Meatball fans rejoice…the Swedish retailer has opened the doors to its first standalone restaurant located on Hammersmith high street, but misses a trick in choosing not to serve alcohol. IKEA, known for its labyrinthine homeware stores, and wildly popular meatball dishes (not to mention those packs of mini Dime bars), has opened its first autonomous restaurant in Hammersmith. Instead of being located within the Hammersmith city IKEA store, the restaurant is next door, meaning diners don’t have to get lost among the compact furniture aisles to enjoy a bite. The space, formerly home to a Wasabi restaurant, opened on 31 October and has been kitted out to seat 75 diners, and serves a wider range of Swedish dishes than is typically available inside IKEA stores, and for very reasonable prices. Included on the menu is a dish of eight meatballs served with mashed potatoes, peas, cream sauce & lingonberry jam for £5.50. Also featured is salmon with couscous and yogurt for £6.95, and penne pasta with tomato and basil sauce for £2.95. Fish and chips will also be available, along with kids’ options. Missed opportunity However, IKEA told db the restaurant does not have a licence to sell alcohol and currently has “no plans” to apply for one, which seems rather a missed opportunity to serve Swedish wines. According to Swedish wine expert and author Alf Tumble, the country’s wine industry has started to gain momentum “in the last five to seven years”
This Article was originally published on The Drink Business - Wine
