Westfield Stratford City opens its doors and offers 70 F&B options for diners

12-Sep-2011 - Last updated on 15-Mar-2024 at 15:13 GMT

Westfield Stratford City opened its doors to the public for the first time today

Westfield Stratford City, the £1.45bn retail and leisure development located next to the Olympic Park in east London, opens its doors to customers today with almost 70 food and drink sites ready for operation.

Diners can choose from a range of concepts - from sit-down restaurants to takeaway outlets - in four areas of the 1.9 million sq ft shopping centre - the Balcony, The Loft, The Chestnut Plaza & The Street and The Food Court with restaurants including Jamie's Italian, Busaba Eathai and Pho and operators such as Chicago Rib Shack and Comptoir Libanais running more scaled-down concepts.

As crowds started to gather to take part in the official opening, where former Pussy Cat Dolls singer Nicole Scherzinger made a live performance, Westfield staff had to deal with a minor glitch in the food court as a small part of the roof fell down. However, it was fixed before the centre officially opened and no-one was injured.

Official opening

Delivering an opening address, London Mayor Boris Johnson, underlined the economic importance of Westfield Stratford City.

He said: "Together with the Olympic investment, this has triggered regeneration in this part of London in a way not seen since the Middle Ages. With every Big Mac munched and with every pair of Levis jeans bought, it means more jobs for the people of east London, and more growth for the London economy and that is why it gives me great pleasure to declare this shopping centre open."

Westfield Group chairman Frank Lowy said the centre would 'serve the millions of people on the east side of London for generations to come'.

"It will be a wonderful leisure and retail destination for the Olympic games next year and beyond," he added.

Innovative concepts

Alongside the centre's dining concepts there are 300 retail units and three hotels - a Holiday Inn, a Staybridge Suites and a Premier Inn, which are expected to benefit most during the London Olympics next year.

All operators, in both the retail and hospitality sectors will be hoping to benefit from an influx of visitors to the est London shopping centre, now the largest in Europe.

Tracey Mills of Davis Coffer Lyons, the agents who secured deals for restaurants and food operators at Westfield, said: "We couldn't be more delighted with the range of operators secured at Westfield Stratford City. The Centre presents the next chapter in London's most innovative dining concepts which are a real focal point for the scheme".

You can see the almost-complete list of food operators in this article.