Urban Lamb at Buddina, Sunshine Coast offers healthy takeaway options

A young Sunshine Coast couple is shaking up takeaway food options with the opening of their first store specialising in slow-cooked lamb and potatoes.

An accountant and a graphic designer are heating up the takeaway food options on the Sunshine Coast with a new venture specialising in lamb and potatoes.

Urban Lamb is expanding with its first brick-and-mortar store at Buddina after the takeaway food business operated successfully for six months out of Noosa until early-2022.

Ben, 32, and Katrina Dickens, 29, have spent the past six months transforming an empty space at Buddina into their first takeaway food store, for its opening on Friday, July 8.

The couple drew inspiration from Katrina’s Greek heritage, with a focus on sharing home-style food.

The menu includes 24-hour cooked lamb shoulder, twice-cooked roasted potatoes, salad, pita bread as well as a family recipe tzatziki.

Katrina and Ben Dickens are opening Urban Lamb takeaway store at Buddina, specialising in slow-cooked lamb and potatoes. Photo: Patrick Woods.

Ms Dickens, an accountant, said the Bermagui Cres store exceeded their expectations and he was keen to welcome customers.

“It’s definitely blown us away,” she said.

Urban Lamb launched in August, 2021 amid Covid-19 lockdowns and restrictions from a shared commercial kitchen two days a week, exclusively for pre-orders.

“It was a great way to test the market,” Mr Dickens said.

The new space allows them to have walk-in customers and online ordering.

He said they spent about eight months perfecting the recipe for their hero dish, the slow-cooked lamb, which is offered in full or half shoulder options.

“We wanted that home-style takeaway that people could also enjoy for special occasions,” he said.

Katrina and Ben Dickens are opening Urban Lamb takeaway store at Buddina, specialising in slow-cooked lamb and potatoes. Photo: Patrick Woods.

“Katrina and myself are always in the kitchen and with her Greek background it’s all about getting people together to enjoy food.

“The Sunshine Coast hasn’t seen something like this, it’s not like your pizza or Thai takeaway food option.”

The experienced graphic designer said they were keen to expand after they realised the popularity of the concept at Noosa.

“We were open over the Christmas and New Year and sold out,” he said.

“We stopped in February this year to find a space and for the past four to five months we’ve worked on the fit-out here, where it was just a shell.”

The couple has worked on every detail from branded shirts and hats to an insulated and recyclable takeaway food box that keeps meals warm for 40 minutes.

Urban Lamb will open Wednesday to Sunday from 12pm-8pm at 1/5 Bermagui Cres, underneath The Hedge apartments.

Originally published as Urban Lamb at Buddina, Sunshine Coast offers healthy takeaway options