UNKNWN helps out the local, independent establishments affected by COVID through Hain: Takeaway, Together.
To support small, local, and independent food establishments gravely affected by the ongoing pandemic, UNKNWN launches a community dining experience called Hain: Takeaway, Together.
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“The idea behind Hainstemmed from our desire to help the local food and beverage businesses that have been affected by these extraordinary times,” says co-organizer and restaurateur Samantha Nicole.
Produced by CC.Concepts and launched in 2016, UNKNWN is an experiential events company, describes Nicole. It “brought the country’s first film concert experience with Harry Potter in Concert and Call Me By Your Name in Concert,” she explains.
Before the pandemic, UNKNWN organized events in and out of the metro, featuring international and local acts like Jamie xx, Four Tet, Tim Sweeney, Kim Ann Foxman, and Breakbot.
“It’s highly community-driven, wherein every event is inclusive, carefully crafted, sensitive to its audience’s needs, and often associated its initiatives with CSR components,” Nicole says.
After one and half years of nightlife being on pause, it only makes sense for them to reactivate as a vehicle to aid small spaces, Nicole says.
This, she points out, is “where UNKNWN’s origins and first few parties started, in a different but still community-driven way. It only made sense for us to utilize our market and our reach to help these surviving restaurants, and tap our audience who have always given high regard to personal and communal experiences.”
Nicole continues that they also “want to show that these struggling, but surviving restaurants are endlessly creating and adapting and that ensuring our industry’s place in the future would require a collective effort.”
Curated set
One of their main goals is to boost the morale of the community during these trying times, adds co-organizer Ash Rye.
“It’s really nice seeing everyone joining forces, from restaurateurs and chefs to diners and even our creative friends, to make this initiative possible,” she says. “This is also our way of supporting our charity partners in their activities that put food on the tables of their beneficiaries.”
For Hain’s first edition happening on September 17 to 19, 13 restaurants in Metro Manila have curated special takeaway menus and set meals exclusively for HAIN.
The participating restaurants include Angel’s Kitchen, The Bowery NYC Comfort Food, Lampara, OTO, Borough, Nic’s Park Terraces, Hai Shin Lou, Futur:st, Square One Hospitality, Cheech & Chang Hong Kong Roasts, TETSUO, Mijo Comfort Food, and The Bistro by Element Boutique Hotel.
These curated set meals are available on Hain’s official website for P1,500. Customers can order these special set meals until the event’s last day on September 19. Fifteen percent of sales from the Hain weekend will go to Rise Against Hunger PH. They will be used in support of their projects to end hunger by empowering communities, nourishing lives, and responding to emergencies.
Organic and sustainable
For this weekend, Hain has partnered with indoor farm Future Fresh to provide the participating restaurants with hydroponically-grown and pesticide-free greens. Hain is also working with upcoming events IFEX Philippines and Sustainability Solutions Expo (SSX) to provide sustainable food packaging throughout the weekend.
IFEX Philippines is the banner event for the food trade sector while SSX is poised to be the country’s leading platform for sustainable products, solutions, and technologies for MSMEs in the food and lifestyle sectors. Both events are organized by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM).
EachHAIN kit will also come with a complimentary Singleton of Dufftown 12YO Pocket Single Malt Scotch together with custom cocktail recipes concocted by each partner restaurant. Customers of HAIN will be able to #TastetheSingleton through diverse serves paired with different food offerings in the comfort of their own homes.
A video-on-demand (VOD) accessed through the kits, will also take diners into an in-depth journey about Hain, highlighting the offerings of each restaurant as well as the enriching stories. Moreover, the VOD will give customers access to a special video segment by The Singleton, taking diners through a step-by-step guide on how to prepare signature cocktails at home.
For more information, follow Hain on Instagram, or visit Hain-mnl.shop.
