Union Salad

20 September 2024

The story behind the creation of the ever-popular staple of Margins Cafe's pre-show dinner menu.

A few years ago, ahead of a busy gig with hungry Margins Cafe diners to cater for, a supplier had let The Margins Project's kitchen team down so our chefs and trainees had to make a side salad with the few ingredients left in their fridge; mainly mango and avocado.

Head Chef Iraj and Assistant Chef Carlton - who had risen through the ranks of The Margins Project's Supported Employment Programme - came up with a few other ingredients to make it work; mint, red onion, orzo, chickpea, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, spring onion and a dressing of mustard and lemon.

The newly formed Union Salad was an instant hit and still remains popular at our pre-show meals.

Reserve your space at a Margins Cafe table after booking live tickets at corresponding event listings and scroll down to Book For A Pre-Show Dinner.

Learn more about our frontline charity, The Margins Project, and their work with and for those facing homelessness and other pertinent social justice issues here.

Can you support The Margins Project? Please consider donating here.

Want to cook like a Margins Cafe chef? At the beginning of lockdown, Head Chef Iraj continued to connect by recording the below simple, healthy recipes for you to try at home. Enjoy!

Alt Text: composite images of salad prep on metal surfaced Margins kitchen including halved and cubed mango, slliced cucumber, freshly washed cherry tomatoes in collander next to halved cherry tomatoes on a green chopping board, sliced red onion, spinach in a collander next to shredded spinach on a green chopping board, stages of adding all ingredients into a metal dish seperately alongside pile of ozro and chickpeas. Final ingredient, cubed avocado prepared next to mixed salad metal dish next to olive oil, lemon juice, and mustard dressing in a jug. Final images of the finished mixed, colourful salad in a white deep dish and photo of assistant chef Carlton hand shredding herbs next to prepped salad ingredients in a metal dish for a view showing Margins office in background of the kitchen room showing desks, computer, chairs, and other food products in a crate for future Margins meals.