Reinventing the carvery: New cashless concept eyes 30 sites
Carve will serve high-protein meals in the form of ‘carvepots’ from breakfast to dinner when it opens on London’s Tooley Street this summer.
It is the brainchild of ex-legal man Daniel Bear, who founded the Euphorium Bakery chain in 1999, and former Chilango and Hakkasan finance director Atif Amin.
The duo are aiming to open 30 branches in London over the next three to five years.
Bear said: “For years the concept of carvery has had a bad rep but we aim to put it back on diners’ foodie lists. Carve is food for the way we like to eat now – high protein, fresh, fast guilt-free food. “
Gourmet taste
At Carve meat, fish and vegetarian options will be carved, pulled and prepped in front of customers, before being served with spices, rice, relishes and roots.
‘Carvepot’ varieties will include Smoked Pork Leg with Apple Slaw, Crème Fraiche, Piquillo Peppers and Pineapple Ketchup; and Roasted Tofu with Sesame Seed Crust, Tamari, Ginger and Turmeric root.
Early morning customers can enjoy breakfast options such as Cumberland Sausage Meatloaf with Ground Landroc Pork, Nutmeg, Sage and a whole loin of Dry Cured Bacon with a Seville Orange Marmalade Glaze, served with sides such as Bubble and Squeak and free range eggs.
Bear said: “We’re focused on food not service, we put our money into ingredients and hand carve everything in full view, there’s no backstage.”
Cashless carvery
The fast-casual restaurant will be totally cash free with diners able to ‘tap, grab and go’ in seconds.
Carve customers will be greeted by a series of black steel ‘totem’ pay stations upon entry, where they can order and pay for the £6.95 pots in advance.
They can then help themselves to a drink, ‘carvepot’, roll and sauce to takeaway or eat-in at a 15-cover communal table.
“Cash-free payment and one price ensures an efficient customer journey and we are confident that this will be embraced by increasingly health-conscious time-poor Londoners,” said Bear.
As well as founding the Euphorium chain Bear developed the in-house Bakery Project for Tesco, which has been rolled out to 63 stores in London and the South East.
Both businesses are now fully owned by the superstore after Bear sold his remaining shares in 2015.
