First-ever ‘crypto’ fast food joint shutters with boarded-up doors just 2 years after owner called it ‘best idea’ ever

A BURGER-joint inspired by cryptocurrency and the first of its kind has decided to close its doors after two years of business. 

Bored & Hungry located in Long Beach, California, based on the popular Bored Ape Yatchet Club NFT and Apecoin announced its closing on Monday.

The location opened on April 11, 2022, and was once a hit that would accumulate a line down the street to order food.

It was the first fast-food restaurant where food could be purchased with the cryptocurrency’s Ethereum and Apecoin.

The branding for Bored & Hungry will now be taken over by Hungry DAO, the NFT-resturaunt’s co-founder Andy Nguyen confirmed.

“Happy 2-year anniversary @BorednHungry !” Nguyen said on X, formerly known as Twitter on Monday. 

“Today we say goodbye to the original Bored & Hungry location in Long Beach, CA. 

“We also want to congratulate our partner from Asia, Hungry Dao – a branding and franchising company who has acquired the brand from us.”

UNIQUE EXPERIENCE 

Nguyen and the other co-founder Kevin Seo were thrilled about their crypto restaurant idea when it first opened and even referred to it as “the best idea ever.”

Bored & Hungry was successful in what it was supposed to accomplish during its time in Long Beach, Nguyen ensured, Decrypt reported. 

This includes “creating a unique experience” and “utilizing the NFT  [intellectual property]” Seo told Decrypt at the time of its opening. 

However, the original Bored & Hungry team was having issues commuting from Texas while working on other business ventures with Trill Burgers, Nguyen told Decrypt. 

“Bored & Hungry wasn’t supposed to be a long-term project,” Nguyen said.

“And it was taking our resources away from our other work. 

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“The experiment took off a lot crazier than we ever expected.”

Bored & Hungry co-founder Andy NguyenDecrypt

“The experiment took off a lot crazier than we ever expected.”

Now that Hungry DAO has taken over, Nguyen is hopeful another location will open in the Los Angeles area.

“The home store may be gone, but stay tuned as Bored & Hungry will be announcing their new home in the U.S. soon!” Nguyen tweeted.

“Currently we are location hunting,” Nguyen told Decrypt. 

“It depends on what we find that makes sense to the business model.”

BORED & HUNGRY’S SUCCESS

The NFT-based restaurant caught the attention of multiple famous people while it was open.

Snoop Dog enjoyed a meal at Bored & Hungry a few months after it opened. 

Bored & Hungry posted a photo of him at the restaurant while holding up two meal boxes and of course a joint in his mouth. 

“Ya heard? Snoop Dogg with his favorite burger,” the post said.

Rapper Wyclef Jean also made an appearance with his Bored & Hungry meal during a pop-up at Art Basel in Miami, Florida. 

Wyclef held up a burger while wearing cool sunglasses with his location tagged in the Wynwood Art District. 

Another rapper, Bun B, also referred to Bored & Hungry’s burgers as “the best burger.”

“Just so you know, the best burger in America is right here,” he said in a post. 

Bored & Hungry was just the beginning for Nguyen who said he is excited to continue working on other projects now.

“The growth of the brand worldwide was very unexpected. Bored & Hungry opened up so many doors and relationships for me,” Nguyen said in an X post.