From the Series
When flavours become so familiar that they border on the mundane, it takes food designers like Bompas & Parr to present the experience of food in a new and innovative way. Known for projects like Alcoholic Architecture and the 200 Club, partners Sam Bompas and Harry Parr use their individual talents to pioneer inventive projects in the world of food architecture.
According to co-founder Bompas, the studio is interested in designing installations that grip people’s attention using a niche approach to universal subjects.
One such project was the UK-based Alcoholic Architecture, a walk-in cloud of breathable cocktail that saturated the air. The celebrated installation saw patrons spend an hour at a time ingesting gin and tonic through their lungs and eyeballs while sipping on monastic-inspired cocktails.
“What we’re doing is presenting the spirit or cocktail in a very unusual way. See, you want something that people are familiar with the flavours of so that they can recognise it in the air,” says Bompas, adding that a more creative approach to the flavour might have left patrons unsure of what they’re tasting.
By collaborating with a number of other experts, Bompas & Parr have managed to “turbo charge” their installations. In their latest mammoth project, the studio collaborated with ten acclaimed chefs to create a 200-course tasting menu – the longest tasting menu in the world.
Describing the 200 Club, Bompas says it was a “mighty food tidal wave that lasted for 24 hours.”
