"Pop-ups", or temporary, spontaneous spaces, have gained a lot of traction in a variety of industries lately. There are
pop-up stores,
restaurants, and even
cat cafés making appearances in cities across the world, to great fanfare. In world of rising real estate costs and increased regulations, pop-ups are refreshingly make-shift and informal. But what do pop-up restaurants and food events mean for the chefs behind the scenes? In a recent article,
FoodRepublic takes a look at the trend, and the factors that take a pop-up to a full time restaurant.
Pop-ups are often ways for young or unknown chefs to showcase their cooking talents and their vision for food, giving people a glimpse of their vision, with the hopes of sparking enough interest for a full time business. Melissa King, a Top Chef contestant, is trying her hand at starting a bi-monthly pop-up restaurant,
Co+Lab, by collaborating with another contestant and Bay Area artisans. Like many pop-ups, Co+Lab borrows space from an existing San Francisco restaurant, Nico, with one successful dinner already under her belt.
The allure of pop-up restaurants are easy to see. They are generally exclusive, ephemeral events, not everyone is included. Their impermanence lends them a more casual flair, as well as freedom from usual conventions (if it's a temporary event, why not go bold?). For chef's, the appeal is obvious; why work under someone in a restaurant when you can start a food adventure on your own?
"For them, there's often an expectation, or at least a desire, that the experimental interaction will ultimately lead to something more permanent". FoodRepublic gives the example of chef John Manion, who used Chicago restaurant Dodo as a the space for his Mediterranean themed pop up. His attempts were so successful, he ended up buying Dodo, creating
La Sirena Clandestina.
Saison, a San Francisco restaurant with 3 Michelin stars, started out as a small pop-up with big dreams. The list of successes goes on and on.
FoodRepublic's article closes with a frank recommendation: If you get an opportunity to purchase a ticket to a pop-up restaurant event, take it, and we wholeheartedly agree. You can have a unique, possibly once in a lifetime dining experience, all while helping a chef's dreams come true! If food has a higher purpose, surely, this must be it.
Have you ever started, or participated, in a pop-up restaurant? Use the links at the top of this page to let us know about your experience via Facebook, Google+, and Twitter.
Source:
FoodRepublic
Tablebases.com
