World’s first footlong cookies by Subway | Only available on National Cookie Day
2-12-2022
Where we in the Netherlands are preparing for our traditional visit of Sinterklaas on December 5, those living in the USA have National Cookie Day on December 4 to celebrate, with footlong cookies at Subway. Inspiration for other products?
Subway®, the brand that sells more freshly-baked cookies than any other restaurant company in the United States, is taking its iconic cookie to a new level with the debut of the footlong cookie to celebrate National Cookie Day on December 4. One foot of Subway cookie goodness, piled high with decadent toppings ranging from indulgent and sweet, to savory and totally unexpected. The ‘footlong cookies’ are only available in the USA. For those who love the cookies of Subway outside the USA, check out the video in the article!
The legendary McGold Card | The gift that keeps on giving
2-12-2022
The weather outside may be frightful, but the spirit at McDonald’s is sooo delightful. This December, they are kicking off the holidays and inviting fans to celebrate the season with friends and family in the best way – by sharing McDonald’s. They introduce the SZN of Sharing, a first-of-its kind holiday celebration happening exclusively on the McDonald’s App. From Dec. 5-25, McDonald’s USA are bringing you (and your crew) daily deals on your favorite menu items, cozy-yet-cool merch drops, and even the chance to win the iconic McGold Card (iykyk).
We think that fans all over the world are a bit jealous of the American fans who have the change of winning the McGold Card!
Mystery flavor at Yogurtland | Inspired by the White Elephant gift exchange game for the Holidays
2-12-2022
It’s the holiday season and Yogurtland is celebrating with a flavor that’s inspired by the popular gift-giving game, White Elephant. This year, Yogurtland invites you to try the mysterious White Elephant flavor, just like how you’d pick a surprise gift during a White Elephant gift exchange! Yogurtland’s limited-time offering is ever-changing, which allows guests to delight in the magic of the season with a delicious and unexpected flavor from the White Elephant handle.
We didn’t know about the White Elephant gift exchange but it’s quite simple, if you don’t know it either, check it out here! But here in the Netherlands we have a similar Sinterklaas game.
Mama Q | New Asian food web shop from top chef Kelvin Lin and his mother
29-11-2022
Top chef Kelvin Lin and his mother have opened online web shop Mama Q. The range consists of authentic Asian comfort food, dim sum and dish components. The range allows consumers to enjoy delicacies from the award-winning kitchen of the former top restaurant Nayolie in Voorschoten (near The Hague in the Netherlands) at home.
Trends we spotted | Week 47
28-11-2022
At horecatrends.com we spot many national and international trends on a daily basis. We pick the most interesting ones to write about, the other trends we use in our weekly column ‘Trends we spotted this week’.
With this week links to articles about, among other things, a culinary Sinterklaas (Saint Nicholas) at The Entourage group’s restaurants and reusable plastic trays at McDonald’s France. Also about Washington D.C.’s first ready-to-drink Espresso Martini that was launched and sold out on the same day and about the Gourmet Market Central Station in the city of Tilburg in the south of the Netherlands.
Furthermore, Jaeger-LeCoultre, the watch brand is opening a pop-up café in Manhattan and you were able to take a special ride on the Ferris wheel in Vienna last weekend. With the introduction of Apartments by Marriott BonvoyTM, Marriott International, Inc. they announced its expansion into apartment-style accommodations and a link to an article about the recently developed intelligent order management system TouchKitchen.
The Dutch restaurant chain ‘De Beren’ launches ‘Taste the Excitement’ World Cup campaign and Brewdog scores its own goal with ‘anti-sponsorship’ ads for World Cup Qatar.
Sint-Olofskapel transforms into Saint Soif
25-11-2022
The well-known Amsterdam based restaurant De Kas and 5-star hotel NH Collection Barbizon Palace are joining forces for a pop-up in the historic Sint-Olofskapel.
From January 4 up until 22, you can enjoy a glass of wine, casual service and good food in the oldest chapel in the Netherlands at the head of the Zeedijk. Chef Jos Timmer of Michelin star restaurant De Kas: “For a while it looked like the pots and pans would remain untouched for a month. After all, our kitchen is being remodeled, but of course we wanted to continue cooking.” Starting January 4, the entire staff and all their belongings will move to NH Collection Barbizon Palace where the doors of the Saint Olof Chapel will be opened for pop-up wine bar Saint Soif. The patron saint of sailors makes way for Saint Soif which will be run under De Kas signature.
Reading Time: 1 minute.
