Halls of fame

Food halls have become a transformative concept in the commercial real estate landscape, blending flexibility, cultural relevance, and community appeal.

From repurposing underperforming spaces like department stores to adapting historic structures such as churches and storage facilities, food halls present a versatile solution that caters to a wide variety of consumer needs and preferences.

With their ability to integrate diverse culinary offerings, provide unique experiences, and evolve rapidly with changing trends, food halls are redefining the way we think about dining, leisure, and retail spaces.

Flexibility
Food halls are highly versatile, offering a variety of concepts such as food stands, built-in stalls, bars, and other creative experiences. For example, Benoy collaborated with Time Out Market and Ivanhoé Cambridge to repurpose an underperforming department store in Eaton Centre Montreal. This project introduced Time Out Market, enhancing the shopping centre's food and cultural value with 16 curated and well-established F&B offerings. The inclusion of a Time Out shop featuring local products and a cooking school further appeals to modern consumers' expectations for experience, community, discovery, and authenticity, making food halls a valuable anchor for shopping centres.

Owing to its flexibility, food halls can transform a variety of spaces while preserving their authenticity. For example, Mercato Mayfair operates within a church (seen above), Seven Dials Market by KERB repurposed a former produce storage site, and Market Halls Victoria occupies a historic Edwardian arcade that once served as a nightclub. By retaining original structures and weaving the building's history into the food hall’s narrative, these projects celebrate the uniqueness of their locations, creating authentic and memorable experiences.

Flexibility also extends to the vendor mix, enabling food halls to continually refresh their offerings. Rotating vendors not only drive repeat visits but also cater to consumers' desires for discovering new cuisines and trending dishes. This dynamic approach ensures the commercial success of food halls by allowing them to adjust to shifting consumer preferences, making them resilient to change.

Financial benefits
In food halls, vendors typically only operate the kitchen space, significantly lowering both turnover times between vendors and the high fit-out costs traditionally associated with opening a new location. This efficient model allows for faster onboarding and smoother transitions when rotating vendors, ensuring the food hall remains dynamic and adaptable. With the ability to frequently update the vendor mix, food halls consistently offer the latest culinary trends, keeping the space fresh and engaging for visitors while maintaining strong revenue generation.

Innovative concepts like KERB, which operates food halls while also nurturing emerging F&B businesses, provide a low-risk platform for entrepreneurs to test new ideas without the heavy financial burden of standalone locations. This incubator approach not only supports new talent but also strengthens the food hall’s financial viability by continually attracting foot traffic and boosting consumer interest through unique, trendy offerings. By reducing upfront investment costs and offering flexible leases, food halls create a more sustainable business model that benefits both vendors and operators, driving long-term success.

Variety of consumers
Food halls provide a unique advantage by enabling groups to dine together in a shared space while accommodating individual preferences and dietary requirements. This flexibility makes them highly appealing to a wide range of consumer groups, as each person can choose from a variety of cuisines while enjoying the social aspect of communal dining. For example, The Madinaty Food Hall in New Cairo, Egypt, designed by Benoy, spans approximately 122,000 square feet, it features 30 F&B operators and over 1,500 public seating areas within a modern, bright, and inviting environment. The diverse culinary options and spacious design make it an inclusive and attractive destination for families, friends, and solo diners alike, further enhancing its appeal to a broad audience.

Dwell and footfall
Food halls are evolving beyond traditional dining and socialising hubs to meet the needs of remote workers and digital nomads, particularly during off-peak hours, reflecting the rise of work-from-home lifestyles and the demand for versatile spaces. For example, Aster Hall’s Bar & Study provides a dedicated area for remote work, optimising space utilisation during quieter periods while enhancing the food hall’s overall appeal. Additionally, a growing focus on increasing dwell time has led to the creation of more community-centric and comfort-driven environments. Le Cathcart in Place Ville Marie, Montreal, incorporates lounge seating to encourage visitors to linger, improving the customer experience and benefiting the surrounding shopping centre. Longer dwell times attract additional foot traffic and keep visitors on-site, boosting spending across retail and F&B outlets and contributing to the space’s overall success.

As consumer behaviour shifts towards seeking experiences over material goods, food halls have become a compelling strategy for repurposing commercial assets, breathing new life into underutilised spaces in mixed-use developments, airports, and shopping centres. By transforming these locations into vibrant hubs for socialising, working, and culinary exploration, food halls align with modern lifestyles while driving footfall, increasing dwell time, and fostering stronger connections between people and places. Their dynamic nature ensures adaptability, making them a sustainable and profitable solution for revitalising commercial real estate.

Hui Wen Lim