Despite the collapse of the so-called “NFT restaurant” that was supposed to come to Salesforce Transit Center, and the broader flame-out of many similar NFT and Web3 boondoggles, someone still thinks that an NFT-only members club in SoMa can appeal beyond a shrinking subset of crypto bros.
Remember that brief and bizarre phase in 2022 when all that blockchain and NFT nonsense was supposed to revolutionize every aspect of our lives? And those Bored Ape NFTs were being hyped as if they were worth millions of dollars? Back then, we were told that some sort of NFT-backed sushi restaurant would be the next big thing at Salesforce Park. But that restaurant totally fell through, those Bored Apes appeared to be something of a scam, and the Silicon Valley crypto bros needed government bailout, prompting them to “pivot to AI” so they could pretend they never fell for the whole ruse.
But apparently there are still some Web3 and NFT holdouts, and investors willing to indulge them.
The San Francisco Business Times reports that a new 24/7 NFT-only members club called Zo House has opened at 300 Fourth Street in SoMa. According to a press release, they’re referring to it as a “Crypto Sanctuary” and “The Premier Hub for Crypto Enthusiasts in San Francisco,” saying that it’s “exclusively reserved for Zo World Founder NFT holders, ensuring a private and elite experience.”
The Business Times estimates that only about 450 people hold that NFT, so the appeal would seem limited.
And the Zo House organizers are still on that Bored Ape thing, with apes all over the renderings of what they aspire their club will be. (Though Bored Ape NFTs have lost 90% of their value). The Zo House website says it will offer “NFT themed suites & dorms,” co-working spaces, a “Hub for Web3 events,” a gaming lounge, a podcast studio, and a chef available 24/7.
Better make sure you get paid in advance on this one, 24/7 chef.
The founders were at least forthcoming on the track record of the NFT market. “I obviously lost a lot of money in NFTs,” co-founder Dharamveer Singh Chouhan admitted to the Business Times. “But I feel the consumer layer of the larger crypto ecosystem has yet to come out.”
The Business Times notes that this is an apparent offshoot of the founders’ India-based hostel chain Zostel. The Business Times adds that Zo World is funded by an “unspecified amount of funding from a family investment office in India whose name Zo World declined to provide.” So when it comes to getting other people’s money to spend, seems like these founders are still at the top of their game.
Related: Not a Shocker: NFT-Backed Restaurant In Salesforce Park Is Not Happening [SFist]
Images: Zo House San Francisco
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