Pop-Up #1: Flung out of Space
as told by Melissa Du (with photos by Sangita Vasikaran)
In the beginning MINCE created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was without sustenance; and hunger was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit of MINCE moved upon the face of MIT. And MINCE said let there be delicious food for the deprived, overworked, overachieving students of MIT…
And thus flung out a frazzled chef cat.
We wanted to start with a bang
On the first day (09/03), MINCE held our first ever menu ideation session and family meal. Over homemade chilaquiles, red bean mochi, and samosas, we discussed star dust freeze-dried strawberry powder, nebular butterfly pea tea, and spaghettified squid ink spaghetti. We envisioned students surveying the cosmos upon a warmly lit rooftop, watching the stars dance in the sky and tasting mini flavor novae in their mouths.
On the second day (09/15), we selected the cook team for the first Pop up—Joanna Cao as head chef, Tananya and Angela on appetizers, Jason and Akorfa on the main dish, and April and Alayo on dessert, and ….
On the third day (09/15), we held our first recipe creation and development session with the cook team, and our members created their first iterations of mango passionfruit panna cotta and shrimp ceviche. The tostada was our planet, and we created the hydrostatic equilibrium between sugar, acid, spice, and fat.
(09/13) We released the menu and opened registration for the event. People were allowed to submit reservations for up to three people, and each submission counted as one entry into the lottery. Groups of people would be selected randomly until our creation limit of 30 humans was reached.
On the fourth day (09/19), we created the tables from slabs of wood in the EC woodworking space. We perused tableware designs and decor for the venue. We selected our first 30 attendees.
On the fifth day (09/23), we prepped all the primordial ingredients and did the final checks to ensure that our big bang was fully in order.
On the sixth day (09/24), we admired the Boston skyline as we prepared the rooftop for our first guests. Among the few people we knew, we mixed and matched the seating arrangements, imagining personalities clashing and conversations spiraling. As the hour of the big bang approached, the sun was just starting to dip in the sky, leaving brilliant hues of orange and purple across the tops of skyscrapers. The receding daylight allowed our own string lights to shine brighter, and they cast dancing stars into the water glasses.
The first guests began showing up right on time and mayhem quickly overtook the kitchen as we assembled the appetizers. Two fried tostadas. Spread with gunpowder calamansi mayo. Topped with shrimp ceviche. Served alongside arugula salad tossed in passion fruit vinaigrette and passion. Garnished with pickled radish. On repeat.
As soon as appetizers went out, the kitchen immediately started on the pasta main and butterfly pea tea refresher. Those of us not involved in cooking and plating started eating the leftover tostadas and shrimp ceviche, but before long, all hands were employed to mix pasta or arrange calamari or sprinkle salted egg yolk and fish roe.
The final piece of the night—berry and mango panna cotta topped with freeze dried strawberry and berries—was prepped the day before and ready to serve at any time. So on the seventh day, we rested and ate and thanked everyone for coming to our creation.
And just like that, MINCE flung out of space and into MIT.
