BUNK hotel Amsterdam |A new hotspot in the former Sint-Rita church
9-3-2020
After the booming success in Utrecht, Amsterdam now also gets a BUNK Hotel. BUNK opened its doors on the 5th of March in the former Sint-Rita church in Amsterdam North. After a thorough renovation, the monumental building has room for 300 guests. Is it a hotel with hostel prices? Or a hostel with the quality and service of a hotel? BUNK invites you to experience it yourself. BUNK has a sympathetically priced restaurant and a broad cultural programming. With the compact rooms and Pods, the lively shared spaces and the free cultural offer, BUNK focuses on connecting with the neighborhood and the world.
Last Tuesday, the 3rd of March, I was present at a dinner at the BUNK hotel. You are already impressed upon arrival by the transformation of this large church into a hotel. Great to see the BUNK pods but also the 107 compact rooms in the belly of the church, a separate concept. From April onwards you can and go sleep there, I believe this is a special and pleasant experience in Amsterdam. It’s also a great place to enjoy dinner with dishes based on various international cuisines, including that of Amsterdam. ^ Oscar van der Maas
Dubbel Dubbel Toil and Trouble | #PumpkinRescue campaign after Halloween
7-11-2019
15 million pumpkins were carved but not eaten last Halloween – symbolic of a systemic food waste epidemic. Toast Ale, Hubbub and Brewdog Tower Hill Outpost want to change that. The 4th of November they brewed seasonal beer that tackles seasonal food waste as part of Hubbub’s annual #PumpkinRescue campaign.
Although Halloween isn’t that big yet in the Netherlands we have a lot of pumpkins as well. We already loved the idea of Toast Ale and their initiative for the pumpkin ale, Dubbel Dubbel Toil and Trouble, is another food waste initiative we love to write about!
Stroodles, the pasta straws | Say ‘Pasta la Vista’ to Plastic and Paper Straws
21-10-2019
A pasta straw company, Stroodles, has launched pasta straws to provide an environmentally friendly solution to the singe-use plastic crisis and rise of greenwashing from the paper straw industry. In comparison to soggy paper and plastic straws, Stroodles are an improvement as they provide greater durability, are flavourless, vegan, 100% biodegradable and are edible raw or cooked after use. A core principle for Stroodles is their ‘drink-easy’ ethos, meaning drinkers don’t has to change behaviour or compromise on drinking experience to do good for the environment. The straws are 23-25 cm long, 0.75cm thick and the pasta straw walls will last over an hour in any one drink and remain flavourless! And they’re biodegradable in hours not generations!
Another alternative for plastic straws which we can add to our list! And we think at least every Italian restaurant should use these stroodles!
Horecatrends | Tips for Culinary videos worth watching – week 28
12-7-2019
YouTube has been a source of inspiration for spotting trends the past few years. Every day, thousands of movies are uploaded with new and interesting content. We too sometimes use videos as a source of inspiration to write about. With this week again a selection of 3 videos which our colleague Manual Imanse thinks are worth watching.
This week links to videos about ‘What coffee looks like around the world and why menuca honey from New Zealand is so expensive. And since the beginning of July, amusement park Walibi Holland has a new attraction: the Untamed.
Horecatrends | Tips for Culinary videos worth watching – week 21
22-5-2019
YouTube has been a source of inspiration for spotting trends the past few years. Every day, thousands of movies are uploaded with new and interesting content. We too sometimes use videos as a source of inspiration to write about. With this week again a selection of 3 videos which our colleague Vera Rauwerda thinks are worth watching.
This week videos about a group of fisher women from India, they created a small innovation in order to catch more oysters! And a video about a cathedral made of bread in Italy. Finally, a video in which they show how to make plastic from the remains of a lobster.
Dinner With The Queen | Culinary bee experience!
21-5-2019
These days, more and more people are becoming aware that without bees there are no more bell peppers, raspberries or mustard. Each of those crops is only viable after pollination by a bee, and they are not the only ones! No less than three-quarters of all our vegetable crops only come into existence after pollination. As if that wasn’t enough, these brightly colored creatures are the creators of the so-called ‘nectar of the gods’: honey. With “Dinner With The Queen” organizer Gilles De Backer and chef Lieven Lootens pay tribute to the flowers and bees, especially the queen bee. You can reserve for a culinary bee experience from 17 June to 14 July on their website. Location: ‘Plukweide purfruit’ on the outskirts of East & West Flanders in Belgium: Dentergem, Oeselgem.
Kever Genever launches Kever 0.0% | What do you drink if you do not want to drink?
14-5-2019
In 2016 we posted an article about Kever genever, the Amsterdam jenever (Dutch gin) brand. The brand wants to become the most innovative ‘jenever’ brand in the Netherlands. A first step in that direction is the introduction of the Kever 0.0% , ‘jenever’ without alcohol and therefore in line with the trend of conscious alcohol consumption. On May 10 2019, Kever started a crowdfunding campaign on the CrowdAboutNow platform. With this campaign they want to raise a minimum of € 100,000 up to a maximum of € 200,000 in order to be able to realize Kever 0.0%, but also to launch other high-profile Kever Genevers within 3 years. Meanwhile, 120% of their goal has been achieved and the crowdfunding still has 35 days to go!
Europe’s First underwater Restaurant ‘Under’ | Design by Snøhetta
26-3-2019
Europe’s first underwater restaurant ‘Under’ will welcome guests in Lindesnes, Norway. Located at the southernmost point of the Norwegian coastline, where the sea storms from the north and south meet, the project is situated at a unique confluence. Marine species flourish here in the both briny and brackish waters to produce a natural abundance in biodiversity at the site. The Snøhetta-designed restaurant also functions as a research center for marine life, providing a tribute to the wild fauna of the sea and to the rocky coastline of Norway’s southern tip.
Horecatrends | Tips for Culinary videos worth watching – week 9
25-2-2019
YouTube has been a source of inspiration for spotting trends past few years. Every day, thousands of movies are uploaded with new and interesting content. We too sometimes use videos as a source of inspiration to write about. With this week again a selection of videos which Demi Poppe thinks are worth it to watch. Among other things, a video about the FlyZoo hotel that is totally taken over by robots and face scanning computers.
The World’s First ‘Vegan Suite’ | Hilton London Bankside
18-2-2019
Following guest feedback, a vegan suite is now available for reservation at the design-led Hilton London Bankside. The suite, created in partnership with multi-sensory design experts Bompas & Parr and given the thumbs up by The Vegan Society, offers a vegan experience throughout, from a plant-based check-in desk and keycard to vegan-friendly bedding and eco-cotton carpet.