Victor Fielmich and Elvira Kemman open Bistro ElVi in Bergen
25-11-2022
Bistro ElVi has opened in Bergen, North Holland, with chef Victor Fielmich and hostess-sommelier Elvira Kemman. The couple serves French classics with a modern twist and primarly makes use of regional ingredients. The concept of a gourmet level French bistro together with a wine bar is unique for Bergen. The couple formerly managed the Utrecht restaurant ElVi, which was mentioned in all of the major restaurant guides and was the only restaurant in Utrecht to get a Michelin Bib Gourmand award at the time.
Reading time: 3 minutes.
Christmas inspiration 2022 | Christmas around the globe
22-11-2022
We are almost in one of the busiest and, in our opinion, one of the coziest periods of the year for the hospitality industry. And we can finally welcome guests for Christmas again!
Most hotels and restaurants are already busy thinking about the decorations, we have even seen the most beautiful Christmas hotel of the Netherlands on Instagram, ready to receive their guests! We have also seen a lot of newsletters with delicious menus and it’s great to notice that ordering Christmas dinners to go remains possible at many restaurants in addition to reserving a table! Last year we created a digital Christmas inspiration booklet with the biggest trend of that year; the ‘Christmas drive thru’. Of course we had to create another list this year, including the recurring ‘tree lighting’ ceremony, looking on Pinterest for your decorations, Christmas atmosphere in your hotel room, an ‘Electric Bingo’ in Christmas atmosphere and much more Christmas inspiration.
Reading time: 4 minutes.
Restaurant YANO | Rotterdam has a new fine-dining restaurant
18-11-2022
Opening – On 2 November 2022, host Britta and chef Yuri Wattimena opened the doors of their restaurant YANO in Rotterdam. The fine-dining restaurant is located on the Straatweg 114 in Rotterdam’s Hillegersberg district. It is the (married) couple’s first business, they have extensive experience in working at high-end Rotterdam restaurants. The restaurant stands out for its quirky, worldly style of cooking, combining international flavours such as those of the Indian archipelago and South America with French cuisine.
Horecava | The Netherlands’ biggest hospitality trade show returns in January
18-11-2022
It’s already back to normal, but isn’t it great that after two tough years for the hospitality industry, the Horecava will take place at the RAI Amsterdam as before?
From 9 to 12 January, professionals from the hospitality industry will once again gather at the fair. Since January 2020, the Netherlands’ largest hospitality fair has not taken place in physical form. This makes the return of Horecava extra festive. The upcoming edition will focus on three themes: sustainability, personnel and innovation. The organization has not been idle in recent years. Because in addition to the exhibition days, the dynamic hospitality industry needs a place where they can meet like-minded people 365 days a year. Horecava has developed a successful online platform where supply and demand come together and current news is shared. Both hospitality companies and interest groups now know how to find each other there.
The Greanery | The world’s first green electricity-charged dining experience
17-11-2022
From 24 November to 24 December, The Greanery, an exceptional December special, will be held in Amsterdam’s impressive Transformatorhuis. After two corona years where everything was built up and did not go ahead, this year the historic building on the Westergasterrein will be the setting for a 360-degree dining experience where sustainability is high priority. Reservations can be made through their website.
Trends we spotted | Week 45
14-11-2022
At horecatrends.com we spot many national and international trends on a daily basis. We pick the most interesting ones to write about, the other trends we use in our weekly column ‘Trends we spotted this week’.
With this week’s links to articles about among others the Netherlands’ most beautiful Christmas hotel, Restaurant & Hotel Hoog Holten. And IZAKAYA Asian Kitchen & Bar in Amsterdam celebrates 10 years of high-end hospitality!
Great example of crossovers! The mochi muffins, mochi donuts and other chewy desserts from Asian-American bakery, Third Culture Bakery. And News on cultivated fish from Forsea Foods (Israël) and from Bluu Seafood (Germany).
Overwhelming enthusiasm for investment round of the Dutch fast casual chain SLA and you can still invest! The first ‘Meal Deliverer of the Year’ in the Netherlands has been chosen; Anthony Monte of SushiPoint. An election organized by the NLVVM.
An interesting blog on Retailtainment, FunFairCity, among others, reports the arrival of a new multi-activity complex: Brussels Indoor Games Center. And McDonald’s Germany and Shirin David are making prices rain with Monopoly until 4 January! So if you’re driving through Germany towards winter sports….
We already wrote about the ‘Golden Girls Kitchen’ pop-up restaurant in California last summer and now it’s coming to New York City and more cities in the USA are next in line!
