Michelin chef and MasterChef finalist to open Bristol restaurants

A Michelin chef and a MasterChef finalist are among the big names set to open restaurants in converted shipping containers in Bristol.

The CARGO 1 retail development will be made up of 18 crates and is set to open in September.

Its tenants will include Josh Eggleton – the chef behind the Michelin-starred The Pony & Trap in Chew – with his new venture Chicken Shop.

The restaurant will serve ethically sourced chicken wings and beer and feature a roof terrace wrapped around its container.

Eggleton will be joined at the development by 2013 MasterChef finalist Larkin Cen, who is launching a 40-cover Asian casual dining restaurant and takeaway Woky Ko.

"CARGO is a great development which will make this part of the city a real destination for people who love eating out,” said Eggleton.

“Our focus will be on creating food that is delicious and sourced from ethical farms which treat their chickens well.”

Cen said the Wapping Wharf development was the ‘perfect opportunity’ to join Bristol’s ‘hugely exciting’ food scene.

“I live in the city and have been waiting for the right location and moment to open an Asian-flavours restaurant that provides a casual dining experience while staying true to my style of cooking,” he said.

Elliott Lidstone, who left his role as head chef at London’s Empress in July, is to launch BOX-E, a modern British restaurant with a four-seat ‘kitchen table’ at the development.

Other operators joining the chefs include PIGSTY - from the team behind The Jolly Hog sausages - Lovett Pies, and Bristol Cider Shop.

A second CARGO 2, with 28 containers, has received planning consent and will launch later this autumn.

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Will Duckworth, senior retail surveyor at JLL in Bristol, said: "The vision for CARGO has always been to provide a stepping stone for fledgling businesses including pop-ups and street traders and give them a chance to scale up.

“We are keen to get the right balance and there are still opportunities for smaller street traders to get involved in CARGO 2."