Unit Sheffield: First look inside Valley Centertainment restaurant as popular burger joint opens second venue

Unit officially opened the doors to its second premises at Unit 4 Valley Centertainment with a soft launch on Friday October 6 - almost three months after its owners got the keys.

The new American-themed burger restaurant follows after the success of the flagship branch on Headford Street, in Broomhall, which opened six years ago. The halal venue is rated a glowing 4.6 out of 5 star rating, with 1,085 reviews on Google.

Behind the brand are founders Mohamed Thabet and Nabeil Asker, known as Mo and Nabz, who have now been joined by childhood friends Akram Ahmed and Salim Algundaidi to run the Centertainment venue.

Akram, who grew up in the Upperthorpe area of Sheffield, has left his career in finance after more than 10 years to run the new venture. 

The 28-year-old said: "It’s been a good first few days, there’s been lots to think about, it’s a completely different pace.

"I was a finance director and Sal worked as head of operations for an organisation. We used to hang out at Unit 1 [Headford Street] and help the guys out as we’re all childhood friends, and then when the opportunity presented itself for here, we just took the plunge.

"It’s constant. When you’re working in an office there’s a lot of downtime, while here, you start your day at 8am and you might finish at 1 in the morning, but we’re always having a laugh."

The new restaurant has brought a total of 30 job opportunities for front-of-house and kitchen roles, both full- and part-time. Akam said the team is "like a family".

He added: "Everyone here’s really enjoying it. For a lot of the staff in front-of-house it’s their first time working in hospitality and they’re really enjoying it, and the kitchen are smashing it everyday. It’s hard work but we enjoy it while we’re doing it."

An official grand-opening will be held at the venue on Friday, October 13.

Unit at Valley Centertainment will be open Sunday to Thursday from 11.30am to 10.30pm, and Friday to Saturday from 11am to 11pm.