Underground restaurant

An underground restaurant, sometimes known as a supper club or closed door restaurant, is a social dining
restaurant operated out of someone's home, generally bypassing local zoning and health-code regulations. They are
usually advertised by word of mouth or unwanted advertising. Websites such as BonAppetour have been created to help
people find and book these restaurants.[1]

Depending on the area's law, the establishments may be illegal, although they have been around for decades.[2] They are
becoming increasingly popular in the U.S.[3][4] and internationally, including Cape Town and the Netherlands, where they
are known as 'huiskamer restaurants' ('living room restaurants').

Contents
Appeal
History
Notable places
Argentina
Canada
Hong Kong
France
South Africa
United States
See also
References
Further reading

Appeal
The attraction of the underground restaurant for the customer varies. In some cases, it is the opportunity to sample new
food, often at low cost outside the traditional restaurant experience;[5] other times, customers are paying a premium price
for direct access to some of the top chefs and young talent in a region. Guests of the underground restaurant also cite one
of the biggest reasons for enjoying the experience is the social interaction with strangers over food,[6] something this
would generally be frowned upon in a traditional restaurant setting. “Every dinner you go to is completely different,” one
avid supporter of pop-up restaurants told Cape Town magazine.[7]

Underground restaurants have been described as "anti-restaurants;" though an increasing number of restaurant chefs are
stepping out of their kitchens to re-ignite their passion for cooking in non-traditional spaces. For the host, the benefit is to
make money and experiment with cooking without being required to invest in restaurant property. "It's literally like
playing restaurant," one host told the San Francisco Chronicle, "You can create the event, and then it's over."[8]
History
In 2001 the Pemberton family returned from a vacation in Cuba where they discovered a dining phenomenon. “Casa
Particulares”,[9] were where tourists could go to sample ethnic cooking at reasonable prices. Arguably the very first
underground restaurant in the UK and based on the Cuban model, Brovey Lair is situated at the back of the Pemberton's
home in Ovington, Norfolk. In 2010 Brovey Lair won The Good Food Guide’s Best Fish Restaurant in Britain award and
still holds top place as their top rated restaurant in Norfolk.[10]

In 2013 a new kind of underground dining restaurant emerged in Cape Town, South Africa called SecretEATS.[11] Unlike
social dining restaurants of the past, the concept brings together top South African chefs, international guest chefs or
young, rising stars with adventurous food and wine lovers in secret, undisclosed locations. Guests request a private
invitation to join the members-only dining movement through the web site; invitations are sent based on factors such as
interests, geography and special dietary requirements like vegetarians.

Past dinners have taken place inside of an ancient castle, underground wine cellars, private gardens at the foot of Table
Mountain, urban, industrial warehouses and stunning, immaculate art galleries; chefs have included MasterChef SA
runner-up, Sue-Ann Allen, celebrity chefs Pete Goffe-Wood, Bertus Basson, Neill Anthony and Matt Manning and some of
the country's most beloved restaurant chefs like Brad Ball, Craig Cormack and more,.[12][13]

Founded by former American Express senior manager, Gregory Zeleny,[14] the 'moving restaurant' was started with the
goal of bringing people together around the table over food. From there, it evolved with a key focus on the chef and his or
her story behind this menu that has just been created just for one night only. The focus is on working with chefs
committed to using fresh, organic and seasonal ingredients.

Notable places

Argentina
Casa SaltShaker (http://www.casasaltshaker.com) - Buenos Aires[15]

Canada
Charlie's Burgers - Toronto - ranked by Food and Wine Magazine as one of the top three "word of mouth" supper
clubs on its list of “100 Best New Food and Drink Experiences in the World”.[16][17]
No Fixed Address - Vancouver[15]

Hong Kong
PlateCulture (https://plateculture.com/destination/hong-kong?1) is a new rising trend where you can book dinners at
local chefs' private venues

France
Jim Haynes' Supper Club - Paris[15] - considered the original supper club[18]
 New Friends Table - Paris[15]

South Africa
SecretEATS - Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban, Pretoria
Slippery Spoon - Cape Town
Supper Lounge - Cape Town
[spasie] underground - Cape Town

United States
Hush - Washington, D.C.[15]
Midnight Brunch - New York City[15]
Savor Charleston - Charleston, South Carolina[15]
The FourCoursemen - Athens, Georgia[19]
Ghetto Gourmet - New York City
SubCulture Dining (http://www.subculturedining.com) - New York City[20]

