Shipping Container Restaurant Lands in Campus Martius

Detroit's first-ever shipping container restaurant and bar landed in downtown's Campus Martius Park overnight. According to a release the 40-foot-long decommissioned steel-shipping container dubbed The Fountain Detroit is replacing the seasonal Beach Bar & Grill. The 330-square-foot eatery is slated to open May 27 and will operate through mid-October. The menu is still undergoing tweaks but the restaurant's newly launched website teases "snack boxes" filled with items like charcuterie and cheese, pierogis, salads, paninis, and grilled Corridor Sausages. We're told that burgers will also join the new offerings.

The new addition is part of an overall reconception of the Fountain Bistro and its concessions. The bistro sold to 800 Parc restaurant group in February and shuttered for renovations. Plans for the flagship restaurant are still under wraps, but the building is expected receive a new design, a permanent enclosure for the outside patio, new windows for a more "open air" feel, and a larger kitchen, as well as updated floors, ceiling, and bar. In the meantime, The Fountain Detroit is still hiring staff including servers, bartenders, and cooks.

Shipping container architecture is an increasingly popular building method in the city. Detroit Shipping Co., a shipping container food hall, is expected to debut in Cass Corridor later this year. For a while, local restaurant startup Social Sushi courted the idea of putting a shipping container restaurant in Roosevelt Park, and nearby several container condos arrived last summer.

Take a peek at some of the Fountain Detroit installation photos below: