Joinn! Hotspot for Lounge, Work and Short Stay

30-10-2015

Joinn! in Houten (a city located in the center of the Netherlands) is a new location with flex offices, a lounge & food area and 25 city lofts. The building in which Joinn! is located was empty for more than 5 years and has been transformed from regular offices into a unique hotspot.

Redeveloped into a hotspot

In many cities all over the world, the transformation of old buildings is high on the agenda. The so-called ‘transformations’ also fit into the policy that many municipalities have to deal with in the Netherlands, such as the ‘Ladder of Sustainable Urbanization’. The company Vides, located in Houten, keeps busy with redevelopments. The past two years they have redeveloped the former PTT Post Office and NS Offices in Houten into the hotspot Joinn! The company opens its doors next week and provides workplaces for the self-employed, a lounge (food & drinks) and city lofts (short stay, stay between two nights to one year).

Joinn!

Vidès and De Wit architecten were charged with the redevelopment, involving a creative process at every turn of the conceptual interpretation. In the lounge they will be serving a healthy breakfast with great coffee, yogurt-to-go, fresh smoothies and pastries. For lunch and dinner a lot of local products will be served and during the weekend guests can meet for cocktails, bites and experience live music in the lounge in Joinn!
For the catering section, the beating heart of Joinn!, our consultant Guido Verschoor (Van Spronsen & Partners horeca – advies), has provided support and co-direction during the concept interpretation.

Sharing good moments at Joinn!

The combination of different functions within the building creates flexibility, dynamics and synergy. ‘Sharing good moments’ is their motto. From 6 November 2015 the old building will be bursting with energy and hopefully new connections and inspiring ideas will originate from here! More information on Facebook.

Around the fondue tree ….

29-10-2015

The Kapellerput brings a winter habit to the Netherlands. They went to France for inspiration and came back with an alternative ‘break’ during meetings, cheese fondue. You can do this around a fondue tree, a bar table with space for a bottle of wine, glasses and a fondue pot. The fondue tree can also be used at parties of course.

De l’arbre à fondue or the fondue tree

Maybe you already know the l’arbre à fondue, it originates from Switzerland and is used by restaurants and hotels located in winter sports regions, since a few years. The fondue tree is easy to move, enabling the service of a cosy cheese fondue at any place you like. Watch a promotional video from 2011 ….

About the Kapellerput

The Kapellerput is located in Heeze. The green estate is an inspiring place where a lot of meetings take place, particularly in their Kaban (tree house) and the home of (meeting in the relaxed atmosphere of a living room). They also have an innovative space, #Renewal, with all sorts of products that stimulate creativity. You can even create a pop-up meeting in the forest. Their new ‘break’-concept around the fondue tree combines incredibly well with the meeting concepts they offer. Let’s hope for cold but sunny weather during meetings at the Kapellerput this winter!

Will pupcakes become a trend in Europe?

28-10-2015

Will the trend of pupcakes and homemade dog treats also get to Europe? And what can you as a restaurant or hotel owner do with this trend?

Pupcakes, it should not get any crazier

That dog owners in America love to pamper their dogs, is well known. Dog clothes, even from well-known designers are for sale everywhere. And since the owners are crazy about cupcakes, they’re also crazy about pupcakes. Sometimes the American dog owners go one step further with parties for the dog, including pupcakes and homemade dog treats. Whilst on October 4, International Animal Day, most pets in Europe just get a bone or an extra stroke. Nonetheless all photos on Pinterest are fun to watch!

Pupcakes as inspiration for restaurant or hotel owners

How nice would it be if your restaurant at the beach or in the vicinity of dog walking fields, also offers a menu for the dog? We’re not talking about a standard cookie from the store, but a homemade ‘pupcake’ menu. The dog owner can take his or her dog out for lunch! On Pinterest you can find many different recipes for pupcakes and their icings.

In America they know how to celebrate, the bigger the better, but in Europe it would be great if you have one or two pupcakes on the menu for people’s best friend. Such an incredible welcoming gesture!

A slumber party at The Mark hotel

27-10-2015

At the 5-star hotel ‘The Mark’ in New York one can book a Slumber Party Suite. The hotel offers extra attention to the children of their guests by providing a sleep-over service and some more child friendly initiatives.

A slumber party for young guests

The Slumber Party Suite in hotel ‘The Mark’ is specifically designed for parents with young children, including their own tepee. Upon arrival at the suite, the children are surprised with chocolate milk, cookies and an in-room family movie.

