SOCIAL Network

How the community is being brought together through great food and drink at The Foundry Bell in Wokingham, as Acting GM Aidan Campbell explains

Q Can you tell us a little bit about the history of the pub?

A The Foundry Bell first opened as a public house in 1924 so it has almost 100 years of history in the local area. Blending tradition with innovation, the pub was renamed as part of its extensive renovation in 2022 and comes from the recognition of Wokingham’s local heritage, recalling the market-town’s original Bell Foundry in the 13th century.

Q What recent changes have been implemented?

A The pub underwent a major three-month renovation in late 2022 and opened to the public as The Foundry Bell in December. The renovation works focussed on bringing the building back to life as a local pub and mixing its existing historical features with modern pub dining. The space was given contemporary new interiors throughout, an enhanced outdoor seating area with heated snugs, 14-seater private dining room and a brand-new bar area, including a bespoke lavatop bar that was pivotal in our interiors design.

Q With the drinks menu, have you tried to o er something di erent?

A Championing seasonal produce is not just for our food menus and also helps us to design and create our drinks menu. We know that our customers want to use the pub for all occasions so have considered and created a drinks menu that represents that. We work alongside our suppliers and brand partners to o er an extensive drinks range that includes everything from house ale taps to our very own wine room which o ers over 40 bottles of wines, showcasing a variety of everything from organic worldwines to specialist British vineyards. A real focus for us has also been on creating an exciting soft and non-alcoholic range to ensure that there really is an option for everyone. So, as part of our seasonal cocktail menu, there will always be nonalcoholic versions available alongside a range of soft drinks, including our co ees, which are roasted in partnership with ethical co ee company Paddy & Scotts. Handcrafted on site with our barista-trained team, we are as passionate about our co ee as we are about our alcoholic drinks!

Q What would you say are the perfect drinks for the summer months?

A Our cocktails are stars of the show, made fresh on request and showcase the perfect mix of seasonal flavours and the best quality spirits. A recent yet popular addition to the cocktail menu is the Paloma. which is part of our Signature Cocktail menu. Made with Patrón Silver, pink grapefruit, lime juice and soda, it is the perfect refreshing drink and gives our guests a taste of something a little di erent.

Alongside our draught lagers, which continue to do well into the summer, we have also recently added a new local English sparkling wine to our menu. Called Fitz, the sparkling wine is produced in Sussex and o ers a crisp stone fruit flavour that is dry and well-balanced, it is a great alternative to prosecco, and I think will be a big hit this summer.

Q How would you sum up the cooking style of Ben Silvester?

A Ben is incredible at what he does, continually pushing the boundaries of modern British pub dining with great classic pub food at its heart. For Ben, it is about elevating the customers’ expectations and that could be something as simple as the inclusion of a fresh seasonal vegetable or herb that really elevates and takes the dish to another level.

Q How has he approached the menus?

A Social dining is at the heart of what we o er at The Foundry Bell. Whether that is an after-work dinner in the week to a Saturday morning brunch with friends, we need the menu to o er something for everyone for all occasions. Ben’s approach to the menus is about delivering a cleverly curated menu that showcases a selection of dishes that are simple in their design and o er flexibility to enjoy small sharing snacks to bigger family-style dinners.

Our Stix and Small Plate options are all about sharing so the plates work well alongside one another as they do individually, they also are packed full of flavour and showcase some of our more experimental dishes and flavours. Whilst the Mains reflect our more traditional pub o ering, elevated through subtle changes in produce, or classical cooking techniques.

Q Who are your suppliers?

A Seasonality and provenance are key for us, especially for our seasonal menu updates. For example, we work alongside our British suppliers for key provenance ingredients including Isle of Wight Heritage Tomatoes, Cromer Crabs, Ross Cob Chickens and our Dry-Aged Steaks, which are from British specialist breeds and farms.

Q What can we expect on the summer menu?

A Our new summer menu has launched and includes a new selection of fresh and simple dishes that allow the seasonal ingredients to be the showcase. From our Small Plates to Lunch and Mains, we have introduced a few new dishes including a Tempura soft-shell crab burger, Clam vongole, Slow-cooked pork ragu and Flat iron chicken. We also have a couple of new desserts including Maple roasted late summer fruits and our new Flamed baked Alaska – made with Italian meringue and served with praline ice cream. thefoundrybell-wokingham.co.uk

Q Do you have a particular dish you are loving right now?

A It has to be our sharing boards. Perfect for this warmer summer weather, it just gives our guests a great option to enjoy a range of dishes and flavours. We have 13 small plates including six Stix available on our main menu which can be enjoyed as single dishes, great for sharing with friends and family. Ben has created a range of flavours that all work so well together just as much as they do by themselves. Each delicious bite is packed with flavour, but if I had to pick my favourites, they have to be the Chargrilled halloumi and pickled pear drizzled with hot honey and thyme, it really elevates well-known ingredients, and also Burrata served alongside nectarine and drizzled with English tru ed rapeseed oil, such a clean and simple dish that lets the quality of the ingredients speak for themselves.

Q What else will The Foundry Bell o er this summer?

A Our big focus this summer is our outdoor terrace and really elevating that al fresco dining experience throughout the warmer summer days and evenings for our guests. We are also currently in talks with a number of our suppliers and brand partners to host a small number of pop-up events throughout the summer. Whilst these are still underwraps at the moment, an example of one of these pop-ups that we recently did was for the King’s Coronation bank holiday weekend, where we worked with our gin supplier Chase Distillery to bring the ultimate British summer garden party to life. We worked with Chase to o er a selection of limited-edition Chase gin cocktails to be enjoyed amongst our updated botanical-themed terrace takeover. It was a huge success and is something that we are looking forward to exploring more over the next couple of months.

Q Do you feel a real part of the local Wokingham community?

A The response we have had from our community in the lead-up to our opening and beyond has been amazing. It felt great to know that we were opening a place that people wanted to come and enjoy and spend their time in.

It is not a small feat to be running a hospitality business at the moment and that’s why we are so proud to be continually growing and learning. The support from our local community has been immeasurable and continues to be the fuel for our fire. We can’t wait to celebrate our summer plans with them.