat and nut crumble topping as well as some kind of crème fraiche. I have an overwhelming love for root vegetables, as well as oats and nuts, so it couldn’t have been more up my street. I loved it and found it rich without being overly filling, and it had an almost curried taste yet no spice whatsoever, which is also perfect for me. It was a fairly large portion and was fairly one-note in terms of flavour, but as I loved it this wasn’t a problem. My only complaint was that it was incredibly hot (like, centre of the earth, scorch the skin of your tongue type hot) when it arrived and took a very long time to cool down, but that’s better than it being cold, I suppose!

Dan had the mixed game grill, which was pan fried venison rump, a wild boar sausage and a pigeon breast topped with a fried quails egg, a bacon and onion rosti potato and brown sauce jus. All the meat was perfectly cooked and tender, the quails egg was as cute as you could hope and the sauce and rosti were both surprisingly incredible. Dan loved every bit of it and I was pretty in love with the few bites I managed to nab.

We still had a small amount of room for dessert, so decided to share the mixed berry eton mess as I’ve recently discovered I love berries after years of finding them weird and off-putting little niblets of squish and am currently delighting in all things berry. It was served in a glass and was a perfectly proportioned and light ending to the meal. We spent most of our time eating it sighing in gentle, berryish glee.

All things considered and snarfed, Lime House was certainly worthy of its recommendations and we were very pleasantly surprised by the bill at the end. We fully intend to return, if only to try that avocado and brie cheesecake (I mean, come on).

We got to the restaurant at about 2pm so it was fairly busy, but we were quickly seen to our table and shown the menu and their summer specials. On hearing that there were cocktails available DanMan jumped at the chance for a Disarrano sour, which swiftly came along in its own jar and was so good that he had another and barely held back from a third throughout the course of the meal!

On to the main event; the food. We decided to share a starter as we were taking into account Beefeater’s reputation for healthy portions (and we knew we were going to want a pudding), so went for their crispy chicken wings with smoky barbecue and piri piri dipping sauce. As you can see, these weren’t your typical chicken wings – more like chicken poppers on the bone – but they were still very tasty and just the right amount of crispy, and both sauces were yummy accompaniments (I’m taking Dan’s word about the piri piri as I’m a serial spice avoider). My only criticism would be that the presentation was a little plain; a splash of green from some rocket or lettuce on the plate would have made the dish a little more aesthetically pleasing, but I won’t fault it taste, which is what really matters!

There was a great choice of mains – steaks and pub classics are where Beefeater excels but there are salads and light(er) options too. DanMan went for a classic and chose the 6oz flat-iron steak which came with salad, slow roasted tomato and grilled mushroom, and he got a side of onion rings and a prawn and lobster sauce. He always asks for his steak rare and it was cooked to perfection, pink and juicy, and all the accompaniments (including the neatest onion rings I’ve ever seen!) were delicious. I will say he wasn’t a fan of the prawn and lobster sauce, especially considering it was a ‘luxury’ sauce, so next time I think he’ll be sticking to peppercorn! But that was his only criticism and he polished off everything else in no time.

I opted for the oven-baked seabass, which was served in the paper pouch it had been steamed in with courgettes, tomatoes, sliced potatoes and lemon, with a little greek salad on the side. I also got a side of their ‘veg medley’ which was a nice mix of green beans, broccoli and edamame beans, the latter of which I thought was a nice modern touch (and a personal favourite). The seabass was delicious, perfectly cooked and seasoned with a just a hint of lemon from the wedge It was cooked with. The veg was similarly delicate and every element complimented the others well. Considering it was mostly fish and veg it was also surprisingly filling, which I always take to be a good sign!

Despite being pretty full by this point we were determined to try one of their puddings as they all sounded incredible. This is your place if you’re a fan of indulgent classics – unfortunately we were just too full to sample their salted toffee apple crumble (ugh, could a dessert sound more delicious?), their cheesecake or their Mississippi mud pie. But we did go for the trio of sponges, the trio being lemon drizzle, raspberry jam with coconut and chocolate sponges, all served with custard. This was probably the highlight of the meal for me; the coconut and raspberry sponge in particular oozed nostalgia and the chocolate sponge was everything I want a chocolate cake to be with fudgy, chocolatey icing. Topped off with warm custard (I’m a custard fiend), it was the kind of home comfort food I love. We left satisfied and enjoyed a sunny jaunt home to walk off all the deliciousness.

Throughout the meal we were looked after by our lovely waiter Sean, who was chatty and attentive without once ever being too intrusive, and the same goes for all the other staff who brought over bits and pieces – everyone was friendly and helpful. We also saw a cute little scenario with the family sitting behind us, as one kid was getting a bit impatient for his dessert, so Sean offered to take him through to see the kitchen and they returned with his pudding. It’s little things like that make Beefeater a perfect family place, and this is where I really think they excel; there’s something for everyone, the food is well priced and of a good standard, the restaurant is spacious with a nice family vibe and the staff are obviously good with children. I’d certainly consider coming back with family, just remind me to make sure everyone has a big appetite!

Food was given gratis in exchange for review, however all views are most definitely genuine and my own!