Lark Meets The Mad Platter Kitchen

May 22, 2015January 8, 2020

Lark + Chef Kyle + The Hood Kitchen | Hipping It Up in Costa Mesa, California

3/28/15 Pop-Up Dinner Party at The Hood Kitchen in Costa Mesa, CA

We were honored to set our communal table at this amazing haven for Culinary Professionals, Food Artisans & Entrepreneurs. Our early inspiration was to reflect the fun and coolness of this amazing space that houses commercial kitchens and an extraordinary amount of support to the culinary community at large. We brought in some colorful paintings by artist Catherine Rex, along with some sharp looking cactus (pun intended). We grounded the vibe with tribal painted rocks and synced all of it up with a groovy soundtrack. Then, as always, Chef Kyle worked his magic and actually plated Hip & Edge – we enjoyed:

STARTERS

RHUBARB MARGARITA served on the rocks w/a sweet and salty rim,
garnished with kumquats & limes!

CURED SEAFOOD PLATTER beet cured salmon + citrus cured shrimp
served on a platter w/multi colored vegetable chips,
spiced fried hominy, roasted shisito peppers & cucumber salsa!

VEGETARIAN SOPES corn sopes topped w/a purple potato mash + quickly pickled onions, greens, smoked salt & a lime zest crema!

ON THE TABLE
& paired w/South American & Spanish wines:

BOWLS OF LOTUS CHIPS served w/a dried chile tapenade

COURSE ONE
CHARRED GREENS SALAD charred romaine and crispy kale tossed in a burnt tortilla vinaigrette w/pepitas, roasted red peppers & cotija cheese

COURSE TWO
BRAISED BEEF SHORT RIB TAMALES served w/a spicy lobster sauce, topped with fried black-eyed peas, roasted vegetables & chunks of lobster meat

****Vegetarian Alternative****
BRAISED JACKFRUIT TAMALES served with a spicy hatch chile sauce, topped w/fried black eyed peas, roasted vegetables & frisee lettuce

COURSE THREE
CHURROS TWO WAYS homemade churros, served w/a spicy chocolate ganache & deep fried churro ice cream

Many thanks to all the beautiful people who came on a lark with us! They brought their gorgeous smiles and good vibes! Special thanks to Shelby Coffman, LetterSparrow, Catherine Rex Art, Medium Raw Arts, Monique Schulfer, Seaworth Coffee Co., Jeri Vann Creations, Jaxsea Swimwear, Tom Goad, Marisa Powers, Jane Vo, and Dawn Martinez.

On a lark at The Hood Kitchen Space Costa Mesa, CA — Charred romaine and crispy kale tossed in a burnt tortilla vinaigrette w/pepitas, roasted red peppers & cotija cheese. On a lark @TheHoodKitchen 3-28-15.

On a lark at The Hood Kitchen Space 3-28-15 — Catherine, Monique, Shelby, Kyle, Marisa & Lisa. On a lark Lark @TheHoodKitchen 3-28-15.

Cured Seafood Platter — beet cured salmon + citrus cured shrimp served on a platter w/multi colored vegetable chips, spiced fried hominy, roasted shisito peppers & cucumber salsa! On a lark @TheHoodKitchen 3-28-15.

Hip & Edge! @The Hood Kitchen Space — Hip & Edge! On a lark @TheHoodKitchen 3-28-15.

BRAISED BEEF SHORT RIB TAMALES served w/a spicy lobster sauce, topped with fried black-eyed peas, roasted vegetables & chunks of lobster meat. On a lark @TheHoodKitchen 3-28-15.

Beautiful work by @LetterSparrow. On a lark @TheHoodKitchen 3-28-15.

January 14, 2015January 14, 2015

Lark + Letter Sparrow

We are excited to announce our collaboration with Letter Sparrow, who will be designing our menu and place cards for our upcoming lark at 503found. We only see good things coming from this talented artist and are honored to work with her. xo~l

September 10, 2014September 10, 2014

Since we are dreamers…

We went ahead an entered West Elm’s Local Small Business Grant contest!

http://www.latimes.com/home/la-lh-west-elm-to-offer-grant-20140811-story.html

In 75 characters or less, tell us about your business.*

Simple. Refreshing. Inspired. Stylish Underground Dining & Marketplace.

In 145 characters or less, tell us how this grant will help you achieve your business goals.*

It will provide the resources to establish our own location and grow our offerings to include Design Consultation and eCommerce.

Tell us why and how you started your business.*

To nurture and inspire individuals, making this a better world, even for a moment. We began our business by “popping” up in various locations, including parks, boutiques and private residences. Popping us allows us to keep our overhead costs low while we learn what works best for everyone. Our motto is to “do, reflect, refine, & do again”.

What do you love most about what you do?*

We love making ideas happen, with the perfect combination wit & whimsy, just to see where it goes and how it inspires others. We get to style locations, enjoy food + wine, and have great conversations.

