Shelter Hall, located on Brighton beach, will open for outside trading on 26 April as part of a £19m renovation of the seafront.
The 15,000 sq ft venue will bring together a mix of local chefs, musicians and artists to the Victorian building that dates back to the 1880s, with seven kitchens, a bar and entertainment space set across three levels.
Food options will include Lost Boys Chicken, Hanoi Kitchen, Crabshack, Sugardough bakery, VIP Pizza and 2018 MasterChef Winner Kenny Tutt.
Shelter Hall is run by new business Sessions Market, which was founded last year by former Deliveroo managing director Dan Warne. The company plans to build a series of community food halls across the UK and also runs the Sessions Accelerator programme that connects early-stage food concepts with nationwide operators to help both sectors in the wake of Covid-19.
The food hall will also feature The Incubator Kitchen, which will give local chefs and start-ups the opportunity to open their first physical space. Kitchens will work on a rotating four-month residency with mentorship and training from the Sessions Market team provided on aspects such as branding and operations.
Opening first will be Shelter Hall’s 240-cover outdoor terrace overlooking the seafront, with its 200-cover indoor space opening when restrictions are lifted. Once this happens, customers can choose to dine in, have food delivered or collect meals to enjoy on the beach, all ordered through the Shelter Hall app.
Shelter Hall was originally slated to open last summer but plans were put on hold because of the pandemic. Instead it opened as a stripped back version called Shelter Hall Raw with traders including Fatto a Mano, Lost Boys Chicken, Carlito Burrito, Brighton Coffee Works, Toasted by GB Charcuterie and Smorls.
Last year in an interview with BigHospitality Warne said the plan was to eventually bring a total of 10 food traders to Shelter Hall.