Juice and food brand Odwalla kicked off a nationwide VW van tour August 16 at the Park eatery and lounge in New York. The van, which was designed by IMG Live, pays homage to the brand’s origins of three musicians selling juices and smoothies from a VW van in Santa Cruz, California, in 1980. The brand partnered with numerous health and wellness, food, art, and style experts for the promotional tour, which will take place through October. Future tour stops include Seattle, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Atlanta.
Escape Manor, an immersive entertainment complex, opened in the King Street West neighborhood in October. The 15,000-square-foot, three-floor space features escape rooms, axe throwing, board games, bocce ball, and board games. The venue offers three different event spaces, including the Lounge on the main floor, which seats 80 or has a standing capacity of 110. On the second floor is the Axe Throwing space, which offers eight axe throwing targets with a seated capacity of 60 or room for 100 standing. The entire facility has numerous screens and audiovisual capabilities to accommodate DJs. Food can be brought into the venue via preferred third-party caterers, and full buyouts are available.
In November, King Street Food Company opened the second location of Bar Buca in the midtown area. With an Italian-inspired seasonal menu, the 2,400-square-foot restaurant will offer everything from grab-and-go selections to an all-day dining program that includes an early-evening aperitivo program. The venue can accommodate 84 for receptions or seat 54, with various standing areas and bar seating throughout. In spring 2019, the restaurant plans to open a patio that will add 60 seats. Full buyouts are available.
For a wellness-focused holiday party, the meditation space Mindset Brain Gym opened in Yorkville in July. With 5,300 square feet of space, the gym is divided into three spaces: the Gallery, Meditation Room, and Lounges, with design from interior design firm Ariel Muller Designs. The Meditation Room is a multi-sensory experience with a captivating LED light wall capable of programmable colors and patterns, a surround-sound system, and ergonomic meditation chairs, with seating for 25. The second-floor basement Gallery is a raw open space with walls displaying artwork by Peter Tunney; it holds 150 people for receptions. The two lounges feature natural elements including a giant 14-foot preserved moss wall, birch trees, and real wood coffee and end tables, as well as comfortable couches and lounge seating to facilitate group discussions, with seating for 10 or standing room for 15. Buyouts are available and can include all meditation services.
In November, the global, interactive Museum of Illusions opened its first Canadian location in Toronto’s St. Lawrence Market area. With 4,700 square feet of space, the museum is home to more than 80 sensory exhibits and experiential rooms that provide Instagram fodder. Each exhibit is based on science, mathematics, and psychology, and can be used for team building. The entire museum can accommodate 100 cocktail style or 40 for seated events. Full buyouts are available for events lasting a minimum of two hours.
The team behind Awai, the upscale plant-based dining restaurant, is slated to open a second casual eatery and cafe on Queen West on November 29. Away Kitchen & Cafe is housed in an 1,800-square-foot space formerly home to Death in Venice Gelato. The restaurant will serve plant-based fare including pizzas, fondue, and pot pie. The restaurant will be divided into two semi-private areas; the front dining area will seat 26 and the rear dining area will seat 30 or hold about 50 guests for reception-style events. Designer Christina Vick-Kell oversaw the look and feel of the restaurant, and the venue team commissioned street artist Alex Lazich to create two murals. Full buyouts are available.
Leslieville’s popular brunch spot Lady Marmalade reopened in a new Riverdale location in November. The two-floor, 1,600-square-foot space—which was designed by Omar Gandhi Architect Inc.—features soaring ceilings, several oversize windows overlooking Broadview Avenue, and massive skylights that provide ample natural lighting. The venue also has Baltic birch and 100 wall-mounted plants installed by In Situ Plants. The upstairs dining area seats 40 or holds 70 for receptions. The downstairs area can seat 14. The restaurant will be available for private event bookings after 5 p.m. only, and it can provide a fully equipped kitchen and bar planners to bring in their own catering and staffing.
