Exciting start for new roadside cafe

Philip Jull was the head chef at Chichester’s North Street restaurant Amelie & Friends.

However, he has stepped away from the business now and instead turned his attention to what he described as ‘the street food revolution’.

A local man who grew up in Chichester, Mr Jull said he was ‘passionate about food’ and had spent a long career in catering, including 
running pubs and being executive chef at the Masonic Lodge in central London, as well as his time back in his home city at Amelie & Friends.

“Working long hours in professional kitchens however was not suiting my family life,” he said. “As a father of three young children and a lack of work-life balance, something needed to change.

“I’ve been watching 
with interest the emergence of small quality food outlets and street food trucks who pop up selling fresh and fast food.

“The street food revolution was something I wanted to be a part of and so when I saw this roadside cafe up for sale in Chichester I decided that this was an opportunity not to be missed.”

He has created a roadside cafe called The Pass, which is located permanently off the roundabout connecting Stane Street, Madgwick Lane, Westhampnett Road and the Chichester by-pass..

“Roadside cafes do not tend to have a good reputation for food and one of my aims is for The Pass to break that mould. My idea is to make quality fast food, using 
fresh ingredients and using the same techniques I 
would use in a professional kitchen and bring it to the roadside,” said Philip.

It is now nearly three months since he opened up and he said already he was building up a good reputation with his speciality of handpressed gourmet burgers and hot Cuban sandwiches with slow-cooked pork, Swiss cheese, honey ham, pickles and fresh ciabatta.

He said the van recently underwent a makeover and now had a ‘striking new logo and vinyl wrap’.

It is open Monday-Friday from 8am-3pm and Saturday from 10am-12.30pm.

The van is also available for hire to private events and parties.