Dining and social experiments rarely go hand-in-hand, but the SAARTJ restaurant pop-up in Michigan is looking to tailor dining according to diners' privilege. Run by chef Tunde Wey, this pop-up was first run in New Orleans and suggested that white customers pay 2.5 times more than the people of color eating at the restaurant. This idea was done to show the 54% inequality gap and highlight that the median income of black families continues to fall.
The new SAARTJ restaurant will take place in Detroit, Michigan and will once again focus on inequality, through various personal factors. Before diners begin their meal, or even look at a menu, they will be asked to fill out a form that asks questions about education, race, gender and income. This information will then be used to craft the menu, determine the cost and define the experience. The factors will be used to calculate the diner's privilege and showcase how these factors can play a role in society. The decision to open the SAARTJ restaurant in Detroit stems from the city's history of racial and societal issues.
Social Experiment Restaurant Pop-Ups
The SAARTJ Restaurant Aims to Show Privilege in Society
Trend Themes
1. Personalized Dining Experiences - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Create restaurant concepts that personalize the dining experience based on individual factors such as education, race, gender, and income.
2. Highlighting Social Inequalities - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Develop initiatives that shed light on societal disparities, such as income inequality and racial privilege, through unique dining concepts.
3. Data-driven Menu Creation - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Utilize customer data to craft menus, determine pricing, and create immersive culinary experiences that showcase the impact of personal factors on society.
Industry Implications
1. Restaurant and Hospitality - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Transform the traditional restaurant industry by incorporating personal factors into culinary experiences to foster inclusivity and highlight social issues.
2. Social Awareness Initiatives - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Leverage unique dining concepts as platforms for raising awareness about social inequalities and fostering conversations around privilege and marginalization.
3. Data Analytics and Personalization - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Combine data analytics and personalization technologies to revolutionize menu creation in the restaurant industry, showcasing the influence of personal factors on dining experiences.