South Street Kitchen is the first of what is likely to be quite a few coffee shop-restaurants to open in the ‘new’ Park Hill.
The smart cafe, run by partners Rachel Cornish and Tim Jenkins, represents much of what modern Park Hill is aiming to be: bright, fresh and welcoming. It serves up vegetarian food with a distinct Middle Eastern hue. There’ll be plenty of things you know – tagines, flatbreads, salads and, naturally, the irrepressible beige slop of the gods that is hummus. However there’s enough mystery about the meals to keep things exciting – unusual spices, dips, marinades and general titivations to ensure the menu, which changes regularly with the ebb and flow of seasonal produce, is always exciting. As well as lunch, there’s excellent coffee (roasted in nearby Huddersfield by Dark Woods Coffee) and a simple breakfast menu – eggs, granola, scrambled tofu and baked bits and bobs – while on Friday evenings the doors open for post-work, pre-weekend dining. You can grab a beer or a glass of wine too.
There are tables on the ground floor, or take a walk up to the dual aspect first floor, where you can choose to either take a window which peeks into the ever-improving belly of Park Hill, or look out onto that glorious Sheffield skyline. It’s a view which is bound to make your meal that bit tastier and your lunch hour that bit longer. When the weather suits, there’s also some nice space to sit outside and gaze up at the imposing concrete lines of Park Hill.
There are plenty of reasons to visit South Street Kitchen. I’m a firm believer that the Middle Eastern route is the best way to enjoy vegetarian food. There’s the view, which I have mentioned, but never tire of. But there’s also something very wholesome about the place – despite the stark white furniture, clean lines and bare concrete, it’s undoubtedly homely and somewhere you could get used to whiling away time over coffee.
Keep an eye on the South Street Kitchen calendar for one-off events and special menus, on such themes as Jordanian cuisine, fine dining, and International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.
- Words by
- Will Roberts
- Images by
- Will Roberts
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