Bouzy, Wine & Food at the Denneweg Hague
25-9-2015
Bouzy, Wine & Food opened at the Denneweg in The Hague. The wine & bites bar was founded by Martijn Verbruggen and Stefan Verleer and is a place where wine lovers will feel at home.
Bouzy
Co-owner Martijn Verbruggen: “Bouzy is an accessible place with a tough but warm vintage look and natural light from the many windows. The wines are the heart of Bouzy, we have over 100 wines, including 25 open wines of which several champagnes. We serve wines that we get from wine specialist suppliers who share their gems for us. In addition, we import champagnes from small producers ourselves via our company G-Bubbles.”
The name Bouzy
“Bouzy is named after the French Grand Cru area ‘Bouzy’, which is known as one of the best terroirs of Champagne. Next to the wines Martijn and Stefan serve snacks and bistro-style dishes like bruschetta, flammkuchen, bites of fish and meat, charcuterie, salads, cheese, desserts and coq au vin.”
Wine events
Bouzy will be a place where special wine events take place. Recently Lucas Payà was at the restaurant to present the new innovative wine system Coravin of catering professionals. He was sommelier at the former Spanish three-star restaurant elBulli for five years.
About Martijn Verbruggen and Stefan Verleer
Martijn Verbruggen (34) worked as a master-sommelier in (star) restaurants as Savelberg, Seinpost and Catch by Simonis. Stefan Verleer (34) worked as a manager and maître-sommelier at restaurants Zoute Zoen and South of Houston.
Opening hours
Bouzy, Wine & Food is open from Tuesday through Saturday from 11:00 to 23:00 o’clock. Next to the regular opening days there will be regularly activities on Sundays.
Slow Cow relaxation drink
11-9-2015
The Slow Cow relaxation drink clears the mind.
Slow Cow was developed by three hyperactive stressful entrepreneurs. They sought, and found, an alternative to energy drinks. A drink to help relax, focus and concentrate. Together with various partners and investors they launched Slow Cow in Canada in 2008.
Slow Cow ingredients and effect
Slow Cow promotes the feeling of natural tranquillity. The drink does not cause sleepiness or fatigue and isn’t the opposite of an energy drink at all. Slow Cow was developed in Quebec, Canada. The drink contains almost no calories, no caffeine, no sugar and no preservatives. It does contain extracts of green tea, valerian, chamomile, passionflower, lime blossom, lemon grass, potassium and sodium.
Alternative
The creator present the soda as an alternative to every day’s hectic pace, the adrenaline and race against the clock. In terms of taste it could have been a bit less sweet in our opinion. That will probably be due to our limited energy drink consumption normally. It is certainly an interesting alternative to high school students who are regularly hyper on the caffeine and sugar bombs that they consume in large amounts.
Mascot
Slow Cow mascot Harry plays a leading role in the promotional campaign. His mission is to help the Dutch people to relax in their increasingly stressful daily life. Through his discoveries, he reminds us constantly about his message “It is important and urgent to adopt a cool lifestyle.” Harry is the champion of ‘cool’ and relax. He embodies calmness in all situations.
Bulletproof coffee and FATwater
1-9-2015
Bulletproof Coffee is a branded coffee drink consisting of “Upgraded” black coffee blended with grass-fed butter and “Brain Octane oil” (coconut oil). The drink is supposed to boost cognitive performance and has opened a stand-alone bulletproof café in Los Angeles last year. FATwater also contains coconut oil extracts and water, a new product from the same Bulletproof company.
Bulletproof coffee
We already spotted the drink while writing an article back in September 2014 about the pop-up coffeebar in the black box in Ghent (Belgium). The pop-up coffeebar was part of CrossFit Ghent. The original recipe of Dave Asprey is created in 2009 and is originally based on the Yak-butter tea from Tibet. The coffee consists of a special coffee, butter from grass fed cows and a special kind of coconut oil. Just blend these 3 elements and you’ll have your Bulletproof coffee.
Dave Asprey now sells his own ‘Upgraded’ black coffee and the ‘Brain Octane Oil’ (an 8-carbon fraction of medium-chain triglyceride oil). Dave Asprey even claims that the drink will have you lose weight. The drink is very popular amongst sportspeople and entrepreneurs. Although we have read a couple of reviews which say that there is no scientific base for the claims and some people have been drinking so many Bulletproof coffees that their cholesterol level increased! Last year the Bulletproof coffee got a lot attention on shows like Good Morning America and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, like the above video shows. Here a link to another video showing Dave Asprey making a Bulletproof coffee.
