Street Feast founder launches food and co-work space

Street Feast founder Dominic Cools-Lartigue has teamed up with London chefs Zoe Adjonyoh, James Cochran, Andrew Clarke and Daniel Watkins to open The Tramshed Project in the Grade II-listed building in Shoreditch formerly occupied by Mark Hix’s restaurant.

The new concept is a membership-free venue that incorporates a restaurant, a co-working space and a place to learn – the kitchens will serve a diverse range of food from around the world, and a 2,000 sq ft basement gallery will play host to a line-up of curated events, residencies, talks and workshops in a socially distant society.

Adjonyoh – author of the book Zoe’s Ghana Kitchen – has devised a menu of Ghanaian cuisine inspired by traditional recipes and featuring flavours and ingredients from across West Africa; James Cochran – owner and head chef at 12:51, and Great British Menu ‘Champion of Champions’ – will be on-site serving a selection of fried, jerk-infused dishes; and there’ll also be a menu of smoked meats and plant-based dishes from chefs Andrew Clarke and Daniel Watkins.

All of these menus will be served in The Tramshed Project’s main hall, a giant dining space with seating for up to 120 people with social distancing.

The Tramshed Project has numerous event spaces – upstairs, the building’s library has seated space for up to 40 people around a kitchen counter, so will host food and drink pairing events, collaborative dinners and takeovers with chefs; downstairs, the basement gallery will host the venue’s exhibitions, workshops and panel discussions.

Programming launches with a weekly Friday night jazz and dinner club called Black Flamingo – inspired by the first British Black magazine of the 1960s, Flamingo.

Black Flamingo will be a new hub of Black culture, cuisine, business and education in London; The Tramshed Project will also host a food and cultural festival for Black History Month, 23-25 October, that will feature talks, documentary screenings, supper clubs, live music and more.

‘The power of purpose’

“Among the many lessons of lockdown, we learned the power of purpose,” comments Cools-Lartigue.

“We heard countless tales of communities coming together to do good and help their neighbours in need – that same spirit of togetherness is at the heart of our approach to opening The Tramshed Project.

“We’re lucky enough to have inherited such a wonderful space, and I’m happy that we can share it with Londoners looking for a safe place to work and eat during the day.

“The variety and diversity of our offering excites me, with Zoe, Andrew and James, that mix feels like the London I know and love.”

Dominic will be continuing his work with A Plate For London at The Tramshed Project by partnering with Hackney Council and The Felix Project.

The Tramshed Project will become a local food hub distributing food to vulnerable people through local charities in Hackney, with the food supply coming from surplus stock, donated by wholesalers, manufacturers, restaurants, supermarkets and other businesses.

The Felix Project distributes the food from its warehouse to The Tramshed Project, who will share the food amongst local charities to provide to vulnerable people in the borough.

The Tramshed Project opens for business on Friday 9 October.