Speciality Food March 2026

47 LAST WORDS The final word on fine food SP RAGA POMEGRANATE KO MBUCHA A s someone who makes their own ( decidedly punchy) kombucha at h ome, I tend to veer away from m ass-produced options with the f ear that they’ll be oversweet a nd a bit lacking in the goodness d epartment. Thankfully, S praga’s Pomegranate o ffering is nothing o f the sort. Subtly f ruity without being o verly sweet, it has an a uthentic fermented ta ng which is in credibly refreshing. N aturally fermented an d unpasteurised, it has all the benefits of my homemade booch (without the wincing). spraga.com MESSYFACE SESAME, HAZELNUT & FRUIT SPREAD I am forever on a mission to consume fewer nasties and more natural, whole foods, but sometimes my self-imposed menu can seem a little drab. So I was chuffed to encounter Messy Face, a fun, flavour-packed sauce made simply from nuts, seeds and grapes (and absolutely no nonsense), and most importantly utterly delicious. Think nutty salted caramel AKA the perfect partner for toast/porridge/pancakes/ fruit and you’re there. A delightful discovery. messyface.com FLAWSOME SWEET & SOUR APPLE JUICE On the subject of tang, I present Flawsome’s apple juice as the perfect balance – in my estimation – of sugar and sharpness. All too often, apple juice (and fruit juice in general) can be overly sweet, in some cases tasting like toffee apple for reasons I’m keen not to look too deeply into, but this drink is a revelation. Cold-pressed for extra virtue and containing just 100% wonky apples which vary seasonally, it’s as delicious served solo as it is as a taste-full ingredient in sweet and savoury dishes. flawsomedrinks.com PARTNER CONTENT THE INDEPENDENT SHOPPER Wiltshire countryside. The Silks is located in Ogbourne St Andrew, a village just over a mile from the market town of Marlborough. Establishing myself for the first time in Wiltshire meant hastily finding local suppliers, and I am incredibly fortunate to have discovered such excellent ones. Setting up my first pub in 2023, and needing a reliable meat supplier, I walked into Sumbler Brother’s butchers in Marlborough and met Steve. We’ve been working together ever since. ‘Sumbler’s’ is an unpretentious, superior quality butchers. The beef is selected from either Devon Ruby or Dexter cattle, and is supplied from farms across the South West. All of the pork is sourced in Wiltshire, and the sausages are all made to specification on-site at Sumblers. Steve delivers to us, without fail, every day of the week. Jerry comes in throughout the year, but over the warmer months T he Silks is a proper village pub. We offer food, beer and wine for local folks. Whilst exposure through MasterChef has certainly seen a welcome increase in guests from further afield, my ethos has always been to serve honest food in a classic pub environment. We aren’t fine dining, and we aren’t a gastropub either. We are ‘just a pub’ serving delicious British grub from the local area. Therefore, sourcing as locally as possible isn’t necessarily a philosophy, more a pragmatic reality. With classic British flavours our focus, sourcing locally comes naturally. As a rural pub with a small team and unpredictable footfall, sourcing locally affords us a reliable supply chain with very quick turnaround. With pubs struggling financially across the country, sourcing locally and working closely with suppliers keeps the costs down. Originally from London, I am grateful to now find myself in the Thomas Frake, The Silks specialityfoodmagazine.com AN APPETITE FOR PULSES Beanmania has hit the UK, but Italians have been relishing pulses for generations O nce deemed by Brits a bit too ‘worthy’ to be delicious, pulses are increasingly popular. Social media accounts (here’s looking at you, Instagram) have been buzzing with bean- fuelled recipes for months now, and it’s not only Gen Z consumers who are hungry to bring pulses into their culinary repertoire. Full of protein – ideal for those following vegetarian or vegan diets – and fibre, and hugely convenient, they have obvious benefits for food lovers looking to boost their health. Fine food retailers should give beans another look, too. Tinned or dried, they are ambient, relatively low cost and versatile; the perfect base for recipe suggestions whether on cards in-store or digitally published online. Beans on toast has well and truly had a revamp – you’ll found hundreds, if not more, variations across countless accounts and books – and it’s not only tweaks on classic British grub that are getting UK-based appetites rumbling. Recipes inspired by international foods, bolstered by seasonings and served in creative ways, are the order of the day, and Italian food is a clear source of inspiration for budding bean cooks. You don’t have to delve far into the annals of Italian food to find copious mentions of beans. From the internationally-savoured minestrone to Fagioli all’uccelletto, a tomato-y, pork-y hunk of a dish, or served oil and herb-flecked with small pasta, beans have been adding creamy bolster to Italian dishes for generations. There’s plenty of variety with which to wow your bean-hunting customers. Cannellini and borlotti beans are particularly cherished in Italy, but black beans, butter beans... whatever else you can lay your discerning hands on will only add to the attractiveness of your store cupboard display. For bonus points, avoid additional ingredients – look for just water and perhaps salt on the back of the can – and opt for sustainable sourcing and formats where possible. A top trend that has been hiding in plain sight for years... It’s time for beans to shine. he swaps a couple of pints of bitter for an abundance of his allotment fruit and vegetables. His tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, beetroot, carrots, apples, and quince have been a staple of the menu for months. His produce is unlike anything else I can source; their flavour and texture unsurpassed. Last summer there was a huge glut, so the bountiful quince became jelly for cheese, and the baskets of tomatoes became chutney. And frankly, the superior quality and taste isn’t the only reason for sourcing this way: I had months of premium ingredients for the cost of a good-few pints, which is a huge benefit when food costs are high and margins are tight. Our beers are produced – from ‘plough to pint’ – at Ramsbury Brewery & Distillery situated less than two miles away. They grow their own wheat, filter their own water, and even generate their own heat, to produce incredibly popular – and cost effective – local ales, bitters, lagers and stouts. They also distil award- winning gins from their own winter wheat at the farm. And finally, one of the most remarkable drinks we serve is All Angels sparkling wine frommy good friends Mark, Christine and Kay. From three vineyards in Enborne they produce superior, vintage wines without compromise; wines that are – in my humble opinion – far beyond the quality of many Champagnes. TRIED & TESTED