Trends we spotted | Week 41
12-10-2021
At horecatrends.com or hospitalitytrends.eu we spot many national and international trends on a daily basis. We pick the most interesting ones to write about, the other trends we use in our weekly column ‘Trends we spotted this week’.
With this week amongst others, links to articles about the expansion of Paris based restaurant Cala, they use robotica to create fresh pasta dishes. And supermarket Jumbo in the Netherlands designates 200 cash registers for ‘checkout chats’ or as they call them ‘kletskassa’s’.
In their stories Starbucks re-announced their global ‘Starbucks Greener Stores’ commitment and McDonald’s announced that they will accelerate climate actions to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Promising is the affiliation with organizations as the United Nations (McDonald’s) and the SCS Global Services and World Wildlife Fund by Starbucks.
Accor & Ennismore announced a joint venture in which both chains contribute their added value. The joint venture will make Ennismore the largest and fastest growing lifestyle hospitality company.
A great initiative by 3 French companies: the Citroën Skate. Citroën created 3 new service pods with Accor and JCDecaux: Sofitel En Voyage, Pullman Power Fitness and JCDecaux City Provider.
Grey Poupon, the mustard brand created a limited edition La Moutarde Vin. A viognier wine infused with mustard seeds, would you like to try it?
Reading time: 5 minutes
Trends we spotted | Week 40
6-10-2021
At horecatrends.com or hospitalitytrends.eu we spot many national and international trends daily. We pick the most interesting ones to write about, the other trends we use in our weekly column ‘Trends we spotted this week’.
With this week links to articles about sleep-friendly ice cream from Nightfood for the grab-and-go shops in hotel lobbies, a stay in the ‘Nutmobile’ from MR. PEANUT® and Leonardo DiCaprio investing in a Dutch cultured meat company.
‘Change is Brewing!’ is the new flavor of Ben & Jerry’s in America, it remains interesting to read how they also translate their social background into their flavors. And at the Resort World Las Vegas, the art of aufguss, known all over Europe, makes it’s US debut at Awana Spa.
More and more companies are also introducing ‘healthy alternatives’ in their fast food concepts. Like in China where Yum China does this in their more than 6,000 KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell shops. And Hard Rock International announces its 22nd annual PINKTOBER® campaign.
Another rebranded concept that focuses on staying in a city as if you were living there. YAYS, unlock the neighborhood with locations in Amsterdam, The Hague and Paris. And spotted in America: a limited-edition of Hendrick’s Gin-infused pickled cucumbers from Katz’s Delicatessen.
Reading time: 5 minutes
De FAM | First foodmarket in Den Bosch opens in 2022
5-10-2021
We are already very familiar with the foodmarket concept in the Netherlands; a covered area filled with small kitchens where culinary highlights can be enjoyed. The people living in the city of Den Bosch (in the south of the Netherlands) will soon be able to welcome their own ‘foodmarket De FAM’ (FAM is slang for family). A colorful journey of discovery of world cuisines in the middle of the historic city center of Den Bosch.
Foodmarket De FAM will open their doors in the first quarter of 2022 and can accommodate 200 guests (seated). They are still looking for innovative concepts! Read more about it and if you have a concept that fits in, you can send an e-mail (info@foodmarktdefam.nl ) until December 1st with your details, a short description of the concept and why you should be there in Den Bosch!
Reading time: 1 minute
WOWorks creates ‘High Five Challenge’ to help end childhood hunger
31-8-2021
Living up to its name, WOWorks’ mission is to fuel the passions of its team members, guests, business partners and the communities they serve to help everyone live their best life. This translates into a commitment to create a “WOW!” place to work, dine, invest and live. To give back to its restaurants’ communities this fall, all four WOWorks’ brands – Saladworks, Frutta Bowls, The Simple Greek and Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh – have partnered with No Kid Hungry to kick off a multi-faceted fundraising campaign called the High Five Challenge with a goal of raising $400,000 (with a minimum of $125,000) which can help provide up to four million meals for kids in need*. According to new estimates, 1 in 6 kids in America could face hunger this year, but when guests dine at any WOWorks restaurant this season, they can ‘Join the Team’ in doing their part to help end childhood hunger in our communities.
