A maximum of 800 people will be able to shop in the new Ilford covered food market at any given time.
Mercato Metropolitano (MM), the people behind the well-known Elephant and Castle outdoor market, has submitted a planning application for a temporary five-year L-shape structure to be built in Redbridge Town Hall car park, Chadwick Road.
If approved the food market, complete with hydroponic farm and brewery will house up to 30 stalls and each concession will employ between one and four members of staff.
In addition to this, there will be a cookery school and a floor manager will be on site at all times to make sure individual stalls are complying with the licensing conditions.
An MM spokesman wrote that while the concessions may change as the market fine-tunes the right mix of stalls for Ilford, there will always be a certain type of offering.
“The retail offer will always include a cold cuts and cheese counter, a range of selected groceries, wines and liqueurs, chocolate, patisserie, bakery/boulangerie, cooking tools, flowers, fruit and vegetables,” he said.
“The restaurant concessions will always offer a wide variety of foods from across the world, including Neapolitan pizza, Middle Eastern concessions, Japanese, fresh pasta, Argentinean/South American grills and specialities, pan‐Asian cuisine, Italian gelato and a world‐class bar.
“Whilst some of the concessions may open at different times of the day, the whole operation will offer breakfast, lunch, supper and drinks together with an all‐day retail offer.”
In the proposals submitted to Redbridge Council, MM said it would like to operate between 8am to 11pm, Sunday to Thursday and 8am to midnight on Friday and Saturday.
Patrons would be reminded to leave quietly to minimise the disturbance to local residents.
MM Ilford will offer communal seating, allowing visitors the opportunity to buy from any food concession and sit within the whole space without being restricted to a booking‐only system, in line with MM inclusive approach,” he added.
“Menu pricing will reflect pricing within the Redbridge area, but with an enhanced price/quality ratio, considering MM’s focus on fine, healthy and traceable ingredients and products.”
The application will be discussed at a Redbridge Council planning meeting in the new year.
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