There’s been a growing sense of optimism in the air regarding Bradford city centre for some time now – and the increasing number of food and drink businesses which have opened or are looking to open is testament to that optimism.

The arrival of the Broadway and associated ventures like The Light cinema and the nearby restaurants; the success of the Sunbridge Wells caverns, and the revival of the North Street area all helped pave the way.

Now, plans are afoot to transform the Darley Street food market, and in the process, give a new look to that part of the city.

There are also plans for a World Food Centre of Excellence in Filey Street in the empty Kingfisher House block, and Pizza Express has recently confirmed its plans to open up its first Bradford restaurant, in the Broadway centre.

But the literal icing on the cake for many has been the arrival of the popular Cake ‘ole café, which recently took over the Pavilion building in a prime location in Bradford’s City Park. Specializing in elaborate and colourful cakes and other sweet treats, as well as coffee, tea and lunchtime snacks, the Cake ‘ole first opened in Skipton more than five years ago. Since then owners Richard Wilson and business partner Neil Senior have established a second successful outlet in Keighley’s Royal Arcade. And when the opportunity presented itself to expand into the iconic building overlooking the Mirror Pool in the shadow of City Hall, it represented the culmination of a long-term ambition for Richard.

Following the opening of the new venture in March this year, Richard said: “Four years ago I was outside this building, where we used to deliver to the Pavilion Cafe. I rang my business partner Neil and said we had to open a tea room here. Four years later, here we are.”

“Bradford Council have offered us lots of support just to get us here. We’d been looking at Bradford for a while and they’d offered us a few different properties.

“We’d looked at venues too, but Neil and I agreed that we had to like it and it had to be a place we’d go ourselves.

“Bradford’s special to us as people travel from here to our other cafes. We have three tea rooms now and we want five in the end, with possibly one in Leeds.”

The Cake ’Ole – like its two sibling venues – is decorated in its own unique way. In Bradford’s case, it takes its look from the Mad Hatter’s tea room.

Across at The Broadway, Pizza Express recently signed a lease for a new 152-seater restaurant. It will be the 17th eatery to join the shopping centre’s portfolio.

Ian Ward, general manager of The Broadway, Bradford, said: “As the first of its kind in Bradford, the Pizza Express restaurant is very exciting for us all. It will be a fantastic addition to The Broadway’s wide range of dining experiences, so I have no doubt it will succeed.

“We are extremely proud that our selection of eateries continues to grow during what is set to be an impressive year for The Broadway. Along with a selection of new retailers due to open this year, the Pizza Express opening is a vital part of our mission to becoming a major retail and leisure destination in the region.”

IAN WARD
GENERAL MANAGER, THE BROADWAY

In the Darley Street area, Bradford Council recently published updated planning proposals for its plans for a new food market as part of the transformation of the area.

Dramatic new artist’s impressions show a spacious, modern market with dedicated underground servicing areas and a dynamic new public space for open air events and outdoors stalls.

The council believes the development will add to Bradford’s draw as a shopping and leisure destination and attract more people into the city, and it will also increase the visibility of Piccadilly, which features a number of high-quality Victorian buildings.

A recent public consultation saw more than 1,000 online surveys completed and well over 100 submissions were gathered at special drop-in sessions held in key locations across Bradford district, which will help shape the plans going forward.

Coun Alex Ross-Shaw, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Planning and Transport, said: “This is a major step in realising this significant transformational project. The markets would help redefine Darley Street and the city centre, and showcase the fantastic Victorian buildings on Piccadilly by making them a lot more visible.”

“The project is part of a broad package of initiatives designed to boost investment, growth and employment across the Bradford district.”

Alex Ross-Shaw

And slightly out of the city centre, at Kingfisher House in Filey Street, plans are progressing to turn the empty office block into a 35,000 sq ft ‘world food centre of excellence’.

Work is already under way on the multi-million pound development, which would include a restaurant, banqueting facilities and a training centre for the next generation of chefs, training bet ween 50 and 100 people a year.

But a new planning application was recently submitted to Bradford Council that will see an additional annex built on the site. The original plans were predicted to create up to 250 jobs, and the new annex should add an additional 15 to 20 employees to that.

The plans indicate that the annex will allow the business to expand into catering, and it will include baking facilities.

The scheme is a partnership between Jinnah Restaurant and the World Curry Festival, and the application states: “The applicant has facilitated further discussions with partners in the city to enhance the vision to create a Centre of Excellence in world food, with skills training, restaurant and hospitality/ conferencing facility and a boutique hotel.”

It says the additional annex will “see the delivery of an even better multimillion pound facility”.

Saleem Akhtar, managing director at Jinnah Group, said the original plans were budgeted at around £5 million, but with the new additions the scheme was likely to represent an investment of around £7/8 million.

“It has really expanded – it will include a hotel, conference facilities, banqueting, the training academy. It will have the bakery, a florists, a car hire facility. It is going to have everything.”

Saleem Akhtar
Managing Director of Jinnah Restaurant

He hopes that the centre will solidify Bradford’s growing foodie credentials, pointing out his restaurant has regular visitors from places like Nottingham and Manchester, and said he hopes the first phase of the centre will be finished by next summer.

