Thanks to everyone who stopped by the MOLD Future Food Cafe + Exhibition at Sight Unseen’s OFFSITE during New York Design Week. We were surprised (and delighted) to meet so many people who were not only brave enough to try our cricket summer rolls, but who asked for seconds—or for a handful of deep-fried crickets to munch on at our cafe counter like bar snacks. Bravo to you all—you really made our week.
We had some really fun conversations about a staggering variety of entomophagous experiences (i.e. insect-eating episodes). We met people who had recently sampled scorpions and centipedes on a stick in China, so a little cricket was no big deal. Wonderful! For others, however, it was more than they could stomach, and we did see a few (actually just two) summer rolls get spit back out. That’s okay! It’s all about baby steps. And besides, we’re not a cricket cafe, so it’s not like we were personally offended. We just wanted to spark a conversation about all the things we love exploring right here on thisismold.com.
Which, in case you missed us at OFFSITE, included a few other food items like Chia Pods (from our venerable sponsor, The Chia Co.) Exo protein bars made from cricket flour (try the peanut butter + jelly!), and Critter Bitters cocktail bitters made from distilled crickets. We used the deliciously aromatic vanilla variety in our Cutty Sark + minted sweat tea punch, which made our cafe a popular destination during the kick off party.
After picking up a drink, we hope you moseyed on by our exhibition to see:
All in One, by Chris Godfrey (2013)
A commentary on the state of our contemporary food system, this 12-course meal featuring organic and locally sourced ingredients is heavily processed and then packed into a single can, layer by layer.
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Cheburashka, by Lera Moiseeva + Luca Nichetto (2014)
A table set that enhances and reinterprets the ritual of meal sharing. The set consists of a collection containers and a lid that, if reversed, becomes a base for the large serving spoon. Two equal-sized bowls can be stacked to form a totem.
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Tribaling Mass Production, by Ma’ayan Pesach (2014)
Collaging mass-produced objects and food industry waste products, this family of totems abstracts the relics of food culture. By repurposing leftovers of hyper-consumerism, new meaning for future dining scenarios are created.
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Hi-Fy, by The Living (2014)
Using biological technologies combined with cutting edge computation and engineering to create new building materials, the architects of The Living created Hy-Fi, a bio-designed structure made from agricultural waste and mushroom mycelium bricks. Watch principal David Benjamin show us how it’s made, and see the final structure in the PS1 MoMA courtyard all summer long.
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Ento Box, by Ento
To build awareness of the benefits of edible insects, Ento will deliver a succession of foods and eating experiences that will challenge a cultural taboo and provide a roadmap for introducing edible insects to the Western diet.
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More about the Future Food exhibition:
How can design shape our food future? From advances in 3D printing and insect farming to restaurant interiors and tableware, designers are rethinking the way we experience and interact with food. If “you are what you eat,” then the projects presented in Future Food imagine a more connected, hyperlocal and innovative world. The MOLD Pop-up Cafe will serve delicious, protein-rich super foods from The Chia Co, Exo, World Ento and Best Summer. Design opens the doors to new rituals and relationships, redefining the landscape of what it means to cook, consume and create.
