Three new eateries are set to open at Elephant Park, the £2.3 billion regeneration project being delivered by Lendlease and Southwark Council in the heart of the capital. The new restaurant openings bring one brand new concept and two established local operators to the project.
Traditional Ethiopian restaurant, Beza, are evolving their existing concept to become a trend-led 100 per cent vegan eatery. The brand will be serving a wide range of authentic dishes, including the national food ‘teff injera’ – the 100% gluten free sourdough flatbread – alongside coffee sourced from Ethiopia.
Tasty Jerk will provide classic Caribbean dishes such as Jerk Chicken, Curry Goat, and Ackee & Saltfish. Jamaican national Rayon Johnson, together with his wife Linda, will combine his grandmother’s traditional recipes with their own creative flair, and use locally-sourced produce from East Street market in combination with authentic imported ingredients.
Authentic Pan Asian cuisine operator, Pot & Rice, will be serving rice pot selections, rice pastry (cheung fun) mochi, yuzu cheesecake, fruit tea, and milk tea, bringing modern Asian food culture together under one roof.
Beza and Tasty Jerk were previously tenants at Artworks Elephant, Lendlease’s pop-up retail park at Elephant Park, which was created to provide community-led space for start-ups and small businesses in the area.
The news follows the launch of the leasing of the next phase of Elephant Park, which comprises 16 food & beverage units totalling 37,000 square feet clustered in two distinct districts: Ash Avenue and New Kent Road and Chatteris Quarter.
Chris Liang, Restaurant Manager at Pot & Rice, commented on the news saying: “Elephant Park is a great location for our Rice Pot concept, and we are delighted to sit alongside such an interesting and diverse array of restaurants and retailers. The development looks very impressive already, and joining at this early stage will allow us to establish our brand with local residents and workers.”
News of the new signings follows the announcement earlier this summer of three more local operators at Elephant Park: The Tap In, Dima Beautiful and Koi Ramen. In addition, sustainable community food market operator, Mercato Metropolitano, will open MM Factory, 17,500 square feet of retail, dining and social space, later in the year.