By: Kat Bein By: Kat Bein | June 1, 2022 | Food & Drink,
NFTs. They’re on the menu, especially when you’re talking about Front of House.
FoH is a new NFT platform that caters specifically to restaurants and foodies. It launched today in New York City, partnering with local favorites Dame and Wildair to create digital collectible NFTs that do way more than just look pretty in buyers’ digital wallets.
With an FoH NFT, holders are granted access to offline experiences, such as reservations at hard-to-get tables or invite-only chef pop-ups. It’s also a way for restaurants to make a little extra money and food lovers to invest in the eateries that mean the most to them, something that really comes in handy after the struggles COVID-19 brought on the industry.
See also: The 10 Most Splurge-Worthy Dining Experiences In NYC
We caught up with Colin Camac and Phil Toronto, co-founders of Front of House, to learn more about the first drop, the future of the platform, the limitless potential of FoH benefits and more.
What inspired FOH? Why bring NFTs into the world of restaurants?
Looking at what has been going on throughout the hospitality industry, especially during the pandemic, it became even more clear that restaurants need additional streams of revenue and can’t only rely on diners walking through the door.
Front of House creates an easy way for our favorite places to take their first step into the web3 world by being able to monetize their valuable IP digitally. We’re hoping to open up a new and significant revenue stream for restaurant owners while allowing restaurants to interact with their guests in a whole new way.
For diners and restaurant supporters, Front of House offers a new way to build a lasting relationship with their favorite spots by enabling restaurants to offer access to exclusive tables, pop-ups, merch and anything else the restaurant can dream up. Win-win for all!
Who are your partners during this first launch, and what sort of digital collectibles are being offered?
Front of House’s first drop will be Dame and Donut Friends by Wildair. Dame will be offering access to some of the hardest to get reservations in town to this select group of FoH holders. Donut Friends is a community based around Wildair's wildly popular donuts and donut collaborations. Both offer individual community and larger FoH community benefits in the near future.
How do those digital collectibles represent those businesses, and who created them?
The collectibles were created by the restaurants themselves with artists that they work with, and are minted and sold on the Front of House site. The potential perks and benefits are infinite. It's really exciting to see what the restaurants come up with, and I think our first drop shows two completely different ways to partner with Front of House.
What offline experiences are paired with these collectibles?
For our first drop, Dame is offering access to tables, but going forward each restaurant has the ability to now market anything they'd like to their collectible holders whether that's pre-access to pop-ups, invites to pre-openings, merch drops, etc.
As a company we are also looking to create our own larger-scale community benefits as we grow, such as special dinners, restaurant buyouts, happy hours and chef pop-ups down the line; only accessible to people who own FOH Digital Collectibles.
Do prospective NFT buyers need to have a certain kind of digital wallet or cryptocurrency to participate?
Any wallet that supports the Polygon network is compatible with FoH collectibles, and you can easily create a wallet via email after you purchase if needed. One of the really nice things about the Front of House marketplace is that all pricing is in USD, and you can purchase any of our digital collectibles via credit card, so no crypto is needed. We want to make it as easy as possible for guests and restaurants!
How do you see FOH expanding in the future?
The future of Front of House includes expanding the geography of our restaurant partners both across North America, but internationally as well, while fostering more of an overall Front of House community for all FoH Digital Collectible holders. We’re most excited about seeing the brand new ways restaurants use web3 as a tool to strengthen both their business and their connection with their diners outside of the initial FoH drops.
Grab your first FoH NFT and learn more by visiting foh.xyz.
Photography by: Saint Urbain