The Lab Cooks Up Pre-Symphony Soirees

The Lab, which bills itself as an anti-mall, is letting it be known that it’s decidedly pro-music.

The shopping center that’s built from an old defense industry plant on Bristol Street in Costa Mesa is hosting Classical Raves, a series of gatherings prior to Pacific Symphony concerts.

The parties, which will be in the Lab’s

indoor/outdoor “living room,” will start at 6 p.m. and be followed by 8 p.m. orchestra concerts at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. The gatherings will feature free hors d’oeuvres from Habana, a Cuban restaurant at the Lab, and coffee from the Gypsy Den.

The symphony’s Classical Raves series is aimed at music lovers in their 20s--the same audience that the Lab hopes to attract to its collection of shops. The symphony describes the Classical Raves series as “a non-intimidating environment for young people to get acquainted with the Pacific Symphony.”

“Bringing the element of culture to the community is what we specifically had in mind when developing the Lab,” said the mall’s developer, Shaheen Sadeghi. “There is a level of sophistication within the Lab’s target group of 18- to 30-year-olds that tends to get overlooked.”

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Greg Johnson covers retail businesses and restaurants for The Times. He can be reached at (714) 966-5950 and at greg.johnson@latimes.com.