Pop-up restaurant

Pop-up restaurants, also called supper clubs, are temporary restaurants. These restaurants often operate from a private home, former factory, or similar and during festivals.

Description

Pop-up restaurants have been popular since the 2000s in Britain and Australia but they are not a new phenomenon. Pop-up restaurants have existed in the United States and Cuba.^[1] Diners typically make use of social media, such as the blogosphere and Twitter, to follow the movement of these restaurants and make online reservations.^[2]

Pop-up restaurants, like food trucks, are an effective way for young professionals to gain exposure of their skills in the field of hospitality as they seek investors and attention pursuant to opening a restaurant or another culinary concept.

Pop-up restaurants have been hailed as useful for younger chefs, allowing them to utilize underused kitchen facilities and "experiment without the risk of bankruptcy".^[2] By 2013, this restaurant style had gained steam and prevalence in larger cities thanks in part to crowd-funding efforts that offered the short-term capital needed to fund start-up costs.^[3]

Notable entrepreneurs, chefs and restaurateurs who have opened pop-up restaurants include:

• Alan Philips ^{[4][5][6][7][8]}
• Stephen Starr ^[6]
• Dan Chan ^[9]
• Camille Becerra^[4]
• Pierre Koffmann^[10]
• Ludo Lefebvre^[11]
• Jason Atherton^[12]

Restaurant Day

Differently from traditional pop-up restaurants, which tend to financially support their restauranteurs as means of profit or living, there is the Restaurant Day event (Ravintolapäivä), founded by Timo Santala, Olli Sirén and Antti Tuomola in Helsinki, Finland, on May 2011.^[13] People are invited to put up their own restaurants in the same day, and for one day only. The movement is intended to promote and celebrate food culture. Restaurant Day happens worldwide four times a year, and over 3600 one-day restaurants by estimated 12 000+ restaurateurs have catered for estimated 180 000+ customers in the past Restaurant Days.

21 May 2011: 45 restaurants, 13 cities 18 August 2011: 190 restaurants, 30+ cities, 4 countries 19 November 2011: 287 restaurants, 40+ cities, 2 countries 4 February 2012: 304 restaurants, 50+ cities, 12 countries 19 May 2012: 711 restaurants, 90+ cities, 19 countries 19 August 2012: 784 restaurants, 100+ cities, 17 countries 17 November 2012: 702 restaurants, 130+ cities, 25 countries 17 February 2013: 629 restaurants, 130+ cities, 31 countries

One-day restaurants have so far popped up in 42 different countries including Aruba, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guyana, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Mexico, Mozambique, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Ukraine, Venezuela and USA. ^[14]

See also

• Pop-up shop
• Flash mob computing

External links

• Restaurant Day - a global pop-up restaurant phenomenon
• WhatsOnFoodie.com — Worldwide Pinterest-style platform/listing for food/drink festivals, pop-up restaurants, supper clubs, tastings, underground restaurants, cooking classes, other major foodie events and restaurant launch events
• Popup Republic - online directory of US popup restaurant experiences
• "Psst! Fancy a furtive bite at my pop-up restaurant?", The Sunday Times, April 12, 2009
• Food Trend Predictions For 2011
• Roaming Ramen Parties Courtesy of Boke Bowl
• Grub Club - Helps chefs set up pop-up restaurants by finding them under-utilized spaces and connecting them with foodies looking for new types of dining experiences

References