Supermarket of Dreams: DIY kits from Padella, Kricket, Ottolenghi and more

Lockdown paved the way for an unexpected development in London’s culinary scene: a surge in top restaurants that previously only catered for customers dining in, launching home delivery services – some, with an entirely new menu of easily transportable dishes.

Restaurants have since begun reopening their doors with all-new safety measures in place, and yet the necessity of conjuring up a lockdown takeaway offering has left many institutions with a profitable new arm to their business – one they want to continue capitalising on.

The Supermarket of Dreams exterior

Spotting a new gap in the market, the Supermarket of Dreams has launched in the form of a store selling DIY kits and ready meals from several of London’s top restaurants. Here, you can find prepped and packaged goods from Padella, Kricket and Ottolenghi among others. The scheme comes from the team behind Notting Hill Fish Shop, a London-based fishmongers which also offers home deliveries of HG Walter meats, London Dairies’ cheese boxes, and Natoora fruit and veg.

Padella is widely considered the best pasta restaurant in London and from the Supermarket of Dreams, you can pick up kits to make some of its most revered dishes at home, including the pappardelle and beef shin ragù. The Kricket range includes several of the Brixton-based restaurant’s delectable Indian-inspired dishes packaged as ready meals, plus barbecue kits with all the ingredients you need to cook the likes of Peshwari lamb chops with mint and coriander raita over your own coals.

DIY kit from Kricket sold at the Supermarket of Dreams

Purchase from another 'aisle' and you could be dining on Ottolenghi’s aubergine and lamb bake, or Michelin-starred chef Skye Gyngell’’s roasted fennel al forno – as enjoyed at her Somerset House restaurant Spring. Those craving a gourmet burger, meanwhile, can fry their own at home with a kit from Patty & Bun, connoisseurs of seriously juicy patties.

So, how does it work? Offering a primarily digital shopping experience, the Supermarket of Dreams invites customers to browse its stock online (categorised by chef, restaurant or provider). Once you’ve chosen your items, you can either pick them up from the supermarket – where they’ll be ready and waiting at a designated time – or have them delivered to your door if you’re London based.

Pasta kits from Padella are also available at the Supermarket of Dreams

For many, the lockdown-induced innovation in how we consume restaurant-standard food has been a welcome one. Even with restaurants reopening, some of us are reluctant to readopt the pomp and pretence that comes with going out for dinner (what with the dressing up, travelling to and from the restaurant, and spending the night stuck in a dining room with strangers), not to mention the risk of catching the virus if we do. With the likes of the Supermarket of Dreams providing the means for us to quickly and expertly recreate our restaurant favourites at home, we won't have to venture into a public room until we’re truly ready.

Open Monday - Sunday, 8am - 6pm