This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2013/jun/15/fast-food-upmarket-street-feast
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Dodgy kebabs are out, gourmet burgers are in, as fast food turns into top-quality cuisine | Dodgy kebabs are out, gourmet burgers are in, as fast food turns into top-quality cuisine |
| (4 months later) | |
| Fast food used to mean a slightly dodgy kebab, a burger shop or a bucket of crisped-to-death chicken. Now the creeping gentrification of the hot snack is going mainstream in Britain after winning us over at festivals and urban pop-ups. | Fast food used to mean a slightly dodgy kebab, a burger shop or a bucket of crisped-to-death chicken. Now the creeping gentrification of the hot snack is going mainstream in Britain after winning us over at festivals and urban pop-ups. |
| On Friday nights in London it is no longer just the young clubbers on their way home who are queueing at street food outlets. Street Feast in Merchants Yard, east London, has been attracting foodie crowds of around 5,000 people of all ages to sample quality fast foods from some 20 traders vying for quality and value for money. Guerrilla Eats is a collective of food traders doing much the same thing in Manchester. | On Friday nights in London it is no longer just the young clubbers on their way home who are queueing at street food outlets. Street Feast in Merchants Yard, east London, has been attracting foodie crowds of around 5,000 people of all ages to sample quality fast foods from some 20 traders vying for quality and value for money. Guerrilla Eats is a collective of food traders doing much the same thing in Manchester. |
| Diners looking for a burger that is a cut above the preservative-laden stereotype have been making central London burger outlets MEATliquor and Patty & Bun so popular that it's not uncommon to see long queues outside at the weekends, while the chains Gourmet Burger Kitchen and Byron have been expanding rapidly across the UK this year. Gourmet Burger Kitchen has 59 restaurants from Brighton to Edinburgh. Byron has 32 branches and is opening soon in Liverpool and Manchester, and, says its founder, Tom Byng, attracts people who "wouldn't dream of going to McDonald's". | Diners looking for a burger that is a cut above the preservative-laden stereotype have been making central London burger outlets MEATliquor and Patty & Bun so popular that it's not uncommon to see long queues outside at the weekends, while the chains Gourmet Burger Kitchen and Byron have been expanding rapidly across the UK this year. Gourmet Burger Kitchen has 59 restaurants from Brighton to Edinburgh. Byron has 32 branches and is opening soon in Liverpool and Manchester, and, says its founder, Tom Byng, attracts people who "wouldn't dream of going to McDonald's". |
| MEATliquor is planning to open in Brighton in August. One of its founders, Scott Collins, has said that demand stems from "people trading up to better burgers". | MEATliquor is planning to open in Brighton in August. One of its founders, Scott Collins, has said that demand stems from "people trading up to better burgers". |
| Financial experts are taking note and calling it the "fast casual" restaurant market, which is bucking the trend in other parts of a recession-hit economy and building annual sales growth of 5%, according to analysts NPD Group. | Financial experts are taking note and calling it the "fast casual" restaurant market, which is bucking the trend in other parts of a recession-hit economy and building annual sales growth of 5%, according to analysts NPD Group. |
| Unlike the average restaurant – a notoriously tricky business to get right – many of the upmarket fast food outfits finding favour this summer began as pop-ups or small traders on festival stalls, allowing the owners to get things right before expanding. | Unlike the average restaurant – a notoriously tricky business to get right – many of the upmarket fast food outfits finding favour this summer began as pop-ups or small traders on festival stalls, allowing the owners to get things right before expanding. |
| Yianni Papoutsis, one of MEATliquor's founders, tested his burgers on customers from a van in south London before expanding. Concise menus, takeaway food and healthy competition between traders help to keep a profit in the business too. | Yianni Papoutsis, one of MEATliquor's founders, tested his burgers on customers from a van in south London before expanding. Concise menus, takeaway food and healthy competition between traders help to keep a profit in the business too. |
| "When I started in a car park behind Brick Lane two years ago, it was a whole different picture," said Dominic Cools-Lartigue, a former dance club organiser who founded Street Feast after seeing there was not only a demand but "a real little scene that was out there and growing. Now it has really caught on. It's vibrant and has become a real alternative to spending a Friday night in the pub. It's a community thing, it's a quality thing, it's even a family thing earlier in the evening. It's the first thing I've run when people have brought their mums, it's cross-generational. Fast food, street food, it's a viable business and there is a real camaraderie between traders and customers. | "When I started in a car park behind Brick Lane two years ago, it was a whole different picture," said Dominic Cools-Lartigue, a former dance club organiser who founded Street Feast after seeing there was not only a demand but "a real little scene that was out there and growing. Now it has really caught on. It's vibrant and has become a real alternative to spending a Friday night in the pub. It's a community thing, it's a quality thing, it's even a family thing earlier in the evening. It's the first thing I've run when people have brought their mums, it's cross-generational. Fast food, street food, it's a viable business and there is a real camaraderie between traders and customers. |
| "You see people popping in and grabbing something and heading on and you see people coming in and really planning their evening's menu. It's great." | "You see people popping in and grabbing something and heading on and you see people coming in and really planning their evening's menu. It's great." |
| Street Feast has three more Fridays at Merchants Yard in Dalston, after which it will then be looking for a new London home as well as considering locations further afield. | Street Feast has three more Fridays at Merchants Yard in Dalston, after which it will then be looking for a new London home as well as considering locations further afield. |
| Now two American chains of high quality fast foods are moving into what is becoming a lucrative market. One of them, Shake Shack, which began as a hot dog cart at an art installation, will be opening in London's Covent Garden next month. | Now two American chains of high quality fast foods are moving into what is becoming a lucrative market. One of them, Shake Shack, which began as a hot dog cart at an art installation, will be opening in London's Covent Garden next month. |
| "We're positively in love with London's thriving food culture, and are humbled and excited to bring Shake Shack to the UK," said Danny Meyer, chief executive of the Union Square Hospitality Group. "For years an enormous number of friends in London have asked us when we would bring our first restaurant to their home. We've looked far and wide for just the right time and spot, and at last we've found it." | "We're positively in love with London's thriving food culture, and are humbled and excited to bring Shake Shack to the UK," said Danny Meyer, chief executive of the Union Square Hospitality Group. "For years an enormous number of friends in London have asked us when we would bring our first restaurant to their home. We've looked far and wide for just the right time and spot, and at last we've found it." |
| Later in the year the massive US chain Five Guys, which has more than 1,000 franchise outlets in America, will also be looking at opening a fast food burger outlet in Covent Garden, as well as at four other locations in the capital. | Later in the year the massive US chain Five Guys, which has more than 1,000 franchise outlets in America, will also be looking at opening a fast food burger outlet in Covent Garden, as well as at four other locations in the capital. |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. |