All Aboard!

It wasn’t “the wrong leaves on the track”. Or a train derailment at Chipping Norton. But there were certainly a few delays in getting street food franchises into London’s Euston Station. For three years we’ve been working with the UK division of SSP Group, a leading operator of food and beverage brands in travel locations worldwide, to bring something new to Euston. Three of the UK’s most pioneering street food brands — Big Apple Hot Dogs, The Rib Man and Beany Australia — are now part of an innovative new concept they’re calling Junction Urban Street Food. The wait was worth it.

Street food is becoming more commercial. Which brings challenges of its own. Retaining its integrity for instance. Junction is part of the wider £12.5 million redevelopment of Euston Station, which will create more space at concourse level and respond to the diverse needs of the 71 million people who use the station every year. That’s a lot of hot dogs, rib rolls and banana cake. The development will provide 11,000 sq ft of food and beverage space including a redeveloped balcony level, and is part of Network Rail’s strategy to create stations that are destinations in their own right. Way to go.

“We have had a long and successful relationship with Network Rail Property” said Simon Smith, CEO of SSP UK and Ireland, “and we are delighted to be growing our association further. We are particularly excited about partnering with Richard Johnson and bringing these concepts to Euston Station. We believe that in working with Prue of Beany Australia, Abiye of Big Apple Hot Dogs and Mark, The Rib Man, we’ve found three incredible street food operators and helped to bring them and their delicious offers to commuters at Euston Station.”

Hamish Kiernan, Director of Retail at Network Rail said; “We are pleased to introduce these exciting new brands to Euston Station. They will not only cater for the 71 million travellers who use the station every year but will also provide more choice for the thousands of office workers and local people who use the station but are not travelling.” They are pioneers. More will follow in their footsteps. Watch this space.

• Big Apple Hot Dogs, inspired by the New York staple wiener, serves award-winning hot dogs that are hand-made in London. It uses only natural ingredients including free-range pork and prime beef, served with fresh bread buns from the ovens of local family bakers.
• The Rib Man has gained a reputation at Brick Lane market for selling the ‘best ribs in London’. The baby-back ribs are sourced from pork that are outdoor-reared on Norfolk and Suffolk farms and then slow cooked with secret spices until the meat falls off the bone. The Rib Man’s famous sauces range from smoky barbecue to a selection of hot sauces of varying heat levels. For the sake of decency, his most famous hot sauce will remain under the counter.
• Beany Australia is an independent Australian run coffee company which serves the highest quality artisan coffee and bold healthy seasonal foods, including fabled home-made banana bread. Known for its quirky ‘hole in the wall’ locations around London – two stores in Paddington and Regent’s Place, and an outlet converted from a shipping container on the Southbank – Beany Australia serves serious coffee which is much more than just a drink.