Ingka Centres has today announced its ambitious, plant-forward Saluhall project in collaboration with KERB, the renowned London food hall operator and small business incubator, and Claus Meyer, co-founder of the hugely-influential New Nordic cuisine movement and entrepreneur behind multiple global community-focused cookery schools.
The first Saluhall will launch at Ingka Centres’ upcoming meeting place on 945 Market Street, San Francisco, in the first quarter of 2024. The site will host multiple local vendors across two floors of 2.500 sq m (23.000 sq ft) with a spread of in-house food offers and three bars featuring local craft beer and wine. Saluhall will aim for 80% plant-based offer coming from an exciting selection of local food and drink producers & traders soon to be announced.
“We at Ingka Centres want to create a destination for the many people to meet, relax, play and try new things. Saluhall is a celebration of Scandinavian food principles that nourish both body and soul. Embracing the ethos of a progressive city, Saluhall is more than a food hall. It is a community, a meeting and eating place that unites local vendors and inspires conscious food choices,” explains Stéphane Keulian, F&B Concept Development Leader at Ingka Centres.
Ingka Centres has enlisted London food and hospitality organization KERB to bring Saluhall’s vision to life, leaning on its expert knowledge of independent food and drink. KERB has worked with upwards of 500 start-up food businesses over the past eleven years and as operator of Seven Dials Market, a celebrated, successful food hall in London, champions owner-operated food businesses and local, independent drinks suppliers. Claus Meyer, known as one of the founders of the New Nordic Cuisine movement, partnered up with Ingka Centres to create Saluhall´s very own bakery, an all-day Scandinavian themed bakery-based café and bar. As a part of Saluhall concept, Claus Meyer will also develop a cookery school that will reflect the Copenhagen entrepreneur’s drive for positive community engagement and change.
Saluhall’s inception is rooted in a dedication to spotlighting local food, drink and people with its ambitious commitment to plant-forward as a way of life, aiming to transform the traditional food hall experience. This partnership exemplifies the collaborative, internationalist spirit of San Francisco, where local businesses can come together to create something exceptional.
“We’re really pleased to see this ambitious project come to life. As a firm believer in the value of local, owner-operated food and drink as a vital part of the urban fabric of all cities, we’re intent on showcasing and supporting great vendors and chefs from across the San Francisco Bay Area. Saluhall has bold ambitions but it must also bring hope, be fun, unpretentious and ultimately taste great. To launch it in a brilliant, delicious and progressive food city like this, in the heart of downtown, is an exciting challenge for all involved,” says Ian Dodds, co-founder / director of KERB and Seven Dials Market.
Ingka Centres’ visionary approach, combined with KERB’s expertise in curating dynamic, democratic food halls, and Claus Meyer’s sense of baking and plant-forward cooking and community, will culminate in a destination that celebrates both the developments in Nordic food alongside the wider Bay Area’s excellent food culture.
“As a big fan of good food movement leaders, from Chad Robertson to Alice Waters and so many Chefs that grew their work in this region, it’s an honor to be invited to bring delicious ideas and vibes from Copenhagen to the San Francisco Bay Area. Over the past 10 years we have tried to share what we learned from building the Nordic Cuisine movement with communities in East New York, Bolivia and Morocco. We hope with our participation in the Saluhall project to further enrich the Mid-Market Street food scene,” says Claus Meyer, culinary entrepreneur.
The upcoming opening of Saluhall in collaboration with Claus Meyer and KERB represents an exciting next step for Ingka Centres´ meeting place soon to be opened at 945 Market Street. Together with the recent launch of IKEA’s first city format store and the announcement of Hej!Workshop with Industrious co-working space, these unique offers create a positive, collaborative and playful spirit of community for the many people of San Francisco.
