Geef Café comes to Amsterdam with “pay as you can” restaurant
5-6-2015
Social enterprise Geef Café wants to make healthy and fair food accessible for all the people in Amsterdam.
Pay as you can
The concept is based on the ‘Pay as you can’-model where the guest decides what he or she pays. This allows people with less money to spend to visit Geef Café as well. After several successful pop-ups and an extensive trial period, it is time for the next step: a permanent location in Amsterdam. Therefore, the founders start a crowdfunding campaign and get help from Ben & Jerry’s.
Poverty
The Netherlands has many people who have little money to spend. As a result, these people often have no access to healthy food and eating out is an unaffordable luxury. Hence Judith Manshanden decided to establish the Geef Café with Laura Schön and Rogier Charles in 2013.
Trial and target price
Inspired by the pay as you can-movement in the US, the founders of the Geef Café wanted to open a restaurant in the Netherlands where everyone is welcome. The concept proved to work very well in Rotterdam and generated a lot of positive reactions. Over 80% of visitors were paying more than the target price. “Now is the time for a permanent location in Amsterdam, to inspire so many more people from The Netherlands and abroad,” said Manshanden. The Geef Café is supported by Ben & Jerry’s through the ‘Join Our Core incubator’ program.
Food Waste
Geef Café cookes with vegetables that are normally discarded. During previous pop-up dinners in Amsterdam and during the trial in Rotterdam, a total of 2.500 kilos of waste products was collected from wholesalers and used in their meals.
With the support of Triodos Foundation and the DOEN Foundation they’ve already built a budget. The last push is needed to provide a green light to the Geef Café, therefore they’ve started a crowdfunding campaign at the Doorgaan.nl platform. Donators get various rewards in exchange for a donation. For example, € 150,- gives you a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream party for 50 people.
The campaign ends on 16 July and after that the Geef Café hopes to open as quickly as possible at a permanent location. With 42 days to go they’ve acquired 55% of the targeted goal.
Pop-up King Charles II with Fever-Tree and Bobby’s Gin
3-6-2015
Fever-Tree and Bobby’s Gin from Schiedam join forces and come to Rotterdam for a tasting of the many possibilities with gin, tonic and botanical herbs for three weekends in June.
Fever-Tree
In 2005 Charles Rolls and Tim Warrillow stepped into the world of soft drinks because of the dissatisfaction they got from the existing mixers that were available on the market to use for cocktails. They joined forces to reinvent soft drinks. Back to the basics and nature, to create a mixer that can supplement spirits. Fever-Tree presents itself as a valuable ingredient of a cocktail, which often contains 3 / 4 parts of soda. Thus this must be a high quality soda as well.
Bobby’s Gin
‘Dutch courage mixed with Indonesian spices’ is the best description of Bobby’s Schiedam dry gin basis. By recreating the recipe from his Moluccan grandfather Bobby, Sebastiaan van Bokkel developed a unique gin together with Herman Jansen distilleries in Schiedam.
Pop-up King Charles II
This June King Charles II pop’s up above restaurant ‘De Engel’ in Rotterdam. Bartenders literally lead visitors through a garden of ingredients and show a world beyond the established Gin & Tonics. Magical new cocktails are created as gin joins freshly picked herbs and Fever-Tree’s Ginger Ale, Bitter Lemon, Lemonade, Ginger Beer, soda water or lemonade Sicilian.
Opening and food pairings
Between 21:00 to 00:00 hours King Charles II serves a tasting menu from restaurant ‘De Engels’ downstairs, for food pairings as worthy companions to the royal refreshments. To personally experience the magic of gin and it’s necessary to make a reservation before your visit.
Opening hours: 12 & 13 June & 18-20 June and 25 to 27 June – Booking via www.king-charles.nl or via 06-401530 83.
Siseng, the Asian Food Bar
27-5-2015
Siseng, the Asian Food Bar at the Quai de Jemmapes in Paris opened in December 2014. The food bar adds the Bao Burger to the thriving food scene of the Canal St.-Martin.
