“The Age of Re-enchantment” report from VML Intelligence found that three-quarters (76%) of global consumers “agree that when something is magical it allows them to escape from the mundane,” while two-thirds “prefer to spend time in places that spark my imagination.” Restaurants and cocktail bars around the world are rising to this challenge by creating elevated, awe-inspiring dining experiences that challenge the perceptions of our senses.
Restaurants and bars are pushing the boundaries of food and drink with out-of-this-world dining experiences.
Surrealism. Images courtesy of Jennifer Chase
In the United States, Michelin-star chef Enrique Limardo’s Surreal restaurant in Arlington, Virginia, promises an environment “where dining transcends reality.” All dishes and cocktails include “surprises that go beyond appearances,” as general manager Amber Potter tells VML Intelligence. “Providing guests with imaginative culinary experiences elevates dining into a memorable, emotionally resonant journey that engages the senses, fosters connection, and distinguishes a brand.”
Consumers are increasingly looking for culinary experiences that are new, unique, and exciting, reality-defying products that challenge the perceptions of our senses can help food and drink brands meet these elevated expectations.
In spring 2024 UK cocktail bar The Alchemist pushed the boundaries of reality with the launch of The Levitating One, a Manhattan-style drink that floats above the table, propelled by an electromagnetic base. Fitz’s Bar at London’s Kimpton Fitzroy Hotel has launched the Spectrum cocktail menu, which is inspired by synesthesia, a physiological condition where the stimulation of one sense impacts another. Each drink has an intense color, which is said to play with drinkers’ perceptions of taste, and leverages what bar manager Massimiliano Bosio described to The Drinks Business as “the sensory magic of synesthesia.” In the years ahead, emerging technology will multiply the possibilities of reality-defying dining.
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