The Black Lagoon Pop-Up Bar Series is about more than Spooky Season – Erin Hayes & Kelsey Ramage Share All the Details

By Tara Fougner

Each year as October approaches, we begin to get all the season’s Halloween and “Spooky Season” themed pop-up bars and series. The Black Lagoon is way more than just a themed event series, it is a celebration of macabre, goth and metal culture through the lens of the cocktail bar. The brainchild of two industry veterans, Erin Hayes (Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles and Chicago’s Lost Lake) and Kelsey Ramage (Trash Collective and Toronto’s soon-to-open Supernova), it aims to serve up an immersive “creepy-as-hell” experience for guests at select bars across the U.S. and Canada.

The duo ideated the terrifying concept after running a pop-up at Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans’ infamous Dungeon Bar.  And after testing one-night-only events, they knew Black Lagoon could be something very special. Black Lagoon was recently named Canada’s Best Pop-Up Bar by Canada’s 100 Best, and this year, we expect it go much bigger & harder. Cities were carefully selected by Erin & Kelsey for having both robust cocktail culture and openness of embracing what they refer to as “counterculture.”

Black Lagoon 2022 Pop-Up Series

Erin Hayes

“We want this experience to be open to all, a place where anyone is welcome. Black Lagoon is a space for cocktail enthusiasts, the adventure & thrill seekers, the non-conformists, the Halloween & horror lovers and really anyone who is interested in experiencing something new and above all – fun. Some people don’t feel comfortable at “cocktail” bars, but we wanted to incorporate the product you would expect from that realm with the weird and spooky universe that Black Lagoon comes from to make this a safe space for everyone to enjoy.”

Kelsey Ramage

“The thing that really sets us apart is definitely our cocktail menu. We wanted to create drinks that were completely unique and on-theme, but delicious at the same time. We spent so much experimenting with different flavors, colors and combinations. This menu is the truest collaboration that either of us has worked on before. We see many of these types of pop-up events executed well on the decor side of things, while the menu items take a backseat. We are really excited about the final outcome and we hope our guests enjoy the whole immersive experience when they come to one of our pop-ups.”

The location and dates for each pop-up are:

  • Butcher & Bullock, Vancouver, October 11th-31st

  • Dandy Crown in partnership with Hospitality 201, Chicago, October 3rd-31st

  • Hey Love, Portland, October 17th-31st

  • Lost Property Bar, Los Angeles, October 1-31st

  • Nickel City, Dallas/FortWorth, October 11th-31st

  • Our Wicked Lady, New York City, October 1-31st

  • Third Space, Toronto, October 1-31st

  • Yacht Club, Denver, October 17th-31st

  • 132 Bar Vintage, Montreal, October 1-31st

The drinks menu is built around Halloween hues – you’ll find beverages that are blood red, the darkest black and an eerie orange to celebrate the season. A few of the drinks will be served in custom glassware – purchasable if visitors want to take home a demented souvenir. Drinks include names that set the nightmarish mood like – Screaming Banshee, Lilith’s Cup, Closed Casket and Hellraiser.

For the latest and most up-to-date information, visit www.blacklagoonpopup.com and follow along on Instagram at @blacklagoonpopup.

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