Deus Night Market | Deus Cantina’s new ‘foodhall fest’
10-11-2022
Deus Cantina in Amsterdam has lined up a calendar full of new events for the winter months: cozy Speakeasy Sundays, indoor ‘Night Markets’ and the Deus Café. Saturday 12 November, the first edition of the Deus Night Market will take place; a ‘foodhall fest’ highlighting creators of international and local products. “Food, drinks, great stories and ‘people just being supersonic”, says Neil Roake, creative chef at Deus Cantina. “The days are getting shorter, and the need to socialize, laugh and celebrate life greater. Deus Cantina is that place where all that comes together this autumn”.
Techno Sport HADO | Combining sports and gaming using Augmented Reality
9-11-2022
Since the beginning of this year, you can also play the Techno Sport HADO in the Netherlands! Early 2022, Michiel Verhage and Michael Reibestein, co-founders of HADO the Netherlands, introduced the world’s largest and first augmented reality (AR) sport in the Netherlands. At the moment, you can play it in Purmerend, Tiel and Venlo. And you can have a pop-up arena set up! HADO is a leader in the integration of sports, gaming and technology and it’s the perfect mix of sport, game and strategy. An entertainment experience with sports & game elements with a high fun factor. It’s fun for (corporate) events, bachelor parties, children’s parties, etc.
We would not be surprised to see the Techno Sport HADO at Family Entertainment Centers and other parties active in leisure. Since it looks like it will make you tired and hot, you will probably need a drink and snack afterwards!
Chef-in-Residence program for new culinary talent in Copenhagen
8-11-2022
Cook It Raw, the globe-trotting chefs event drawing Michelin’s top talent, is reactivating with a new purpose – to seek out and promote up-and-coming culinary talents and help them explore the role of gastronomy in our global future. The event-based organization has found a new home at the Socialist, a new boutique hotel nestled in the heart of Copenhagen, where it will launch a Chef-in-Residence program. To mark the occasion, a special dinner will be hosted by the legendary Albert Adrià (el Bulli, Tickets, Enigma) on Thursday November 24th at the hotel’s Bobo Food Studio.
Trends we spotted | Week 44
7-11-2022
At horecatrends.com we spot many national and international trends on a daily basis. We pick the most interesting ones to write about, the other trends we use in our weekly column ‘Trends we spotted this week’.
With this week links to articles about amongst other a meal deal for the 40th anniversary of E.T. by Checkers & Rally’s and a great example of storytelling by KFC India, the short film ‘Kshamata’, about the deaf girl lshmeet.
An innovation from the Netherlands; TILER’s paving tiles are weatherproof, on-street charging pads for e-bikes. Hotels, restaurant and cafes might install these to create more charging abilities! And the Moxy Lower East Side hotel debuts in the neighborhood that defines New York cool.
And the first Christmas inspiration: Miller Lite taps into the Holiday spirit with a ‘Christmas tree keg stand’ for beer lovers. And Claridge’s recently announced that their Christmas tree will be designed by Sandra Choi for Jimmy Choo.
Kahlúa and Gail Simmons put a new spin on the Espresso Martini, served not in a glass but in an edible stemless cocoa cup. The First MICHELIN Guide Hungary has been launched, sounds like a country where foodies might enjoy themselves!
Mercure Hotel Amersfoort Centre in the Netherlands has renovated its lobby and rooms. And International pizza chef Renato Bosco will be in the jury of first National Pizza Baking Championship 2023 on January 10 during the Dutch Horecava.
Picnic Works™ and ContekPro partner to deliver the first modular automated pizza kitchen
7-11-2022
Picnic Works, a Seattle-based developer of kitchen automation technology, recently announced a partnership with ContekPro, a Portland-based manufacturer of modular kitchens. The partnership fuses the strengths of both companies to create factory-built pizza kitchens for commercial foodservice providers. The joint offering, the modular automated pizza kitchen, is faster to deploy, hassle-free to launch, more cost-efficient than brick and mortar, and has less impact on the environment, while increasing profitability for owners.
Restaurant of the future Eatrenalin | Firework for the senses
3-11-2022
The unique gastronomic concept ‘Eatrenalin’ opens in Rust, Germany, on November 4 2022. This dining experience immerses you in different worlds – not only through smells and tastes, but also visually, acoustically and through touch and movement. The ‘restaurant of the future’ is firework for the senses. This is made possible by an impressive interplay of multimedia content, gastronomic delights and a patented new development, the Floating Chair by MACK Rides.
CLUBZERØ | Returnable packaging for in-store, takeaway and delivery
3-11-2022
CLUBZERØ is a returnable packaging experience designed to hold both hot and cold food and drinks. CLUBZERØ offers a convenient and cost neutral alternative to disposable packaging. They are working towards a zero-waste future.
