Street Kitchen to open first shop as part of ambitious rollout
Chefs Jun Tanaka and Mark Jankel – who claim to offer ‘fast and accessible’ gourmet sandwiches with ‘Michelin star know-how’ – will open their first sandwich shop at Broadgate Circle, in the City of London, on 15 June.
Founded in 2012, Street Kitchen currently operates from an Airstream catering trailer in Broadgate Circle, as well as two other London sites – Battersea and Devonshire Square.
The new permanent shop will offer cut-to-size sandwiches by the inch and a selection of ‘grab and go’ salad boxes for lunch and dinner with an average spend of £6-£8 per head.
Available to eat-in or take-away, the signature sandwiches are made with bespoke focaccia bread and a range of organic ingredients. The shop will be open Monday to Friday from 7am-9pm.
Expansion plan
Tanaka told BigHospitality that it had always been a long-term plan to expand Street Kitchen brand beyond the Airstream trailers, and funding was in place for three more sites next year.
He said: “Although [the trailers] have been a great platform on which to test out the concept of ‘slow food, fast’ – from the recipes to the supply chain ethos – we feel that now is the ideal time and opportunity to put the Street Kitchen philosophy to the test in a scalable concept by putting a fresh spin on the ‘fast food’ everyone’s already familiar with – sandwiches.”
According to Tanaka, the pair have spent the last few months developing and testing the sandwiches.
“There will be a selection of hot sandwiches and also 24 inch-long sandwiches that we will slice to order and serve ‘by the inch’. These are some that have passed the test and made it onto the menu,” he explained.
Some of the sandwiches that have made it onto the menu include: hot smoked salmon, watercress, pickled red cabbage and dill; roast chicken, tomato chutney, pickled onion and tarragon mayo; charred organic broccoli, free-range eggs, smoky mustard mayo and Old Winchester cheese; and rare roast beef, caramelised onion, pickled cucumber and horseradish.
Sustainable sourcing
Tanaka said that all produce will be sourced from sustainable, organic farms, fisheries and producers in the UK, while everything from food waste and energy usage to furniture and staff uniforms will adhere to Street Kitchen’s ecologically-sound ethos.
The 550 sq ft, 18-cover Broadgate Circle shop will include an open kitchen, comprising a deli-style marble counter and stainless steel serving benches on wheels. Two terraces on either side of the shop provide further seating outside for 24.
The shop will serve beers from Camden Town Brewery, Partizan Brewing and London Fields Brewery, alongside a range of English sparkling wines. Coffee will also feature, with a barista serving artisan coffees made by AllPress using beans roasted daily, alongside a selection of teas from the likes of Mangajo Green Teas.
Fine-dining plans
Tanaka started Street Kitchen while he was still working at Holborn fine dining restaurant Pearl.
He said: “Mark and I developed the idea together, taking our experiences and knowledge we gained working in Michelin-starred establishments and applying that same level of care and attention to a more accessible concept.”
He claimed not have moved away from restaurant dining, and intends to open his own place soon.
“As most chefs will tell you, finding a decent restaurant property in London is incredibly competitive and it has been very challenging trying to secure the perfect site.
“But the good news is, I’m nearly there and providing everything goes to plan, I aim to open later this year.”