The Food Dudes opened their globally-inspired fine dining concept, Sara, in November in the King West area. The 2,400-square-foot, two-story space is located inside a Victorian row house. The project preserved the building’s original brickwork and was designed by Odami, alongside Spanish architect Aránzazu González Bernardo and Canadian designer Michael Fohring to introduce marble tables, skylights, and custom Odami-designed furnishings built by Patrick Murphy and Toronto Woodworks. Sara offers family-style shared plates of globally-inspired cuisine including dumplings and modernized robata. With no private event spaces, the restaurant can accommodate a downstairs buyout, with seating for 20, an upstairs buyout for 30 seated, or a full buyout with seating for 50 guests. The entire restaurant can hold 75 cocktail-style.
Tucked away inside the Templar Hotel, Mother Tongue opened in September. The two-floor eatery in Toronto’s Fashion District takes over 3,000 square feet of space, and it was designed by boutique studio Solid Design. The restaurant has very distinct spaces, including the colorful and bright 46-seat main floor dining room, which features semi-elevated banquette seating. Guests can order from chef Francis Bermejo’s (formerly of Bar Buca) tasting menu, which blends the best of Spanish and Filipino dishes and finishes it off with a North American twist. One such example is the mussels cooked in coconut broth with lemongrass, cilantro, and chili. On the lower level, restaurant-goers are greeted by a neon-lighted sign that reads “Get A Room.” The 1,000-square-foot bar can accommodate a DJ with a full audio system and seats 30 or accommodates 75 guests for receptions. Full buyouts are available.
Nestled inside the Beverley Hotel, Carlotta Bar opened in July as a snack bar that celebrates Mexican street food. The restaurant has an 880-square-foot rooftop patio that seats 70 and, on the main level, an additional 800 square feet of space designed by Darya Maeki. The bar is dimly lit with a DJ booth, neon signage with a quote from Drake’s song “God’s Plan,” and plush leather seating for 60 or accommodations for 90 cocktail-style. A private event space is now under construction and is slated to open in early spring. Full buyouts are available.
For a recent event at the Perot Museum of Science and Nature in Dallas, Wolfgang Puck Catering employed a "chef shadowbox." Meant to provide a strong visual behind a more standard food station, a chef in a shadowbox prepared appetizers as guests looked on.
The Toronto firm is also using bar carts to display food items. One such spread, wheeled to tables at an event, offered snacks such as frittatas, foie gras, sliders, and lobster.
Instead of serving French fries at a stationary table, Limelight has used a wheelbarrow to deliver Belgian frites at events. The fries are served in cones, and assorted sauces are displayed on the side.
Roar Events produced a summertime event at Estancia La Jolla Hotel and Spa in Southern California. The dinner had a modern Mexican theme and featured an interactive margarita station. Guests chose the type and flavor of their tequila, as well as one of many specialty salts.
Passersby were invited to step inside a geodesic dome to grab Kohl’s Cash, which could be used to order products at the activation.
To celebrate the holidays, Target hosted family fun nights at New York’s South Street Seaport December 12 and 13. The outdoor event featured a giant boombox DJ booth, which played holiday songs.
The first night, guests could pose for photos with the brand’s canine mascot, Bullseye, in a holiday sweater.
Johnnie Walker partnered with gift concierge app Giftagram to host a gifting pop-up at Brookfield Place in New York. The pop-up, which runs through December 24, offers complimentary bottle engravings and scotch whiskey tastings. MKTG produced the pop-up and West Elm provided furniture in the lounge-like space.
Nissan unveiled an interactive snow globe at the Oculus at Westfield World Trade Center in New York from December 13 to 16. The 40-foot multisensory dome featured a 3-D skyline, enhanced by changing snowfall visuals and audio. The dome highlighted the 2019 Nissan Altima and its I-AWD technology, which adapts and redistributes the car’s power to suit weather conditions. The activation also had a 3-D animation photo booth. The experience was produced in partnership with TBWA/Chiat/Day, Fake Love, and OMD, and MagicSnow provided the artificial snow.
