Give your guests the choice of the cordial syrups by Agroposta
22-5-2015
Great to serve this summer, a lemonade box with the sachets of Agroposta, like a tea box. 1 sachet + 200 ml of ice water = 1 glass of refreshing lemonade, add some mint leaves … and done!
The cordial syrups
Agroposta cordials are offered in small secure sachets and filled with 32 ml of concentrated syrup with the following flavors:
Refreshing Lemon – created from the lemons grown and handpicked in the Croatian Islands of the Mediterranean.
Sage – a mild, subtle and distinct flavour. It’s made from handpicked sage flowers from the Adriatic coast.
Elderflower – The elderflower lemonade tastes just sweet enough. The aromatic elderberry blossoms is also picked by hand.
Raspberry – this lemonade tastes sweet with a subtle sour undertone. The raspberries are also handpicked in the many forests and mountains in the Balkan region.
Lavender (natural tranquilizer) – The lavender syrup is not too sweet and slightly different. The syrup is made from the ecologically cultivated Lavandula angustifolia plant that is also handpicked.
About Agroposta
Agroposta is a Croatian company founded in 2004 and with a lot of experience in organic farming. The company started in 2011 with the production of the cordials. Agroposta has its own factory in Zagreb, completely designed according to EU standards in terms of food and provisions. The requirements of HACCP are also strictly maintained. Agroposta stands for sustainability, love for the environment and fair trade in all processes and in all products.
Rembrandt ‘The Naked Truth’ during five-course dinner
21-5-2015
The Rembrandt Tower Boardroom and the Rembrandt House Museum are joining forces for a pop-up restaurant. For two weeks, guests can eat between artworks about nude studies by Rembrandt and his colleagues during a five-course dinner at top notch level with breath-taking views of the Dutch capital.
The exhibited etchings are an exclusive preview of the exhibition ‘The Naked Truth’ held in the Rembrandt House Museum in Amsterdam from 12 February until May 14, 2016. Last July we wrote about the first edition, which turned out to be a great success. This second edition from 21 September to Rembrandt’s death anniversary on October 4 will be on the top floor of the famous Amsterdam Rembrandt Tower as well. It’s one of the rare moments when the boardroom opens its doors to the public.
With its special location and excellent service, the Boardroom normally is a popular venue for private business meetings of Top 500 enterprises from the Netherlands and abroad. The 360 degree view from the tallest building in Amsterdam is impressive: on clear days even Utrecht, The Hague and Rotterdam can be seen.
Repeated due to the large success
What began in 2014 as a one-off initiative is repeated due to the large success. Alexandra Hutter, founder and director of the Rembrandt Tower Boardroom: “The response we received last year during ‘Hemels Rembrandt’ (translated as ‘Heavenly Rembrandt’) were overwhelming. Dutch personalities like Gerdi Verbeet, Eva Jinek and Cornald Maas enjoyed this unique synergy of art and gastronomy, like many others. Due to popular demand and to our great joy we organize a new edition this year. ”
Rembrandt Tower Boardroom supports the Rembrandt House Museum in the purchase of an important work by one of Rembrandt’s pupils, made in the workshop of the museum. This original work is also shown at ‘Hemels Rembrandt’. Rembrandt’s nudes were controversial, because he wanted to create a realistic picture: sagging breasts, folding pockmarked bellies and thighs, he did not hesitate to portray such “flaws.” This horrified fellow artists who prefer to draw graceful, classically proportioned models.
Reservation
Enjoy art and gastronomy in Amsterdam at high level during the Hemels Rembrandt weeks and book from 2 June onwards. Keep in mind that the prices are as exclusive as the event.
Dutch town of Sneek is iBeacon capital
20-5-2015
During the eightieth edition of the Sneekweek (August 1st till 6th) in Sneek, there is an innovative iBeacon app connected to the program. The app shows you where you are, what’s going on, where your friends are and what square or café is most popular at that time. By connecting with Facebook you can give friends access to your specific location. This way you make sure that only they can see where you are.
What are iBeacons?
iBeacons are small transmitters that can send targeted information to mobile phones when you’re in the area. When users wish to use the iBeacons that are scattered throughout Sneek during the Sneekweek, they must also have the Lightcurb app on their phone. The app runs on iOS (Apple) and Android.
Interactive map
On the interactive map this app provides, you can see your current position, those of friends and various party locations. It’s easy to only show relevant information by clever filtering options. A bluetooth connection allows the app to connect to hundreds of beacons throughout the city.
Push notification of the program
Visitors can prepare themselves to the Sneekweek by putting together a personalized program. The app will automatically send notifications when the user is not on the right square if a selected part of the program starts.
Developers
The app was developed by Near Able Labs of Leander Sikma in collaboration with StOm Design and will be available as free download in the App Store and Google Play Store from July onwards. Light Curb provides the iBeacons that app gets its data from. More information about the app can be found at beleefdesneekweek.nl.