If you are, like me, in your sixties you might remember camping and picking up fries or other dishes by taking your own pan to the camping restaurant. Sounds like a pretty sustainable start, but the convenience-economy changed this a lot! If you like to order take-away, you usually end up with piles of takeout boxes to dispose of. We read about CLUBZERØ in an article about the owner Safia Qureshi that is a finalist in the 2022 Food & Drink Heroes Awards – Sustainability Entrepreneur of the Year. Although I have trouble picturing all consumers using this returnable packaging system, it looks promising in the catering and B2B space. Why not try it in the Netherlands as well! ^Marjolein
Las Vegas’ first 24/7 bacon concept in the D | Bacon Nation
1-11-2022
Downtown Las Vegas is ready to bring home the bacon. Bacon Nation – Las Vegas’ first 24/7 bacon-inspired restaurant concept – is officially open at the D Las Vegas. Created by Downtown Hospitality Group (DHG), the restaurant serves up elevated, over-the-top fare for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and late-night, including gourmet bacon flights; sweet and savory French toast boxes; and Reverse BLTs, for which weaved bacon takes the place of bread.
Starbucks Reserve® Empire State Building® celebrates connecting over coffee
1-11-2022
Spanning 23,000 square feet and three floors, Starbucks Reserve® Empire State Building® will introduce new experiences that celebrate connection over coffee. The store will offer exclusive, interactive coffee workshops and tasting flights as well as new coffee beverages, coffee-inspired cocktails and Princi food only available at the new location.
Fast Food design of the future
31-10-2022
A list of examples of fast food design of the future. New key players in the fastfood industry such as Plant Power Fast Food that show the way to the initiatives in sustainable design and the initiatives of big fastfood companies like Wendy’s, McDonald’s and Taco Bell. Fast Food has a large footprint within the hospitality industry and their sustainability efforts can go a long way!
Children’s mayor opens treasure hunt ‘Max en de Gouden Strooplepel’
31-10-2022
The honor went to the brand-new children’s mayor of the Dutch city of Aalten Timon Grevink to open the new treasure hunt ‘Max en de Gouden Strooplepel’ (Max and the golden syrup spoon) of restaurant ‘t Noorden van Aalten. On Tuesday, 26 October, he got the first copy of the book and was the first to search for the golden syrup spoon in the playground. The story reveals that the spoon is crucial for making ‘De Noordelingen’ syrup, essential for pancakes.
Inspiration for pancake restaurants from a restaurant in the eastern part of the Netherlands.
Trends we spotted | Week 43
28-10-2022
At horecatrends.com we spot many national and international trends on a daily basis. We pick the most interesting ones to write about, the other trends we use in our weekly column ‘Trends we spotted this week’.
With this week links to article about amongst other Toca Social, this is a great place to watch the World Cup in London and you can even kick a ball yourself! In Paris you have a lot of ‘Bars à’ and even a ‘Bar à Couscous’, it’s called Bladi and you can create your own bowl filled with Couscous.
From 1 hotel to 115 hotels in 25 years… That’s worth a party. Fletcher Hotels did it and celebrates 25 years of experience in hospitality with…
Restaurant Pastorale (**) in Belgium stops after 30 years, chef Bart De Pooter starts new fish restaurant in Antwerp! And our favorite baker from New York Dominique Ansel opened ‘Dominique Ansel Las Vegas’ at the Caesars Palace.
Do you know where the Trafalgar square Christmas Tree comes from? We didn’t but it’s an annual gift from Norway since 1947. Also in London: The Warmer Room will open, it’s a grand return of the London Nightclub inside a toilet. Dancing with 80 others in a toilet, created by The Warmer People.
Our hometown Leiden gets a rooftop bar at a famous building in the middle of the city, Zirkus restaurant, rooftop bar & ‘spielplatz’. And a sneaker collab: BOBBY’S Gin X KangaROOS, cocktail culture in your shoe closet.
Puttshack | Mini Golf reimagined
27-10-2022
Last week we wrote about Puttshack, which has raised growth capital in the USA. A cool concept with a tech-driven minigolf experience, great food, drinks and parties. In short, competitive fun! The system keeps track of individual scores itself through patented Trackaball™ technology, and you can earn and lose points based on how you play. Puttshack opened its first location in London in 2018. There are now four locations in the UK and two in the USA, in Atlanta and Chicago, with ambitious plans for expansion there. Who wants to be able to visit a Puttshack in the Netherlands?
The smashed Redefine Burger at Boker Tov Antwerp
Tom Sas in front of Boker Tov Zuid
Rene van den Cruijssem, Country Lead Benelux at Redefine Meat (L) and Tom Sas, Founder of Boker Tov (R)
