Bread & Meat – Cambridge

It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and miraculously I had nothing booked in my calendar, so the wife and I decided to pop into Cambridge and catch up on the ever changing food scene in Cambridge.

Every time I come into the city (which is nowhere near as often as I’d like) there seems to be new places which I don’t recognise. One of these places was Bread & Meat on Bene’t St, near the Corn Exchange.

There is no denying that the marketing guy behind Bread & Meat is a genius. You know exactly what it’s about and what to expect. I had only walked into a shop called Toast an hour prior and it turned out to be a clothing shop. 🤷‍♂️

The place was rammed but the team were still able to find us a table. As you can see from the photo above, it’s a very minimalist design. This isn’t a place meant for a date or special occasion but quite simply a way to grab great quality food quickly (which is what you want 90% of the time).

I could really see myself popping in here if I happened to pass Bread & Meat on a daily commute. I kept thinking that a place like this would thrive at a railway station because the service was prompt and the food came out quickly. Even on a Saturday!

The menu had a good selection with six different sandwiches available. They also do milkshakes, coffee, brownies, and beer.

Everything on the menu had real thought put into its sourcing. Outdoor reared British meat, award winning Suffolk ice cream, ethically sourced organic coffee, and home made mayonnaise and gravy. Nobody should be leaving here with a guilty conscience. Considering this, I thought the prices were reasonable… especially for the centre of Cambridge.

For the sake of reviews, we both try and make sure to have something different from their menu to give you a wider variety of the food on offer. Unfortunately, we both couldn’t resist their signature dish, the Porchetta sandwich – Outdoor reared British pork, fresh salsa verde, and a streak of crackling through the middle.

The sandwich came out in great time. The service was impeccable. This is not just credit to the waitress but the chef’s too. They have a great system going with huge joints of pork ready to cut and throw into a sandwich, so it only takes a moment to make. The pork joints are a sight to behold!

The Porchetta sandwich was a great size and meat portions were generous too. You literally get what it says on the tin here at Bread & Meat. The fresh salad verde was like a herby pesto which really added an extra dimension to the sandwich and it really worked.

The real star of the show however was the crackling. This streaked through the sandwich and gave it an incredible crunch which really made the sandwich pop. The crackling was absolutely perfect. I couldn’t recommend this sandwich enough!

I ordered a side, as I’m always worried that the mains wont fill me up. After finishing the Porchetta sandwich I now realise how absurd that was as it was plenty on its own.

I went for a bowl of Pautine however, which is chips in gravy and unpasteurised cheese. This is an up market take on the northern classic though is apparently Canadian French too 🤷‍♂️

This was also a delicious dish which was something I’ve never seen on my travels in Cambridge before. The chips on top did not inspire much but as you got further down you were greeted with a very thick cheesy gravy which utterly blew me away.

Once we were finished we asked the waitress for our bill and we were on our way. Quick, easy, and delicious!

Thanks for reading!