First look: images of Lewisham’s beloved Model Market, which will be brought back to life this summer

Before it shut up shop in 2021, Lewisham’s Model Market was one of London’s go-to street food destinations. But foodies have been rejoicing since the end of last year, when it was announced Model Market will reopen its doors this summer. And now we’ve got a first look at the much-loved institution’s revamp. 

The new Model Market is part of a wider renewal of Lewisham Shopping Centre by developer Landsec, which includes a new music venue and a fresh offering of shops, cafés and bars. The developer has secured permission to rebuild Lewisham Shopping Centre with 1,700 new homes. Landsec announced it would bring back the market as ‘a hub for independent kitchens, local makers and creative spaces’.

Construction on Lewisham’s swishly revamped Model Market is now well and truly underway, and new renders show how the institution is set to be refurbished while preserving elements of its 1950s charm. Alongside the array of iconic food stands, we can expect pot plants lining every corner, trendy brick decor and long benches for laid-back, sunny drinks.

It’s welcome news for southeast London’s food scene. Model Market has a long and vibrant history that began in the 1950s, when it was a trading site known for its Black-owned businesses. Model Market reopened as a street food market in 2014, quickly becoming a firm fixture in London’s thriving street food scene.

Despite its popularity, the venue sadly had to shut its doors in September 2021 when Street Feast, the operator behind it, went out of business. Street Feast was also the company behind other food courts in London, including Dinerama in Shoreditch and Hawker House in Rotherhithe.

Now Model Market has a new operator, and it’s good news for beer lovers. German Kraft, first established in 2017 in Elephant and Castle’s Mercato Metropolitano food hall, will take the helm. 

Renowned for its authentic Franconian beers, German Kraft will (obviously) have a taproom on site. The brewery will also curate the street food traders and oversee all other programming. While we don’t have a list of which traders will be there, Model Market previously put a call out on its website for those who ‘cook, craft, brew, bake, or create’ – so watch this space.

We don’t have an exact date for the opening yet, but it’s expected to be later this summer – so bonus points if we get to enjoy the market in a London heatwave. 

You can find out more about the market’s comeback on the website here.

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