Noma LA's gamble: €1300 per cover, with the experience as the only profit

The Copenhagen restaurant, crowned "best in the world" five times, will open a pop-up in Los Angeles next March. The Californian menu will cost $1,500 per person (approximately €1,293). Yet, chef René Redzepi anticipates no profit from this venture, which prioritizes experience and social impact over financial gain. An analysis of an exceptional cost structure where the exorbitant borders on the invaluable.

© NOMA

"For almost ten years, we have been trying to come to America, and we have come very close several times. So, it is a dream to finally be able to come and cook here. To learn from a whole new group of people, all the cooks, farmers, fishermen of this region," enthuses chef René Redzepi on the website of the three-Michelin-starred restaurant.

For sixteen weeks starting March 11th, Noma will be taking up residence in LA. The announcement set social media ablaze, but many foodies were quickly disappointed by the price of the menu for this Californian residency.

The package, including "the menu, drink pairing, gratuity, and taxes," comes to $1,500. Despite this amount, which exceeds that of the city's most exclusive restaurants and is double the average bill at the Copenhagen establishment, the chef doesn't expect to make a profit. Because René Redzepi doesn't travel alone: he brings a veritable community.

This involves 130 members temporarily relocating to Southern California. The operation entails covering all their housing, transportation, and, notably, the schooling of the employees' children. "All of this is at our expense," he confirmed to the Los Angeles Times . This payroll and these associated costs weigh heavily on the project's financial structure, to the point of absorbing the contributions requested from clients.

The acknowledged unprofitability of culinary art

Beyond the costs of relocation, the very format of the pop-up restaurant prevents any economies of scale. Located in a still-secret Silver Lake location, in a residential property transformed for the occasion, "Noma LA" will serve only 42 guests per service, four days a week.

The ratio is staggering, with three employees for a single customer. This high staff density is justified by the exceptional nature of Redzepi's cuisine, which he conceives of "more as a work of art".

To replace the Nordic ingredients with local products (bougainvillea, insects, Californian seafood), months of research were required, further increasing the price even before the doors opened.

“We cannot afford to lose money, but making money – making a profit – we have not yet tried. And that will not happen here either,” the head of Noma confides, without mentioning previous ventures of this kind in Kyoto (2024), Tulum (2017) or Sydney (2015).

Shop and charity

For the first time, the Noma team will open a boutique where customers can purchase sauces, garums, vinegars, and other products from the Nordic brand. Collaborations with local chefs in their own establishments are also planned. This event-driven approach will feature prices that are expected to be "more in line with what Angelenos are used to paying," notes the LA Times.

René Redzepi also makes the deliberate choice to forgo certain incomes in favor of social causes. Far from seeking to maximize the profit from each meal, the Noma team has imposed upon itself a form of "philanthropic tax".

Each evening, a table will be reserved free of charge for young professionals in the sector or for students, an initiative carried out with the Culinary Careers Program (C-CAP).

While a percentage of the revenue from paid reservations is directly donated to Noma's non-profit organization, MAD, and to Brigaid, founded by former Danish restaurant chef Dan Giusti, to fund food programs in public schools.

The invaluable experience

Faced with these unavoidable expenses and commitments, René Redzepi remains clear-headed: the objective is simply "financial equilibrium." The chef asserts that he did not come to Los Angeles to "feed the elite" or make a fortune, but to interact with the city.

For the Danish/Albanian chef, the benefit of this operation lies in the experiential dimension, estimating that the value of learning new techniques, meeting new people, or simply experiencing this adventure together, offers "probably 95%" return on investment.

The mechanics of desire

Noma's first return on investment was naturally in the form of advertising. The restaurant strongly revived scarcity marketing: the simple keyword "LA26", used to try to get a reservation on Instagram, went viral, confirming Noma's desirability, whether you eat there or not.

This international visibility helps maintain cultural relevance, even as the future of the Copenhagen address continues to evolve. This type of project serves as a reputation management tool at a time when pop culture scrutinizes and mocks haute cuisine, sometimes giving it a toxic image.

Redzepi also uses this residency as a showcase for its ethical practices, demonstrating its commitment to innovation. This temporary relocation is a strategic investment in human capital, both internal and external, while simultaneously building a pool of new flavors and approaches that will shape the culinary identity of Noma's future.