A 22-Course Meal, in 22 Settings - Shanghai's Ultraviolet Restaurant | The New York Times

At the restaurant Ultraviolet in Shanghai, Chef Paul Pairet has taken the dining and turned it into theater, adding ambient music, enhancing scent and unorthodox utensils to the menu.
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A 22-Course Meal, in 22 Settings - Shanghai's Ultraviolet Restaurant
/ thenewyorktimes

[@joegeoghan]

He should prohibit cell phones during the meal.

[@roberdude12345]

would be fun while tripping

[@counterstrike1110]

this just looks amazing, unbelievably unique

[@oiramsq73]

I’ve been. A friend organized an entire table of 10 for one night - I paid (it was a lot) and I was very, VERY apprehensive. “this had better be special…” If you go to UV for the food alone, you’ve kind of entered through the wrong door. They intentionally hide as much of the detail behind the meal as they can to throw you into the situation at an angle and to let you find your own footing. If you can go with friends - go with friends. It’s a bit like going to a concert and being able to turn to someone you know and say “did you see/hear that???” I went into it deeply skeptical of what would possibly make a meal worth THAT MUCH money… when I left I felt as though I hadn’t paid enough! It was BEYOND just a great meal or a great presentation or a great night out; it actually changed how I view a lot of different (non-food related) things in life. It is THAT good. It is that GREAT!

[@NetiNeti25920]

So basically you paid one or two months's average paycheck just to experience something in your brain? Perhaps an ayahuasca retreat or even a float tank wpuld be cheaper and achieve a better result within a shorter time?

[@oiramsq73]

@@NetiNeti25920 factor the travel time/expense to go to somewhere in the jungle where you can have an authentic ayahuasca ceremony and it works out to be the same. Until you do it you can not understand UV. What I can say for certain (because this is how “I” experienced it) is that I went in with a very negative attitude and very little idea how food was going to change it. And I was shocked to find out that UV had a lot of tricks up its sleeve to in fact change my mood. It was a theatre. It was a concert. It was a comedy routine. It was a video arcade game. … and yes there was food and drinks too. But I don’t remember all of the food in detail. What I do remember is the feeling of absolute panic as you realize that the room is SINKING INTO THE FLOOR (Do I remember the grilled bacon sandwich that was served next? Yes, but less so). I remember a wall opening up to reveal a Singaporean hawker (do I remember the taste of the wok fried beef that came next? Yes, but less so). I remember eating a tea cup - like something out of “Alice in Wonderland” - I don’t remember the taste or brand of the tea that it was made out of… I remember the look of confusion of the person sat across from me as I decided to BITE the cup in half instead of waiting for someone to fill it. If you want a cost effective meal there is a rack with rotisserie chickens at every major supermarket, grab one for $10.00 and get a tub of mashed potato and tub of steamed vegetables. When you eat it with your family, what will you remember? Will you remember the way the brine formed a crispy brown shell on the skin of the chicken or will you remember the conversation you had with your children or your spouse? … UV is the same; you remember the surroundings and the banter - BUT - those surroundings are in outer space or at the bottom of the ocean or under and arbor formed by a gigantic blade of grass in a country garden. The expense is the expense.

[@garethakehurst5770]

@@oiramsq73 Great that you enjoyed it! I have the pleasure that I know a lot of the team and some are friends! I even have the pleasure of being credited on the creative list! An amazing concept by Chef Paul and Chef Greg and a team of exceedingly talented chefs and technicians!

[@oiramsq73]

@@garethakehurst5770 since going I made it a point to visit Mr.&Mrs. Bund and then Polux until becoming acquainted with some of the staff across all three restaurants. They are a great team of people. And being credited creatively on this list of people is no small feat. Kudos!

[@garethakehurst5770]

@@oiramsq73 Yeah - I was very lucky to be bought on many years ago as their Audio Visual Consultant for the UV Restaurant. Pleased you linked them! I wont like MMB is my favorite though! Some amazing nights at the birthday parties there!

[@Waynev111]

That looks amazing, I wish it was closer, I want to try it!

[@lagiacrus1180]

800 dollars a ticket. Here I am commenting on a 6 year old comment.

[@mikkey246]

@@lagiacrus1180 have you tried it yet?

[@dyor2086]

十分可以啊，回国尝试一下

[@edwardtorres8333]

Table for two - Please

[@mrdingles5107]

Heard about this on radio and needed to see. Not as exciting as I thought. I forgot how much they said it was but it's pricey by alot

[@SheDoobz]

@EH Cbunny Don't be ignorant. I bet you're the same person who nags that a child is starving, when one does not finish their meal when knowingly they are full.

[@SlayNetwork]

The first before sublimotion

[@ddermend]

"unpretentiousness" at the highest pretentious level

[@freakyflow]

My now wife Took me From Canada to Philippines And with 2 weeks She shown me The beauty of Philippines with Back drops of landscapes and food Day 1 Early morning Tondo Manila Street side market Champorado ( sweet chocolate rice porridge ) with salty dried fish ..sounds wrong but it works Afternoon Halo halo while walking Rizal park So many diffrent foods and places and great people ..That is what makes food great

[@RickDeckardMemories]

"unpretentious" ... yea, right! )))

[@elavky]

He's a genius

[@meow7331]

what are those 22 course meal?

[@batmanaerm7649]

its funny thing...

[@vindyvindy1]

I don't want to loose my concentration to anything when I am eating

[@That1GGirl]

The cheaper version of sublimotion restaurant

[@shawnscott7842]

this idea was already done by Italian futurists in the 20s, look it up.

[@YellowJelly13]

care to elaborate?

[@NetiNeti25920]

yeah buddy, don't be throwing around claims without backing em up. been 4 years now.

[@jsbhmm8232]

And this is why people laugh when cuisine is presented as avant-garde art. Silly.

[@T_and_NIL]

next set for the next season of squid game

[@NetiNeti25920]

The music at 2:21 is reminiscent of the wakeup of Squid Game morning wakeup music.

[@lxvlx]

Ban the mobile phones ffs!

[@guseletov]

Ok, I maybe end up being labeled as negative minority. But .. the whole thing is a bit controversial. He is talking about pork-chops being at the top of their quality and eating the,.. And - creating a 22-course, 22-settings perfomance. Why? I see it as a sign of modern Fast-Food, TikTok-IKEA-and-etc culture. Maximize sensitve influence for the people with very short attention span - max emotions in the minimum time. Why not simply go and enjoy real lobster at the real sea-side? Why we can't sit and enjoy food ( or book or whatver) and the place and at the time that is now for real?

[@EHCBunny4real]

I bet a starving child wonders why some have to be entertained while eating.

[@huntercarter5426]

EH CBunny I bet he wonders more often why he is starving.

[@SuperGGLOL]

That’s what happens when a civilisation is successful. Also explains why the government isn’t too caring.

[@user-qh4pe6pc2w]

I wonder is this business success? I bet it is not.

[@user-wc6fg8dj2i]

It’s 18000 yuan for two people equivalent to 2500dollars so that’s about 20000 dollars every night after cutting the cost the actual amount of money made each night is around 15000$(personal guess)

[@mikkey246]

Updates?

[@NetiNeti25920]

Is this restaurant still operating?

[@giornogiovannia3162]

It is actually still a successful buissness so much that Paul Pairet has been invited to top chef France many times

[@amelialin7166]

those lights look so cheap itll just make me dizzy and be a distraciton from the food

[@susanhe6785]

it's 3 michelin star restaurant. yea I bet it has cheap lights.

[@Marny5580]

Looks too noisy for my taste - I like to enjoy the environment without loud music and other distractions. Chef, dental stuff.