Showing the guests commitment with ‘High Five Hand’ images and a ‘High Five Wall Icon Tracker’. Guests can also ‘earn’ a high value coupon!
Reading time: 2 minutes
Introduction of a autonomous robotic restaurant | By SJW Robotics
27-8-2021
SJW Robotics, a Toronto based FoodTech company, will be launching a fully autonomous robotic restaurant with zero on-site employees. The company will be demonstrating the pre-commercial unit in the fall of 2021, with a commercial rollout scheduled for Q1, 2022. At the heart of SJW Robotics shines RoWok™, a proprietary automated kitchen system that cooks made-to-order meals like an accomplished chef. Armed with high-speed mechanism, RoWok captures the essence of wok-based cooking and uses state-of-the-art sensors and automation protocols to deliver consistent quality in accordance with the highest food safety standards. The design inspiration for the unit comes from industrial food manufacturing systems and an engineering team with proven accomplishments in robotics.
SJW Robotics’ next-generation restaurant will come in the form of a 100 square-foot standalone unit. The techforward kitchen’s small footprint, plug-and-play capabilities and 24-hour accessibility will enable its implementation in a multitude of locations such as airports, hospitals, universities, grocery stores, office towers, shopping malls, stadiums and industrial complexes.
Trends we spotted | Week 34
26-8-2021
At horecatrends.com or hospitalitytrends.eu we spot many national and international trends on a daily basis. We pick the most interesting ones to write about, the other trends we use in our weekly column ‘Trends we spotted this week’.
WIth this week links to articles about Restaurant Esmé in Chicago, founded by Jenner Tomasko (executive chef at Grand Achatz) who focuses on art and community with even a à la carte menu for ‘walk-ins’. Sounds like Chicago has a new culinary hotspot.
Starbucks opened their 10th ‘farmer support’ centre in Varginha, Brasil with the purpose to offer valuable resources to local coffee communities.
UPSIDE Foods partners with three Michelin star chef Dominique Crenn. Crenn will develop recipes and give culinary advise and if allowed she will use the lab-grown chicken in her restaurant. This is the first collaboration in the cultivated meat industry with a three star Michelin chef.
De Koningshoeven brewery is the first in the world to market a completely alcohol-free Trappist beer: La Trappe Nillis (0.0%). And McDonald’s published their Purpose and Impact Report of 2020-2021 with four impact points: Jobs, Inclusion and Empowerment, the Plant, Food Quality & Sourcing and Community Connection.
Duke’s Mayonaise started collaborating with Champion Brewing Company to produce the perfect beer that fits with a BLT sandwich: Family Recipe (5,1% ABV, 27 IBU). Kind of ‘Mayo Beer’. The new ‘food shopping’-app, Grownby, connects farmers with buyers. Wouldn’t it be great to have such an app as a cook? And getting messages like the strawberries are now ‘ready to eat’!
CandyCan gummy bears are gluten-free, plant-based, low-sugar, low carb and contain vitamins. Is it an idea to lay a bag of Gummy bears on top of a pillow for children visiting your hotel? Or to put a bag in a ‘Happy-Meal’ kind of box?
Oreo opened their first café in New Jersey. The café consists of a shop offering Oreo cookies and other Oreo treats, and fast-service where you can order Oreo treats. And in New York another sweet hybride is gaining popularity: the Croffle. This is a soft, buttery and layered croissant toasted in a waffle iron and sprinkled with different toppings.
Click on the title if you like to read the full article. Enjoy reading!
