A new restaurant is coming to Ely with the aim of bringing “something a little bit different” to the city.

Ely Standard: Work is currently ongoing to transform the Burrow's Bookshop building in High Street Passage, Ely, into a new intimate restaurant called Sushi & Salad. Picture: WILLIAM HUNTWork is currently ongoing to transform the Burrow's Bookshop building in High Street Passage, Ely, into a new intimate restaurant called Sushi & Salad. Picture: WILLIAM HUNT (Image: Archant)

Sushi & Salad, which is opening in the former home of Burrow’s Bookshop in High Street Passage, is the brainchild of designer William Hunt and his wife Juliana, who has been in the food industry for years.

The couple are confident that they are going to make their first venture work and say that, with four to six local residents joining the team, the restaurant is going to give the local economy a boost.

“We’ve got a great little team of young people from Ely and, once we’re up and running, we’re planning to be open seven days a week,” said Mr Hunt.

“We found that beautiful premises and grabbed it when it came up,” he added, saying that they are not too worried about opening a business during the pandemic.

Ely Standard: Work is currently ongoing to transform the Burrow's Bookshop building in High Street Passage, Ely, into a new intimate restaurant called Sushi & Salad. Picture: WILLIAM HUNTWork is currently ongoing to transform the Burrow's Bookshop building in High Street Passage, Ely, into a new intimate restaurant called Sushi & Salad. Picture: WILLIAM HUNT (Image: Archant)

“There’s always a better time, but we just want to get on with it. We don’t set things up to fail.”

He thinks it’s the perfect thing for Ely, too: “there’s plenty of tea rooms but we just want to do something a little bit different.”

“I don’t think Ely will suffer from being over-foody, because I think there’s enough people there to take it”.

Mr Hunt, who says he chose Ely because he likes the city’s “can-do DNA of positivity”, is in charge of designing the building’s interior.

Ely Standard: Work is currently ongoing to transform the Burrow's Bookshop building in High Street Passage, Ely, into a new intimate restaurant called Sushi & Salad. Picture: WILLIAM HUNTWork is currently ongoing to transform the Burrow's Bookshop building in High Street Passage, Ely, into a new intimate restaurant called Sushi & Salad. Picture: WILLIAM HUNT (Image: Archant)

“The style of what we’re doing is like a 1940/50s Japanese ice cream parlour,” he said.

“It’s going to be a very comfortable little unit - a little kitsch and retro but nice and colourful, with very up-to-date attitudes to food”.

The food, he says, will come from local suppliers of salad and fish, and the team is working with Japanese sushi experts for training.

“We’ve got the right people working with us,” he added. “They’re geniuses at their work.

“In a time when we all start looking after ourselves more, what could be better for you than fish and veggies? All prepared in our new kitchen by local people using local produce.”

He added that the support and encouragement Sushi & Salad has received so far is “crazy”, ever since a photo of the sign in the former bookshop’s window was posted onto social media.