New bubble tea and gourmet burger venues open in Banbury town centre

Smash Cow Burgers has recently opened at Lock29 in the Castle Quay Shopping Centre in the Banbury town centre

Two new independent businesses have opened at Lock29 in Castle Quay Shopping Centre adding to the number of artisan food and drink operators on offer.

The new tenants are Boba Bros, which has bought the phenomenon of bubble tea to Banbury whilst Smash Cow Burgers offers burgers that bring something extra.

Boba Bros is a new business, with Banbury its chosen destination for this new venture.

Boba Bros has recently opened in Lock29 in the Castle Quay Shopping Centre (Image from Lock29)

Bubble tea, which originated in Taiwan, has seen its popularity grow globally over the years thanks to social media platform Tik Tok. Residents and visitors will now be able to experience Bubble Tea and mix and match flavours in endless combinations in the heart of Banbury.

Saeed Arshad, co-founder of Boba Bros, said: "We have had a great start at Lock29. We love the concept of bringing different cultures and cuisines to one great space."

Smash Cow Burgers is brought to Lock29 by founders Dan and Kayleigh Gibney, who have been running event catering for a number of years.

The couple, who also own Foosian at Lock29, saw their wedding cancelled due to the pandemic and used their funds to start the new venture. They use free range meat from a mix of cuts, developed with a butcher, for the perfect burger.

Kayleigh Gibney, with Smash Cow Burgers, said: "We tried a lot of gourmet burgers during lockdown, from top London burger restaurants and chefs and we wanted to create the ultimate flavour experience right here in Banbury. Smash Burgers are different, pressed into the grill to give a thinner, crispier and truly delicious burger."

Chris Catford, manager at Lock29, said: “We are really excited that another two artisan businesses have joined us.

"As we progress towards the opening of our external space, we are looking forward to a very bright summer as Lock29 continues to evolve into a hub of activity on the canal side. Lock29 offers something for everyone, and our latest operators complement a fantastic line up of food, drink and shopping.”

Lock29 is already home to a wide range of independent food, drink and retail offerings, details of which can be found online through the Lock29 website here: https://www.lock29.co.uk/food-and-drink. Tap Social was recently announced as the bar operator at Lock29.

Lock29 is open Monday to Wednesday 11am-6pm, Thursday to Saturday 11am-9pm, and Sunday 12-4:30pm.