Environmental friendly food carts – lessons from the food truck scene in NYC
20-5-2015
The green MRV100 food cart from the company Move Systems, is coming to the streets of New York City this summer. The new food cart is cleaner, more quiet and the unit runs on compressed natural gas with a solar panel providing supplementary power. The food cart has the ability to charge from the electrical grid. It’s equipped with a point of sales system including the ability to pay by credit card and has electronic inventory control. The cart is equipped with a restaurant-quality kitchen with better refrigeration facilities than typical at most food trucks.
If you have ever been to New York City in the past, you will remember the great ‘dirty water’ hotdog carts with the pretzels and in more recent years the famous food trucks. There are as many as 8.000 mobile food vendors, serving all kinds of street foods. Most of these food trucks are relatively old-school. The vendors are cooking with propane gas and their trucks are diesel-powered dirty and noisy verhicles.
Lessons from the food truck scene in NYC
Amsterdam is just allowing the first food trucks in the city and food truck festivals like TREK are getting more and more popular. This might be the best time to start working with new, sustainable, food trucks. We recently spotted another new generation food truck by Peugeot, which will be present at the French Pavilion during the World Expo Milano 2015. Before we spoil Amsterdam with the charming but polluting food trucks, let’s look at more sustainable alternatives.
Pimento: ginger, chili, lime, tonic, no alcohol and refreshing!
18-5-2015
Pimento – they say you have to take a sip and experience the surprise of ginger and the shock of chili. Pimento is a unique and innovative beverage made in France.
It has a strong taste like an alcoholic drink, yet it contains no alcohol. It is low in sugar, very spicy and full of taste. The chilli peppers come from Jamaica and the ginger from China and Ivory Coast (Africa).
Mixing with Pimento
Plenty of bartenders have created cocktails with Pimento. The recipes are described here.
The main uses are as follows: Neat (on the rocks with lime) / Mixed with fruit juices / Spice Beer (Pimento + beer) / (Virgin) Spicy Mojito (Pimento to replace the sparkling water) / Hot Mule (Pimento + Vodka + lime) / Spicy ‘n’ Stormy (Pimento + dark/spiced rum + lime + Angostura) / Hot Bomb (Jägermeister + Pimento).
The drink seems to be especially delicious mixed with a dark rum and lime. Rums such as Captain Morgan, Sailor Jerry, Gosling, Brugal or Kraken are currently very on-trend throughout the world and their flavours are really enhanced when mixed with a good ginger beer. But it’s also a great mixer with Jägermeister, vodka or gin. Pimento is bottled in Saverne (near Strasbourg in eastern France) by La Licorne (Karsbrau – Karlsberg Group), one of the biggest French breweries. Their head office is located in Paris. In the Netherlands the beverage is sold through La Source.
Bonaire’s beer is here: Bonaire Blond!
18-5-2015
Bonaire Blond is island inspired and brewed with ingredients of Bonaire. The pale beer has a fresh hint of lime and an aromatic spiciness from Aloë Vera flowers that grow at the local Onima Aloë Vera Plantation.
Bonaire Blond
Bonaire Blond is an artisanal brewed pale beer with a double fermentation in the brewing process and a third fermentation on the bottle. The pale beer is made from Barley malt only and has a light yellow-gold colour. Bonaire Blond is fresh, tasteful and the only Bonairian pale beer with character. This beer has aged at least four weeks longer than normal, which enhances the flavour in every aspect.
Another great initiative from the owners of Restaurant At Sea
Bonaire Blond is an initiative from the owners of Restaurant At Sea (watch their story here), who thought it was a deficiency that the island did not have its own beer. Consumers responded very positive and therefore, they have decided to sell it at other places as well. The beer is now exclusively available at Jibe City Hang Out Beachbar, Little Havana, La Cantina and Restaurant At Sea.
In 2014 the owners of Restaurant At Sea launched a commercial for their own At Sea Cornetto.
New disposable packaging for wine: the Flex Keg
15-5-2015
The new disposable packaging Flex Keg for wine casks is a durable solution for any caterer. The Zeddams Wijnhuis in the Netherlands has developed a disposable container that is fully recyclable and lightweight.
The market for wine on tap is growing fast in the Netherlands. Until today the draft wines were always delivered in steel casks. According to Eddie Kempers, creator of the new packaging, it is about time for a disposable container that is completely recyclable and lightweight. “Compared to the new Flex Keg, steel casks have the disadvantages of weight, returning for deposit, risk of theft and high CO2 emissions in transport”, he says. “The new Flex Keg was born after two years of intensive research.”
