Council faces food fight as three bid to trade at St Giles (From The Oxford Times)

Council faces food fight as three bid to trade at St Giles

9:30am Wednesday 1st August 2012 in News

THREE food traders have gone head-to-head in a battle over a top spot in the city.

Oxford City Council had three applications for permission to trade in a vacant space in St Giles.

Its licensing and registration sub-committee met on Monday and the decision will be announced later this week.

Leila and Soulaiman Aidi want to run a kebab and burger van under the name The Oxford Grill.

Mrs Aidi said it was the fifth time she had bid for a trading space in the city after working with her father at his kebab van in the past.

She said a lot of the food, including Moroccan dishes, would be home-made, adding: “I’ve always come up with ideas which are out of my zone, but this time I’m sticking to what I know.”

Labour city councillor and taxi driver Sajjad Malik has applied for permission to sell Mediterannean and Chinese food, including healthy options and vegan dishes.

In his application, Mr Malik said he would be using a barbecue to cook food with olive oil, making it healthier.

And Antonio De Jesus Neves, under the name Chef’s Corner, hopes to sell grilled meat, organic vegetables and bread. He is keen to start a new business on his own after previously working with his wife, who he has divorced.