Geographically, Central London’s food and beverage (F&B) market is changing and expanding. Historic hubs such as Carnaby Street and Greek Street in Soho, Covent Garden and Gerrard Street in Chinatown continue to thrive, but recent years have seen new hotspots emerge too.

Through regeneration, areas such as Ham Yard, Kingly Street and Kingly Court have been brought back to life as foodie havens. A raft of new bar and restaurant openings have pushed Soho towards capacity, driving operators to look slightly further afield into Fitzrovia and creating a flourishing F&B district in the ‘Noho’ (North of Soho) area. House of Botanicals on Fitzrovia’s Newman Street recently opened while Roast on Great Portland Street and Liquorette on Rathbone Place, Fitzrovia will open their doors this autumn. 

Similarly, consumer tastes have expanded beyond the traditional preference for Italian and Greek to encompass cuisine from all over the world. Many major Central London landlords actively seek out independent brands offering a vast array of food types rather than the bigger chains which dominated in years gone by.

Vegan concepts have also grown exponentially and pub companies in Central London are starting to embrace this type of menu. A key example is The City Pub Group’s new Tell Your Friends vegan bar and kitchen in Parsons Green. In Homerton, The Spread Eagle pub has introduced a 100 per cent vegan Mexican-inspired street food menu by Club Mexicana. 

London has also seen a new wave of food halls and food markets, such as Japanese food hall Ichiba at Westfield London. Now part of the former BHS on Oxford Street is set to be transformed into Market Hall West End, the UK’s largest food hall, with 25 kitchens, four bars, 10 food stalls and events space.

Under the same concept, a disused nightclub in Victoria and former Tube station ticket hall in Fulham will be brought back to life as Market Hall Victoria and Market Hall Fulham. The appeal of such environments lies in the fresh food and huge amount of choice on offer, meaning they can cater for a large and varied customer base of office workers, tourists, families and everything in between.

• This content first appeared in The Morning Advertiser

Further information

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