“My favourite word is ‘companion’, from the Latin ‘with bread’ ” says Tom. At The Long Table in Stroud, UK, breaking bread together, are people who would quite possibly never have met otherwise. Because although neither would know, a guest having an entirely free meal may be sitting across from someone who chose to pay double the price for theirs.
That discreet solidarity underlies a thriving, growing community, a place to meet, make new connections, spark new ideas. And a place to find warmth, comfort and a good hot meal, whatever your circumstances. The Long Table sources its ingredients as locally as possible, from farmers “doing things in a hopeful way”; they employ people at a decent wage and train young people.
And the Long Table community is going global! They’ve opened a second restaurant themselves, but Tom is also increasingly invited to share the concept: Bristol, Belfast but also Portland, USA. Back in 2017, they wondered how long their table would get. It appears that the answer to that is very long indeed!
Vanessa C. Stone
