About Us

About Us

Our beginnings

Lonely Lentil began in 2019 as a pop-up shop/food stall, selling a small selection of dry foods, herbs and spices to customers through refilling their containers. We established ourselves in the local community by popping up at market events and by utilising spaces in halls and within premises of other very kind and supportive businesses!


We were humbled by the overwhelmingly positive reception and encouragement we received. The local community in Newbury and Thatcham are largely very enthusiastic about the issues of climate change, the environment and reducing plastic consumption. Social media (largely Facebook) greatly helped us to promote Lonely Lentil and gain a lovely local customer base.


During our first year of trading, Lonely Lentil's product range rapidly increased! We now offer a range of over 200 products, none of which are supplied to customers in plastic!


The majority of our products are dry foods, herbs and spices... but we are also super proud to sell a selection of eco-conscious products produced by other independent businesses based in and around Newbury and Thatcham. Our little table-top shop became something much bigger... a fully-stocked small shop! The venues who hosted us were wonderful: Mrs B's Kitchen Cafe,The Corn Exchange Newbury,The Globe Newbury andWest Berkshire Museum.

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Our ethos

Lonely Lentil is passionate about the morals and ethics of what it does. We work with the hope of making an impact in the local area, promoting an ethos of shopping less wastefully and more sustainably . It's about building awareness of more sustainable alternatives to plastic-wrapped groceries and becoming part of the solution.


The business also hopes to promote healthy, nourishing eating through our extensive range of natural whole foods. We hope to inspire/encourage customers to cook, experiment and most of all, enjoy our products! We take pride in supplying great quality produce and also in offering such a varied,exciting and extensive selection. Food is a passion at Lonely Lentil, and that’s something we love to share!


Lonely Lentil is proud to stand as an independent business alongside many others in the Newbury/Thatcham area. We have lots of lovely local friends who together offer a vibrant range of shopping, dining and leisure experiences to the community. We love to support, promote one another and collaborate wherever possible. Your support is always sincerely appreciated by us ‘Indies’- thank you!


About Lydia

Lydia is the founder of Lonely Lentil. A combination of her personal interests and passions led to the beginnings of the business in 2019. Lydia is married to the wonderful Carlos and has a lot of love for: cooking, animals, travel, recipe books, tea and wine!

Cooking is a real passion of mine… I love making aromatic dishes with an abundance of spices and herbs most of all.

Lydia especially loves experimenting with recipes from around the world…. Thai, Indian, Middle Eastern, Mauritian, Caribbean and Spanish all being favourites (to name just a few!). Plant-based dishes/menus are a particular interest. When Lydia cooks, it’s serious… only a feast will do when guests are over for dinner! You’ll notice when browsing the Lonely Lentil product selection that global flavours are a strong theme!

I love going on a journey when I cook in my little kitchen … the aromas of spice and exotic ingredients can take me away anywhere my imagination does!

Lydia’s involvement with a local wildlife rehabilitation charity first sparked her interest in reducing plastic consumption as much as possible.

Seeing how discarded rubbish and climate change is affecting our precious wildlife really began opening my eyes to the crisis we face with waste. I decided I wanted to do something to try to make a difference… even a small one.

Lydia’s love for animals has always kept her busy since childhood! She is also a proud ‘mum’ to a small menagerie of rescue animals. This has been a lifelong passion.


Lydia is very proud to work alongside her wonderful Mum Judy (A.K.A Mummy Lentil) in providing the community with Lonely Lentil products. This really is a true family business!

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COVID-19

The Covid 19 crisis struck in March 2020, which forced Lonely Lentil to quickly adapt to a new way of operating.


Pop-ups were no longer an option. We were determined to continue to provide our wonderful loyal customers with all the store cupboard staples they need to stay healthy, nourished and happy. Lonely Lentil quickly re-invented itself as a local delivery service... a move which was gratefully and enthusiastically received.


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Lonely Lentil® · Scooping since 2019

Lonely Lentil® · Scooping since 2019