This week saw the spectacular launch of the Market Hall. We welcomed our local community and invited Plymouth to explore its newest home of immersive tech and we also invited our supporters to see the finished venue, from Sir Nicholas Serota to our next-door neighbours, it was amazing to see everyone mingling in our space.

Real Ideas knew that we had to pick the perfect caterers to really polish off the event, and there was no question to who we could rely on – the multi-award-winning, family food business, Hedgerow Hound. This talented foodie family from Dartmoor lined our guests’ stomachs with flavours that knocked off their socks.

Hedgerow Hound are a family that live in Dartmoor and believe passionately that food can be sustainably sourced (and preferably foraged or home grown) and sensational without the addition of any animal products. They have been serving completely vegan fair across the south west, from Ocean Studios Live, G7 Fringe, and now as we launch Market Hall.

Real Ideas have worked with the Hedgerow Hound since its zenith, and wholeheartedly support their incredibly tasty business venture through the Start Something programme, this programme supports businesses by giving them business coaching and support, access to our network and places to work to facilitate creativity and production.

Real Ideas are so excited for businesses such as Hedgerow to use our enterprise kitchen facilities (available at CSpace, Devonport Guildhall and now for events catering at Market Hall). Our idea is to have a state-of-the-art kitchen available to book out, so that having an established space – which can be prohibitively expensive – isn’t a barrier to people who are making great food with full hearts getting their food out there. Plus, sharing a kitchen with other businesses allows everyone to grow and flourish.

 

Vegan cream tea and the new Hedgerow pizza horsebox!

The Hedgerow Hound began business in August 2019 and since have prioritised being sustainable without compromising on taste! The seasons offer a guide to Hedgerow’s menus, but they’re also inspired by foraging, kitchen gardening and world food. Eating seasonally also means all the produce is fresh!

The efforts made by the Hedgerow Hound, to ensure their business is eco-friendly, are fantastic. They pull out all the stops, not only are they committed to composting and recycling but they use packaging sourced from Green Man Packaging Ltd which is all compostable. Hedgerow even builds their own bins and raised garden beds from recycled materials. At Real Ideas we really admire this, we too understand we have this huge responsibility and need to look after our planet.

The food business had to adapt to living with COVID so they took the direction towards takeaways and deliveries, as well as delving into the world of wholesale business! Pre-COVID the Hedgerow Hound were often showcasing their unique vegan food at markets and events across the South Hams. Who knows what a post-COVID world has in store for the caterers…

More than anything, here at Real Ideas, we feel great flying the Hedgerow Hound flag around our buildings. We share a style of community working, where a helping hand is standard practice. Both Real Ideas and Hedgerow Hound have worked with other businesses with similar approaches such as No Whey, Cosmic Kitchen, The Cornwood Inn Action Group Ltd and Nudge Community Builders. Creating a network of organisations that offer support, guidance and reassurance have been key in allowing businesses like the Hedgerow to thrive!

You can find the Hedgerow Hound @thehedgerowhound on Instagram and Facebook.