FATwater
At the website of PSFK we read that from the makers of Bulletproof coffee also comes FATwater. Another drink laced with coconut oil extracts and a punch of energy. The statement of Bulletproof Coffee about their new product: “Experience clean-burning fuel from fat instead of sugar. Using patented nano-fusion™ technology, FATwater concentrate is an emulsion of Bulletproof® XCT™ Oil and purified water, ready to be stirred into water or beverage of your choice.”
Inspiration
When and where can we drink Bulletproof Coffee and FATwater in Europe? Wouldn’t it be great to be the coffee company that introduces these drinks in Europe? Would you try one?
Cotton candy cocktails
25-8-2015
Cotton candy cocktails are hip and specific on Pinterest and similar websites you will find many varieties!
Recipes for cotton candy cocktails
We haven’t figured out what to think about it, but the effect is great and recipes can be found all over the internet …. The cotton candy cocktail in a lot of variations. The idea is that you serve a glass filled with cotton candy and pour over the liquid. The cotton candy melts before your eyes, and give the cocktail an extra sweet and surprising element. We have seen simple recipes with cotton candy in which you pour over bubbles but also the recipe on Tablespoon where the candy is covered with Marshmallow Vodka and Perrier water. We even saw ‘cotton candy coffee’ pictures on Pinterest but we decided that it makes our coffee too sweet….
Also nice alcohol-free
Also very nice to serve as a non-alcoholic cocktail. It’s also a real treat at children’s parties! Most recipes for alcohol-free cocktails are made with 7-up but sparkling water is another possibility.
We have pinned some photos on our board Food & Beverage on Pinterest. From cute to professional.
Ripples coffee printer
10-8-2015
With Ripples coffee printer, you can print images and text on cappuccinos or lattes.
Ripples coffee printer makes latte art
The Ripples coffee printer can personalize a cup of coffee. The printer can print messages on the coffee like for example birthday congratulations or your name.
Within 10 seconds
The machine costs about € 915, – and combines 3D printing with an ink-jet system. The ink is made of natural coffee extract and is available in so-called ‘Ripple Pods’. The images can be chosen from the online Ripple library or uploaded via the Ripple app. One print takes about 10 seconds.
Wifi
The Ripples coffee printer has a WiFi connectivity and automatically prints on coffee cups up to 17 cm high and 11 cm in diameter. Printing Latte Art was seen earlier in Taiwan, at the Lets Caffe. However, that system was based on printing with cocoa and was not available to third parties. Additionally Ripples focuses its marketing much more on printing catchy messages rather than portraits alone.
Kornuit puts modern craftsmanship in the spotlight
6-8-2015
The brewers (and marketing department) of Kornuit work with the new generation of craftsmen and puts the spotlight on modern craftsmanship.
Modern craftsmanship
Kornuit works together with sausage maker Erik Waagmeester and blacksmith Joram Barbier and has made beautiful videos about them. Under the heading of ‘modern craftsmanship’ Kornuit will give them and other craftsmen the attention they deserve.
Sausage and upcycled beer opener
Waagmeester developed a sausage based on Cascade hop specially for Kornuit. The sausage is available at selected bars. Barbers has designed a bottle opener from an old beer barrel. The opener which is available at a number of supermarkets in the Netherlands.
Restaurant Waag opened in Leiden
29-7-2015
This month ‘Waag’ opened in Leiden. The Waag was once the bustling center of Leiden but was barely used until recently. This summer, the monument is the vibrant heart of the city again.
The Waag as backdrop for traditional events
Guests can enjoy breakfast, lunch or dinner at the Waag under the magnificent vaults of the monumental Boterhal or in the new glass construction. The Waag remains the backdrop for the traditional presentation of herring and white bread on 3 October and the Waag will be renamed the House of Saint Nicholas in late November.
Interior
Great Persian rugs and a special lighting plan transform the stately monument in a place where it’s pleasant to stay. A wall full of old scales refers to the past, when ‘The Waag’ was the commercial centre of the city and traders had their goods weighted.
Glass construction
To relieve the monumental Waag and Boterhal an additional glass construction was built behind the high, vaulted room of the Boterhal. Here is a large open kitchen located in the glass construction with a private entrance to the Mandemakers Alley.
Chicken in the lead
Freshly grilled chicken plays a major role at the Waag. On a Josper charcoal oven chickens are freshly grilled in French or Portuguese style. In addition there are salads, pastas and culinary classics like a sirloin steak, prawns, satay and a burger on the menu.
