The specialist caterer is celebrating its first pop-up success after losing its home in the Aberdeen Market.
Aberdeen’s avocado eatery Avo has welcomed more than 400 diners to its first showcase since closing back in March.
Originally based in the Aberdeen Market which is now closed, the caterer teamed up with Roots Catering which boasts a kitchen residency at trendy cocktail bar 99 Bar & Kitchen, to bring the Avo x Roots Catering pop-up to customers.
Both businesses boast a cult following of loyal fans who have followed the brands eagerly since their inception.
Across the five-day pop-up more than 400 guests were served in the small timeframe from 10am to 4pm.
When the businesses took to social media to announce the collaboration, hundreds of people liked, commented and shared their posts in support.
Nick Coetzer, owner of Roots Catering, said: “It felt amazing, exciting and really humbling to have so many people come along.
“There’s always an element of anticipation whether people will come or not, and this turnout totally exceeded both David and I’s expectations.
“Avo had been dormant since the start of lockdown and then the Aberdeen Market went into liquidation, so it was amazing to see how many people were so supportive of the pop-up after all this time.”
Working flat-out to run the eatery at full capacity (socially distanced), Nick’s 99 Bar & Kitchen team also had to deal with the online orders for the Roots takeaway service which opens from 4-9pm.
Roots also operates a food truck at the Aberdeen beach front, too, which can also experience high demand.
He added: “The kitchen staff were absolutely incredible! When I told them about the pop-up brunch collaboration with AVO they were buzzing. I warned them it would be long hours and a busy week while keeping the takeaway open as well as the beach food truck but they insisted they were all in.
“There was a lot to take on board within a short space of time and we knew we had one chance to get everything right. I couldn’t have asked for more from them.
“We had four working in the kitchen all week, we had to make sure we were doing the best we possibly could.
“The rest of the team upstairs did a fantastic job, too, it was something a bit different and they embraced it with an awesome drinks menu to go alongside the food. We also had a dedicated barista and she kept everyone happy with her mad coffee skills.”
Hinting at future pop-ups to follow in the future, Nick is keen to continue to collaborate with local producers and businesses to bolster the community feel within the food scene and the city in general.
He said: “I’m sure Avo will be back again soon. It would be fun to do some more collaborations so it is worth keeping an eye out.”
