Plenty at The Square
Ian Jones, Food and Drink Editor
Plenty at The Square is a well-loved vegetarian cafe and food hub dedicated to sustainable eating, based at South Square Community Arts Centre, Thornton, out west of Bradford. The café’s remit is to serve up delicious vegetarian and vegan food sourced from local producers, as well as coffee to stay or go, and to celebrate overlooked and surplus food. They also run a programme of community workshops and events based around sustainable cooking and eating, with detailed instructions and recipes available on the website.
In a bid to reduce food waste, they make and sell a range of artisan preserves and pickles. The Picklery runs on Mondays and produces a range of preserves using surplus, seasonal and foraged ingredients. Plenty works with our local wholesale market to make use of fruits and vegetables which cannot be sold and are destined for disposal.
The café’s remit is to serve up delicious vegetarian and vegan food sourced from local producers
Sample items on the changing seasonal menu include a Spiced Aubergine, Lentil and Feta Pie, a rich and spicy West African Stew of sweet potatoes, mushrooms, peanuts and tomatoes, served with a pitta and selection of salads of the day. There’s also a Middle Eastern Mezze Box, a selection of middle eastern treats including hummus, courgette koftes, mint and yoghurt dip, za’atar pitta, olives, dukka, pink pickled turnips, and a selection of three seasonal salads, including rainbow slaw, grain and herb salad and mixed leaves/flowers.
You can also get a pot of home-made hummus and a pot of mixed marinated olives, plus home-made elderflower cordial and traditional dill pickles. Then there are cakes, of the carrot, lemon drizzle, chocolate, and banana/chocolate/coconut variety, with vegan and gluten-free options available.
At Thornton, you’re in a perfect setting for glorious countryside walks. A brisk march through hill and dale will get you to two picturesque local attractions – the Hardcastle Crags and the Bronte Waterfall. Plenty makes a great base camp for walks or as a reward on the way home.
