The historic Walworth Town Hall, a listed building with a rich history, has been transformed into a vibrant co-working and events space with a food and beverage offer provided by JUSU Brothers. Located in the heart of Walworth, just minutes from Elephant and Castle station, the building had been out of use for the past ten years following a fire. It has been incredibly rewarding to contribute our expertise to restoring such an iconic site, now set to serve as a thriving community space.

Bringing an old venue back to life

We played a crucial role in this project, offering our expertise in foodservice equipment design, supply, and installation, working closely with both the catering operator and the overall building developer.

We were introduced to this project through JUSU Brothers, a former client we worked with around ten years ago, who are now managing the catering operations. This collaboration also required coordination with the building’s developer to align the catering works with the overall refurbishment. The hospitality operation, a pan-Asian café, has been designed to support the new co-working space and community hub, as well as to offer event-hosting facilities.

Overcoming the challenges of a listed building

This prestigious project excited us as it involved working on a beautiful, listed building which brings both opportunity and complexity as well as the chance to collaborate with an existing and new client. The catering set-up spanned three areas: a main servery, a ground floor kitchen, and a basement prep space. We handled the complete design, supply, and installation, adapting existing features wherever possible, such as electrical systems, plumbing appliances, and joinery. By reconfiguring existing fixtures that had been set-up as part of the main refurbishment, we were able to improve functionality while minimising costs for the clients.

Optimising space for maximum efficiency

The limited space required careful product selection, and our knowledge helped us to optimise each of the catering areas. For example, we sourced narrow-footprint refrigeration products that would get down a narrow staircase easily. With the three different areas to plan for, we had to weigh up the pros and cons of each space and provide guidance to our clients balancing the constraints with operational efficiency.

A flexible approach to project management

Our team had to be flexible with time on this project as the overall refurbishment had a few delays which impacted our timescales, and the front-of-house works needed to be prioritised for a launch event. Adapting our project timelines ensured that we kept both clients’ objectives in mind, as our managing director, Marios was involved at every stage of the project, and was regularly on-site to check progress and ensure it all ran smoothly.

Both JUSU and the developer are happy with our work. JUSU Brothers valued our continued commitment and support, while the developer appreciated our expertise, as they have limited experience in the food and beverage sector. It’s great to see this catering facility and community hub now open and it has showcased our creative, flexible and supportive approach that we bring to every project we work on.