BbyB chocolate artists
9-4-2014
Bart Desmidt, owner and chef cook of the Belgian Michelin star restaurant Bartholomeus** makes with BbyB (Babelutte by Bartholomew) a statement towards the top of the Belgian chocolate makers. In 2010 he started with a combination of chocolate with the local product Babelutte, a creamy caramel. Along with chocolatier Jan Verleye he makes several surprising chocolate combinations like white chocolate with passion fruit and basil or dark chocolate with cherries and pistachio. They describe themselves as taste artists and their creations are available through the shops in Antwerp and Bruges or via the website BbyB.be.
Foodini 3D printer for consumer
9-4-2014
To provide consumers with the easiness of a 3D printer in the kitchen, the designers of the Foodini 3D printer have started a crowdfunding project via Kickstarter. The printer comes with empty capsules so that you can use your own fresh ingredients. The machine is expected to be ready for mass production in January 2015.
Vegetable snack Snex | best international product
7-4-2014
Scelta Mushrooms is the founder of a healthy alternative for the snack range: the Snex. The Snex are vegetable snacks and don’t contain artificial colors and flavors. This healthier version of a snack is made of fresh frozen vegetables , is 100% meat free and contains an average of 150 calories. The Snex are available in the flavors mushroom, mushroom-broccoli, mushroom-spinach, sauerkraut, ratatouille and red cabbage-apple. At the 20th edition of Alimentaria (South-Europa’s largest food fair) the Snex were voted as best international products during the presentation of the Innoval Awards in Barcelona.
Single Origin Roasters: passion for coffee
7-4-2014
Roaster and café ‘Single Origin Roasters’ opened its doors in 2003 in Surry Hills, Australia. The guys of Single Origin Roasters really have a passion for coffee and take it very seriously. They are constantly roasting, measuring, mixing and tasting the coffee to create the best composition. They use ethically and environmentally responsible products and solar energy for roasting the beans. In addition, this company helped in creating the first special café milk on tap system ‘The Juggler‘. Customers can also have a breakfast, lunch or one of the seasonal menus besides a good cup of coffee.
Biggest macaroon Easter egg in the world
4-4-2014
It’s almost Easter! Marco Kuit of ‘De Patissier’ (The Patissier) in Oegstgeest, the Netherlands, and his team patissiers made the largest egg of macaroons and chocolates in the world. The Easter egg is 1 meter wide and 2.35 meter high, made of 3.000 macaroons and 880 pounds of chocolate. Five patissiers worked 14 days to stuck the chocolate and fill the macaroon shells. This macaroon egg has established a new world record. Earlier we published an article with inspiration for Easter.
Take-away star cuisine
4-4-2014
The Chabran Drive of chef Michel Chabran* is a take-away concept of his star cuisine. Customers can order by phone or internet and can pick up the dish within an hour at the counter. Customers can choose between entrees, main courses and desserts, like the croque monsieur, scallops and tarte sablée. Michel Chabran is not the only French star chef who makes his food more accessible to customers, earlier we spotted chef Michel Bras*** with his deli ‘Capucin Signé Bras‘.
Nutritional value on menu
2-4-2014
Recently, the chefs of Restaurant Hemingway created a special nutritional menu of their dishes. The restaurant is part of Hotel de Draak (Hotel the Dragon) in Bergen op Zoom, the Netherlands. With this new menu, the chefs want to facilitate their guests interested in the nutritional value of their dishes. They have determined the nutritional value of each dish and listed the amount of calories, fats, carbohydrates and proteins of all dishes. At the standard menu (without the nutritional value) a reference to this menu is explicitly stated and the menu with the nutritional value is actively communicated by the hosts in the restaurant.
Bread cone filled with local produce
1-4-2014
In September, chef Michel Bras*** opened the deli ‘Capucin Signé Bras’ at the parking lot at the Millau Viaduct. The deli serves a variety of ‘Capucins’, that cost around € 7,=. A ‘Capucin’ is a crepe-like cone made of buckwheat and wheat, filled with local produce such as truffles, black pudding, foie gras, Roquefort etc.. A special variant of a simple sandwich. Michel Bras opened a second location along with his two sons and a local hotelier in Toulouse last January.
Spacified: the marketplace for pop-up stores
1-4-2014
Online platform Spacified.com makes a match between temporary vacant spaces and designers, retailers and startups in Belgium and the Netherlands. The vacancy rate in retail spaces and offices increase and this brought founder Patrice Fleurquin the idea to develop a matchmaking service to bring both parties in contact. Spacified.com doesn’t only support starters, but also stimulates the creativity to set up an office, retail or event location. Recently Spacified.com and Voka ‘Chamber of Commerce Antwerp- Waasland, launched the POP-UP Guide. This guide gives visitors an overview of the newest, hottest pop-up stores in Belgium and the Netherlands. Currently, the guide only focuses on consumers, but can also provide cities and local authorities with information about the pop-up stores on longer-term. Spacified.com started a crowd funding project to extend the POP-UP Guide for five cities outside Belgium and the Netherlands.
Plans for 2015 from Rene Redzepi and Heston Blumenthal
1-4-2014
Last Sunday I read a tweet from René Redzepi of Noma in which he indicated to close for two months early 2015. During that period, the entire team from Noma goes to Japan where they will cook in the restaurant of the Japanese chef Murata (restaurant Kikunoi). The philosophy of the cuisine of René Redzepi will be applied to the Japanese products. Great news for the Japanese foodies!
And yesterday the announcement of Heston Blumenthal in which he told that he will close his restaurant The Fat Duck as from December 2014, to reopen February 2015 for six months in The Crown Melbourne Resort. And Heston Blumenthal is also going to Australia with his entire team. After 6 months, the team is going back but a ‘Dinner by Heston Blumenthal’ remains at The Crown Melbourne Resort. Meanwhile, The Fat Duck will be rebuilt. A special way to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his restaurant.^Marjolein
