“How do you create a tavern feeling? “Simon Kotvojs, who has already cooked in the Viennese restaurants Mochi, Kikko Bā and most recently in the Landkind for a longer period of time, such as at the “Twelve Festival for Gastronomy Present Talk” in Salzburg in 2023. On one of the days of the event, he and Studio Schmaus temporarily settled in Seppi Sigl's kitchen in Obertrum am See to cook for the festival guests.

His answer to the question: With short-term pop-ups, it is difficult to bring the same comfort into a room that a tavern contains: with a parlour, a regulars' table, hospitality. He also has such a cozy regular host himself, says Kotvojs. “For me, a tavern always has something to do with atmosphere. People visit the tavern because they feel comfortable there and want to exchange ideas. ”

However, he is certain that using mobile kitchens could certainly bring positive results in the longer term. One possible effect: refill vacant old taverns with life, food, drink and new ideas and thus bring them back into the present age. For the twelfth, Kotvojs and Studio Schmaus came up with a vegetarian menu and included local producers.

For Kotvojs, this temporary use will definitely not be the last: As a self-employed person, foreign kitchens and parties will be able to book him for food in the future. “Hin+Wieder” is the name of his new, mobile cooking concept, with which he then arrives. He has also been on tour with the Mochi in places far from the main restaurant. It is, of course, difficult to raise something like this in rural areas; last but not least, it must turn out economically.

“Pop-ups live off cities,” he points out. Yet he says: “Pop-ups are exciting for me because cooking is very individual and always new and different. Expectations are different when it comes to mobile concepts; I think there is less pressure. You are welcomed as a guest, and when you cook and sit together, there is always something positive about it. ”

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Simon Kotvojs, chef, recently self-employed and temporarily out and about in foreign kitchens with his bookable concept Back and Again