The Mark Hotel really offers special extras that their young guests will love, and so will their parents. For the very young ones they even have a stroller available, completely in the style of the hotel. Designed in collaboration with stroller manufacturer, Maclaren. They’re ideal for a stroll through Central Park, located nearby. A tour through the ‘Metropolitan Museum of Art’ is organized for children from 10 to 13 years to teach them a bit about the art and culture of the city.

Rumor around the brand

In addition, the hotel has bicycles available designed in the style of the hotel (black and white stripes), including a black helmet and a basket. Do you prefer to stroll through Central Park? You can also enjoy a ‘lunch-to-go’ prepared by chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. The picnic basket includes luxurious ingredients, a blanket, cutlery and spices. In order not to get lost in New York’s largest park, The Mark also designed a map so guests can easily navigate through Central Park. Four legged friends are welcomed with open arms as well. The dog has receives his own basket of the brand ‘Molly Mutt’ and water bowls with a coaster that is specially designed for the hotel. This creates a ‘slumber party’ including the family dog! All those extras creates a lot of ‘rumor around the brand’.

Inspiration for hoteliers

The service that The Mark Hotel provides is very thorough. However if it inspires another hotel owner to personalize sleeping arrangements for children in a family suite, that would be wonderful. In addition, a family dog getting a warm welcome is quite unusual, especially in large cities. Hotel The Mark has inspired us before in 2013, with a 24/7 shopping service at the luxury department store, Bergdorf Goodman.

Which restaurant is going to experiment with Miracle Frooties?

26-10-2015

Why doesn’t the hospitality industry experiment with Miracle Frooties? The Frooties are made of Miracle Berries, which turns sour dishes into sweet! Also suitable for guests with diabetes.

Some time ago I have read about the Miracle Frooties. The Miracle Frooties are tablets with elements that will be temporarily attached to the tastebuds on the tongue, turning bitter and sour flavours into sweet. Several videos on the Internet show that after the complete dissolution of the tablet even one of the most acidic fruits, lemon, turns into a tasty sweet bite.

Miracle Berries

The Miracle Frooties are made of Miracle Berries. These berries have been used since hundreds of years by West African tribes. They consume the berries prior to their meal. The food will get a completely different taste. On the Miracle Frooties website you can find several products that can be combined with the tablet. Examples:
• Lemon and lime – surprisingly sweet;
• Oranges – full-bodied and sweet;
• Kiwi and Pineapple;
• Granny Smith apple;
• Rhubarb.
Curious about other examples, please check the website of Miracle Fruit World.

Use the Miracle Frooties in your restaurant

The Miracle Frooties have been on the market for several years but I haven’t seen them in restaurants yet or heard about restaurants experimenting with them. Not even at the high end restaurants who are always in for an experiment. I would love to take part of an experience where you first have a dessert without sugar and with a high amount of acids and then taste it again, after taking the pill. This might be a fun experiment for chef François Geurds, from restaurant FG in Rotterdam!

Or use the Miracle Frooties to ‘sweeten’ an acid dessert for diabetics! This way, they can also enjoy a delicious dessert without the intake of sugars. And for those guests who want to lose weight, the pill is a nice way to eat, a ‘sweet’ dessert!

If I have inspired you and you are planning to conduct this experiment, I would like to be your guinea pig! The pills can be purchased in the Netherlands on the website of V-Nix.nl. ^Bram Kosterink

A cloud of alcoholic cocktails!

23-10-2015

Bompas & Parr’s ‘alcoholic architecture’ is a pop-up cocktail bar in London’s famous ‘foodie centre’, the Borough Market. In this bar visitors can literally stand in a cloud of alcoholic cocktails.

Bompas & Parr’s pop-up

Up to and including January 2016 Bompas & Parr’s ‘alcoholic archtecture’ will be open for visitors in the Borough Market. In an enclosed area, the air is moistened with a mixture of spirits. Examples of the ‘served’ drinks are the liqueurs Chartreuse and Benedictine, a Trappist beer and fortified alcoholic wine, the notorious Buckfast.

Cloud of alcoholic cocktails

Visitors have to get in a rain suit at the entrance, and then they literally step into a cloud of alcoholic cocktails. The alcohol will be absorbed into the body through the lungs and eyes. This is exactly the reason for the signs ‘breathe responsibly’. The bar is only accessible for 18 years and older.

