What Makes a Pop-Up Successful?
A Summer Soirée from Ugly Baby Studio and the creative mind behind it
I was fortunate enough to have been invited by my colleague Memo to his pop-up dinner under the guise of Ugly Baby Studio. I have been to a few and what attracts me to them is they are much more unique than most restaurant experiences, even if they are in a restaurant. Pop-ups feel more personal, they foster community and feel like a big professional house party. Not only does Memo, the organiser and chef put time and extensive effort into the dishes that will be celebrated but also chooses the people to attend. It is a full curation of locale, music, food, and finally, people.
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At work, two weeks before his pop-up he presented us with a preview of one of his dishes that gave me goosebumps twice. It was a salad of Korean rice cakes, or tteokbokki coated in a miso-anchovy vinaigrette and laced with orange zest laying side by side in unison with precise cuts of herbs on top. The gate that kept the rice cakes hidden was fried udon noodles waiting to be broken so its treasure could be plundered. The first bite had the hairs on my arm stand straight. The mix of flavor, the bouncy consistency of the rice cakes jumping with the crazy crunch of the fried udon noodles left me so happy to have tasted something so original to me. I went for another bite and another set of goosebumps had me take a step back to understand how this happened to me again. The balance like a yin and yang logo hit me across the face. I was eagerly waiting for his pop-up, as was Vanessa Rinsche who took these amazing photos.
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His pop-up was the most unique I’ve experienced, shaking my premise of what they can become. Memo took on this project by choosing all the above and went a step further by asking an artist named Tony Kosas to design the setting. Memo’s concept was the end of summer, the warm light that was fading away into fall, and sharing its last glow of the golden hour. My girlfriend and I arrived a bit late dressed all in white, and saw everyone keeping the same promise. Golden paint was offered as a welcome gift to put on yourself somewhere you felt comfortable with.
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He chose a museum in an old commercial yard which gave the essence of an urban factory. That’s where they placed the artificial fantasy forest that was ripped from its ecosystem and put on a floating island on top of concrete to parade its colors, shapes, and textures — this was our dinner table. Warm lights surrounded us sitting in front of the low table where the dishes slowly presented themselves to be revealed in the forest of creation. This forest had an invisible waterfall of curiosity that reached across and connected with others and became rivers of anticipation. With hands eagerly waiting to discover what can be found and shared.
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The carefully plated dishes were brought out and placed randomly. Four different dishes, with the first being a Hummus with preserved lemon, turmeric, roasted garlic, cumin, and Sichuan mushrooms.
The second was a visual mix of complimentary colors of a Beef Heart Tomato confit with small herbs atop glazed with a mix of white miso, roses, and white soya which elevated the dish so naturally.
The third was a royal Rice Cake Salad that changed from the first one Memo made but still retained its delight with its white miso and yuzu dressing coated with orange zest, its tang still holds me hostage.
Finally, a firework of a dish, Dumplings filled with the finished simmer of lamb birria and coriander chutney. Decorated with pickled fennel and pickled red onion the color of scarlet. It was a fusion I never knew I craved. It inspired me so much I had to jog to Memo to tell him how it made me think of a dish I would love to try and create; albondigas, a Mexican meatball soup mixed with Sichuan spiced noodles.
To end the meal the Chocolate Hazelnut Tart didn’t disappoint anyone and made me think back to my favorite pastry named deux mille feuilles, by Pierre Hermé with its creamy hazelnut effect that throws you in a trance. Memo’s version was the same but he went in a different direction with texture. He made a crust where the first millimeter of the bite had a strong crunch effect and then the sensuous layers of hazelnut collapsed unto each other to give way — acting as a supporting role to the chocolate, but it took control as the lead character.
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The event had very talented photographers like Gaston Degiglio and a handful of others document the evening, I was in such a different state of mind enjoying myself, the conversations, jokes, and vibe of the whole thing I rarely registered a small team was taking incredible photos throughout. They never broke the flow of my curiosity and felt like it was all part of this grand piece of art.
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What makes a successful pop-up to me is not the number of people in attendance or what is on the menu. To me, it’s more about getting inspired and having ideas come to you. When that happens, the mood instinctively changes and you become one with the moment, the present. My infatuation with food becomes stronger and the discovery of new flavors through the love of the craft from a very talented chef is more than a firm handshake. It is an introduction to his world, what he loves, and why. It’s more poetic than prose, and more beautiful than a painting since your senses get involved and it becomes a memory you can hold onto. A memory of everything I love.
Thank you to everyone involved and thank you for reading.
The Greasy Pen.