Yep, you read that right. There’s about to be a dedicated venue where you can get great Coventry street food. ‘Factory’ at FarGo Village, they city’s first permanent indoor street food venue, will open in mid-May once we’re allowed to eat indoors and outdoors and comes just in time to be part of the City of Culture celebrations.
Factory will be a food hub that brings together local and national faves from the street food world, from burgers to pizzas and brownies, plus hot drinks and brunch in the day and cocktails and beers in the evening.
The venue combines three of the biggest units at the Creative Quarter to make an open-plan dining experience with an industrial vibe that reflects the history of its home, which used as a car radiator factory by Coventry Motor Fittings for 60 years from the turn of the century. Add to that a new roof terrace and covered canopy so you can eat outdoors and you’ve got a great brand new venue to add to Cov’s food and drink scene.
Elyse Cadden, The Box Venue Manager of FarGo Village, said they’re aiming for five different operators to be in Factory. She said: “We have had a couple of residencies from street food companies which have proved hugely popular and we believe this kind of independent street food venue is missing within Coventry’s dining sector.
“We also have some fantastic foodie businesses at FarGo Village already including Leave it to Esmie, Dirty Kitch, BIB Noodle, Twisted Barrel, Gourmet Food Kitchen and Choc n Roll. The addition of this outdoor dining space will allow these existing businesses to maximise their trading opportunities after an incredibly difficult year.
“We now want to attract additional new quality, experienced street food vendors who plan to make FarGo Village a core of their activities. However, we also have the flexibility to regularly change some of the operators to ensure there is always something new on offer. This will help cement FarGo Village as the place for independent dining in Coventry.
“There will also be the theatre of being able to watch your food being cooked whether it is a burger being flamed or a pizza base being hand pulled and cooked in a wood-fired oven. The plan is to open just after the launch of UK City of Culture once Government restrictions allow for indoor and outdoor dining – we just need the sun to shine!”
The £360,000 renovation at FarGo Village has been funded in part by Arts Council England and the Cultural Capital Investment Fund, which includes an allocation from the Getting Building Fund from the Government, through the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP).
Cllr Jim O’Boyle, Cabinet Member for Jobs and Regeneration at Coventry City Council and CWLEP board director, said: “The idea of a street food area at FarGo with new outdoor space is a great idea – not only will it offer opportunities for existing traders it will also attract new ones. I think after a year of lockdowns there will be a real appetite for this kind of offer and with a wide range of tastes from local specialities to food from across the globe, I think it’s sure to be a real hit.
“Like Far Gosford Street, FarGo has very quickly established a name for itself in the city and it has a growing number of loyal fans as well as continuing to attract visitors from outside the city. The idea of a food factory can only boost FarGo’s popularity further.”
Any street food operators interested in becoming part of Factory should email factory@fargovillage.co.uk. They’re also looking for a Food and Beverages Manager to oversee the 340 seating operation.
FarGo is also keen to speak to people who may have worked at the Coventry Motor Fittings factory that was previously based there, and want to find old photographs of the factory, ideally with negatives, that could be incorporated into the branding and interior design of the space. If you have any old pictures of footage, contact factory@fargovillage.co.uk
