Trends we spotted | Week 11
Trends in het kort
At hospitalitytrends.eu we spot many national and international trends on a daily basis. We pick the most interesting ones to write about, the smaller trends we use in our weekly column ‘Trends we spotted this week’.
This week, among other links to articles about a vending machine that uses Instagram posts as payment for noodles and about sushi cupcakes! We also read an interesting article about the use of x-ray scanners in hotel lobbies and an article about a boozy art class.
The website of Fine Dining Lovers has a new item they’re exploring curious delicacies, check out this one: milt! And ‘Visit CA’, the tourist board in California, has paid Michelin to get a get a red guide of this state.
And in London we spotted Bustronome, a gastronomic tour around the city, and a cheese platter and prosecco festival!
Click on the title if you like to read the full article. Enjoy reading!
‘Vending Machine’ uses social media as currency for free noodles
Spotted on Instagram: selfies with a vending machine that dispenses free Nissin Cup Noodles, among a variety of other free prizes. Named the “Dream Machine”, this vending machine from Nissin Foods USA and Foodbeast dispenses its loot using Instagram. Anyone can walk up and push the big button to activate the Dream Machine. Instructions on the screen will prompt the user to take a photo with the machine. Next, the user will post their photo to Instagram using a special hashtag generated by the machine.
This London bus tour combines sightseeing with fine dining | Bustronome
Bustronome whizzes you around London, taking in the most famous spots in town but what sets it apart from your standard bus tour is the addition of a gourmet meal, served under a panoramic glass roof. We already wrote about Bustronome Experience in Paris back in 2015 and now they’re touring in London as well!
London’s first cheese and prosecco festival
This festival with cheese platters, grapes, crackers and 90 minutes of bottomless prosecco will take place at Old Spitalfields Market on the 29th and 30th of March. There will even be some live jazz!
Nuclear radioactivity in hotel lobbies – a silent risk-factor?
An interesting insight at the website eHotelier by Stefan Hiller about x-ray scanners in hotel lobbies. He now refers to scanners in hotel lobbies in Africa and Asia but with the turmoil in Europe we might be getting them here as well. A warning about the lifespan of x-ray scanners and the service this equipment needs! From the article:
“I have recently conducted an analysis of the exploitation of x-ray scanners in hotel lobbies in Africa and Asia. The study on their use in hotels has brought a silent risk-factor to the surface. This article will explain how manufacturers of screening devices discovered the hotel market and what commercial aspects hotel operators should be considering before they install one. The lifespan of an x-ray scanner is somewhere between 5-6 years, if frequently serviced by a qualified radiation technician. Unfortunately, only a very few of the hotels in these regions have radiation policies in place with penalties. The reality is also that the equipment is often as old as the property itself”.
Sushi cupcake?
Jaburritos serves sushi in cupcakes form at the LINQ promenade in Las Vegas. All they wanted according to the owner, Ken Aoki, was to invent a fun way to create bite-sized sushi. They scoop a ball of sushi rice in a fried wonton base and ad all kind of sushi ingredients. Does look delicious! Check out the video at Facebook by Thrillist Food and Drink.
Cocktails & Colours Boozy Art Class!
Great idea for cultured friends, the Fever’s Cocktails and Watercolour Art Class. A masterclass paint watercolours and drink cocktails at the same time, a charming art class. We love this idea for cocktail bars, you could even challenge your guests to paint with food. I don’t remember where I have read this, but it seems that you can paint with, among others ingredients, grapes. ^Marjolein
Curious delicacies | Getting to know milt
Some foodies got accustomed to savoring bottarga, the dried and salted ovaries of grey mullet or tuna fish. However, there is another typical Italian product which can be defined as the male bottarga, tuna sperm (AKA: milt.). Milt, which is rare and relatively unknown, is now considered a great gourmet delicacy. Milder in taste than bottarga, its particularly complex preparation justifies a high market price which makes it something of a luxury. Like many delicacies around the world, it was once considered nothing more than a waste. Need more information: check out the article at the website of Fine Dining Lovers.
How much is having a Michelin Guide worth?
An interesting e-mail exchange between the writer of the article on the website of Family Meal in which ‘Visit CA’ answers questions about their red guide partnership. Visit California is investing $600,000 as part of its ongoing culinary program to underwrite the hard costs of expanding the presence of Michelin inspectors throughout the state. The guide will remain totally editorially independent from the tourism board, meaning only Michelin will decide which restaurants are considered, although Visit California will also provide in-kind promotional help of an unspecified value. The already existing Michelin guide of San Francisco will be absorbed.