Siseng, worth the visit and the wait
The Asian Food Bar rapidly became popular amongst the Parisians! Last weekend there was a long line outside the small, packed but trendy and casual chic bar. Once inside you share a table with others in a tastefully decorated small bar with light bulbs, bare brick walls, dark table tops and bar stools. Very nice but busy servants who are having trouble delivering the food to the guests! And they make delicious cocktails with Asian ingredients like wasabi, ginger and sake. Combine a cocktail, glass of sake, or an Asahi beer with their great spring rolls or croquettes all served with an Asian sauce.
Tip to eat in Paris when you stroll down the canal Saint Martin
You don’t have to stroll down the canal, you can also have a relaxing afternoon with friends there like a lot of Parisians do, but anyway the signature burgers at Siseng are a great tip! The burgers are served in a bao, a steamed Chinese bun made out of rice flour. The bao burger 5 spices contains a beef patty (grilled medium rare, the French way), marinated in the 5 spices and comes with onion tempura, onion confit, rocket leaf and a caramelized tamarind sauce. But you can also choose the chicken burger Kaï with a piece of chicken, breaded in a Japanese style with coleslaw ‘maison’, fresh basil, confit de red peppers and a basil sauce with coconut milk. We also loved the tempura of vegetables and the sweet potato fries, which are really rare in Paris. The menu has been illustrated by Soba Paris.
Inspiration for those seeking for a new restaurant, we think that a small Asian Food Bar like Siseng would do great in Amsterdam or any place in the Netherlands as well!
Fresh fish at the Boterlap ‘Fish Market’
26-5-2015
Bar, Brasserie and Terrace De Boterlap in Harderwijk daily serves fresh fish. To promote it, they recorded a short film about their fishing adventures in the style of “Deadliest Catch”. It is a nice and humorous way to bring their daily ‘Fish Market’ to the attention and another great example of storytelling.
The Boterlap was awarded for having the best terrace of The Netherlands in 2013, according to the Terrace Top 100 by Misset Horeca.
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.
Boco – the next step in fine dining for the masses
19-5-2015
Leonie van Spronsen, lives and works in Paris and recently had lunch at boco bistrot where you get food made from recipes by top chefs.
It is an ongoing process, chefs decline Michelin stars, close down their Michelin starred restaurants to start a gastropub like Ron Blaauw, Michelin starred restaurants start selling take-away chicken and what self respecting chef doesn’t have a bistrot or tapas bar next to his restaurant? The fine dining world is becoming more and more accessible for the world to taste.
The French brothers Vincent and Simon Ferniot want to take this to the next level. Boco, a French F&B concept started in Paris, bringing together 8 different chefs that are renowned and celebrated in the culinary world for a fast casual, take away concepts. Every day they sell the favourite dishes of those 8 chefs made after their recipe in beautifully recyclable glass packages. On the display you can see who created the dish next to a full description of the biological ingredients.
Boco creates a culinary experience for everyone, a chance for anyone in the area to improve their daily life with a small look into the kitchen of an awarded chef. And if they want to – they can try a different chef every day of the week.
More information about boco:
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.
L’Avant-Comptoir – an ode to French cuisine
15-5-2015
Leonie van Spronsen, lives and works in Paris and recently dined at a tapas bar / wine bar L’Avant Comptoir.
“Last week I had the chance to visit the ‘tapasbar/winebar’ L’Avant-Comptoir in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, Saint-Germain-des-Prés. This is the place where chef Yves Camdeborde serves traditional French dishes, products and delicacies in a different, Spanish-feeling way.
You walk into a very small bar, with a wall of beautiful wine fridges behind the bar and a ceiling covered in cards with small dishes, their names and their prices on it. There is only place to stand and the bar is filled with gorgeous fresh bread and delicous salty butter. Every little dish is between 4 and 10 euros and can be shared and needs to be savoured. We’re talking lemon macarons with fresh foie gras pate in between, a cheese dish created as an apple crumble, blood sausage on a béarnaise macaron and many, many more. Did this get you ready? Imagine a vast array of beautiful wines to compliment these beauties.
Tip for when you’re in Paris: Apero at L’Avant Comptoir
And after this beautiful experience, you expect a hefty bill (as you would after eating foie gras) but none of this, everything is moderately priced and an elaborate apero (what the French call pre-dinner drinks) is already enjoyed for 17 euros!
L’Avant Comptoir, an absolute must-visit in Paris.”
