BMO Commercial Property Trust has completed a trio of new lettings at its St Christopher’s Place central London estate. The three restaurant lettings reflect the ongoing appetite among occupiers for established locations, particularly those with extensive al fresco dining. The carefully curated tenant line up at St Christopher’s Place, coupled with the pedestrianisation of certain roads following the relaxation of lockdown measures on 12 April 2021, has seen strong levels of footfall with the number of daily visitors to the estate exceeding an average pre-pandemic day.
San Carlo Restaurant Group, one of the UK’s most successful independent restaurant groups, has agreed to take 6,000ft² of space on a 15-year lease at the former Carluccios unit on Barrett Street for a new Italian restaurant concept, which will feature a 200-cover dining room and two outdoor dining terraces. San Carlo is owned by the Distefano family whose portfolio numbers 21 restaurants.
Sidechick, a new restaurant focusing on roast chicken from the team behind Patty & Bun, have signed up to a new 10-year lease taking 1,125ft² of space for a 50-cover site with an outdoor terrace area. Patty & Bun joined St Christopher’s Place in 2012 as a pop-up restaurant, before converting to a permanent tenant. In addition, the Indian street food-inspired Papa-dum is looking to build upon the success of its ‘grab and go’ format in Farringdon. It has taken 1,147ft² space on a 10-year lease for its new restaurant, featuring an external dining area.
These new restaurants will add to the energy of James Street and will continue to drive the areas vibrant food and beverage offering, which has also seen the arrival of the steak restaurant group, Flat Iron as well as Crome, a new café concept inspired by the food and drink trends of the future. In addition, Emma Hyacinth has recently agreed to relocate to a larger unit on the estate, to expand their luxurious collection of handcrafted women's shoes and handbags.
Commenting on the lettings, Richard Kirby, Director, Property Funds, at BMO REP said: “We continue to see demand from quality occupiers to join the thriving St Christopher’s Place tenant line up, despite the short-term challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic. We believe the heart of the estate’s appeal is our ability to attract relevant and contemporary brands, which create a vibrant and appealing destination, that customers love to discover, and return to. These lettings demonstrate that there continues to be demand from successful operators to join established, well-located destinations. We look forward to our new restaurants and shops welcoming customers in through their doors, in the coming months.”