‘British Museum of Food’ (BMoF)

In the same building as the pop-up store ‘The British Museum of Food’ will be open for visitors from 21 October. This museum will be world’s first cultural institution which is entirely devoted to the history, evolution, science, sociology and the art of food. Some of the museum pieces are: The world’s fastest cheese trolley (from 0 to 62 mph in 6.6 seconds), the first space coffee (brought to 37 km altitude and back) and the first barbecue on 2.100 °C melted lava.

Fitness beer, grab a beer without feeling guilty!

22-10-2015

Supplemental Brewing specializes in making beer that not only tastes good, but is also healthy. On Kickstarter they launched a crowdfunding campaign to get their fitness beer, Brewtein and NutriBeer on the market in America.

Fitness beer?

Many athletes are busy with their physical health, but would also like to enjoy a beer, especially in the weekend. Supplemental Brewing wants to combine the two, and that’s how they got the idea to brew a fitness beer. This is done under the motto: ‘Workout meets your weekend’.

Brewtein and NutriBeer

Both beers are made specifically for consumers who want to enjoy a beer, after exercising, without feeling guilty. Yet both have their own taste and target audience.

Brewtein contains most proteins and is intended for athletes who specifically want to build muscle mass. It contains 7 grams of protein, which makes it a real fitness beer! However, the amount of protein doesn’t determine the taste, it’s a fairly light beer and it contains the refreshing taste of wheat. It should be served cold with a slice of lemon.

NutriBeer is a bit less strong and lower in carbohydrates and calories, which makes this beer perfect for those that work out a lot to stay slim and healthy. After an hour of heavy exercise in the gym, you can lay back on the couch with NutriBeer, without feeling guilty. This lager has a subtle lemon flavor and should be served ice cold!

Kickstarter

Supplemental Brewing started a year ago and its founder, Blake Konrady is now trying to collect money through Kickstarter to bring his ‘Fitness Beer’ on the market. For those who support him through Kickstarter, he prepared all kind of merchandise, such as shirts, sweaters, bags, a beer bell (a dumbbell in which you can place your beer) and a number of other items. Today, 22 October, he still has eight days left to get his beer funded through crowdfunding and he still has to collect over 10,000 dollar.

Last year we also spotted ‘Lean Machine’, beer and sports drink at the same time.

Berlin’s first Salmon Kebab

21-10-2015

The so called ‘Lachdöner’ from Rauch Zeichen consists of juicy salmon, cucumber, tomato, crispy fresh onion, well-seasoned with homemade honey-mustard-dill sauce and conveniently packed in traditional flatbread.

Salmon Kebab

Berlin’s new specialty, the ‘Lachdöner’ is invented by the self-made entrepreneur and amateur fisherman Ronny Unger. Often there are long lines waiting in front of the ‘Rauch-Zeichen’- food truck, that drives from market to market around Berlin. Beside the Salmon Kebab they also serve a salmonwrap, fish fries, fish buns and smoked fish. Most fish is bought at the company ‘Fischerei Angermünde’ in Uckermark but the salmon comes from antibiotic-free fish farms in Norway. The smoked fish is smoked over beech wood. For his fish ideas Ronny Unger has been awarded the ‘Seafood Star 2015’ as best starter in fish in Germany. Check out the Facebook page of ‘Rauch Zeichen’ for more information.

Inspiration

Check out other kebab concepts;
Like the robotic arm that slices the meat at restaurant ‘Super Kebab’ in London. Or the first European location of Baba Rafi that recently opened in Alkmaar. In Asia, the chain has more than 1,300 locations and the location in Alkmaar serves a kebab adapted to the European market, Kebab 2.0.  And in Paris ‘Grillé’ serves a kebab that even the biggest snob can’t wait to be in line for! A Fancy Kebab or as the French say; ‘kebabs quasi gastronomiques’.

Croquettes made of 100% organic spelt

20-10-2015

An article about one of our Dutch prides, our ‘kroketten en bitterballen’ (croquettes and small croquettes). Royal Spelt created the first croquettes made of 100% organic spelt. Prepared with fresh herbs, vegetables and the best organic beef.

Royal Spelt makes croquettes made of 100% organic spelt

Royal Spelt wants to make the tastiest and best snacks in the Netherlands, made of 100% natural and organic ingredients and 100% spelt. Their slogan ‘Pure nature in a jacket of spelt’. Royal Spelt has chosen for the Eko-grain spelt, consisting of a mixture of vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates and fats. The Eko-grain spelt also has a high protein percentage and is rich in amino acids. In addition is the filling made of biological meat without artificial colors, flavors or fragrance and the salpicon is made with spelt flour.

