In a recent article I read, the Ouseburn Valley area of Newcastle was likened to London hipster haven Shoreditch. I’m not so sure of the comparisons myself, although with its many vegan-friendly pubs and cafes it is somewhere I definitely like to visit. I was pleased to hear that one of our favourite boozers, The Tyne Bar, was launching a Sunday lunch menu. The first service ran on the 4th March and included a meat-free option with dairy and egg free Yorkshire Puddings. We popped along to give it a try.
The Tyne Bar is located by the lock which joins the Ouseburn to the Tyne. The clientele is a real mix, demonstrating how welcoming the staff and the atmosphere are. Dog-friendly, it is the sort of place you can call into for a quiet pint and a read of your newspaper. 
With its neighbouring vegan pub The Ship Inn, you may not have realised how well the Tyne Bar accommodates those with dietary requirements before. We featured a lunch we’d enjoyed back in the summer of last year (see review here). Since then they’ve also participated in Vegan Restaurant Week, so have shown a real dedication to catering for us.
At £10 for each of the Sunday lunch options we felt it was decent value for money. The Teen had the Silverside Beef, which came with a rich gravy. The parsnips were unusually tossed on sesame which gave them an almost Oriental flavour. 
It was good to see that there was no difference between the ‘trimmings’ of the meat and non-meat plates at The Tyne Bar, so we didn’t feel like we were being short changed. We’ve experienced so many lunches with Yorkshire puddings removed and no alternative provided. 
While on the subject, we thought the vegan Yorkshire Puddings actually looked better than the ‘real deal’. Even the Teen remarked the egg-free version was just as good. Compare these beauties with the ones we had at Goji in York recently. I hope to see more pubs give them a try. I have a recipe on the blog which works well for those brave enough!
I personally felt the pastry coating on the nut roast/Wellington combo was a bit of overkill and would have preferred it without. With the Yorkshires and two types of potato it felt a bit too heavy on an already bursting plate. Good to see additional jugs of gravy come out with our meals. I prefer to add my own. 
Of course, I want the moon a stick, which means that I’d have loved some custard with my Treacle & Oat Tart. Nice to have something sweet, but even a slodge of Birds made with Oatly would have elevated my pud above something I’d have with a cuppa to worthy of Sunday lunch. Not everyone realises even the supermarket packet brands are SFV.
As Sunday lunch aficionados I’d have to say this is probably the best vegan version in a boozer we’ve had. Those Yorkshire Puds are top-notch and it was great to see how busy the pub was as we were leaving. Hopefully a sign that they’ll keep this on offer in the future. For more information check out The Tyne Bar’s Facebook page here.
Thanks for reading,
Pip x
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