Invitation only, with a media preview for 150 to 200 VIP guests. Speedboat food passed and served, Luke Farrell in the kitchen, music curated with Medium Cool.
A Prima Experience · Art Basel 2026
Speedboat Bar at The Shelborne
We'd like to bring Speedboat Bar, Luke Farrell and JKS's Bangkok Chinatown restaurant from London, to The Shelborne for one week, at no cost to the hotel. It runs in its own room next to Medium Cool, poolside or in the existing restaurant space. Every table books through Prima, and The Shelborne shares the revenue with JKS.
Target window
Dec 2 – 10
Opening
150 – 200 VIPs
What's in it for The Shelborne
- —A London name, paid for. Speedboat ranked fourth on Time Out's 50 best London restaurants in 2024 and just made its New York debut.
- —Revenue from the pop-up shared between The Shelborne and JKS.
- —Dinner at Speedboat, then Medium Cool next door. The night never has to leave the building.
- —Guests come only from Prima's network, and you see who sent every table.
- —Press and social around the week carry The Shelborne's name, with nothing for you to produce.
Who's cooking
Speedboat opened on Rupert Street in London's Chinatown in 2022, Farrell's tribute to the late-night Thai-Chinese canteens of Bangkok's Yaowarat Road: wok-fired noodles, roast meats, curries and seafood salads hit with acid and chilli.
Farrell runs it with JKS Restaurants, the group behind Gymkhana, Trishna and Kitchen Table. JKS knows how to run a kitchen properly in someone else's building.
Together with Medium Cool
Medium Cool reopens at The Shelborne in November, with Naren Young's drinks and a Miami New Times Top 50 Bars nod. Speedboat gives that crowd a reason to arrive early; Medium Cool gives Speedboat's guests somewhere to go after.
A limited Speedboat menu of signature dishes and cocktails: house cocktails, Singha towers and whisky sodas.
No public booking line. Every table books through Prima's network of members, concierges, hotel teams and advisors.
Targeting Art Week, December 2 to 10, and open to another week in season if it suits all parties better.
The model
Prima pays to make it happen, Speedboat creates the pull, and The Shelborne gives us the space and shares in what it earns.
Prima
Sponsors, audience and demand. Prima and partners cover the Speedboat team's travel and stay, chef fee, ingredients, kitchen setup, opening party and promotion.
Run entirely through Prima
The Shelborne
Space, operations and staffing, utilities
Full booking and guest data after the pop-up
Speedboat / JKS
Creative, menu development, the look and feel of the room
Full booking and guest data after the pop-up
Next steps
- —Walk the space options with The Shelborne ops team, October 12 to 15
- —Align on deal mechanics and timeline
- —Connect all parties to finalize