Terrace in 2016
The monumental ‘Waaghoofd’ will be the location of the new ‘Waag’ terrace in the spring of 2016, and has room for 150 guests. To achieve this the main bridge of the Waag is moved to Catharina Alley in late 2015.
Debut BV – Hospitality Management and Development
The Waag is part of Debut BV, which is responsible for several successful restaurant concepts as Mad Mick’s Breakaway Café Rotterdam, STAN & CO, Belgian Beer Café Olivier in Utrecht and Leiden, the Mexican restaurants of Popocatepetl, Hometown Coffee & More in The Hague and Stadscafé Progress in Eindhoven.
Do you have a secret menu?
23-7-2015
Hot in the USA: secret menu’s at fast food chains. From fast food chain In-N-Out, to Shake Shack to McDonald’s. Why not create your own ‘secret menu’ as a cafeteria or small fast food chain?
Last year I did visit the fast food chain In-N-Out in California, my daughter who worked and lived in New York already heard about their (not-so) secret menu. Recently I saw a video of Anthony Bourdain discussing his appetite for burgers of In-N-Out. This chain has been offering customer-created riffs on the menu which have been passed down through word of mouth since the 1960’s. At their official menu it has just three burgers (a hamburger, cheeseburger, and the ‘double-double’), it’s ‘not-so-secret’ menu adds six more. I tasted the iconic ‘animal style’ burger with a lot of grilled onions and mustard. Did I like it? Well it certainly was the most tasty fast food burger I have eaten on the West Coast. But I didn’t eat many!
How to create a secret menu
The appeal of the secret menu is a delicate matter for restaurants. You can’t promote them because of the fact that it will instantly lose its secrecy factor. It’s a matter of involving your fans and let them spread their favorite ‘secret menu’ through social media and locally through word of mouth. For more information read the article ‘Secret Burger Menus, Explained’ on Eater.
You can even check the secret menu’s at fast food restaurants in your vicinity at the website Secret Menus. At this website I even read that one of the secret menus at In-N-Out is called the ‘Flying Dutchman’. Just two patties and cheese, very trendy without gluten! ^Marjolein
Unique pop-up restaurants in Amersfoort
15-7-2015
Coming Friday, 17 July there will be a pop-up dinner at a secret location in Amersfoort. There are still some seats left for adventurous food lovers.
Adventurous dining at pop-up restaurants
Visitors of pop-up restaurants are open to adventure and often naturally spontaneous. In addition, the hosts do a lot to break the ice and the reactions to the diners are positive. An interesting side effect is the free publicity the host location gets with such a dinner, and it offers unique closing events for locations as well. Two weeks after a dinner at the Porsche dealer one of the dinner guests bought a car and a number of sites closed shortly after the pop-up event, where the dinner leaves a nice final memory. There have been dinners at a gym, a library, a car dealer, a farmer barn and an art gallery. The initiative for the pop-up restaurants at special locations in the region was created three years ago at restaurant ‘Bergpaviljoen’ in Amersfoort.
Surprise
The dinners host never more than 50 people at a communal table. Visitors come alone, in pairs or small groups. The location of the dinner will be a surprise until the day itself. When ordering tickets, guests fill in their mobile number and dietary wishes and leave their mobile number. They receive a text message with the location on the afternoon before the dinner. For € 59.00 per person, guests receive a welcome cocktail, appetizer, a 3-course dinner, plenty of white and red wine and mineral water, bread, coffee and tea with a digestive and sweets.
Superfast dinners in a giant jukebox during the funfair
13-7-2015
Ibiza Restaurant in Tilburg (The Netherlands) turns its façade temporarily into a giant jukebox during the most famous funfair in the Netherlands.
Superfast dinners
Restaurant Ibiza lies at the fairground and at any day of the funfair the public can enjoy a delicious dinner at a number of fixed times. Dinner will take no more than one hour, guests don’t want to lose too much time! The meals in the jukebox are accompanied by musical entertainment. The giant jukebox will be on the ‘Heuvelring’ in Tilburg from 17 July to 26 July. Tickets are available through the website and range in price from € 19.99 to € 29.99 for a meal and two drinks.
Inspiration from the funfair in Tilburg
Tempting your guests with a great meal, served within the hour and a special entrance and music … Ibiza restaurant becomes part of the fair. A great way to approach their potential guests. What happens nearby your restaurant this summer? Anything you could anticipate on at an original manner? What would generate a lot of free publicity in advance and a lot of extra guests at the event? Restaurant Ibiza really understands the guests that are coming to the funfair, they love theatrical gestures, a good dinner and they need a lot of time to enjoy the amusement rides!
