The first 'NFT restaurant' will run you as much as $14,000 for an exclusive VIP membership — but you'll have to bring your wallet to pay the tab

markets.businessinsider.com:

Flyfish Club

The upcoming Flyfish Club restaurant is being billed as the first to sell memberships through non-fungible tokens, offering high-end private dining as demand for the digital assets has soared. 

According to Fortune magazine, the seafood-inspired restaurant will open in 2023 in New York City and will feature a cocktail lounge, a 150-seat dining room, an outdoor space at a location that's yet to be announced, and a 14-seat Japanese «omakase» room in a private section.

The «Omakase Experience» in the private room promises a «transportive experience» led by a master sushi chef who will prepare curated dishes with fish flown in daily. 

While you can't eat there yet, Flyfish Club this month began selling memberships through NFTs, or digital representations of collectibles such as art, music — and now, dining memberships. VCR Group, the hospitality company managing the Flyfish Club project, told Fortune it has already raised $14 million through the sale of nearly 1,500 tokens. 

There are two tiers of membership, which can be obtained by purchasing a Flyfish Club NFT with ether, the cryptocurrency that runs on the ethereum blockchain. The «Flyfish» tier costs 2.5 ether, or about $8,264 at Friday's prices. The premium «Flyfish Omakase» level costs 4.25 ether, or roughly $13,930. 

The Flyfish Club project comes as the NFT market in 2021 surged to a $41 billion value, according to blockchain data company Chainalysis. A major milestone for the market last year was the $69 million sale of NFT artwork by auction house Christie's. 

The Flyfish Club NFTs, which appear as colorful renderings of sushi styles like nigiri, allow members to enter the dining club. But membership has other perks. VCR Group CEO David Rodolitz told