Field notes: the Pokhara pop-up
Ilam Leaf opens a twelve-day tea counter on the Lakeside strip from 15 October. These notes collect what we agreed on the call and what is still open. Edit freely; resolved questions move to the bottom.
1. What we're opening
One counter, four seats, a standing ledge facing the lake. Three single-estate leaves on rotation, brewed to order in under four minutes. No food beyond the honey biscuits from the bakery two doors down.
The counter has to pack into two crates. Anything that can't travel back to Kathmandu in the van doesn't get built.
2. Who walks in
- Trekkers coming down from Sarangkot before noon, who want something warm and a place to sit.
- Hotel staff on the afternoon break, who already know the estates and will tell us when a brew is off.
- Couples on the evening walk. They buy tins, not cups. Keep the tin shelf at eye level.
3. Risks we've named
Power on the strip drops most evenings around seven. We need the second kettle on gas, and someone has to test it before soft open. The permit covers twelve days; extending it means a new form, not a phone call.
Card readers have failed twice on test runs. Cash float of NPR 8,000 each morning until that's solved.
4. Opening week
Sunita owns the rota. Dev owns the kettle question. Leo is drafting the tin labels and wants feedback by Friday.