The Happy Pig Pancake Shop
20-3-2015
The Happy Pig Pancake Shop is a unique store in downtown Amsterdam. In the shop you can find pancakes and Belgian waffles made from certified organic ingredients that are freshly cooked.
The Happy Pig Pancake Shop: Shop with breakfast bar
In the shop they make good old-fashioned Dutch pancakes and Belgian waffles with delicious fillings and toppings. The focus is on certified organic ingredients. Cooks prepare your dish right in front of you. Besides the pancakes and waffles they also serve organic coffee, tea, chai latte, hot chocolate and fresh orange juice. They have a breakfast bar, and if the weather is nice, you can sit on one of the benches outside. Of course you can also have your pancake for take-away as well. In the shop you will find organic snacks, drinks, coffee, honey and chocolate.
The Happy Pig Pancake Shop in Amsterdam
Andrea Steinmetz, owner of The Happy Pig Shop, at the Rosmarijnsteeg in Amsterdam, notes that it is very busy since the shop opened in October last year. She has especially noticed that reviews on TripAdvisor have much effect on the people coming in. On her website she placed a prominent button from TripAdvisor:
Bravo: The Happy Pig Pancake Shop Amsterdam rated “excellent” by 25 travelers.
Our colleague Armand Sol experienced the influence of TripAdvisor himself recently, he wrote a blog about it (in Dutch). Inspiration: Is your business established in an environment where international guests pay a visit, ensure that are good reviews on TripAdvisor. A friendly request for a review can provide new guests though this channel.
3D printed snack with edible soil
19-3-2015
Project designer Chloé Rutzerveld creates a bridge between new production and traditional cultivation with the “Edible Growth” project. The 3D printer produces a food soil. Printing food with a 3D printer is not new anymore but printing edible food soils with seeds and spores is. The soil and the seeds and spores grow into living edible balls.
Edible growth
Rutzerveld studied Industrial Design at the Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE). For the Edible Growth project she works together with the TUE and knowledge institute TNO. The technology is still in development, the software, hardware and assembling the ingredients has yet to be optimized. Edith Growth, however, has had a lot of international attention.
The technology is used to optimize the natural processes and to make the soil and plants grow together into the final product. During the growth the structure, smell and taste changes and intensify. Like, for example, a blue cheese.
3D printed snack with the edible soil
It’s a new way of producing food that connects nature, technology, science and design. The whole food chain will reduce considerably and the concept brings consumers closer to their food. It facilitates growth and reduces the ecological footprint with less food miles, it also reduces waste and freshness is in your own hands.
Corn Cobs as yellow submarines
16-3-2015
The barbecue season is almost there and what tastes better than corn on the cob? The Spredo, a dual-purpose butter and salt dispenser is fun and easy to use. It makes your corn cob look like a little yellow submarine!
The Spredo is designed for corn cobs
The dual-purpose butter and salt dispenser is designed by Avichai Tadmor for Monkey business. It’s playful and designed for the Beatles fans ;-). The Spredo’s curved bottom is shaped to rest flush on a cob’s surface. It comes with two compartments: one at the bottom for the butter and another at the top for salt.
Papa Poule, the new rotisserie chicken hot spot in New York
12-3-2015
Rotisserie chicken served from the counter by Michelin starred chef Arman Arnal and team in New York.
The team behind the bakery Maman, with Michelin starred chef Arman Arnal (former chef at the Michelin starred restaurant ‘La Chassagnette’ in the south of France), Benjamin Sormonte and Elisa Marshall opened their new project Papa Poule in the beginning of February 2015. Papa Poule focuses on French rotisserie chicken that is only available for takeout and delivery.
Inspiration
Papa Poule had a lot of attention in the American press with their culinary (grill)chickens and Resto Poule & Poulette in Antwerp is also very popular. We wonder if we get a culinary revival of the chicken in the Netherlands as well?
The menu at Papa Poule
The menu includes a variety of flavoured rotisserie chickens, all massaged, marinated, and stuffed. The chicken will be finished with different sauces, including BBQ, honey mustard, béarnaise, chimichurri, and aioli. If a whole chicken is too much, you can also choose for a quarter or half a chicken to take away. There will also be a daily changing selection of sides, specials and desserts, like chicken potpie, potato gratin, sage-and-onion stuffing, Israeli couscous and profiteroles.
