Pop-up restaurants can be called as mini-restaurants or temporary restaurants which operate on short-term period in old buildings, fun parks, theaters, or even in a chef’s home. It’s an innovative trend which is currently being followed in many parts across the globe which is initiated mainly under trial run basis and brings in creativity from ambience to your food.
Pop-up Restaurant and Its Origin
Supper Club, a term widely associated with Pop-up restaurants, is stated to have begun in 1930’s and 40’s where restaurants not only focused on serving foods to their customers but also on socializing with them. The restaurants were set up in rural areas that mainly lacked traditional restaurants. Later in the 70’s, restaurant chefs started their own underground restaurant where food was served from their home. According to Google Trends, the term supper club was quite popular until 2004. Due to the shift in transition, supper clubs evolved into pop-up restaurants as known to many at present.
The term Pop-up is not relatively a new term as it was known to few individuals in 2004, according to Google Trends. The trend is mainly slated to have begun in 2004 but started to get popularized only by 2014. According to the data collected by National Restaurant Association in 2016, the trend showed 60 percent increase that year. The same association in its “What’s Hot” Chef’s list showed the pop-up restaurant as the 6th most popular concept when it comes to restaurants. Another survey by Google Trend showed that the concept earned its prominence only by 2014.
Ludo Club
Ludo Club is known to be the first pop-up restaurant which used to operate in different parts of LA. The restaurant didn’t have a fixed location which suddenly disappeared and soon came back for a temporary basis. These restaurants grew further where restaurant owners brought in cuisines unfamiliar to that geographical area, earning fame in that process. This Pop-up trend came as a great initiative to try and test new ideas.
Cheapest Way of Setting a New Restaurant
The Pop-up concept is a new and cheaper way of starting a restaurant which might cost about 1-2 lakh Indian currency which includes resources, insurance charge and rental cost if applicable. It is quite difficult to establish a normal restaurant in a posh location as it requires more money and suitable recognition. With Pop-up, the owner can be benefitted as he can even vary his location and price. The location in Pop-up restaurants can be changed from time to time and hence it becomes easy for owners who can chose places which can pull larger customers. The prices for the foods can be flexible and needn’t stay the same always which comes as an added advantage to the restaurant owners.
Creativity and Innovation
The restaurant has more space for creativity as you can test various new innovative ideas and concepts which otherwise can’t be done in normal restaurant. This also includes testing new recipes and new items. The restaurants needn’t even follow a fixed menu and can change it from day-to-day or place-to-place.
Marketing and Promotional Strategy
The Pop-up restaurants have become a popular trend at current which doesn’t seem to cease. Crowd in fixed restaurants have declined compared to the past with the introduction of malls, multiplexes etc. The pop-up restaurant owners can choose their own location which they deem suitable to pull out their target audience.
Pop up restaurant currently use marketing and promotional strategies mainly through social media networks like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc. and by writing different blogs. Video blogging is one more strategy which the restaurant owners make use by posting videos in YouTube and related video channels.
It’s upon you whether to dwell on this new concept where there is nothing for you to lose. Although a person starting this venture might have a difficulty in finding suitable resources in certain unknown geographical area. He must also put forth creative ideas to earn profits where his target audience is not set.
