Gourmet fast food on the rise

“The traditional fast food staples of fried chicken and hotdogs are getting the gastro treatment, along with price tags to match,” it says, pointing to examples like Roost, which is working on chicken-based snacks at Street Feast London; Dach & Sons, a new hotdog and burger focused operation in Hampstead; and Bubbledogs, which as Peach Report has reported will concentrate on the unlikely combination of hotdogs and champagne on Charlotte Street.

Other no-nonsense openings have included Mark Hix’s Tramshed and Primo’s, a hotdog concept on the expansion trail, while the success of burger concepts like Meat Liquor, Honest Burgers and ribs joint the Pitt Cue Co have added to the trend.

Primo’s operations manager Nick Julian said: “We’re taking a product and moving it along in quality, taking it up a notch. There has been a rise in single-dish restaurant, as people want something more niche and original than faceless chains.” James Knappett, co-founder of Bubbledogs, said: “We thought it would be fun to put something as humble as hotdogs with champagne. Our buns are handmade, we use the best ingredients and no food contains preservatives.”

Elizabeth Carter, consultant editor of the Good Food Guide, called gourmet junk food “a really big trend… They’re casual, fast, snappy and busy. It’s cheek-by-jowl dining, and we have a huge gap in the market.” She thinks customers of places like these are coming from other upmarket restaurants rather than trading up from fast food chains like KFC, which still have a strong market.

For the full story, see Hotdogs and champagne… it’s the rise of gourmet junk food.