We have mentioned the food oasis before, for the first time, a public food forest was created at seven overgrown acres ground in Beacon Hill, in the neighborhood of Seattle. A food forest is a vegetation of edible plants, fruiting shrubs and vines, planted as a self-sufficient forest. We think it is a nice initiative to involve the neighborhood by growing such a special natural food forest in Beacon Hill.
A special collaboration between restaurant Basiliek and ‘Dutch Sea World’ Dolfinarium in Harderwijk. They created a package where people can visit the park and end with a three-course meal at Basiliek. The tickets of Dolfinarium can be picked up in the morning at the restaurant, and from 5:00 pm a table is reserved for dinner. We wonder whether the chef is inspired by the dolfins as well?
Hilton hotel Rotterdam produces its own honey. We have seen it before at the Waldorf Astoria in NYC and Fortnums & Masons in Londen, but Hilton Rotterdam is the first hotel in Rotterdam and is the first Hilton in the Netherlands that keeps beehives on their roof. The hotel cooperates with the city’s beekeeper Balten Schalkwijk. As expected, their own honey will be placed on the breakfast buffet as from August on and it can be purchased in jars as well. Maybe we can do a suggestion? They could also place a honeycomb on the buffet!
Last year’s ‘South by Southwest festival’ introduced a wristband that measured audience interaction. By measuring motion, volume and temperature through sensors, the individual interaction was ranked and rewarded. At the ‘Lollapalooza’ festival, wristbands, that can be linked to credit or debit card information are offered to festivalgoers. These wrist bands allow people to pay for food and drinks without paying by cash or card.
Since this month, three products from the meat substitute brand ‘de vegetarische slager’ are sold in the XL stores from the Dutch retail chain Albert Heijn. The products are sold in all 36 stores in The Netherlands and can be found next to other meat substitute products.
Admiraliteit Bar & Kitchen is a boutique cocktail bar, with a small kitchen, placed in Rotterdam (The Netherlands). Special in the Admiraliteit is the bar with over 200 exclusive drinks which are used to create original cocktails. Such as Rum from the Amazon, Japanese single malt, platinum tequila and American Moonshine. There is also a small menu based on the shared dining concept whereby small dishes, such as mini Wagyu burgers and foie gras French toast, can be shared.
Michelin restaurant Valuas, located in Venlo (The Netherlands), created gluten free croquettes. The croquettes are made of a ragout of corn, rice and 36% pure beef, covered in a layer of rice. The flavor of the croquette is savory and spicy and is has a smooth filling because of the stock that has been used. Valuas, led by master chef Eric Swaghoven, creates unique croquettes and ‘bitterballen’ on request. Check the website from Valuas Kroket to see where you can eat them.
You’ll hear something when you listen to the Dutch Radio 1! Last week I heard a story about a protest against the anti-dancing laws in Japan from 1948. At the ‘Techno Udon-parties’ in Japan people aren’t dancing but ‘kneading’ special dough! At these parties people are provided with some Udon-dough, covered in plastic, to dance on. This way they get around the provision of the 1948 Adult Entertainment Business Regulation Law that forbids dancing in bars. The parties also exist to promote the old art of making dough. They’re even considering to bring the Udon-parties to other countries as well. ^Marjolein van Spronsen
Russian soccer fans, who were in Brazil for the World Cup, were treated to a six-pack of ‘Skol’ beer entirely encased in ice. The unique packaging was designed to chill the beer without freezing it and included a handle for easy transportation. The ice-pack was designed as a reminder that packaging can be both beautiful and multifunctional. Although the video is spoken in Russian and Portuguese, the reactions speaks for themselves..
On 7 June the ‘Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority’ started with the publication of the inspection results of lunchrooms. The reviews of over 1.600 lunchrooms can be found on the inspection card and the ‘horeca inspectiekaart’ app for iPhone and Android. Both systems help consumers find a lunchroom that scored high at the inspection.
