Sugar Factory American Brasserie
18-11-2013
Saturday night, 11 PM, New York City. As expected, the bars, restaurants and cafes in the meatpacking district and throughout Manhattan are bursting with people. But what I did find to be unexpected, were the insane crowds at Sugar Factory American Brasserie, I mean eating desserts is not exactly my idea of a crazy night out! The Vegas native restaurant with a focus on sweetness opened in the Meatpacking District April 2013 and has not had a silent moment since! They feature a “normal” menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner but the crowds get wild for the candy store at the front, the endless desserts and the candy cocktails. We know New Yorkers love places that are new, unique and fill a specialized niche and this is exactly what sugar factory does. Where else would you go for a fishbowl of gummy bear cocktails (or any other cocktail inspired by candy), chocolate fondues with 6 special types of chocolate and 15+ types of dippers or specialty desserts as red velvet pancakes or specialty variations of the classic sundae? If you are planning to visit New York, get on that reservation because they are hard to get and will remain that way for a while I expect!^Leonie van Spronsen
Build your own burger at McDonald’s
18-11-2013
McDonald’s is testing the concept of ‘Build your own burger’ in Laguna Niguel, California. Consumers can make a choice between different toppings and create their own customized burger. The new Dollar Menu gives consumers the opportunity to choose from five types of sandwiches and different sauces and toppings. McDonalds thinks that customization is an opportunity and wants to respond to the shifting eating habits and compete with the other major players in the market. Whether the concept will be implemented is the question.
Elegant bottle packaging transforms into ice bucket
18-11-2013
Veuve Clicquot has introduced a new limited edition packaging. The packaging looks like an elegant bottle sleeve, but can unfold into a functional ice bucket. De packaging has the characteristic yellow and black colors and the inner part consist of a water-resistant coating against leaking. Convenient and stylish!
A theater of wines
15-11-2013
A tent at a festival or celebration for wine lovers. Register Viticulturist and Sommelier Barbara Verbeek is the creator of this concept together with Barend Havenaar of Champagnebar.nl. They want to put all your senses to work in their wine theater. Barbara completed the wine academy for viticulturist in 2001. She got her title sommelier and wine and foodpairing expert in 2002 and recently became a Registered Viticulturist. She runs the wine theater events and celebrations at events like Manifesto, Valtifest and “A Day at the Park ‘.
New Year’s Eve dinner at the Waldorf Astoria
15-11-2013
Since 1931 the Waldorf Astoria NY has been a legendary destination for elegant New Year’s Eve celebrations. They now want to see how many Waldorf Astoria NY New Year’s Eve photos they can collect! They ask their fans at Facebook and their Twitter followers to find and post photos, everybody can vote and the person who did make or found the winning photo will receive a dinner for 2 at the Waldorf on New Year’s Eve! A great promotional campaign, simple to execute and who knows they might even run into some great photo’s from private albums.
Landal lief! family bungalow
15-11-2013
Landal GreenParks started an unique partnership with baby and children’s clothing brand lief!. At Landal Coldenhove on the Veluwe, two six-person holiday bungalows are decorated in the lief! theme. The lief! family bungalow has space for two adults and up to four children. It is characterized by the colorful atmosphere of lief! with various accessories of the clothing brand. Landal GreenParks introduced a bungalow for the hearing impaired at Landal Rabbit Hill in Nieuw-Milligen as well.
Tilburg Frying
14-11-2013
Tilburg is a town in the South of the Netherlands. On the eve of ‘Tilburg Sings’ Sjors Kleinsman suggested to organize a more appropriate event in the city: ‘Tilburg Frying’. It was a kind of a joke, until he thought: ‘that’s not such a bad idea at all’. A thought for a new culinary event was born, ‘Tilburg Frying’! Best cafeterias of the city, who will present their finest products. Homemade snacks, fresh fries, wonderful sauces etc. Sjors Kleinsman will do everything to make it a real happening.
Fish Tales by Bart van Olphen
14-11-2013
With Instagram videos of 15 seconds, the Dutch fish expert Bart van Olphen shows dishes, tips and tricks about cooking with fish. With this, he wants to demonstrate that it is easier to cook with fish than most people think and in the meantime raise awareness of responsible fishing. Chef Bart van Olphen committed to consuming sustainably caught fish and is author of a couple of Dutch fish cookbooks ‘The Fishes Cookbook’, ‘The Dutch viskookboek’ and ‘Working with fish’. And it’s the first Instagram cooking show!
Starbuck on rails
14-11-2013
Today, Starbucks Coffee Company and SBB unveiled the first Starbucks store on a train – offering travelers a new place and way to enjoy their favourite Starbucks coffee. The first official voyage for the Starbucks train will take place on the train line running from Geneva Airport to St.Gallen in Switzerland on November 21. In a pilot project, two dining cars are changed into Starbucks locations: on the lower deck, a take-away and the coffee is served on the upper deck. And a Starbucks trolley circulates through the train. The design is contemporary and focused on comfort, yet at the same time functional with a color scheme inspired by coffee. The opening of this train coffeeshop marks the rollout of a new B2B model for Starbucks. They will – together with partners – start selling coffee in places like drive-through’s (already active in Germany), shops in supermarkets and department stores (Galeries Lafayette) and vending machines in offices.
Lidl pop-up restaurant at Michelin-star level
14-11-2013
Restaurant Dill opened on September 13 in Stockholm. London-based chef Michael Wignall** made the menu and organized the kitchen. A 9-course menu was prized at an astonishing € 55,-, and the restaurant was fully booked from day one on. Too good to be true? Yes it was! It appeared to be a marketing stunt for Lidl. Only four ingredients (including liquid nitrogen) that were used for the preparation of the courses weren’t part of the supermarkets assortment.