Grubhub and Yandex SDG launch robot delivery technology at The Ohio State University
23-8-2021
Grubhub, one of the leading online and mobile food-ordering and delivery platform on college campuses, and Yandex Self-Driving Group (SDG), a leading autonomous vehicles developer inside Yandex, one of Europe’s largest internet companies, will roll out delivery via Yandex’s robots at its first college campus — The Ohio State University (OSU).
We also spotted a likewise system in China, where Alibaba is deploying 1,000 delivery bots across Chinese university campuses and urban communities this year. The bots, called Xiaomanlv or ‘small donkey’ in Mandarin, can deliver about 50 packages at one time and as many as 500 packages in one day, covering 100 kilometres on a single charge. Although the final robot delivery technology in our streets may differ from those some parties are testing, it looks like we will have to get used that these systems will integrate our traffic system. We can’t imagine what it will be like in Amsterdam, it’s already a big challenge to ride a bike here if you’re not used to drive here!
Reading time: 3 minutes
Chipotle tests Plant-Based Chorizo
20-8-2021
Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) recently announced its latest menu innovation, Plant-Based Chorizo, is in test in Denver and Indianapolis. Plant-Based Chorizo is the brand’s first new plant-based protein option since the debut of Sofritas® in 2014.
Chipotle developed its chorizo alternative internally, passing companies like Beyond Meat and Impossible, which have several deals with other fast food-chains for meat alternatives on their menus. Let’s see if the plant-based Chorizo will become available in all their restaurants.
Reading time: 2 minutes
Trends we spotted | Week 33
20-8-2021
At horecatrends.com or hospitalitytrends.eu we spot many national and international trends on a daily basis. We pick the most interesting ones to write about, the other trends we use in our weekly column ‘Trends we spotted this week’.
With this week links to articles about the most spectacular off-menu dish at the rule-breaking Japanese restaurant Shuko in New York and to the ‘Cuisine Solaire’ by restaurant Le Présage in Marseille. It’s Europe’s first solar-powered restaurant.
In London you can enjoy cocktails and high tea’s at a disused train station, check out the great 1940s themed high tea video at Cahoots Underground in the article. Also opened in London: a new immersive cocktail experience, Mr. Tipsy’s Down The Hatch! With a lot of OTT-ness!
French food tech start-up Gourmey is working on lab-grown foie gras that could allow restaurants to continue to serve the highly-prized delicacy in an ethical way. Great news for foie gras lovers, it looks like it and the chef who tried it says it also tasted the same.
The new pizzeria Pazzi in Paris is staffed entirely by robots, from order-taking to prepping the dough to putting the pizzas in boxes. Check out the video, as guests you can follow your pizza being made!
We love the idea behind the ‘random acts of kindness’, as does Domino’s Pizza in the USA, they started their ‘Surprise Frees’ Promotion. Until November 21, 2021, they are surprising randomly selected fans with free menu items.
And a link to an article about the new ‘Taco Bell Defy’. The 3,000 square-foot restaurant concept located in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, utilizes a two-story model for “the frictionless future of Taco Bell”.
Click on the title if you like to read the full article. Enjoy reading!
Little Caesars® unveils their new Crazy Calzony™ | Combining Calzone and Pizza
17-8-2021
The new menu item at Little Caesars combines Calzone and Pizza for a delicious fusion of two classic pizzeria favourites. Crazy Calzony features a pepperoni pizza with a Parmesan and buttery-tasting calzone-like crust filled with garlic white sauce, cheese and julienne pepperoni, served with Crazy Sauce® for dipping. The product is available to order online for delivery or pickup starting August 16th, and available as HOT-N-READY® item starting August 23rd. Crazy Calzony is only available for a limited time.
Inspiration for pizzeria’s worldwide? It does look delicious, don’t you think? We spotted the stuffed crust by Pizza Hut back in January, a kind of calzone crust. They even sold a limited-edition ‘Nothing But Stuffed Crust’.
Reading time: 2 minutes
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