Soul Kitchen was born originally as "Northern Soul Kitchen (NSK)" back in 2015 by Harriet Grecian and Millie McRobbie.

It all started at a time when Berwick had a lot of socio-economic struggles due to a number of factors including the loss of local jobs through factory closures and a lack of community hubs and facilities due to the closure of our community centre. Harriet was online doing some late night research and discovered The Real Junk Food Project - really the first initiative of its kind here in the UK to be redirecting surplus food away from animal feed and to hungry humans instead.

We had already been having some discussions about how we could make a difference in Berwick and this felt like it. We had grand plans of taking on a large building and creating a brand new community centre and we would build a food waste cafe there for people to access surplus food and get involved in cooking & learning too. This huge plan whittled down to the idea of the cafe but was still a place people could gather, meet each other and enjoy wholesome food no matter who they were or how much they could afford to pay.

So NSK was born and work began, we sourced funding and started canvassing in the community (with mixed results at first) - ultimately it took years and we ended up taking on a derelict space on West Street which became our home for nearly 8 years. The build was huge and the town really stepped up to make it happen. This would continue for us throughout our time on West Street where we struggled through covid and its aftermath all supported by the amazing people here in Berwick Upon Tweed.

Our lease eventually run out on Wonderful West Street and for over 12 months we struggled to find a new home but thankfully we did and again with thanks to a well supported CrowdFunder and the power of fantastic people we are still here!

Growing steadily from humble beginnings

We now reside on Marygate in a gorgeous light filled building that serves so many of the purposes we had always hoped for. We have room now for more dining, workshops, private events and more. Our ethos stays the same and we still hold space for everyone. Pay us a visit if you're in town, we look forward to meeting you!