The Ordinarie is going for ambitious in 2025: Come Oct. 3, it will transform into a chilling den of cocktails and creatures as it hosts the Black Lagoon pop-up, an immersive Halloween bar experience. Running through Nov. 1, it will then shutter for a handful of days to overturn the space into Miracle at The Ordinarie, the space’s wildly popular Christmas pop-up.
“This is just another way for The Ordinarie to express itself through a celebration,” said owner Christy Caldwell, who has returned from Ireland to formally oversee the Downtown Long Beach space. “While we won’t be doing gruesome horror, the vibe will not be for everyone, especially some children. There will be no pumpkins or Casper. But it will have the over-the-top nature people expect when they come for Miracle.”
The Ordinarie is no stranger to immersive events—it launched the city’s first large-scale Christmas pop-up seven years ago. This fall marks its first Halloween transformation, bringing in Black Lagoon’s signature drinks and darkly atmospheric design. The pop-up will run, once again, from Oct. 3 through Nov. 1, and include a massive Halloween Party planned for Oct. 31 with a $20 cover, costume prizes, and live music by Big Willy and the Halloweiners. Guests can dive into the eerie vibes seven days a week, with hours stretching from 11:30AM to 1:00AM.
All the formal details about Black Lagoon at The Ordinarie.
The menu will feature a Halloween-inspired food lineup, to be revealed in late September, paired with the pop-up’s signature cocktails served in spooky mugs. Expect haunting décor, dim lighting, and a moody soundtrack to set the scene.
- Reservations and walk-ins: Reservations are available online from 11:30AM to 3:30PM daily. After that, it’s walk-in only—ensuring faster seating and keeping the night lively. Be warned: lines can build quickly, especially Thursday through Sunday, when waits are the longest.
- Families and groups: Families are welcome until 9PM, with a kids’ menu available. However, because this is an adult-themed pop-up, not all elements may be suitable for children. Groups of up to six people can be seated together. Larger parties will be accommodated at management’s discretion and depending on availability.
- Parking: Guests can enjoy two free hours of parking in Lot C on Third Street, just after The Promenade—making a night out at Black Lagoon both fun and convenient.
Wait—so what, exactly, is the Black Lagoon pop-up?
The Black Lagoon experience was dreamed up by industry veterans Erin Hayes and Kelsey Ramage. What started as a one-off horror experiment in the notorious New Orleans dive that is The Dungeon during the city’s annual Tales of the Cocktail event has quickly evolved into a continent-spanning ritual, drawing cocktail lovers, goth kids, and spooky-season devotees into its dark embrace.
That same year, the pair debuted the first official Black Lagoon pop-up in Toronto. With décor leaning more “House of 1,000 Corpses” than pumpkin patch, it wasn’t your typical fall pop-up. Coffins, skulls, dim candlelight, and doom-laden playlists created a fully immersive world, while the cocktails leaned into dark hues, smoky spirits, and spine-tingling names.
By 2022, Black Lagoon had expanded into nine cities, from Chicago and Portland to Los Angeles and Montreal. Each host bar was given a “lookbook” of décor and design ideas, but encouraged to blend its own personality with the Lagoon’s eerie atmosphere. The result was never cookie-cutter: every location felt distinct but united by the pop-up’s gothic DNA. Come 2023, the pop-up wasn’t just a North American curiosity—it had gone international, with stints in Paris and Guadalajara. Seattle’s Rob Roy turned into a haunted speakeasy, while Brooklyn bars packed in goth-leaning crowds for limited-edition nights.