The Flex Keg
The Keg Flex consists of a sturdy cardboard box that contains a plastic vacuum bag of 20 liters. The packaging is entirely made of recycled materials. The Flex Keg weighs only 800 grams and can be folded completely flat after use. The PET upper and lower lid and the plastic bag are recyclable plastic waste and the cardboard is recyclable paper waste. Sales Director Erik Zwart sees tremendous opportunities for the hospitality industry; “The savings on waste is huge, 27 bottles of wine aren’t used instead of the Flex Keg. This has an equivalent of 8 to 10 kilograms of glass waste!”
The wine from the Flex Keg
Zeddams Wijnhuis offers the Flex Keg with a choice of 6 accessible, recognizable wines which they import from Italy and Spain themselves. “In these countries the transport costs are low, which you can see back in the price per liter. The reseller will notice this directly.”, Erik Zwart says. The wine will have the same constant quality in the Flex Keg, there is no chance of oxidation because of the special packaging. The wine will stay perfect for 12 weeks after opening. With the method used you will never taste cork or find other impurities in the wine. In most cases is it possible to connect the Flex Keg to existing beer and wine tap installations, and no CO2 or nitrogen is needed! Zeddams Wijnhuis also supplies dispensing systems that can be tested for a trial period of two weeks.
Pair music with food and activate the fifth sense
12-5-2015
Former chef Barbara Werner wrote a book about pairing music with food and runs Musical Pairing pop-ups. She shows you how to create the perfect bite by combining all 5 senses: sight, smell, touch, taste and hearing.
Only BYOH at this event where they pair music with food
(BYOH) Bring Your Own Headset and Barbara Werner will teach you the essentials in assigning a numerical value to the food (FPN – Food Pairing Number) based on a mathematical formula. FPN is based on the primary ingredient (protein), the richness of the sauce, the weight (cooking method) and the heat index. You then find an equal numerical value in a musical piece (MPN – Musical Pairing Number), which is based on the following: primary instruments (musical family), beat, tempo and genre category.
What do you get when FPN = MPN?
For example: hot and spicy Mac & Cheese with as music: Coolio Gangsta Paradise. Vanilla ice cream with Pachelbel’s ‘Canon’. Tuna ahi with The Go Go’s or filet mignon with Pavarotti. Just BYOH to Barbara’s pop-up and enjoy all five senses. There’s also an app and a book on this subjet. A video of a pop-up get-together is to be seen here.
Spotted at a list of pop-up restaurants at the website of Fodor.
Pinkyrose: cool lemonade as non-alcoholic alternative
7-5-2015
Pinkyrose, the flamingo brand, is a fresh handmade syrup. No artificial substitutes like conservatives and preservatives are added. The juice, the spices, the herbs and the secret are all-natural and squeezed by hand. Great non-alcoholic alternative on your summer menu.
Cool lemonade in industrial oil tins
With more than 20 years of gastronomic experience, the Pinkyrose-chef was able to create four distinctive flavours: Straight Lemon, Spiced Lemon & Rose, Dark Caramel Sea Salt and Floral Ginger & Orange. Pinkyrose is the perfect basis for a sparkling soda, lemonade or cocktail. The syrups are delivered in nice industrial oil tins with great labels, recognisable by the famous flamingo and the handwritten flavour-signature.
The flavors of the fresh handmade lemonade
Straight Lemon tastes like taking a dip in fresh, flowing water on a hot summer day. A sweet and tart syrup with lemon and lemon grass.
Spiced Lemon & Rose tastes like taking a stroll in a Thai rose garden. A fresh and spicy syrup with rose-petals, red pepper and oriental spices.
Dark Caramel Sea Salt tastes like an exotic snack. A sweet salty syrup with caramel, sea salt and original spices like nutmeg and cinnamon.
Floral Ginger & Orange tastes like your favourite summer festival. A wonderful sweet and floral syrup with orange, various types of ginger and lavender.
Pinkyrose, fresh & serious syrups
Pinkyrose was born in 2013. The chef and the designer were looking for a non-alcoholic alternative. They decided to combine their gastronomic and creative forces to offer a titillating alternative.
The ‘Scoff-ee Cup’ by KFC
7-5-2015
KFC in the UK has unveiled the first edible coffee cup. It’s called the ‘Scoff-ee Cup’. The cups are currently under development but most probably available from this summer onwards.
The ‘Scoff-ee Cup’ is made from biscuit, wrapped in sugar paper and lined with a layer of white chocolate. The chocolate keeps the coffee hot and the cup crispy. The biscuit slowly softens as the chocolate melts which it does in the mouth and not in the hand. The ‘Scoff-ee Cups’ will mark the launch of KFC’s Seattle’s Best Coffee (made from fairtrade Arabica beans) across England. We did spot edible coffee cups before, like the milk & cookie shots by Dominique Ansel.
Food scientist created the ‘Scoff-ee Cup’
Food scientists The Robin Collective created the edible cup in partnership with KFC. The cups are also infused with different scents (Coconut sun cream, freshly cut grass and wild flowers), that are known to improve your mood. And that together with a great coffee, there’s no better way to start your day!