HOME-MADE FOOD
for everyone
(including those with dietary needs)
We're proud of our honest, hearty, value-for-money meals, designed to be enjoyed by everyone including those with a wide range of dietary needs, from gluten and dairy intolerances and those with food allergies to those with dietary preferences including vegetarians and vegans, but not forgetting our meat-eating friends! We have been at the forefront of publicising the allergens contained in our meals by clearly showing symbols on our menus. We've been doing this for over a decade, bringing welcome reassurance to our diners.
We've been checked out by unannounced expert judges and voted by customers, bringing us a host of awards for our FreeFrom food.
CHECK OUR OPENING HOURS AND FOOD TIMES BY CLICKING HERE.
VOTED ONE OF THE TOP TEN VEGAN-FRIENDLY PUBS IN THE UK
In November 2015 we were awarded the status of one of the top ten vegan-friendly pubs in the UK by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). The charity, which is dedicated to establishing and protecting the rights of animals and promoting animal-free products, selected the top ten pubs in the country based on a number of criteria, including reputation and the selection and quality of vegan menu items.
WE WON GOLD IN THE FREE-FROM EATING OUT AWARDS 2018 IN THE CREME DE LA CREME CATEGORY.
AWARDED GOLD IN THE FREE-FROM EATING OUT AWARDS 2017 AND SILVER IN 2016
The Flowing Spring was awarded gold in the highest category of the FreeFrom Eating Out Awards in November 2018.
Held annually at the ExCel in London’s Docklands as part of the Food Matters Live Show, the awards recognise those food outlets and manufacturers that cater for people with allergies and other dietary intolerances.
In November 2016 The Flowing Spring was awarded silver in the Pub Restaurants category and in 2017 the pub struck gold.
In 2018 we chose to go for the highest award called the Crème de la Crème, competing against the winners of all categories, including food chains, fish and chip shops, coffee shops and high-end restaurants and hotels.
On Tuesday 20 November in London the Director of The FreeFrom Eating Out Awards and Editor of Food Matters, Michelle Berriedale-Johnson, announced The Flowing Spring as Gold winners.
Michelle said: “The overall standard of entries this year was extraordinarily high. It appears that if an eatery decides to go ‘freefrom’ they do it 110% and nothing is too much trouble to ensure that their food sensitive guests are not only kept safe but have a really enjoyable eating experience.”
“All winners have been visited by our secret diner-judges all of whom are coeliac or are food intolerant themselves so are indeed expert judges. The mission of the FreeFrom Eating Out Awards, now in their fifth year, is not just to raise awareness of ‘freefrom eating’ within food service but to set a standard of excellence to which freefrom eateries can aspire.
“The awards believe that when an eaterie is not only super allergy aware but also offers both delicious food and good service, they should be awarded.”
The judges who visited The Flowing Spring unannounced in September, commented in their report: “The staff were very friendly and welcoming. The environment in the kitchen was free of wheat flour and they had separate areas to ensure food was gluten free. We were confident the food was not contaminated. The portion sizes very generous and very flavoursome. For a pub this is a rare find. To see such a diverse range of foods that cater for many allergens and plenty of choice for vegans is refreshing to see.”
In November 2017 The Flowing Spring earned the top accolade in the Pub-Restaurant category.
The judges’ report of 2017 commented: “A very exciting looking menu and the staff appear to be very knowledgeable and keen to serve the free-from customer. This is a fantastic example to other pubs of what can be done. The menu really works as it has symbols for gluten free, vegan and dairy free as well as highlighting allergens. It is such a sensible idea to have this all on one menu instead of several.
“The food was fabulous from our starters through to our desserts. We were very pleasantly surprised with the amount of effort they had put into catering for different allergies. The number of dishes on the menu was much more than we've seen anywhere else. We would definitely go again.”
ABOUT OUR FOOD
The Flowing Spring offers a wide range of dishes from lunchtime sandwiches, rolls and jacket potatoes to fresh home-made soups, light snacks, burgers, stews, curries, pies and pizzas, from traditional pub grub to home-made, innovative creations and scrumptious home-made puddings.
We make much of our food suitable for those with intolerances to gluten, lactose and milk protein and we have a wide selection of veggie and vegan options for which we have been nationally recognised. So our menus are inclusive - one menu for everyone!