Healthier snack

Okay, the croquette will still be fried, but for the group of people who consciously checks the ingredients of the products they eat, the croquette is a healthier alternative. The demand for organic and spelt products increases and as ‘organic snacks’, these croquettes are an addition for caterers, restaurants and snack bars.

Royal Spelt delivers their products to companies with a conscious mind for healthy but tasty food. The aim is to make the best and most responsible croquette of the Netherlands and develop more flavours.

Mini kiwi fruit: kiwi berries

19-10-2015

In Britain, supermarket Waitrose has started selling kiwi berries which are grown in Withers Farm in Ledbury, Herefordshire.

Kiwi berries

The berries have the size of a grape and can be eaten whole. It looks a lot like the original Kiwi fruit from New Zealand but is a fraction of the size and doesn’t have furry skin. It looks a bit like a gooseberry, but tastes sweeter. The kiwi berries are getting more and more popular, we already spotted the berries in America last year at specific high end food markets. Farmers around the world are now producing it commercially. Like the article in The Daily Mail tells, supermarket Waitrose even started selling them in its stores all over Great Britain. One of the sellers of the kiwi berries in the Netherlands is Nature’s Pride.

The kiwi berries are available during the months February, March, April, September, October and November. The berry grows wild in parts of China, north-eastern Siberia, Korea and Japan. The berries are high in antioxidants, Vitamin A, C and E as well as Potassium and Magnesium.

Another fruit at the breakfast buffet!

Robotic arm to slice kebab.

16-10-2015

Super Kebab in Stoke Newington, North London has introduced a new robotic arm to slice their döner meat. We noticed some technical improvements excluding a lot of manual labour.

At Super Kebab they’re working with a robotic arm

The user controls the robot with a remote control enabling him to adjust the speed and the thickness of the slices. If you watch the video, you will notice that the slices are very thin making your döner kebab more yummy!

The robotic arm is made by Atalay döner in Istanbul, Turkey. They installed the first Robotic arm in the United Kingdom at Super Kebab in London. The robotic arm glides up and down the tower of meat guided by sensors. The owner Hakan Gorenli is very happy with his investment (around 5.000 pounds) and thinks many kebab restaurants will follow. His customers are happy with the precise and hygienical way the meat is cut.

Robots in the hospitality industry

We recently wrote about the healthy fast food (lunch) restaurant ‘Eatsa’ in San Francisco that looks more like an electronics store than a restaurant. There is no staff to take orders and everything is fully automated. The founders of Eatsa promise faster, more nutritious, affordable and tastier meals. This is realized without staff at the front of the restaurant, like the robotic arm that reduces the manual labour. In the hotel section we spotted The Hen-na hotel that opened this summer and is staffed with robot receptionists, porters, cleaners and waitresses. Are robots slowly taking over? I hope that hospitality remains human. 😉 ^Marjolein

A breadstick crust at the pizza of Pizza Hut

14-10-2015

Pizza Hut created ‘The Twisted Crust Pizza’, this pizza combines pizza and breadsticks. The pizza features a tearable, dippable breadstick crust with a choice of 2 dipping sauces…

A breadstick crust?

Pizza Hut introduced the twisted crust pizza 21 September in the USA. The company loves to stretch the possibilities of the old-fashioned pizza. Like the hotdog pizza with a hotdog in the crust and their ‘doritos crunchy crust pizza’, we wrote about last year.

Jared Drinkwater, vice president of marketing at Pizza Hut: “We are not afraid to experiment with new and innovative flavor combinations for our food, but sometimes it’s the most obvious innovations that amaze us the most – and Twisted Crust is an example of an innovation that has done just that. We know America loves our pizza, but we have an enormous, loyal group of Pizza Hut breadstick lovers out there, too. We believe our new Twisted Crust Pizza is the ultimate flavor combination of these two popular items that consumers will absolutely love.”

Inspiration

We have seen some unusual pizza combinations in the Netherlands as well. Like last year, the sauerkraut pizza from Domino’s Pizza. Pizza Hut only serves a pizza with a crust stuffed with cheese in the Netherlands though. We wonder what pizza variations we will see this winter in the Netherlands! Anyway the ‘Twisted Crust Pizza’ can be added to the list of 10 times pizza inspiration.