For the 10 year anniversary of Tomorrowland, the festival created 10 limited edition Belgian beer cans. Each can symbolises a milestone of the existance of Tomorrowland, that is displayed by the Mainstage of that year. Tomorrowland is one of the largest festivals of the world and takes place in the Belgian Boom. The limited edition beer cans can be collected via various supermarkets.
Nescafe inspires readers to interact with those around them and share a mug of coffee. They constructed a newspaper advertisements equipped with two foldable mugs packed with instant coffee. The paper has been distributed throughout the Parisian metro system and transforms the quite time of reading a newspaper in to a shared activity! Created by the agency Geometry Global Paris for Nescafe France.
Brewing company ‘Moody Tongue’ from Chicago introduced truffle infused beer. Brewer Jared Rouben shaves fresh truffle through the beer during the brewing process. The truffle beer is served in the restaurant from Thomas Keller, Per Se in New York. According to the website, Fine Dining Lovers, the chef and sommelier from Per Sey combine the beer with roasted dark chocolate and truffle pudding with brioche cream and nuts. The brewer said the truffle beer will be launched the coming weeks in Chicago and is especially interesting for the high-end restaurants and hotelbars, as the price is 120 dollar.
Heetch makes it easier to enjoy a night out in Paris and tries at the same time to reduce drunk driving by offering convenience and by their pricing. Users request a ride via the app and will be matched with a nearby driver. The price of the taxi fare is based on donations with a suggested amount per distance. The average ride is roughly 30% cheaper than the running meter of a cab in Paris. They offer an alternative to the heavy weekend surcharges of their competitors. Everybody with a car can join the Heetch driver’s community.
From 13 July onwards &Samhoud places organizes a weekly ‘Feel Good Sunday Summer’ event on eight Sundays. Visitors can enjoy Happy Oysters, Street Style Fish and Gastronomical Burgers while listening to live music and DJ’s. The first ‘Feel Good Sunday package’ can be reserved for € 25,- and takes place from 12:00 till 17:00 o’clock.
We discussed which products show up the most on social media, in all kind of shapes, flavours and colours, this year. The first product that read more
We have been sharing inspiration on our website since 2007, inspiration that we find in the hospitality industry or by online spotting of what our read more
We have been sharing inspiration on our website since 2007, inspiration that we find in the hospitality industry or by online spotting of what our read more
Thanks to a free Android and iPhone mobile application by OgilvyOne Worldwide, Greek consumers can use their phone to send a message to a friend via any chocolate bar from Kraft Foods’ Lacta brand. The video shows how.
Based on the same principles, equipment and techniques used in molecular gastronomy, this science-based approach to mixology is meant to help you turn out drinks that showcase a greater intensity and variety in flavors, appearances and textures.
Graphic designer Heather Sitarzewski thought of a way to make eating healthy food more appetizing. In one example, Sitarzewski turns pasta, peas, bread and raspberries into a Miss Piggy artwork. Click here for more examples.
TimeStation is a system that combines code-embossed ID cards with an iPhone app in order to track employees’ hours on the job. Employees need to check-in with their i-phone by scanning the QR-code. In this way companies can see who is on the job.
Cast iron sauce pans are heavy to use in the kitchen. Beka designed a lightweight pan from aluminum.
The hygienic doorknob for restaurant, hotels and of course hospitals. To be opened with the elbow instead of dirty hands. See the hygienic doorknob here.
Magic Choc is totally unique, UK manufactured, flexible & edible Belgian chocolate with superb play value! A patent protected method of tempering the chocolate allows it to set, whilst remaining flexible resulting in a delicious fun product that can be formed to create many fun shapes.
AQUA DiViNA, a Dutch company is selling bottles of seawater, which is taken from the Oosterschelde. The water is not for consumption, but to use for the cooking of mussels, or other seafood and fish. The seawater will add the ‘real’ salty taste into different dishes. A liter of seawater costs approximately 1 euro.
