Food destinations enter the commercial real estate mainstream

Apsys, which is developing a portfolio of food and entertainment concepts in both Poland and France, will open its latest project this summer – the regenerated Hala Targowa in Gdańsk. The Group already has proven formats to its name, including Food Fyrtel at Posnania, which has been operating for more than three years, and Boom Boom Villette in Paris.

Changing lifestyles are today one of the strongest drivers of growth for food-service formats. Market research shows that more than 30% of Poles eat out at least once a month. The momentum of this trend is well illustrated by CBOS data. The share of Poles who went out to a restaurant with family or friends at least once a year reached a record 80% in 2025, 4 percentage points higher than in 2023. That is four times more than 30 years ago, when one in five Poles said the same (20% in 1994). New food and entertainment spaces are a natural response to changing consumer habits, offering the opportunity to spend time with family and friends around a shared table, combined with entertainment and a rich programme of events.

One idea, many forms

For 30 years, Apsys has been delivering projects that combine business ambition with a responsibility for helping to shape cities. One of the areas in which the Group has consistently built its expertise is the creation and management of attractive food and entertainment spaces. They take different forms: standalone destinations – Hala Targowa in Gdańsk; concepts operating within a larger complex – Food Fyrtel at Posnania; or the comprehensive culinary offer of Manufaktura, where visitors can choose between a modern food court and more than 30 venues with a diverse food offer on the Manufaktura Market Square – two segments of different character, aimed at different customer groups and meeting different needs. Yet another example is Boom Boom Villette in Paris. It is the first food & leisure concept in France, in which food is just one of many reasons for both first visits and return visits. Across 25,000 m² in the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie complex in the Parc de la Villette, a standalone destination has been created that combines a food market with an extensive entertainment zone – a cinema, an indoor skydiving wind tunnel, escape rooms and a bowling alley.

What all these destinations have in common is the combination of food, culture and entertainment that offers visitors unique experiences – and the belief that the best places in a city are those where you can eat, meet and stay longer.

A destination in the heart of Gdańsk

The flagship example of Apsys’s approach in Poland is the regeneration of the historic Hala Targowa, dating from 1896. The PLN 141 million investment in the heart of Gdańsk’s Main Town will be both an everyday meeting place for Gdańsk residents and a destination for the many tourists who visit the city in summer. The concept is built around the idea of “All around food” and refers back to what has been the essence of this place from the very beginning – food, trade and meeting people. Each of the three floors of the historic building has a different character. Level -1 is dedicated to delicatessen products and fresh food. The ground floor has been allocated to a street food zone with 17 culinary concepts representing cuisines from around the world, and level +1 to restaurants with table service. The offer is complemented by 3 bars. In total, the building will house 34 retail and food outlets. Retail and food are not the only functions of Hala Targowa. Numerous cultural and entertainment events will be held on two stages – the main stage on the ground floor and a more intimate one on level -1. A natural extension of the bustling Hall will be the space around the building with its two squares. Plac Dominikański will be a place for the everyday activities of Gdańsk residents and tourists visiting the city – with a specially designed space for children, a spot for seasonal food trucks and an additional stage. On the north side of the Hall, a fruit and vegetable market with fresh produce will be created.

– We have always wanted guests to keep coming back to the places we create. Today, we see that people increasingly return to places where they can have a good time with their loved ones. Food and entertainment are the fastest-growing categories in the properties we manage. We see food and entertainment destinations even more broadly – as new centres of urban life. They are places where food becomes a reason to build relationships, discover local culture and spend time together. Hala Targowa in Gdańsk perfectly reflects this idea. It combines an exceptional food offer with the history, culture and identity of a place that has been an important part of Gdańsk residents’ lives for more than a century,” says Benoît Charles, CEO of Apsys Polska.