Location
Papa Poule is located at Lafayette street in New York. It is a small room with no seating. The restaurant is inspired by a typical French farmhouse. The kitchen is enclosed with chicken wire and the lamps are made from this material as well. Check their Facebook page for pictures.
The PancakeBot, 3-D printer for pancakes at your breakfast buffet!
12-3-2015
The PancakeBot allows you to ‘print’ out pancakes into just about any design you can imagine. Especially easy and fun for kids! Great for at your breakfast buffet.
Inspiration: A PancakeBot at your breakfast buffet.
Wouldn’t it be great to serve pancakes with your logo for breakfast? Or the logo of a company visiting your hotel? You could also organize a drawing contest between your youngest guests and serve the drawing of the winner for breakfast. We think that you could make a lasting impression with the PancakeBot.
About the PancakeBot
Although designed to inspire, entertain, and to enjoy the creativity of the users, the PancakeBot also has a commercial durability, it can make your brand leave a lasting impression. The designer of the Pancakebot, Miguel Valenzuela, wanted to make a pancake machine out of LEGO for his two daughters but the PancakeBot evolved into a complete patent pending product capable of creating pancakes. Miguel Valenzuela is succesfully funding at Kickstarter at the moment.
How does it work?
The user-friendly software allows you to design your own pancake by tracing any image right on your computer. From your favorite piece of art or character, a child’s drawing, a product image or your company or team logo, the software creates the file and the PancakeBot does the rest. Once you have traced the image, the files can be stored on an SD card allowing you to print the designs you have created without having to re-trace the image. The PancakeBot uses a patent pending batter dispensing system to ‘print’ the batter onto the included griddle. By using a combination of compressed air and a vacuum, the PancakeBot controls where the batter is dispensed.
Culinary Nut Bread
9-3-2015
Nut Bread created by Michelin starred chef Wouter van Laarhoven and baker Edwin Klaasen. Their nut bread is available in several flavors and contains ingredients as dried fruit, honey and flavored rye.
Wouter van Laarhoven
Wouter van Laarhoven worked as chef at restaurant ‘De Molen’ and recently started his own company, ‘By Wouter.’ This is a creative company that realizes unique food-, wine- and styling projects and concepts. Earlier we wrote an article about his creative culinary skills.
Edwin Klaasen
Edwin Klaasen, the owner of ‘Desem En Zo’ is constantly experimenting with sourdough bread. Edwin and his team are conquering the hearts of top chefs in the Netherlands and Belgium with these sourdough breads. He also wrote a book about his passion: ‘I bake great, you do too by the way.’ Unfortunately only in Dutch.
Culinary Nut Bread
Wouter and Edwin created the nut bread together. Bread that is created in a shared dream of a baker and a Michelin starred chef must taste amazing. Besides that is their individual commitment to perfection a guarantee to create delicious bread. We can’t wait till we can taste it ;-). ^Marjolein
Art in the Plate
9-3-2015
On the occasion of Art Brussels (from Saturday to Monday 25 – 27 April at the Brussels Expo in Heysel), Bowery restaurant celebrates his passion for art. Chef Maxime Maziers and his team created an exclusive menu ‘Art in the Plate’, which will be available in a limited edition.
Restaurant & bar Bowery
Bowery Restaurant & Bar is located in the heart of Brussels and is part of the creative space of Smets Premium Store. A unique location that offers a mix of fashion, beauty, design, art and gastronomy. Bowery consists of three rooms with a refined and cosmopolitan decor combining design and contemporary art.
Maxime Maziers
Chef Maxime Maziers offers a modern, seasonal cuisine with special attention to the quality and flavors of the product. With passion, determination and sophistication Maxime Maziers brings these products to a higher level to offer his guests a gastronomic experience in the Bowery.
Art in the Plate
The limited edition is available on Friday 24 April and Saturday 25 April. As chef Maxime Maziers is as creative as the designers of the restaurant, ‘The Art in the Plate’ should be great! We are particularly interested in pictures of his dish ‘The Apple of Bowery’. So if you are near Brussels on these dates …..
