US restaurant chain, Angry Crab Shack, recently opened its very first international restaurant in the UK!
Based in the heart of London between Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square, the restaurant specialises in Asian-Cajun flavoured seafood and boasts a customisable menu. Gratte Brothers Foodservice Solutions (GBCEL) was enlisted to provide a full turnkey package for kitchen and bar design, equipment, supply and installation including walls, floors, ceilings, water and electrical services.
With an in-house seating capacity of 84, in addition to the availability of take-away, the kitchen design demanded fitting the 5 cooking stations within an area 5 times smaller than the US brand’s standard American kitchen. This included warewashing plus cold and dry storage. The project involved supporting menu planning and UK ingredient sourcing, stripping and relocating the existing kitchen out, building new walls, and fitting the following;
- Grid ceilings
- LED lighting
- New water, waste & electrical services
- A new ventilation system
- Grease management
As the site is located just off Leicester Square, our team made sure all deliveries were timed for 6:30/7am to avoid clashing with tourist traffic. As the facility was a restaurant previously, we were requested to retain elements of the existing equipment to re-use in the new scheme. However, one by one these proved to be unsuitable for the operation and a quick turnaround on replacements was required. There were numerous complications associated with being inside the historic Trocadero building as we were obliged to connect to existing water inlets and waste stubs. Some of these challenges included water feeds being not-as-described, or not providing hot water as expected, and waste runs being blocked. In true Gratte Brothers Catering Equipment style (GBCEL), the team were able to creatively find suitable resolutions for each challenge.
Managing Director of GBCEL, Mark Kendall, said of the project:
“It’s been a privilege to play a part in the UK launch of this popular restaurant chain. We look forward to seeing them go from strength to strength on this side of the pond.”
The restaurant officially opened to the public on Sunday, 5th March.