The project, carried out under heritage conservation supervision, reconciled the protection of the historic building with its thorough modernisation and adaptation to contemporary standards, including the stringent requirements of the food-service sector. The regeneration has created a completely new interior layout. The relics of a 12th-century Romanesque church have been put on display, the historic retail kiosks have been recreated in their original locations, the steel structure has been renovated, and the brick pillars and fragments of the historic floor have been uncovered and exposed. Numerous details, from handmade and hand-painted tiles to recycled tabletops with embedded fragments of amber, refer to Gdańsk’s traditions. The individual interior elements are not random decoration, but a deliberate reference to the history of the place. For the Hall’s creators, that history became not only a point of reference, but also a source of inspiration for new solutions. The history of the site is also brought closer through a museum exhibition of food-related artefacts and an interactive educational and historical panel that presents the history of this part of the city in a modern way. The Hall’s contemporary dimension is underlined by modern solutions: an app that allows ordering from several outlets at once, projection mapping shows that tell the story of the place in a unique way, and a souvenir vending machine with dedicated gifts. As a result, the Hall combines the authenticity of a historic place with modern technologies that make visitors’ experience easier and richer.

Data that speaks for itself

The business potential of well-designed and well-managed food and entertainment formats is best demonstrated by the results of Food Fyrtel, which on the one hand operates independently as a separate brand and urban destination, and on the other is part of Posnania, helping to build loyalty among its customers. Its approx. 1,800 m² space houses a bar and 17 food concepts – from street food to restaurants with table service – offering approx. 500 seats in total. Food Fyrtel also has its own stage with a regular weekly programme of attractions such as live music, open-air cinema and children’s theatre, as well as larger seasonal events.

Food Fyrtel, opened at the end of 2022, is today a mature concept that has evolved over the past few years. Data from 2023–2025 shows a clear shift in the structure of visits – customers who initially visited Food Fyrtel occasionally are increasingly returning on a regular basis and becoming regulars. For us, this is proof that we have successfully converted one-off interest into real footfall and built a lasting relationship with customers. It is also an example of the successful transformation of an underperforming zone into a modern food and lifestyle space unlike anything seen before,” says Małgorzata Bączkiewicz, Food Hall Manager at Apsys Polska.

A format with a future

The growing importance of food destinations in cities is not a passing trend, but a lasting change in consumer expectations of public spaces. As in Western European countries, Poles are increasingly spending time outside the home, although the gap to Western European consumption patterns remains considerable. The development of food and entertainment destinations in the Apsys portfolio is a consequence of the approach that has guided the company for three decades. Each project brings forgotten places – and often entire city blocks – back to life, returning them to cities and local communities in a form tailored to their real needs.

Each new project – whether it is the expansion of an existing destination or a new development – is not, for us, a recreation of a proven formula we have used before, but always an individual response to the character of the place and the needs of its surroundings,” emphasises Benoît Charles.

Apsys Polska has been operating on the market since 1996 as an investor, developer and manager of commercial real estate, and also provides advisory services and expert support in the field of urban space solutions.

For 30 years, the company has been delivering projects that help shape modern urban spaces, drawing on its extensive market experience at every stage of a project’s creation and operation – from concept and financing, through delivery, to active management and growing the value of the property. The Apsys portfolio includes retail properties, mixed-use projects, residential developments and regeneration projects, in which quality, functionality, accessibility and long-term value for the surrounding area are of key importance. All projects are developed with care for users’ everyday experience, social relationships and their harmonious integration into the urban fabric.

Apsys’s flagship projects in Poland include Manufaktura in Łódź, Posnania in Poznań, Food Fyrtel – Apsys’s own food hall concept – and its first residential project, Solea – Mieszkania przy Wyścigach in Warsaw. The company is currently pursuing further development projects, including the regeneration of Hala Targowa in Gdańsk and the residential projects Nowa Stawowa and Ogrody Staromiejskie in Wrocław. It is also a co-investor in Wilanów Park in Warsaw.

Apsys Polska manages nearly 700,000 sq m of leasable area in retail properties located in more than a dozen cities across the country, remaining one of the largest players on the Polish real estate market.

In 2026, Apsys celebrates its 30th anniversary – a milestone that underlines the company’s long-term approach and its ambition to create places that genuinely change cities.