Kohl’s and PopSugar held a holiday pop-up shop in the Oculus at Westfield World Trade Center in New York December 6 and 7. BMF Media Group produced the event, which invited passersby to order Kohl’s products onsite. An entrance arch displaying products welcomed guests.
Drink Company’s fourth annual, over-the-top holiday pop-up bar in Washington is on display through December 31. This year, the bar has a theme inspired by the pandas of Smithsonian’s National Zoo. A mural created by artist Andrew Funk depicts pandas eating jelly doughnuts, which are a traditional Hanukkah treat.
The Christmas-inspired section features panda stuffed animals, a festive wrap of pandas in Santa hats on the bar, and an illustration of Frosty the Snowman.
The Mark Hotel in New York partnered with luxury department store Bergdorf Goodman to debut a festive red Pedicab, which takes hotel guests to and from the store. Guests can purchase items presented in a holiday gift list placed in rooms and enjoy free hot cocoa during the ride.
Swarovski unveiled its holiday trees at Toronto’s Union Station in November. The trees are dripping in more than 2,000 Swarovski ornaments, surrounded by a crystallized train set in the brand's blue and silver colors. The display was designed by Creative Twist.
PHD Terrace at New York’s Dream Midtown debuted a season-long holiday pop-up in November. The bar features a festive green, orange, and white color scheme, with a swing photo op, floral installations, and mistletoe adornments. The pop-up was designed and installed by artist Jenevieve Penk in collaboration with Tao Group at Dream Hotels.
The pastry team at JW Marriott L.A. Live created a life-size gingerbread bar comprised of 1,300 pounds of spiced cookie dough and sugar. The bar serves a rotating array of holiday refreshments.
Executive pastry chef Dominique Valenzuela and her team at JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa created a colorful 14-foot gingerbread house, with building blocks as a theme that nods to the property’s current renovations. The structure was made with 200 pounds of sugar, 400 pounds of icing, and 800 multicolored cookie bricks. The house is decorated with 1,400 lollipops, 100 pounds of hard candies, and more than 1,000 gumdrops.
Fatherly, a digital media brand for dads, launched its holiday pop-up, the Playroom, on December 6 at 140 West Broadway in Tribeca. The kid-friendly pop-up featured an “ice cave” that displayed the brand’s 100 best toys of 2018. The brand collaborated with Crony Creative to produce the activation.
Activation sponsor RxBar Kids had a jump pit for kids
The entrance to the pop-up featured hanging paper snowflakes and colorful tree statues with toys as ornaments.
The Springs in Brooklyn has been transformed into a Christmas pop-up bar, open through December 30. The pop-up has an array of Christmas decorations, including candy cane wallpaper. The bar serves drinks including a frozen peppermint bark latte, Festivus mulled wine, and a cocktail called Nog-Gonna Make It To Work Tomorrow. The pop-up was designed by the Springs owner Anthony Serignese.
New York rooftop venue Mr. Purple at Hotel Indigo has turned into an après-ski lodge, which will be open through February. The space, which was designed in house, includes a giant snow globe with Veuve Clicquot-branded ski lodge decor and a champagne bar.
Ever Bar at the Kimpton Everly Hotel in Los Angeles has been turned into an over-the-top Christmas-theme bar for the season. The space includes a lighted archway, a tree created with presents, and a mailbox where guests can send letters to Santa. The pop-up was designed internally.
The courtyard at Clinton Hall in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, will be a holiday-theme space through February. The pop-up has D.I.Y. s’mores making, eggnog cheesecake pops, spiked hot chocolate, and a Christmas tree with beer can ornaments.
To unveil its “Unrap a Jaguar” campaign, Jaguar partnered with HGTV star Jonathan Scott to reveal a mobile holiday window on December 11 at flatiron Plaza South in New York. Scott ripped away vinyl tartan wrap from a double-decker bus to reveal the automaker’s E-Pace compact performance SUV sitting on faux snow. The bus will travel around Manhattan through December 23.
