The Story of Burp! The Imaginary Restaurant

So, how does the notion of an imaginary restaurant get started?
Well... the idea has been percolating for a long, long, time.

For as long as we can recall, Peef has wanted his own coffee shop. Throughout high school, he collected ashtrays and coffee cups as preparation for his grande plan — a wild, bohemian place filled with black coffee and beautiful women. A place of beat poets and jam sessions. A dirty little corner affair that stayed open late in the evening and catered to an artsy fartsy college crowd. But alas, the days of the coffee house grew tired. And the Seattle coffee craze became a trend of the past. And Paul gave up his cappuccino dreams ...

BUT THEN, in the spring of 2003, a restaurant went up for sale in Peef and Lo's neighborhood. Peef's eyes lit up in dayglow, and he began to chatter endlessly about the possibilities. They would quit their jobs. And start a restaurant. It would be fabulous.

As he put it to Lo — “It would be SO cool. We could have a restaurant SLASH coffee and jazz bar. During the week we would just serve appetizers and drinks and coffee. And we’d feature little live quartets and ensembles for entertainment. And on weekends, we would have a full-blown gourmet menu.”

He even started analyzing our daily meals — to see which of the entrees might be WORTHY to appear on the regular menu. The turkey-apple meatloaf that Lo discovered one night made it onto the menu. As did the fried calimari with aioli from New Year’s Eve. Lo’s “Mexican” tiramisu (served in oversized coffee cups) also made a big impression.

THEN came the discussion of NAMING the place. Peef and Lo went through any number of names before deciding on something very simple… “How about BURP! ?” The name evoked a sense of dietary satisfaction. It was a bit rough — but definitely not too derogatory. And it definitely didn’t make the place sound stuffy.

We could establish BURP! as a place for GOOD food, GOOD times, and free thinking. It was an excellent plan. And best of all — we could use the visage of a BABY for our namesake. It would be cute. Hip. And very cute.

So -- to make a long story short, the idea of BURP! really came up as kind of a joke — a random musing on a dull night. But somehow, the dream has stuck. And it won’t go away. So, I guess we’re somewhat obligated to cultivate it.

The way we have it figured, staying home and thinking about menu items will keep us from any number of other self-deprecating activities. It’s kind of like our anti-drug, so to speak. So, I think there could be a real future in this pastime.

I mean, come on — an imaginary restaurant. There are weirder things…. Right?

Ultimately, we're just two hopeless food geeks who harbor a genuine love for delicious (sustainable) edibles. We're not fancy, or fussy. But, we do love to create new and wonderful things in the kitchen. We keep the dream of BURP! alive through daily experimentation, and we share our successes (and failures) with you.

Email us at peefandlo(at)sbcglobal(dot)net


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