We also take care to minimise the presence of allergens, rarely or never using nuts, celery, sesame or lupin - we use non-GM rapeseed oil for frying, not the standard GM soya vegetable oil. Our menu complies with the European Allergen directives, using circled numbers to indicate any allergens present. By the way, we no longer sell packs of peanuts over the bar as we cannot wholeheartedly say we're nut-free if there is any possibility of traces of nuts in the public areas.
FREE-FROM DRINKS TOO
As a free house we're also able to choose which drinks we offer and, just as with our food, we know exactly what allergens are present in our drinks. All our wines are vegan, all our ciders are vegan and gluten-free, as are our soft drinks. Some of our beers are vegan and/or gluten-free too. Our Drinks page gives details of all those drinks we regularly stock.
VEGETARIANS AND VEGANS - (V) & (VN)
on our menus
The quality and choice of our veggie and vegan meals have been recognised by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), awarding us a top ten position for vegan-friendly pubs in the entire United Kingdom. Our home-made dishes are creative, hearty and very tasty! Even meat-eaters are now choosing them for their great flavours. Our vegan desserts choices are ever-growing, using egg replacer in many cakes and pancakes, sunflower butter instead of dairy butter, vegan cheese and dairy-free cream, ice cream and custard. Our vegan churros are delicious!
DAIRY-FREE - (D) on our menus
We make our own soups, curries, casseroles, fish dishes, burgers, pizzas, pies, pastries, desserts and more for those with cow's milk and lactose intolerances.
We offer dairy-free (sunflower) butter to accompany bread and we have lactose-free cheese in stock for pizzas and cheesy garlic bread and can offer goat's or sheep's cheese toppings for people with a specific intolerance to cow's milk protein. We now also make our own pastry and dough so those with dairy intolerance can enjoy pizzas, pies, tarts and desserts including fruit crumbles, churros and pancakes with dairy-free custard, cream and ice cream.
GLUTEN-FREE - (G) on our menus
Around 80% of our meals are gluten-free. If we can make it that way, we do! We have a fantastic choice of home-made dishes for coeliacs (and everyone else!) including soups, pizzas, cider battered fish and chips, burgers, curries, casseroles, pies and desserts. We also stock very good gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free rolls used for lunchtime fillings and for our burgers and other dishes requiring a substitute GF bread.
We also stock gluten-free yorkshire puddings for our sunday roasts (not dairy or egg-free).
We are making a wider range of desserts using wheat and gluten-free flour for everyone’s enjoyment including home-made fruit crumbles, chocolate brownies, sponge puddings and pancakes.
SPECIAL FOOD WEEKS
Throughout the year we hold Special Food Events which have proved extremely popular. These include Pie Week, Sausage Week, Curry Week, Freshly Foraged Mushrooms Week (Autumn), Ploughman's Week (in the summer) and Chilli Week (September).
OUR SOUPS
We're so proud of our home-made soups, all vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free and utterly tasty.
To date, our soups have included Thai Chilli with Button Mushrooms, Lemongrass and Galangal, Hubbard Squash, Courgette and Dill, Curried Banana, Pea and Broccoli, Giant Puffball, Mushroom and Brandy, Rickstone Funnelcaps and Brandy, Horse Mushrooms and Leek, Woodland Mushrooms and Watercress, Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato, Butternut with Coconut and Chilli, Tomato and Chilli, Tomato and Rosemary, Bloody Mary, Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato, Watermelon and Chilli, Carrot and Roasted Yellow Pepper, Carrot and Coconut, Spicy Pumpkin and Sweetcorn, Parsnip and Apple, Boozy Beetroot, Caribbean Pepper Pot and many more.
OUR ICE CREAMS
We love making our own ice cream, all gluten-free. Here are some of the many flavours we've made: damson with port, gooseberry crumble, apple crumble, scotch bonnet, scotch bonnet with chocolate, raspberry, strawberry, mango and ginger, amaretto cherry with vanilla, chocolate brownie, lemon, raspberry eton mess, Christmas pudding flavour, gherkin and paprika, blue cheese and pickle, banana, chocolate orange... the list goes on!
The Flowing Spring, Henley Road, Playhatch, Reading, Oxfordshire RG4 9RB
