With a wide variety of vegetarian, vegan and organic dishes, Wessex Tales Restaurant is ideal if you follow a special diet or want a healthy meal.

The Venue
On the corner of the main road into Boscombe, Wessex Tales Restaurant looks like a traditional tea room, with Tudor beams and aged canopies above the windows. Inside, the decor is equally traditional, with rustic bricks and wood panelling, and it's the second oldest building in Boscombe.

The restaurant is small but tables are placed well apart so it feels spacious. Plants and flowers are dotted around along with a combination of British and North American display plates and memorabilia.

It can get cold in winter and the folk music playing in the background sounds a little depressing, but the upbeat mood of the staff makes up for this.

The Wessex Tales Restaurant is more of a lunchtime venue, but they open on Friday and Saturday evenings and some other evenings by appointment, and it's currently the only vegetarian restaurant near Bournemouth to open in the evenings. Make sure you have cash or cheque as they don’t accept credit cards at the moment.

The People
The staff are incredibly hospitable and enjoy getting to know their customers. They are enthusiastic about their work and will make you feel like an honoured guest.

Customers are generally older, with lots of regulars who seem to know each other well. Occasionally there are families and younger people, but the quiet atmosphere tends to discourage them.

The Food
All items on the menu are vegan (as well as organic and GM free where possible). This might put some people off, but everything’s homemade and thoughtfully prepared, so you’ll be impressed if you try it.

There’s a wide range of options on the menu which are all reasonably priced. Jacket potatoes are £3.40, and there are other dishes from around £5 to £6, such as nut roast and trimmings, veggie burgers, chickpea curry and braised tofu. A children’s portion of veggie sausages, chips and beans is £3.90.

Starters range from £1.20 to £3.50. Their soups are always delicious, especially when eaten with their homemade onion herb slice, which tastes like a combination of fresh bread and sage and onion stuffing. Other starters include hummus with salad and pita bread, garlic mushrooms on their onion herb bread, and battered onion rings.

Their vegan chocolate cake is a little dry, but the range of dairy-free ice creams is surprisingly tasty, as is the trifle which isn’t on the main menu but is usually on the blackboard.

The Drink
There’s a wide range of hot drinks, including herbal and fruit teas. Soft drinks include organic fruit juices, organic cola and ginger beer.

Vegan milkshakes are a little expensive at £3, but they’re delicious and worth a try. A glass of house wine is £2.30 and a Pimms cocktail (summer only) is £2.90.

The Last Word
The music can make the atmosphere a little gloomy so it’s not the place to go on a date, and the wholly vegan menu won’t suit some people, but the home cooked food and the friendly service make the Wessex Tales Restaurant a pleasure to visit.

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