OK. So the title is unnecessarily alliterative. Sorry. But I couldn’t resist.

I mentioned Staple Foods before. It’s at Merchant’s Arch which, as I’m sure you know, is the archway (and alley) that leads from the south end of the Ha’penny Bridge to Temple Bar.

Kevin, the bloke who owns and runs it, has a good eye: for colour, design, typography and, judging by the browsing material available, street art. He’s put together a nice idea here. It’s simple and straightforward: a clean, bright, small premises, serving a small selection of tasty, healthy foods, good coffee (he’s a trained barista), and a few other interesting items such as DBKB, a detoxifying Kombucha, brewed in Dublin.

The food offerings are a simple mix of protein (pulled pork, shredded duck, chicken or baked falafel), a slaw (there’s a few choices ‘made from freshly chopped or shredded fruit and veg, mixed with flax, pumpkin and sesame seeds … dressed in a non-dairy dressing’), and some leaves (baby spinach and rocket). You can have this served in a box (one of those nice chinese food ones) or on some locally baked 5 seed bread.

Blackboards both inside and outside the (not sure what term to use … I’ll go for deli) deli helpfully suggest complementary combinations (is there no end to my alliterative creations?) in colourful stencilled letters.

I ordered this …

… as a salad and handed over my fiver.

This is what I got …

My photo (surprise, surprise … I’m pretty close to the top of the league of crap photographers) doesn’t really represent any of the essential visual qualities of the food – quantity, colour or yumsciousness. Look at Staple Food’s Facebook photostream if you want a good representation of the food on offer and the interior of the deli. The photostream also contains a seriously awesome picture of different coloured beets.

This is healthy food. But it’s not boring, tasteless, healthy food that makes you feel like you’re being punished for something you did wrong*. This is freshly made, tasty, healthy, filling food. Food for people who like food. And it only costs a FIVER. A FIVER.

I’ll return to Staple Foods. I want to try their pulled pork, And probably their duck. Maybe even their chicken, too.

Seriously, if you’re in the vicinity with a fiver in your pocket, try it out. Have a chat with Kevin too. He’s a nice bloke.

(*Reminds me of one of my favourite Phil Dunphy quotes from Modern Family: ‘Why do I have to watch a French movie? I didn’t do anything wrong’.)