There’s been a growing sense of optimism in the air regarding Bradford city centre for some time now – and the increasing number of food and drink businesses which have opened or are looking to open is testament to that optimism.

The arrival of the Broadway and associated ventures like The Light cinema and the nearby restaurants; the success of the Sunbridge Wells caverns, and the revival of the North Street area all helped pave the way.

Now, plans are afoot to transform the Darley Street food market, and in the process, give a new look to that part of the city.

There are also plans for a World Food Centre of Excellence in Filey Street in the empty Kingfisher House block, and Pizza Express has recently confirmed its plans to open up its first Bradford restaurant, in the Broadway centre.

But the literal icing on the cake for many has been the arrival of the popular Cake ‘ole café, which recently took over the Pavilion building in a prime location in Bradford’s City Park.

Specialising in elaborate and colourful cakes and other sweet treats, as well as coffee, tea and lunchtime snacks, the Cake ‘ole first opened in Skipton more than five years ago.

Since then owners Richard Wilson and business partner Neil Senior have established a second successful outlet in Keighley’s Royal Arcade.

And when the opportunity presented itself to expand into the iconic building overlooking the Mirror Pool in the shadow of City Hall, it represented the culmination of a long-term ambition for Richard.

Following the opening of the new venture in March this year, Richard said: “Four years ago I was outside this building, where we used to deliver to the Pavilion Cafe.

“I rang my business partner Neil and said we had to open a tea room here. Four years later, here we are.

“Bradford Council have offered us lots of support just to get us here. We’d been looking at Bradford for a while and they’d offered us a few different properties.

“We’d looked at venues too, but Neil and I agreed that we had to like it and it had to be a place we’d go ourselves.

“Bradford’s special to us as people travel from here to our other cafes. We have three tea rooms now and we want five in the end, with possibly one in Leeds.”

The Cake ’Ole – like its two sibling venues – is decorated in its own unique way. In Bradford’s case, it takes its look from the Mad Hatter’s tea room.

Across at The Broadway, Pizza Express recently signed a lease for a new 152-seater restaurant. It will be the 17th eatery to join the shopping centre’s portfolio.

Ian Ward, general manager of The Broadway, Bradford, said: “As the first of its kind in Bradford, the Pizza Express restaurant is very exciting for us all. It will be a fantastic addition to The Broadway’s wide range of dining experiences, so I have no doubt it will succeed.

“We are extremely proud that our selection of eateries continues to grow during what is set to be an impressive year for The Broadway. Along with a selection of new retailers due to open this year, the Pizza Express opening is a vital part of our mission to becoming a major retail and leisure destination in the region.”

Ian Ward
General Manager, The Broadway

In the Darley Street area, Bradford Council recently published updated planning proposals for its plans for a new food market as part of the transformation of the area.

Dramatic new artist’s impressions show a spacious, modern market with dedicated underground servicing areas and a dynamic new public space for open air events and outdoors stalls.

The council believes the development will add to Bradford’s draw as a shopping and leisure destination and attract more people into the city, and it will also increase the visibility of Piccadilly, which features a number of high-quality Victorian buildings.

A recent public consultation saw more than 1,000 online surveys completed and well over 100 submissions were gathered at special drop-in sessions held in key locations across Bradford district, which will help shape the plans going forward.

Coun Alex Ross-Shaw, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Planning and Transport, said: “This is a major step in realising this significant transformational project. The markets would help redefine Darley Street and the city centre, and showcase the fantastic Victorian buildings on Piccadilly by making them a lot more visible.”

“The project is part of a broad package of initiatives designed to boost investment, growth and employment across the Bradford district.”

And slightly out of the city centre, at Kingfisher House in Filey Street, plans are progressing to turn the empty office block into a 35,000 sq ft ‘world food centre of excellence’.

Work is already under way on the multi-million pound development, which would include a restaurant, banqueting facilities and a training centre for the next generation of chefs, training bet ween 50 and 100 people a year.

But a new planning application was recently submitted to Bradford Council that will see an additional annex built on the site. The original plans were predicted to create up to 250 jobs, and the new annex should add an additional 15 to 20 employees to that.

The plans indicate that the annex will allow the business to expand into catering, and it will include baking facilities.

The scheme is a partnership between Jinnah Restaurant and the World Curry Festival, and the application states: “The applicant has facilitated further discussions with partners in the city to enhance the vision to create a Centre of Excellence in world food, with skills training, restaurant and hospitality/ conferencing facility and a boutique hotel.”

It says the additional annex will “see the delivery of an even better multimillion pound facility”.

Saleem Akhtar, managing director at Jinnah Group, said the original plans were budgeted at around £5 million, but with the new additions the scheme was likely to represent an investment of around £7/8 million.

“It has really expanded – it will include a hotel, conference facilities, banqueting, the training academy. It will have the bakery, a florists, a car hire facility. It is going to have everything.”

Saleem Akhtar
Managing Director of Jinnah

He hopes that the centre will solidify Bradford’s growing foodie credentials, pointing out his restaurant has regular visitors from places like Nottingham and Manchester, and said he hopes the first phase of the centre will be finished by next summer.