Huge queues on Birmingham New Street as two new restaurants open

There was a big queue running along New Street as two restaurants opened their doors - one for the first time ever and the other for the first time in two years.

Yakinori gave away £1 katsu curries on Thursday (November 21) to raise money for Birmingham Children's Hospital Charity and to celebrate its return to Birmingham city centre after a two-year hiatus. There was a queue outside as the doors opened at 11am, with discounted curries served until 4pm that afternoon.

The Japanese restaurant closed after suffering flood damage in September 2022, but has since undergone a major refurbishment. The kitchen will reopen officially, serving its usual menu on Friday, November 22.

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An hour later, Mexican restaurant Boojum opened to huge queues three doors down the street. The new eatery has moved into the unit previously occupied by the Second Cup Coffee shop.

The colourful new restaurant, which has branches in Liverpool, Nottingham and Leeds, gave away free burritos to the first 300 customers through its doors on opening day. The burrito bar's menu includes a selection of burritos and bowls, stuffed with a choice of slow-cooked meat fillings or veggie and vegan options.

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Queues stretched up New Street and through the German market when the restaurant was opened at midday. Boojum's head of operations Rob Powell said: "Our team has been working hard over the last few months to create our new space and we can't wait to shake up the food scene in Brum and welcome everyone from Thursday."

Ali Karakaya, founder of Yakinori, said about their launch: "We were devastated when our restaurant was flooded, through no fault of our own and we are really pleased to be back and reopening our New Street kitchen, back in the heart of the town."