Colorful Shipping Container Restaurants Pop Up in Southbank during the London Design Festival

A crop of brightly colored restaurants made from <a href="http://inhabitat.com/architecture/m2e-power/">recycled shipping containers</a> recently popped up in London's <a href="http://www.southbanklondon.com/">Southbank</a> as part of the district's <a href="http://world.southbankcentre.co.uk/">Festival of the World</a>, which overlaps with <a href="http://inhabitat.com/london-design-week/">London Design Festival</a>. The culinary cargotecture hot spot features two pop up restaurants - <a href="http://www.yalla-yalla.co.uk/">Yalla Yalla</a> and <a href="http://inhabitat.com/inhabitat-tests-out-londons-wahaca-restaurant-made-from-8-shipping-containers/">Wahaca</a> - and even a new staircase made of <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tag/shipping-container/">shipping containers</a>!

<a href="http://www.yalla-yalla.co.uk/">Yalla Yalla</a> is tucked away in a quiet corner of the <a href="http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/">Southbank Centre</a>, where it&nbsp;serves Lebanese and other Middle Eastern street food to be eaten either on the move or in the outdoor seating area surrounding it. The first Yalla Yalla, in Soho, was opened in late 2008 by Beirut-born Jad Youssef and his partner Aga Ilska, who is Polish. They met while working in a Lebanese restaurant in London and always dreamed of opening their own business. They have a third restaurant just north of Oxford Street.

<a href="http://blog.wahaca.co.uk/">Wahaca</a> is also getting in on the shipping container act, with a larger space made from eight shipping containers stacked on top of each other.

The <a href="http://blog.wahaca.co.uk/2012/07/going-experimental-down-on-the-southbank/">Wahaca Southbank Experiment</a> is a space for Wahaca to test out new&nbsp;recipes&nbsp;and ideas - the most successful of which will be rolled out to the main restaurants.

But perhaps the most interesting use of shipping containers, designed by <a href="http://www.lynatelier.com/">Lyn Atelier</a>, is a staircase that opens up a whole new route through the Southbank Centre.

<a href="http://www.lynatelier.com/">Lyn Atelier</a>'s shipping container staircase uses pallets and plantings to create an effect reminiscent of a miniature version of New York's High Line.

It's fantastic to see shipping container architecture take off, and we're always excited to see different (re)uses for these&nbsp;ubiquitous&nbsp;items.