Sleeping in a honeycomb hotel at festivals
13-3-2014
No more difficulties with tents at festivals, but sleep in this luxe honeycomb hotel called ‘B&Bee’. The honeycomb hotel consists of several boxes in the shape of hexagonal cylinders. The boxes can be stacked up to four floors and each box offers place for two persons. There is space for luggage, power supply and the honeycomb hotel is fire- and weatherproof. Developer Barbara Vanthorre got the idea for this hotel after a night out in Ghent and this summer they are testing the ‘B&Bee’ at various festivals in Ghent.
non-alcoholic whiskey and rum
13-3-2014
With the Dutch prohibition of alcohol under 18 recently and the attention to healthy food alcohol-free alternatives are becoming increasingly popular. The Happy Drinks website offers recipes for exciting non-alcoholic cocktails, especially targeted at young people. Via the importer La Source it’s now possible to get non-alcoholic free whiskey and rum, aimed at an older audience. Non-alcoholic specials are a serious niche to focus on this summer.
Amsterdam turns bread into energy
12-3-2014
Inhabitants of the Kolenkitwijk neighborhood in Amsterdam threw their bread on the streets because their religion prohibits throwing it away in the garbage bin. This caused a rat plague and other problems with unwanted animals. As a solution the government placed special bread dumpsters in the area. The bread from these dumpsters is used by Pink Pony Express for a national energy experiment in collaboration with micro-biologists. They developed it into a permanent bread digester that can process 10 kg bread into 3000 liter of biogas a day. To celebrate the opening there are three bread baking workshops in the neighborhood on Friday 14 March.
Dessert on the table at Mambo Beachclub Curacao
12-3-2014
During the Valentine dinner Mambo Beachclub served a very special dessert on the table, accompanied with Prosecco and three different love potions. An original way to serve desserts, we’ve seen it before but it’s still rare. Check the video.
Milk and cookie shot by Dominique Ansel
11-3-2014
The latest invention by chef Dominique Ansel is the Milk & Cookie Shot and was introduced at South by Southwest in Austin. Each chocolate chip cookie is shaped into a shot glass and milk is infused with Tahitian vanilla. From Friday March 14th, the Milk & Cookie Shots will be made available in the New York store of Dominique Ansel Bakery as an “after school special” starting at 3pm. The inspiration for the cookie came from the American tradition to dip cookies in milk, something we wrote about before in the ‘cookie monster‘ article.
Slow food at the Milano Centrale station
11-3-2014
In the home of the slow food movement (northern Italy) Autogrill (from the resto stops) has opened Bistrot Milano Centrale in collaboration with the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo. In the former 3rd class waiting room of the Central Station of Milan, one serves local traditional dishes, taking into account the seasons and as healthy as possible preparations, like the use of sourdough and of traditional maturing and ageing processes. The Bistrot Centrale is a vibrant ambience evoking a typical covered market, where high quality goes hand in hand, with food islands like a bakery, cafe, street food, wine bar and gourmet cuisine. The objective is to provide a sustainable venue, with a special focus on respect for the natural environment, local culture and economy, also through use of natural materials, the limiting of waste and the promotion of virtuous practice amongst the clientele as well.
Nocospray at Van der Valk Arnhem
11-3-2014
Van der Valk Hotel Arnhem is the first hotel in the Netherlands that cleans rooms with the ‘Nocospray “, this device removes all micro-pollutants biologically. The hotel works together with Dutch Smart Solutions for the pilot and it takes about half an hour to complete the cleaning with the Nocospray. During the pilot period, the hotel provides the cleaning as an extra service.
Fizz Las Vegas in co-crreation with Sir Elton John
10-3-2014
Champagne lounge and bar Fizz Las Vegas opened in November 2013 inside Caesars Palace . FIZZ Las Vegas features a selection of high-end champagnes by the glass and carefully-curated spirits. Working with David Furnish and Sir Elton John’s personal chef, exquisite choices of caviar, gourmet paninis and small plates complement the beverage selection. The 2,750-square-foot lounge celebrates the crossroad between champagne and couture cocktail offerings with art, fashion and design. The art consists out of Elton John’s and David Furnish’s extraordinary colored photography collection.
The making of restaurant Het Witte Paard
10-3-2014
The self-service restaurant of the Efteling, named ‘Het Witte Paard’ (the white horse) has been renovated and reopened on 1 March. The new restaurant looks like a tea house of the early 1900’s, with six different rooms each unique and nostalgic. The video above shows the making of the restaurant. A nice way to show the ambience and progress of the rebuilding of the restaurant.
Flagshipstore Delice Delikatessen in The Hague
10-3-2014
International gourmet food retailer ‘Delice Delikatessen’ has opened a flagshipstore in shopping mall New Babylon The Hague. Delice Delikatessen has a range of over 700 selected products from Europe with their own story, such as a 100-year old in different wood barrels aged balsamic or a truffle paste. Besides the wide range of products the flagshipstore has also a petit café and organizes various tastings. The flagshipstore has an authentic kitchen design. Last year Delice Delikatessen was nominated for the Global RLI Awards in London in the category: Rising Star.
