Leisha After months of thinking, planning, tasting, cooking, and more than a little rearranging, we are excited to finally share our new Living Ground menu.
This isn’t simply a new list of meals. It is a completely different way to experience food at Living Ground. Instead of choosing from a list of set meals, you build your own plate.
We are still offering some of our well-loved signature meals, including our Gratitude Bowl (our pay-what-you-can meal), English Fish & Chips, and a few other favourites. But now you also have the freedom to mix, match, and create a meal that is completely your own.
Our tapas menu has grown considerably. Start with a soup or our famous garden salad (or other new specialty salads), add a protein, choose your favorite vegetables or potatoes, and finish with one of our homemade desserts. Every plate can be completely different because every person is different. Better yet, come with a group of friends, fill the table with small dishes, and spend the afternoon tasting, sharing, and enjoying everything together.
Personally, I love eating this way. It reminds me of walking through the gardens with a basket in my hand, harvesting a little of this and a little of that. Every basket is different, and every meal can be too. I think food should be an experience, not just something we order from a list.
Behind every dish is the same philosophy that has always guided Living Ground. We make our food from scratch, using ingredients from our gardens whenever possible and carefully sourcing the best ingredients we can find. I shop for the café the same way I shop for myself. I don’t look for the cheapest ingredients because they improve the bottom line. I choose ingredients that I feel good about serving to my own family, and I believe our customers deserve that same care. It probably isn’t the best business decision, but I believe it is the right decision for health.
Healthy food begins in healthy soil. Our soil food web is thriving. I get to see it every day under the microscope and I am impressed with our healthy soilss. Because of that, we know our plants have access to an incredible diversity of minerals and natural compounds that influence both flavor and nourishment. It is one of the reasons vegetables grown in living soil simply taste better. That quality carries all the way through our kitchen, from our soups and salads to our slow-cooked meals, homemade breads, sauces, and desserts.
One of my favourite parts of the kitchen has always been the sauces. A friend of mine often laughs and says, “It’s all in the sauce,” and she is absolutely right. From our fermented mushroom ketchup and HP sauce to our chimichurri, dill ranch, sunflower garlic dressing, pesto, tomato butter, onion butter, jams, and ferments, these little additions transform a meal and allow everyone to personalize their own plate.
So, we proudly present our new menu!
There is more exciting news to come. Very soon we will be launching The Living Ground Pantry, our collection of homemade sauces, gravies, dressings, jams, ferments, dips, vinegars, and other pantry favourites. If you discover something you love on your plate, you’ll be able to take it home and enjoy it in your own kitchen. I have wanted to do this for a long time, and I think it is a wonderful way to share some of the special things we create here.
This new menu also reflects something that is very important to me. Every recipe we develop is another opportunity for the women in our kitchen to learn, grow, and gain confidence. Together we are building knowledge and skills that can last a lifetime. My hope is that one day they will take what they have learned here and make it their own, whether that is in their homes, their communities, or businesses of their own.
Living Ground has always been about more than serving food. It is about healthy soil, nourishing ingredients, sharing knowledge, creating opportunities, and bringing people together around a table to enjoy real food made with care.
I hope you’ll come and experience the new menu for yourself.
Mix. Match. Enjoy.
Build your own plate, discover a new favourite, and make every visit to Living Ground a little different.
