*Note – since writing this blog, the Brackenborough arms have introduced a Vegan menu!*
I had a bitter sweet day today.
We’ve hung onto my little brother’s, Nan’s and Grandad’s ashes for a few years now, wondering what to do with them. Finally we decided that we would sprinkle them into the pond where my Granddad was chairman. We had many a happy time sitting in my Grandparents’ little caravan, eating our dinner and watching the wildlife.
So off we trundled to Lincolnshire. Fortunately the weather remained dry and although it was a sad occasion, it was still nice to spend the day with my family.
My mum had booked us into the restaurant at the Brackenborough Arms Hotel in Louth for dinner. When I found out I Facebooked them and asked if they’d be able to cater for a vegan. The lovely Lady who replied was very helpful, answering all my questions and discussing my dietary requirements with the chef.
I was provided with the following food and couldn’t have been happier. It was so refreshing not to be offered the usual veg soup starter, aubergine/ courgette based main and soggy fruit salad pudding.
Starter:
To begin with I was presented with a lovely tomato and parmesan-free basil pesto salad. Sounds a little boring but the tomatoes were a traffic-light display of red, yellow and green slices, perfectly seasoned with sea salt.
Main:
Main was a five bean cassoulet served with wild garlic & olive oil mash. I’m not usually a mash fan but you could really taste the garlic. The cassoulet was very tasty; I think I could have eaten another two portions!
Dessert:
Pudding was fantastic! A lime and coconut pannacotta – made with coconut milk. Being paranoid I asked them to confirm that it wasn’t set with gelatine and was happy to find out that agar agar was used. Fabulous!
So to summarize, I just wanted to share my positive experience. It’s nice to know that with a little notice, some main-stream restaurants are more than happy to cater for vegans. Even better when they put as much effort into providing an original and interesting meal like the Brackenborough Arms did for me 🙂
Flash-Gordonette…X
