69) The Pop-Up

Oh, the pop-up. That glorious retail trend that's been sweeping in and out of abandoned spaces since 2004. We've all seen or heard of them. Target's ingenious designer pop-ups in New York. The oh so popular Where the Wild Things Are pop-up at Space 15 Twenty in LA. And tonight, my friend Jesse and I are going to a pop-up ramen restaurant.

The flyer above is perfect, really. 1) An image of chopsticks and "Yatai" in an Asian-looking font. (Mini aside - I am so fascinated by fonts that can be categorized by race. What makes a font look Asian? The fonts that look like calligraphy brush strokes, or the ones that look like they've been written in katana slashes?) 2) "Gourmet street food." Embrace the oxymoron. 3) "A pop-up experience," and "A pop-up event." One vague word starting with "e" wasn't enough to describe this pop-up. 4) "RAMEN TWIST." Clearly, this isn't your ordinary ramen, though they do serve the standard shio, shoyu and miso varieties. 5) A set range of days and times when this edgy ramen is available - the very definition of pop-up. 6) "RSV.P" Simply making a reservation won't do. Répondez s'il vous plaît if you'd like to slurp noodles for a limited time only.

The pop-up is a genius concept. Its ability to create demand, to make an event out of the ordinary deserves to be recognized. I may come off as sarcastic in my analysis above, but I have no doubt that my ramen will be tasty tonight. The point is that knowing that it won't be around in a month will make it taste even better.