Architecture firm Dowen Farmer is bringing a giant kitchen production ‘cube’ to West London. The project, known as Portal Way, will be located in North Acton and is set to host 260 kitchens across the upper levels of the enormous, multi-storey building.
Portal Way will house a number of ‘dark kitchens’ across its top ten levels. Dark kitchens, also known as ghost kitchens, typically don’t offer dining rooms and, instead, operate for delivery pickups only.
Portal Way will work in a more hybrid fashion, simultaneously offering both off-site preparation spaces for several London restaurants and local shops, alongside a food hall where diners can enjoy meals onsite.
The food hall is set to span the entire ground floor, where guests will be able to order food from the floors above via an app, that will be sent down through ‘smart food lifts.’ This will be coupled with a number of street vendors and cafes that will also be housed on the ground floor, although it is not yet known which restaurants will open.
Designs also suggest a number of outdoor terraces will be spread across different levels of the cube’s futuristic, mesh-like design.
Speaking about the project, founders James Dowen and Tom Farmer described it as ‘a new building typology looking to reinvent the way urban environments operate from a food development, delivery and production standpoint.’
The building is expected to provide a significant benefit to the local economy, with the creation of up to 1,200 jobs. The project was given the green light on 7 March by the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation’s planning committee and awaits final approval from the Mayor of London’s office before construction can begin.
Portal Way is sure to be unlike anything the city has seen before and could pave the way for similar developments in the future.
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