How to sell a luxurious French Restaurant to the Russian people. A direct marketing campaign to change the idea of the Russians about French Restaurant which was: overprized, small portions and frogs.
Montreal-based firms Aedifica (architecture) and muvbox have teamed up to bring ‘snackbox’, a shipping container turned modern canteen, to new york’s times square. Created for restauranteur Jonathan Morr, the movable venue sells iconic new york street food with a gourmet flair. Located on a section of broadway with no vehicular traffic but many pedestrians, Morr needed a compact structure that would fit into the limited space, yet still stand out amidst the visually saturated area. Watch here another movie about a container.
The sunsmart collection sombrillas from Hollie and Harrie, an ideal alternative to the common beach tent and the gorgeous Sunshirt. See the sombrillas here.
Since November two young entrepreneurs are organizing dinners for young professionals and other entrepreneurs that want to combine a proper dinner with networking. Through the website shareabite.com it’s easy to check who the other table guests are thanks to an integration of Facebook and LinkedIn.
Doesn’t it sound like a great idea to have chilled champagne while bathing? The design of Hammacher Schlemmer is offering the solution. By using special chrome clamps the cooler can easily be attached to the bathtub. The cooler can also hold any other beverages. Perhaps an idea for your honeymoon suite? See the champagne cooler here.
Starbucks recycled shipping containers to a Starbucks coffee shop in Tukwila, Washington. Starbucks used in total four shipping containers to build the coffee shop, it is decorated in the style that people would expect from Starbucks. The coffee shop is a initiative from Starbucks to stimulate the use of green buildings and environmental design in the retail. Another keen example of container upcycling.
This week, the Trendgids.com (Dutch) is presented and published. Tackle opportunities, creativity, collaborate and innovation dominate this edition. Trendgids.com is a free digital magazine in which experts, including Marjolein van Spronsen (Horecatrends / Van Spronsen & Partners), give their vision on hospitality in 2012. This magazine is intended to be a source of inspiration for entrepreneurs of the industry.
Last week the fifth store of GooodyFooods opened in Apeldoorn. Apart from the 100% biologic supermarket, there is a 35 seat biologic café as well. GooodyFooods’ goal is nationwide coverage within two years.
No longer squeezing lemons. With the new design from quirky.com you can instantly spray the lemon juice from a fresh lemon. You can put the spray directly into the fruit. It’s still unknown when the product gets into production.
On a Saturday evening in December there was a disco evening at gas station De Lucht next to the A2 highway. The owner of the gas station organized a special disco evening for the visitors on their way to a techno festival in Den Bosch.
The Czech designer Martin Jakobsen had designed a whole new type of wineglass. The design is special because it is an laying glass. The difference with a traditional wine glass is that it has no foot. Handy because falling over is history now.
The first island of the Dubai World project is opened this week. The Island has different luxurious facilities including a 100 seat restaurant. The exclusive island can cost members up to $10,890 per year.
During the Open’er Music Festival in Poland, Heineken gave away personalized stickers with QR-codes. The brewer wanted to stimulate more interaction between the visitiors and introduced the slogan ‘Open your world’. The ice breaker was called ‘U-code’ and was requested and printed 5.000 times in four days.
It’s sometimes difficult to maintain a proper (reservation) website and run a Bed and Breakfast at the same time. Stinngo provides a user friendly web application to design and edit a B&B website that’s compatible with bookings via internet, mobile phones and tablets. Next to that the site is available in several languages and people can make reservations with Facebook. Subscription for VIP invitations are now available at Stinngo.com
The website masterofmalt.com provides a ‘lab’ to mix ten different flavors of whisky. Dose it by millilitre and personalize the label.
There is a special Scrabble board game Cooking Edition, especially for (hobby) cooks. Get bonus points for cooking words and special recipe playing cards. See the game here.
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