See also
Speakeasy
Smokeasy
Guerrilla Gourmet

References
1. Burgos, Annalisa (23 January 2015). "Dining with Strangers" (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/tv/tvshows/firstlook/h
ealthandfood/whatiscooking/dining-with-strangers/1609618.html). Channel NewsAsia. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
2. Perlman, Dan. Mi casa, su cuenta (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2008/apr/17/undergroundr
estaurants), The Guardian, April 17, 2008.
3. Smillie, Susan. Going underground (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2009/may/29/undergroun
d-restaurants-msmarmitelover-hardeep), The Guardian, May 29, 2009.
4. The Secret Feast (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/feb/10/underground-restaurants-london), The
Guardian, February 9, 2009.
5. Sarah Schindler, Unpermitted Urban Agriculture: Transgressive Actions, Changing Norms, and the Local Food
Movement, 2014 Wisconsin Law Review 369, available at http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?
abstract_id=2414016
6. "World's Best Secret Dining Clubs" (http://www.travelandleisure.com/slideshows/worlds-best-secret-dining-clubs).
Travel + Leisure. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
7. "Pop-up Restaurants in Cape Town | Pop Ups, Dinners, Supper Clubs & Dining Out Western Cape" (http://www.capet
ownmagazine.com/pop-up-restaurants). www.capetownmagazine.com. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
8. DeFao, Janine. Guerrilla Gourmet (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/01/22/MNGOOGRA241.D
TL), San Francisco Chronicle, Jan 22, 2006.
9. "casa particular cuba .org - Casa Particular organization for renting private rooms in Havana and all Cuba" (http://ww
w.casaparticularcuba.org/). www.casaparticularcuba.org. Retrieved 2015-12-30.
10. Lanchester, John. "Restaurant: The Cafe at Brovey Lair, Ovington, Norfolk" (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle
/2012/mar/30/cafe-brovey-lair-restaurant-review). the Guardian. Retrieved 2015-12-30.
11. "Letting out the secret about SecretEATS - Getaway Magazine" (http://www.getaway.co.za/food/food-culture/secret-e
ats-underground-dining-experience/). Getaway Magazine. 2013-11-07. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
12. "A SecretEats Dinner at Spice Route" (http://crushmag-online.com/a-secreteats-dinner-at-spice-route/). Crush Mag
Online. 2015-08-24. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
13. "The Secret's Out – A Unique Experience Awaits At SecretEATS" (http://www.joburgsdarling.co.za/The-secrets-Out--
A-Unique-Experience-Awaits-At-secretEATs-.aspx). Joburgsdarling.co.za. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
14. "Cooking: Carnival of ideas" (http://www.financialmail.co.za/life/food/2016/03/24/cooking-carnival-of-ideas). Financial
Mail. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
15. "9 Underground Dinners You've Never Heard Of Slideshow" (http://www.thedailymeal.com/9-underground-dinners-yo
u-ve-never-heard-slideshow). TheDailyMeal. 24 January 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
16. 'Kitchen confidential: At this underground dinner party, cleaning your plate hurts so good' (http://www2.macleans.ca/2
009/03/30/kitchen-confidential/), Maclean's, March 30, 2009.
17. Toronto 'anti-restaurant' ranked third best new food experience by Food & Wine magazine | National Post (http://life.n
ationalpost.com/2010/04/15/toronto-anti-restaurant-ranked-third-best-new-food-experience-by-food-wine-magazine/)
18. Baker, Vicky (23 January 2009). "Chez Jim" (https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/jan/24/paris-supper-clubs-soci
al-networking). The Guardian. London. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
19. Thelin, Emily Kaiser (November 2009). "Supper Club Confidential" (http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/supper-club
-confidential). Food and Wine. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
20. https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/new-york/articles/the-best-supper-club-events-in-new-york-city-summer-
2017/. Missing or empty |title= (help)
Further reading
"Secret supper clubs worth checking out" (http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2012/01/24/underground-dinners-youve-n
ever-heard). Fox News Channel. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
Williams, Zoe. "The secret feast" (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/feb/10/underground-restaurants-lon
don). The Guardian. Retrieved 3 June 2015.

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