LOS ANGELES—Serving food is undoubtedly one of the biggest challenges for in-person events in the time of COVID-19. So restaurant reservations platform Resy certainly didn’t make it easy on themselves when they decided to host a drive-through experience with not one, not two, but 10 food courses.
The Resy Drive-Thru, which takes over the Hollywood Palladium on Oct. 15 and 16, will bring together 10 Los Angeles-based restaurants and chefs—including A-list picks like Nancy Silverton, Curtis Stone, Nyesha Arrington, and Jon & Vinny’s. Presented by American Express Gold Card, the outdoor experience bills itself as "a first-of-its-kind restaurant drive-through experience created specifically with COVID safety measures in mind."
Resy tapped full-service creative agency Shiraz Creative to bring the experience to life; Stoelt Productions is providing additional support with lighting and audiovisual production. "After the realization that COVID was going to impact all programming and events for the foreseeable future, the Resy team came to us with this crazy idea of doing an elevated drive-through experience that was safe but also really exciting for restaurant lovers," explains Stavros Tripi, vice president of brand experiences for Shiraz Creative. "We loved the idea—and the challenge—and so we took that and ran with it."
The group's main goal was to offer an elevated twist on a drive-through restaurant—and to show some love to the struggling industry. "Historically the concept of a drive-through restaurant has been reserved exclusively for the fast-food category, but we are challenging that notion," says Tripi. "Some of the restaurants participating have been closed since the beginning of the pandemic and not able to deliver their style of food and experience to guests; this event gives them that opportunity, and it proves that a tasting menu can exist beyond a restaurant’s four walls."
Cars will enter the experience in 15-minute timeslots to allow for pacing, and guests will stay inside their vehicles at all times. Drivers are asked to put their cars in park at each of the 10 stops, and their server brings each tasting course to the car window.Rendering: Courtesy of Resy
So, how does it work? "Guests never get out of their cars during the entire experience," he explains. "When cars arrive they check in and are assigned to a dedicated server who stays with them throughout the entire experience, guides them through the drive-through, serves them, and 'clears each course' like they would in a restaurant."
Drivers are asked to put their cars in park at each of the 10 stops, and their server brings each tasting course to the car window. While enjoying the food, guests can tune into a customized playlist through their car stereo; each track will feature the participating chefs and restaurants sharing the inspiration about the dish.
Tripi says that the event's biggest challenge has, unsurprisingly, been dealing with safety compliance guidelines, opening phases, and local and state laws that have been evolving weekly—but ultimately, he doesn't think the safety measures are taking anything away from the guest experience. "There is so much more to consider now, first and foremost the safety of guests and all staff working the event," he says. "But when we took a step back and looked at the final experience, we realized that even once this current pandemic passes, there is very little (if anything) we would change. The concept, creative, and guest experience would still be relevant."
To comply with local safety measures, all event personnel are being tested for COVID-19 prior to arrival; each will also receive temperature screenings and undergo safety training on-site. Staffers will wear masks, gloves, and face shields for the duration, and hand-washing and hand-sanitizing stations will be placed in multiple locations throughout the outdoor venue. Staffers are also being instructed to keep eight feet of distance at all times.
On the attendee side, all guests will prebook and prepay on the Resy app, and cars will enter in 15-minute time slots to allow for pacing. Attendees will be asked to wear masks when rolling down car windows to interact with their servers, and all food and drink will be presented in single-serving, eco-friendly containers.
Tickets, which cost $95 per person and go on sale for the general public tomorrow, can be booked through Resy's new Event Ticketing tool. An added bonus? Resy and American Express will donate a portion of proceeds to chef José Andrés' World Central Kitchen nonprofit. In addition, Los Angeles-based apron brand Hedley & Bennett will be providing a mask for every attendee and also donating 1,000 masks to the World Central Kitchen.
