"Pop-up mall" operator Boxpark has won planning permission to open Boxhall City, its first London food hall at the Metropolitan Arcade building near Liverpool Streetstation.
The site, set to open in summer 2024, would include 16 pop-up restaurants. Boxpark CEO Simon Champion told the Standard his team would scour London street food markets to find vendors.
Champion said:: “We are delighted to receive the news today that Boxhall City has planning approval, as we aim to revive the Metropolitan Arcade building whilst retaining its unique character. Our team has worked extremely hard to secure this incredible central location in the City, and we are very excited about creating an all-day social dining destination to cater for hungry City workers, local residents in the neighbourhood, as well as attracting tourists and helping to drive footfall into the area.”
Boxpark already has three hospitality and events sites in the capital, at Shoreditch, Croydon and Wembley, but this will be its first food hall in the capital and second in the UK. The concept, Champion says, should attract City workers “looking for something different”, but could also serve as a destination in itself.
He added that the site in a historic building was a major part of the appeal for his business.
He said: “Our poor old property team looked at 300 different sites in the UK. We say no to an absolute ton of different properties. For a boxpark site we’re looking at an iconic building. I think it’s sad that 20 years ago there were plans to demolish the arcade and build an office on top of it.”
“The site ticks all of the boxes. We had a lot of sites that ticked most of the boxes.”
Food halls and street food markets have sprung up over London in recent years. Champion highlighted the live events hosted at Boxpark and Boxhall as a distinguishing factor that could shield them from oversaturation.
Champion also noted that many other hospitality businesses may struggle for funding in the current high-rates environment.
He said: “You may see some growth in food halls, but I don’t think it will continue significantly.”
