When it comes to eating out, pop-ups have never been so popular.
In Glasgow alone, temporary restaurants have so far taken up residence in a disused 18th-century hospital, a former car workshop, a 19th-century alleyway and a 1930s ballroom.
The latest idea comes from Section33, a collaboration between two dynamic young chefs whose pop-up will emerge at the weekend in Govanhill Baths, in the space where the pool would normally be.
The high-end menu, devised by Kyle Steel of Las Iguanas and food consultant Chris Gibson, and cooked in an open kitchen, includes such delights as 36-hour slow-roast lamb with wasabi cucumber, verjus-glazed pork belly with pickled stone fruit and chewy peanut butter cookies with Nutella cream.
But what makes Section33 really different is that a significant percentage of takings will go to Glasgow food banks. Mr Steel tells me they hope to donate £2,000, depending on how the venture goes. Welcome to the new generation of socially aware diners.
Pop-ups tend to attract a different demographic from conventional restaurants because they are not advertised in the traditional way; putting the word out on social media days before the big event helps create the desired tone of subversion and exclusivity. Menus and venues are kept secret until the last moment.
The reality is, of course, that organisers of pop-up restaurants must first seek the appropriate trading and liquor licences from their local authority, while proving their food-safety and due diligence credentials; this can take months, depending on which city you are in. I'm told Edinburgh is far more fleet of foot in this respect than Glasgow.
Such crowd-sourcing means pop-ups attract advance bookings in their hundreds; something chef-patrons of conventional restaurants would kill for, if only they were in a position to live so dangerously. So far, Section33, which has 140 covers at each half-hour sitting, has sold more than 500 tickets over Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The big attraction for diners is the sense of adventure, the funky lighting and music, and lower prices than in a conventional restaurant.
Usually there's an entry fee of about £5, with individual dishes priced at up to £7 (the booze tariff depends on whether organisers have managed to get an alcohol licence and a drinks sponsor).
From the chef's point of view, pop-ups offer the opportunity to shine. I'm constantly impressed by the number of talented young people out there who are desperate to show off their culinary skills and to step out of the obscurity of the kitchen for a night or three. As Kyle Steel puts it, it's like "baring your soul".
An often unappreciated advantage of the pop-up is its power to highlight a building or community's plight. The Edwardian Govanhill Baths and Steamie, you may recall, were closed in 2001 and, after a campaign, are in the process of being refurbished and returned to the community. Section33 refers to the name given to an eviction notice.
It is heartening to learn the lengths to which some people will go for a deep and meaningful dining experience.
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