The next generation Starbucks
6-3-2015
‘The Roastery and Tasting Room’ of Starbucks in Seattle is the new next generation Starbucks. In this concept store their Coffee brand Reserve (their premium coffee line) is being roasted. Starbucks hopes to attract coffee connoisseurs and amateurs alike with this new concept.
We already read articles about ‘The Roastery and Tasting Room’ with all the great pictures of this new Starbucks location. But recently we saw the video above and thought that our reader had to see this one as well. For pictures you can have a look at the article by PSFK.
The next generation Starbucks
‘The Roastery and Tasting Room’ opened December 2014 and is located in Starbucks hometown Seattle, just a couple of blocks of their first location. The Starbucks ‘Roastery and Tasting Room’ is thoughtfully designed as an immersive, all-sensory experience where coffee takes center stage. They like to describe it as if guests experience a Willy Wonka feeling! A detail in the interior you notice right away, coffee beans traveling in clear and copper tubes from the roaster to the bar where they will be brewed.
Starbucks has plans to open more ‘Roastery and Tasting Rooms’ in cities like New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago.
Chicken restaurant Poule & Poulette
6-3-2015
Recently our colleague Guido Verschoor wrote a blog entitled ‘The one 2.0 after another….’ He ends his blog with the statement that he expects to see a revival of the (take away) chicken restaurants. By coincidence we were writing about Papa Poule in New York. A takeaway restaurant where chickens are grilled and prepared by top chefs. But the chicken is also popular closer to our home, Poule & Poulette is very successful in Antwerp.
Poule & Poulette
The four owners of the restaurant got a ‘Bronzen Palm’, a price for the best restaurant concept of Belgium, at the Hospitality Fair in Ghent. This happened when they were only open for four months, and of course they are very proud with this achievement!
Poule & Poulette is an original concept for a chicken restaurant. The restaurant is located in a small place of 35 square meters, with space for 35 people. The owners of the restaurant have designed their own table boxes. Everything at Poule & Poulette is based on chicken. The chicken is slowly grilled on a spit which takes around 75 till 90 minutes. The grill is the central part of the restaurant. They also serve chicken croquettes, salads with chicken, chicken soup and so on. They only work with Belgian chickens.
Expanding with shops
In Brasschaat (near Antwerp) Poule & Poulette have a shop and they will also open a shop in Antwerp this March. In the beginning of next year Poule & Poulette will go to the student area to open a shop. Takeaway chicken for a student price! Poule & Poulette want to open more shops and restaurants in the next couple of years.
‘Slag op de Schelde’, an unique culinary competition for chefs at the Oosterschelde
5-3-2015
Michelin starred restaurant Katseveer and chef Hans Everse are organizing a culinary competition ‘Battle on the Schelde’ on the 18th of May 2015. Chefs and sous-chefs will compete on board of a ship at the Oosterschelde. They have to prepare dishes with asparagus and a product from the Oosterschelde. Amongst others the jury includes two Michelin starred chefs Edwin Vinke and Dick Middelweerd.
Slag op de Schelde
‘Battle on the Schelde’ is the sequel to the asparagus-amuse competition that was held for nine years in restaurant ‘De Zeelandburg’. Hans Everse, ‘Hero of the Taste of the region Zeeland’ and chairman/speaker of the ‘Koksgilde Zeeland’, has initiated the revival of this culinary competition together with Jessica and Rutger van der Weel, owners of the Michelin starred restaurant Katseveer. Hans Everse indicated in the press release that he only wants participants which are on a high level, that’s why only chefs and sous-chefs can sign up for the competition.
During the competition the participants have to make a dish with asparagus and a product from the Oosterschelde for 20 persons. They have to present it with a matching wine or cocktail. The dishes may be prepared, only the final preparation can be done on the spot. The participants can be assisted by one student.
They want ‘De slag op de Schelde’ to become a yearly returning culinary competition. Participants can sign up at their website, until the 15th of March 2015.
Jury
The members of the jury are Edwin Vinke (restaurant De Kromme Watergang** and SVH Meesterkok), Dick Middelweerd (restaurant De Treeswijkhoeve** en SVH Meesterkok), Sjaak Jobse (SVH Meesterkok) and sommelier Mike Dooms (restaurant De Kromme Watergang**) who judges the food / wine pairings.
Inspiration
This is a great way to put yourself in the spotlight as chef, for the regions it’s a way to promote local products.
