*Ring ring* ‘Hello? Is that yet another another telephone box that has been turned into something other than a working communication device?’ YEP! And this time it’s a…wait for it…SALAD BAR! Londoners have been breathing new life into old disused telephone boxes across the city (from a library to a coffee shop), and this time the transformation at the hands of Ben Spier who has opened Spier’s Salads in the square metre space, selling hearty, filling salads with a “strictly no lettuce” policy.
The salad box offers a selection of five salads each day that it is open, costing between £4.25 to £7.50, with a constantly changing menu. Last week, for example, Ben served up a roasted chicken salad with sumac, pomegranate molasses, chilli and sesame seeds. There was also an avocado, messicani pasta, broadbeans, cucumber, pumpkin seeds and coriander salad, and a nectarine, mozzarella, rocket and basil with a balsamic dressing option too. If they all sound too delicious, fear not – you can order a mixture of them in each box.
Ben, a part-time lawyer, was inspired to start the stall after running market stalls for the last year or so. He said: “I wanted somewhere with my own setup, so when I saw the ad in the phone box I decided to rent one. It’s a great opportunity to rent a space in central London where rents are prohibitively expensive..” although Ben added, “it’s still expensive for a square metre space!” The phone boxes, or ‘pods’ as they like to call them, cost around £9.86 per day (plus VAT) to lease. Or you can purchase them outright for upwards of £8,750 plus VAT (depending on the level of fit-out). Ben has a fridge in the bottom section, and he makes the salad fresh every day, transporting them to the phone box in cool boxes – GENIUS!
Spier’s Salads launched on May 4 and can be found opposite 43 Bloomsbury Square – you really can’t miss it, it’s the only phone box in the square. It’s open Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 11.30am to 2.30pm.
Featured Image Credit: Spier’s Salads