Target reached!
With the extra money, we will be able to complete the space with better equipment an...
Blow Water Cafe in Kings Heath
Birmingham, West Midlands, United Kingdom
Aim
Blow Water has secured a permanent space in the heart of Kings Heath to open Blow Water Cafe, a Hong Kong inspired eatery and arts space.
Our story
Blow Water is dedicated to Hong Kong Culture, connecting the far East with Birmingham through the arts and food. We have secured a permanent space in the heart of Kings Heath to open Blow Water Cafe, a Hong Kong inspired eatery and arts space but we need your help to make it a reality!
A female-led enterprise, Blow Water builds a cultural bridge to introduce people to the spirit of Hong Kong through authentic cuisine and creative events. Blow Water was founded in 2019 by me, Sabrina, born and raised in Hong Kong. I moved to England to study BSc Event Management with Arts and Entertainment in 2013. Following my passion for culture I then moved to Birmingham to do a MA Creative Industries and Cultural Policy at Birmingham City University.
I have made a home for myself here, I love the multi cultural and community feel of Birmingham and I have met many friends so I am excited to open our first permanent space in Kings Heath. I have always held dinner parties for friends, sharing my Hong Kong heritage and my generational family recipes. I wanted to share this with the wider community as I saw a gap in the local food scene for healthy and authentic East Asian food. In 2019, Hong Kong was in the news a lot due the unsettled societal problems and it was important for me to raise awareness of the cultural identity of Hong Kong and I felt Blow Water could achieve this through community food and art events.
I started Blow Water with £200 and then later a received seed funding from GirlDreamer which supports young women of colour. From this I have grown Blow Water organically with the support of customers all over Birmingham and especially in Kings Heath.
Blow Water started as Hong Kong supper clubs with a western twist collaborating with creatives, encouraging people to celebrate social diversity together. Since our first supper clubs we have now had residencies at The Juke and Kingsway as well as events all over Birmingham - you will also find our dumplings stocked in Borough & Fox. During the pandemic we did local home delivery and supported our community with free meals for NHS staff.
-Home Deliveries during lockdown
We also had the exciting opportunity to collaborate with Kamaal Williams, a Jazz musician based in South London for a supper club and music event in Peckham.
- Supper club collaboration with Kamaal Williams in Peckham
Whilst there are many Hong Kongers immigrating to England at the moment, I believe Blow Water plays an important role to introduce Hong Kong Culture and improve social cohesion in the community. Blow Water Cafe will be the home of our Dumpling Classes and a space for cultural exchange - storytelling, education and experience.
The space
Led by Sabrina, Blow Water is now a small team and is in the exciting position to open our first permanent home. We are delighted to have secured a space in our home of Kings Heath. The space we have secured is just off Kings Heath High Street but it needs a lot of work to transform into our dream eatery and arts space. Blow Water Cafe will be a casual eatery space, creating an intimate and cosy environment for friends to meet and eat in Kings Heath. We also plan to hold arts and music events in the space.
- The new location in Kings Heath at the moment (with lots of work needed!)
Blow Water Cafe gives an authentic lens to Hong Kong Culture and food. The eatery will have a minimal and botanical theme, utilising the original features of the building whilst creating the atmosphere of an East Asian cafe.
We have built up funds for the initial costs to get going with the space but we will use the Crowdfunder money to fit the interior and buy furniture/equipment to create a community eatery and arts space for Kings Heath!
Please get in touch if you would like to have private catering by us.
The rewards
Blow Water Logo Tote Bag
Cobalt Blue Tong Lau Building Tote Bag
Blow Water Embroidered Logo White T-Shirt
Don Mak 麥東記 Calligraphy Art Print
Tong Lau Building T shirt in Black
Tong Lau Building T-Shirt in Ecru White
DJ Bus Replacement Service & Dim Sum Records Party
The Wilderness x Blow Water
Private Chef at your home for 4 people
Verbena Venue Hire Party of 12
5 course dinner for 12 with welcome drinks
6 bottle of wine or 12 bottles of beer
Any other drinks must be paid for separately
Please give at least a month notice of your desired date
Available Monday to Wednesday evenings or Saturday lunchtime only
https://www.verbenakitchen.co.uk/
T&C: We aim to complete all rewards within 12 months of the Crowdfunding finishing if we are successful.
Events will be held on a specific dates and tickets are non refundable.
For vouchers for Blow Water Cafe these are valid for 12 months after our opening date.
This project successfully funded on 13th June 2022