Les Bols de Jean – the breadbowl is going French

13-10-2015

Leonie van Spronsen, lives and works in Paris and recently lunched at ‘Les Bols de Jean’ in Paris.

The bread bowl is centuries old and in the United States completely common as chili or clam chowder holder, but in Europe not so much. Well that’s all about to change if you ask internationally renowned baker Eric Kayser and ‘world-famous-in-France’ chef Jean Imbert!

Les Bols de Jean in Paris

Since 2 weeks Jean Imbert, former winner of Topchef France, has a new lunch place right in the city center of Paris where he serves only one type of meal and that is the ‘Bol de Jean’. A ‘Bol de Jean’ is an especially developed loaf of brioche (in collaboration with Eric Kayser) that’s hollowed and the top has been cut off as a type of lid. For in the loaf you choose the dish you would like to try that day, they usually have 5 choices and they change regularly.

A must-visit lunch spot in Paris

Guess what? Delicious! The brioche is amazingly balanced, has a great structure and doen’t taste to sweet. The dish is creatively thought out and seems to match perfectly with the bread each time. On top of that it looks beautiful and it’s a new lunch concept for all Parisians. ‘Les Bols de Jean’ – I say on it’s way to become a new classic!

From the Dutch editor: In the Netherlands the Bunny Chow foodtruck serves similar bread bowls based on recipes from South Africa. Check Jean Imbert’s Instagram account for more pictures.

Co-creation around new concepts

12-10-2015

Dick Middelweerd, chef of restaurant Treeswijkhoeve (** by Michelin), has great plans for the coming weeks. From 16 October up to 25 October you can enjoy his culinary talent during the Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven as at 10 November he will cook at a pop-up restaurant at Buitenplaats Amerongen.

Allegory of the South

In the iconic Augustine Church, in the heart of Eindhoven, major entrepreneurs from the region join their traditional knowledge for the ‘Allegory of the South‘. Atelier van Asseldonk will realize a complete installation, based on a twenty meter long table. The company Oogenlust will decorate the church, supported by master builder Bruns. The nave of the Augustine Church transforms at night into a dining room, where Dick Middelweerd will offer a special menu for the occasion. Guests will toast with Beerze Beer from the region. This initiative is open to visitors during the Dutch Design Week from 16 to 25 October.

Pop-up restaurant at Buitenplaats Amerongen

On 10 November Dick Middelweerd and his team will serve a one-time pop-up five-course dinner at the historic venue ‘Buitenplaats Amerongen’. They will make some of his famous local signature dishes, like his ‘Worstenbrood’ (Meatbread), the smoked salmon (on cedar) in a humidor and ‘prol’. Location is the recently renovated coach house of the historic ‘Buitenplaats Amerongen’. Besides cooking Dick Middelweerd will take care of the music as DJ at the after party!

Co-creation around new concepts

The pop-up restaurant at the historic venue ‘Buitenplaats Amerongen’ is an initiative of entrepreneurs from Amerongen, Peter-Paul Swijnenburg of Buitenplaats Amerongen and Nico Donkelaar from the Olive Oil Shop, who already successfully brought two star chef Edwin Vinke to Amerongen. They combine a wonderful evening to enjoy the dishes of a famous chef with an after party to take the feet from the floor.

The ‘Allegory of the South’ will be a great addition to the Dutch Design Week because of the co-creation of all parties. Check out their video.

Virtual Reality pop-up cinema in Amsterdam

9-10-2015

&samhoud Consultancy brings the first Virtual Reality pop-up cinema to Amsterdam. The technology of virtual reality will be shown at their office on 31 October.

Virtual Reality pop-up cinema

In this pop-up cinema in the office of &samhoud Consultancy you will be centered in the middle of a movie with the help of the virtual reality glasses and headphones. The technique of virtual reality will be applied on a large scale for the first time in the Netherlands, in this pop-up cinema. Tickets will be 10 euros and can be purchased through a dedicated Facebook page. Jip Samhoud tells more about developments in Virtual Reality worldwide in an article in a Dutch Newspaper, het Parool. He thinks that the initial hype in virtual reality is over and that virtual reality will increasingly integrate. He also admits that the movie they will show, is especially made to show the effects of virtual reality. A big challenge for film producers to create new movies! The video above shows how to use the virtual reality glasses.