Tell us about your current work. What do you make? What’s special about the construction or materials used?*

We style our underground dinner party and marketplace locations. We scout, acquire materials, and talent. We use West Elm products as well as local designers to make our space beautiful and inspirational.

What 3 words would you use to describe your work and why?*

First would be “lark” because it is a true adventure! Second would be “Inspired” because this is our goal. Third would be “Refreshing” because it’s always fresh.

What are your goals for your business and your vision for growth?*

To open a quaint Brick & Mortar that offers Curated Goods, Event Space and Design Consultation. Because it’s so much fun, we will continue producing underground dining and marketplace events, expanding to cities around the world, to facilitate the positive impact of design and community.

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Here’s to all the dreamers!

xo~L

September 10, 2014

On a lark with Main & PCH

We recently met up with local Huntington Beach blogger Lauren of “Main & PCH”, who lives and loves all things local, to share a bit of our story! Read about it here: Let’s go on a lark

Sharing our story... — Sharing our story…

May 23, 2014June 25, 2014

5/16/14 “For The Dreamers” lark at 31 Bits in Costa Mesa

Our lark on Friday, May 16th was an amazing experience. Thanks to all the beautiful people who attended. We gathered around the communal table at the 31 Bits bungalow in Costa Mesa to enjoy food, wine, and great conversation. We appreciate Jessie, Courtney, and all of 31 Bits for sharing their space and story with us! We are truly inspired!

www.31Bits.com Using Fashion and Design to Empower Women to Rise Above Poverty.

September 5, 2013September 5, 2013

8/30/13 “Discovering Beauty and Inspiration” at Cleobella’s in Sunset Beach, CA

Friday’s lark was held at Cleobella’s 1920’s seaside cottage in Sunset Beach. We had a balmy, beautiful evening under the stars as we enjoyed wine, conversation and an Ecuadorian inspired menu. We are thankful for Jim and Angela for opening the doors, sharing their good vibes and joining us at the common table.

Their quaint little boutique offers timeless bohemian pieces from handbags to home décor. All of Cleobella’s handmade products create sustainable income for artisans in Bali Indonesia and a portion of all profits are donated to Care.org, specifically helping women in South East Asia. So inspiring!

Cleobella’s 16792 14th St. Huntington Beach, CA 92649

www.cleobella.com

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A lark at the beautiful Cleobella Boutique in Sunset Beach

June 29, 2013June 29, 2013

6/27/13 “Let’s Have A Great Summer” Pop-Up at The AOSA Project

We were happy to set the communal table inside The AOSA Project, an amazing socially responsible retail shop in Huntington Harbor. What a great way to start off summer! We did our best to create a special, but eclectic setting – something that would fit the location well. Many great topics were brought up at the dinner table, such as “The Edible Schoolyard Project” and how do you know when “You have it all”? These great images were taken by Vivid Images-Don Baker. Many thanks to Jennifer Orona for opening the doors for us. We cannot wait to do it again!

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June 15, 2013August 7, 2014

Why Pop?

Popping up a restaurant and marketplace in different locations is a cool and fun way to bring people together to share what we are passionate about in life. For me, this is the perfect combination of friends, food, wine, and design (an abridged list as you may surmise). It is also a way for “Lark” to figure out where it fits in this world, a sort of living business plan. Our motto is “do, reflect, refine, and do again”. We often tell people it’s about “doing” instead of “dreaming of doing”. We hope this leads to becoming experts at pop-ups and, later on, having our own brick and mortar. However, we are grateful to have discovered the opportunity to bring people together for a wonderful and unique experience doing what we love. The beauty of popping up is that each event is fresh and different. The combination of locations, people, food, design are constantly changing and evolving. This makes it easy to call it an adventure, ahem, Lark.

-Lisa Gutierrez-Martinez, Owner/Creative Director

Ready to greet out guests! at our AoSA Underground Dinner Party in Huntington Harbor.

February 28, 2013March 1, 2013

2/23/13 “Bohemian Romance” at Viridian ~ Pictures

We had a wonderful time at Viridian in Costa Mesa! Cheers to Lisa Kray for all her help and support. We hope to have another event there soon! Please visit www.viridianfinds.com, you will love it!

Wine, Appetizer & Cheese Plate greet you!Interior at Viridian

Wine, Appetizer & Cheese Plate greet you!Interior at Viridian

Pancetta and White Bean Soup topped with Kale Chips

Herb Encrusted Rack of Lamb served with Polenta and a Demi Glaze Chanterelle Mushroom Sauce

Homemade Strawberry Marshmallow with Dark Chocolate Mouse topped with White Chocolate Shavings

Loara, Gabi & Miss Daisey - Cheers! — Loara, Gabi & Miss Daisey – Cheers!

Dining in the Art Gallery, interior at Viridian

: Interior at Viridi

Browsing vintage furnishings, unique objects, estate jewelry, and original art.