Southside Wrappers in Hastings.

Owners Ian and Karey Gillam SUS-211013-140102001Southside Wrappers in Hastings.

Owners Ian and Karey Gillam SUS-211013-140102001
Southside Wrappers in Hastings. Owners Ian and Karey Gillam SUS-211013-140102001

It’s a wrap! Why Taco Tuesday is kicking up a storm for Hastings restaurant

A new fast food eatery is proving a big hit with office workers in Hastings.

Southside Wrappers has launched an event called Taco Tuesday and is seeing business flourish.

“It’s gone down really well,” said Karey Gillam, who runs the eatery in Cambridge Road, Hastings, with her husband Ian. “Yesterday we were really, really busy. We were completely full - just on a general Tuesday afternoon. People love it because the tacos are £7 generally and they go down to £4 on Taco Tuesday.”

Karey, 54, added: “A lot of people come in from the Department of Transport round the corner and the DWP. It’s really catching on.”

The tacos are soft wheat tortillas heated on a griddle with cheese melted on top and a hot filling, topped with avocado, fresh salsa and sour cream. They are served in a circle and customers roll them up themselves.

The three fillings are Cajun BBQ-style pulled pork, spicy chicken and chorizo, and a vegan taco made with pulled jackfruit. The couple are now experimenting with different fillings to extend the range, possibly a mini sausage taco and a teriyaki chicken taco.

Karey and Ian had always wanted to run their own food business. Karey used to work as a teaching assistant and Ian, 50, as a marketing manager.

“We had got to the point where our kids were grown up, and we were like, ‘if we don’t do it now then we’ll never do it’,” said Karey.

They moved down from Croydon to Hastings, and in 2018 opened a food trailer selling wraps outside Debenhams in Hastings before moving to nearby Priory Meadow.

They wanted to expand the menu, and opened the restaurant in November last year. They were hit by Covid restrictions limiting the number of diners, but have been “open properly” since April.

Trade has been good and now their son Stan, 23, has joined the team, cooking in the restaurant. They are starting to open in the evenings, and have started staging acoustic sets from local musicians on Friday nights.

The family also continue to run their food trailer, serving food at festivals and other local events. They did Hastings Pride this year and also the Hastings Seafood and Wine Festival.

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