Restaurantes pop-up: Todo lo que debe saber
Mobile cuisine is creating a buzz across the nation – especially pop-up restaurants. Pop-up restaurants are a type of short-term restaurant that allows chefs to try out new concepts, test new audiences, experiment with edgier cuisine, fundraise money, or draw new investors without the expense of opening a traditional restaurant. The National Restaurant Association’s 2018 “What’s Hot” chef’s survey named pop-up restaurants as the sixth most popular restaurant trend. What’s the appeal of pop-up restaurants to consumers and restaurateurs? We’ll discuss this and more about what you need to know when opening a pop-up restaurant.¿Qué es un restaurante pop-up?
Before pop-up restaurants, taco trucks were all the rage. Rewind back to 2008 when Roy Choi opened a Korean-barbecue taco truck that was such a smashing success that other food truck restaurateurs started moving in by the boatload. Although food trucks have been around for more than 100 years, Choi’s promotional strategies are what helped his restaurant gain momentum. From this point on, mobile cuisine would only grow in popularity. Pop-up restaurants originated in the 1960s as supper clubs but have resurfaced within the last few years. Tendencias de Google, a website that analyzes the popularity of search engine queries, shows that the term “pop-up restaurant” was pretty much non-existent before 2009. In 2014, the trend resurfaced and searches skyrocketed. This is mainly due to consumers’ crave to experience unique cuisine. Pop-up restaurants are typically hosted in an existing restaurant, bar, abandoned businesses, building rooftops, airplane hangars, etc. Some restaurateurs are even opening up shared kitchen spaces. Options abound, so long as you can safely cook and serve food, though you’ll want to consider potential permits and requirements to qualify – in addition to costs. The pop-up restaurant trend is typically appealing to new chefs as it allows them to sidestep a huge expense to introduce their concept. However, this trend isn’t only limited to new chefs. Seasoned chefs may want to try out a fresh concept but aren’t ready to commit to purchasing or renting a large space. The length of time a pop-up restaurant sticks around is up to its operator. The idea is typically to make your mark but leave soon enough so you can make room for other pop-ups. For example, McDonald’s offered a one-day luxury pop-up experience. The pop-up featured butlers, a string quartet, silver cloches, and gold cutlery. McDonald’s did this as a publicity stunt for the launch of their signature collection. You could definitely stay open longer than a day but no longer than a couple of months. In some of the most popular cities for pop-up restaurants, you can even find entire malls dedicated to this trend. New York, Chicago, and San Francisco all have spaces solely devoted to providing real estate to emerging pop-up restaurants. For example, Manhattan-based food hall Sous Vide Kitchen opened in early 2018. This food hall features four restaurants that are typically limited to delivery and catering orders. Pop-Up and co-working kitchens are popular amongst delivery companies too. DoorDash, UberEats, and Postmates have experimented with kitchen trailers and renting out extra space to test out a new idea.Ejemplos de restaurantes pop-up de éxito
Once a pop-up, now a permanent restaurant – sometimes. Here are a few of the most popular restaurants that got their start as a short-term concept.Otaku Ramen
This Nashville-based restaurant was the city’s very first ramen noodle spot. Along with ramen, owner Sarah Gavigan used locally-sourced pork bones to create a deliciously creamy broth that includes springy noodles, braised pork, and pickled ginger.Oso perezoso
If you want to visit this San Francisco-based restaurant, you’ll need to plan ahead! Tickets go on sale every third Monday of the month to save a seat for dinner the following month. Lazy Bear only offers two seatings nightly and offers an interactive experience with guests. You are even invited to walk back in the kitchen and chat with the chefs!Hamburguesa Superiority
You’d think when you hear “burger”, this restaurant would only appeal to carnivores. This unique East Village, NYC restaurant is equally appealing to vegetarians too. Lines are frequently out the door to pick up some of chef Brook Headley’s healthy spins on typically unhealthy grub.Ventajas e inconvenientes de los restaurantes pop-up
¿Crees que tienes una buena idea para montar un restaurante pop-up? Quizá quieras sopesar primero los pros y los contras. Aquí tienes algunos puntos que debes tener en cuenta antes de seguir adelante:Pros
- Capacidad para probar nuevos conceptos de restaurante y menú
- Costes de puesta en marcha más baratos
- Flexibilidad para probar métodos de fijación de precios
- Facilidad para desplazarse de una ciudad a otra y probar diferentes mercados.
- Pequeñas pérdidas si el concepto fracasa
Contras
- Repetir clientes podría ser difícil ya que estás "apareciendo"
- Costes de alimentación y mano de obra difíciles de determinar
- La contratación podría ser difícil, ya que se trata de un trabajo temporal.
- Recursos limitados y posibles espacios de restauración desconocidos
- Escaso margen de error en cuanto a la cobertura de prensa y el boca a boca (es decir, las redes sociales) para hacer correr la voz.
Abrir un restaurante pop-up
¿Sigues interesado en abrir un restaurante pop-up? Aquí tienes algunos elementos que debes preparar antes de abrir tus puertas.Decidir la ubicación
La ubicación es uno de los factores más importantes a la hora de abrir un restaurante pop-up. Tendrá que estar cerca de su público objetivo, pero también necesitará agua corriente, un espacio adecuado para comer y un buen sistema de alcantarillado. Si el dinero es un factor a tener en cuenta, asegúrate de comparar los precios de los locales de restauración existentes con los de las ubicaciones generales (azoteas de edificios).Crear un plan de empresa
Though this isn’t a full-service operation, your pop-up restaurant will still need a roadmap. You’ll want to include an executive summary, sample menu, target market, competitive analysis, marketing plan, etc. If your pop-up is successful, you may even consider opening a restaurant.Solicitar licencias y permisos
Antes de abrir sus puertas, necesitará las licencias, permisos y seguros adecuados. Consulta a las autoridades locales para determinar qué necesitas para operar.Obtener el equipo adecuado
¿Qué equipamiento necesitará en la cocina? ¿Y en el comedor, si lo hay? Determinar durante cuánto tiempo necesitarás el equipamiento te ayudará a decidir cuánto te costará abrir tu restaurante pop-up. Considera la posibilidad de alquilar o incluso pedir prestado para ahorrar dinero.Cree su menú
After putting together your business plan and target demographic, put together a killer menu. This should be your “greatest hits” for the concept you may commit to full-time, so be sure to engineer a menu that your guests will love.Anúnciese en
How will you spread the word about your pop-up? Press coverage will be key for your pop-up. Start building relationships with media outlets and send over information about your concept to grow interest. Make sure you build up your social media presence and share plenty of pictures of dishes and information about your menu.Ponga en marcha su restaurante pop-up
¿Crees que tienes lo que hay que tener para abrir un restaurante pop-up? Si es así, es hora de dar a tu concepto gastronómico la plataforma que se merece. Si al principio no tienes éxito, prueba en un nuevo mercado o ubicación. Por suerte, los restaurantes pop-up te dan la flexibilidad necesaria para volver y probar ideas diferentes. Este artículo se publicó originalmente el 21 de noviembre de 2018. Para mantener su relevancia, lo actualizamos el 26 de enero de 2021. Si su restaurante pop-up despega, puede que haya llegado el momento de plantearse abrir un local permanente. Más información sobre cómo abrir un establecimiento permanente.Más información
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