A new pop-up is set to launch in 180 The Strand, which will be both a restaurant and arts space. The pop-up, called Outcrop, is a joint effort between the Clove Club and Luca co-founders Johnny Smith and Daniel Willis, three of Secret Cinema’s top team — Tom Allott, Andrea Moccia and Sabrina Goreeba — and will see AngloThai’s John Chantarasak in charge of much of the cooking, with his wife and business partner Desiree Chantarasak looking after the wine.
Opening on June 23 for three months, running four days a week, Outcrop is being billed as a “verdant courtyard” and an “inner-city oasis” that will “connect guests with nature” — with publicity dubbing the project an ecologically-conscious “green social club”. It will be able to seat 30 people at a time.
The food will come from Chantarasak, who will apply his Thai techniques to British ingredients; expect the likes of coconut-smoked turbot bone broth; asparagus with sunflower seed satay; a skate wing jungle curry and root vegetable som tam, with tamarind and honey. Chantarasak will cook his meat and fish over charcoal, with his menu divided into snacks, small plates, large plates and puddings. There is, at present, no indication of cost.
The wine list will revolve around low-intervention European wines, which will be on tap and available by the glass or carafe; interestingly, the wine will be supplied in recycled and refillable kegs and so will reduce glass wastage. The cocktail list won’t come from the Chantarasaks, instead being put together by Robert Simpson, the JKS group’s bar manager; Simpson previously looked after the cocktails for the Clove Clove. Like the food, Simpson’s list will be made with British ingredients, with cocktails including an Outcrop Martini (London dry gin, homemade herb garden vermouth), and a British Margarita (barley eau de vie, honey, gooseberry). Simpson is working with British distilleries, and says a focus on a better ecological impact is paramount.
Besides the food and drink, the pop-up will host an arts and music programme, with a sound system made up of four vintage Klipschorn speakers. Esa Williams, the South African DJ and producer, is set to partner with singer and artist Chisara Agor on a project. The piece will explore the African diaspora and, more specifically, look at the migration of swallows from South Africa to the UK. The performance will involve movement and visual art, and will use a range of music, including classical, folk, electronic and jazz. Meanwhile, Sam Willis of the band Walls will create a soundtrack for the pop-up, which will explore man’s relationship with nature. A programme of live music will be announced in due course, though John Gomez (NTS), Joel Martin (Quiet Village), and Daniel John Willis and Mr Pedro (NTS) are all slated to play.
After the pop-up, it is expected that Outcrop may expand into a permanent venture.
