Plans for Huddersfield’s new Food Hall are gathering pace, with food and hospitality specialists JT & Crew joining the Our Cultural Heart team.
They’ll lead the work to get the Food Hall ready to open, working alongside us to turn the new space into a fully operational venue ready to welcome its first customers in 2027.
The Food Hall is part of the first phase of Our Cultural Heart, alongside our new Library Hub and Queensgate Square.
Filling the Food Hall with great food and independent businesses
With the space itself now built, attention is turning to what will fill it: the food, the traders, the atmosphere and all the work behind the scenes needed to create a Food Hall people will want to visit again and again.
A big part of that will be finding the right mix of independent food businesses from across the region.
We want to bring together an exciting and varied group of traders, including established businesses as well as new and growing ones, offering different food, flavours and price points.
We’ll soon be inviting food and drink businesses interested in joining the Food Hall to put themselves forward.
Getting ready to open
There’s a lot more to opening a Food Hall than finding great food.
JT & Crew will lead work across everything from the design and fit-out of the space to recruiting the team, supporting traders, food safety and compliance, and making sure all the practical details are in place for opening.
Councillor John Hardie, Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Highways and Transport, said:
“The Food Hall represents a significant investment in Huddersfield town centre and our focus now is on making sure we get the next stage right.
“That means creating an offer that works for Huddersfield, attracting the right mix of traders and putting the Food Hall on a strong and sustainable footing for the future.
“There is a lot of work involved in getting a venue like this ready to open and run successfully. Bringing JT & Crew’s specialist experience into the project will help us make informed decisions as we move through that process, from finding and supporting traders to getting the operational details right.
“We’ll be sharing more over the coming months and, importantly, we’ll soon be opening up opportunities for food and drink businesses interested in being part of the Food Hall.”
Supporting the Food Hall beyond opening day
JT & Crew’s work won’t end when the doors open.
They’ll continue working alongside the Food Hall’s new management team for a further two years, helping to build the knowledge, skills and systems needed to run and grow the venue for the future.
They’ll also work closely with the businesses joining the Food Hall, supporting them with everything from moving into the space to menu development, training and ongoing support.
JT & Crew said:
“We at JT & CREW are absolutely delighted to be supporting Kirklees Council on such a pivotal element of the Our Cultural Heart regeneration project. This landmark initiative for Huddersfield represents a significant investment in the town’s cultural and economic future, and we are proud to contribute our experience, energy, and commitment to ensuring the food hall becomes a vibrant, community-anchored success.
“It is truly a privilege to help shape a project that will bring new life, opportunity, and pride to the town centre.”
More Food Hall news is coming
This is just the start of the next chapter for the Food Hall.
We’ll soon be opening up expressions of interest for food and drink businesses that would like to become traders, with more details about the Food Hall’s new identity also coming soon.
Before then, another major part of Our Cultural Heart is about to open its doors.
Our new Library Hub opens on Monday 21 September, alongside Queensgate Square, creating a new public space at the heart of Huddersfield town centre.