How did you get into the food and drink business?
I started out as a kitchen porter when I was 14 and worked my way up. I’ve managed pubs, music festivals and some high-profile cocktails bars. At one stage, I worked abroad in Melbourne and Ibiza in venues that provided just the right mix of good food, drink and lots of fun – my favourite kind of place.
What’s your first food memory?
Every summer when we were young, our Dad would pick a day when we’d all have dinner in the garden. We’d take the chairs and the kitchen table out on to the grass and we’d pile the table high with salads and all sorts of different food. It felt very special. It’s that memory, that feeling of excitement, that we try to evoke at all of our meals.
When did pop-up restaurants first arrive in the UK?
The first ones started appearing about five years ago. For many people, they were the perfect next stage on from running supper clubs – if you wanted to open a restaurant, but lacked the finance or the right skills, a pop-up could help to stabilise your business before you took that next step.
How did you get the idea for the Disappearing Dining Club?
It was the end of a festival summer and I had no job. To make some cash, with a mate I ran a ticketed dinner dance for 30 friends in an empty pub in King’s Cross and it sold out. We held a second event and, because we weren’t sure how long we’d last, we joked about calling ourselves the Disappearing Dining Club. Three months later, with very little marketing, we had 90 strangers paying £50 in advance for an event without knowing the venue or the menu. It’s just grown from there.
What’s the most difficult thing about running a pop-up?
Finding those new, undiscovered spaces. When we started in 2010, the pop-up scene hadn’t really taken off; everyone was talking about supper clubs. Now there’s much more competition for venues. Back then, there were lots of empty spaces waiting for planning permission to come through; you could get short-term leases at reasonable rates. Today, London is full of cranes and it’s boom time for developers. There are far fewer spaces available and the cost of hiring them has gone through the roof. Street food stalls are giving people that first foot in the door nowadays.
What’s the advantage of having a “proper” restaurant?
We opened Back in 5 Minutes in 2012, a year after Fred (Bolin) joined us as our head chef and my business partner. Having a base allows us to train our staff and build a more permanent team. It also helps to give people a proper career ladder and the chance to hone their skills. They can then go out and re-create that environment in our pop-up spaces.
What matters more, the food or space?
All the elements matter, but it’s about getting the mix right. The food is important – Fred has worked in Sweden (where he’s from) and New York, where he was head chef at a two-Michelin star restaurant. The food we serve is fresh, seasonal and elegant, without being too fussy. But I have always loved the sharing aspect of a meal, that coming together around the table and changing the world. So the setting, and the atmosphere it creates, plays a big part too.
What’s next for the Disappearing Dining Club?
We’re planning two more permanent restaurants. The first is due to open soon in Maltby Street Market in south London. But I’m really keen to do more outdoor events; my ambition it to run an all-day picnic in central London, right though from breakfast to an evening barbecue. I have my eye on a stunning space, so keep your fingers crossed and who knows what might happen next year.
Guardian Local is hosting a five-course dinner at Back in 5 Minutes on 14 October.
