Bacardi launches alcohol-free spirit PALETTE

13-1-2022

Bacardi is launching a new brand of alcohol-free spirit: PALETTE. Developed in collaboration with Amsterdam bartenders, PALETTE makes no concessions in taste, quality or mixability. The two variants, PALETTE Roots and PALETTE Bold, are made with all-natural ingredients and the versatility delivers the perfect NoLo solution for the growing demand for alcohol-free cocktails.

At the beginning of this week, we coincidentally published a list of non-alcoholic drinks that might get you through Dry January. Major brands such as Bacardi are now also presenting alcohol-free alternatives.

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Trends we spotted | Week 1

10-1-2022

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 others the design of the new Hotel Piet Hein Eek in Eindhoven and Horecagroep RCE will open a new restaurant from the chain ‘Stan’ in the Sphinxkwartier in Maastricht in the spring of 2022.

Dutch Brave Food: that is what Katy Elst and Ron Okhuijsen, after more than 25 years of experience as restaurant entrepreneurs, want to put on the map at Blue Bar1 in Utrecht. We spotted ‘Taste the TV’ in Japan (with video) and this Monday, January 10, Beyond Fried Chicken debuts nationwide at KFC®.

Geoffrey is a cute 10-pound delivery vehicle/robot developed by Ignacio Tartavull and Gellert Mattyus of Tiny Mile. And it’s pushed of the streets of Toronto. Great idea for uniform shoes, the Zen Running Club shoes, if you want your restaurant or hotel to be as sustainable as possible. They are 100% vegan and plant-based.

A photo of food taken by writer Nicholas Gill in a famous BBQ joint in Brooklyn, NYC, will be auctioned as an NFT. And global lifestyle icon Martha Stewart will open her first-ever restaurant, The Bedford by Martha Stewart at Paris Las Vegas in Spring 2022.

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Industry-leading innovations for BurgerFi | Like in-car OnMyWay CommerceTM

4-1-2022

BurgerFi, one of the nation’s fastest-growing, premium fast-casual concepts, is testing and expanding five new technologies and creative strategies to stay ahead of evolving consumer preferences and combat widespread labour shortages that have plagued the restaurant industry since the onset of the pandemic. They introduced Patty the Robot, new Ghost Kitchens and In-car OnMyWay CommerceTM will be introduced in 2022. The brand remains at the forefront of innovation as part of its commitment to providing the best restaurant guest experience, while continuing its aggressive expansion up the Eastern Seaboard.

When will we spot the In-car OnMyWay CommerceTM in Europe?

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Chipotlane Digital Kitchen | First ‘’grey kitchen’’?

21-12-2021

The new format will exclusively fulfill digital orders for pick up or delivery. Chipotle Mexican Grill announced its first Chipotlane Digital Kitchen restaurant in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. The new prototype offers a Chipotlane and walk-up window for efficient digital order pickup. Located in Ohio, the restaurant is scheduled to open later this month. Chipotle’s second digital-only restaurant prototype serves guests who order ahead on the Chipotle app and Chipotle.com, and marketplace partners.

With no dining room access for guests but with patio seating to enjoy their meals. Kind of a ‘grey kitchen’ instead of a ‘dark kitchen’?

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Trends we spotted | Week 50

20-12-2021

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 winter coffees from all over the world, inspiration from Starbucks. And a “snowman pizza” made by Joe’s Rotisseria in New Jersey!

The first 1,600 Neder Bananas from Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands were harvested at the end of November. Many atypical and sustainable products are made of them! Ever heard of ‘National Cookies Day’? We didn’t, but this day is celebrated on December 4th and Subway opened a ‘Cookieway’ pop-up store around this date.

The fast food chain ‘El Pollo Loco’ is launching a ‘Loco Gifts and Gear’ store in which they sell merchandise specially designed for them, such as a bicycle. And the UK’s cheapest champagne bar has opened, Aldi will sell its award-winning Veuve Monsigny champagne for just £2.33 a glass. And so nice: a ‘Santa sushi’, created by Wave Asian Bistro & Sushi out in Mount Dora, Florida.

Airbnb had a special Christmas promotion in the USA: 4 people could be guests for one night in the ‘Home Alone’ house! Including lots of details like the cheese pizza and Kraft Macaroni & Cheese.

In London you can enjoy the patisserie of the French chef Cedric Grolet in The Berkeley Café and when you are in London now you can enjoy a special ‘Borealis’ by the famous artist Dan Acher for 2 more days. Northern lights above London during the Winter Lights season, we would love to see that above Amsterdam as well!

 Uber Eats was the first to deliver meals to space on December 11! And have you heard of PappaRoti? They sell drinks and special coffee buns from Malaysia in more than 400 locations worldwide. Located in Brussels, among others.

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Nobu Hotel and Restaurant San Sebastián will open in 2023

16-12-2021

Nobu Hospitality, the global lifestyle brand founded by Nobu Matsuhisa, Robert De Niro, and Meir Teper, announced its fourth Spanish hotel and restaurant – Nobu Hotel and Restaurant San Sebastián. With a strong focus on cuisine, local culture, and architectural design combined with an air of celebrity, Nobu may have met its match in San Sebastián. As the capital of Gipuzkoa, this is a city with the most Michelin stars per square meter than anywhere else in the world, the site of Balenciaga’s first atelier, and a place that Hemingway fondly called home while writing ‘Fiesta’. A true culinary mecca, the mountainous Basque Country’s culture is reflected throughout the coastal town, where visitors are invited to hop from bar to restaurant while sampling bitesize gastronomy referred to locally as pintxo.

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Trends we spotted | Week 49

13-12-2021

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 others SQUAREAT, a revolutionary meal plan concept and Ruby Hotels is opening their second location in Frankfurt in 2025.

It’s time for winter beer: the Dutch Bird Brewery created ‘Apres Kievit’, a beer with the spicy notes of Jägermeister. And FryAway, a plant based powder, turns cooking oil into solid waste that can then be easily scooped into the rubbish.

Bäckerei Krümel opens doors in the ‘Efteling’ (a Fairytales theme park in the south of the Netherlands) and Pollinator Park is a VR experience that explores a future without bees and other pollen spreaders.

This Friday, December 17, Titanic: The Exhibition will be sailing into London! And GoodMaps is changing the way people navigate retail stores, even for those  visually impaired. They’re testing it in a supermarket of ASDA in the UK. Would be a great asset for airports and event locations as well!

Would you like to taste Barefoot x OREO THINS Red Blend Wine? A cookies & cream red wine blend! And in the Dutch branch of Jeunes Restaurateurs Europe rewarded entrepreneurship in the Netherlands.

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Couture Christmas tree in the Winter Garden 2021 of the Pulitzer Amsterdam

10-12-2021

This festive December month, hotel Pulitzer Amsterdam – located in 25 connected 17th and 18th century canal houses – has teamed up with renowned Danish fashion designer Claes Iversen to design a spectacular couture Christmas tree in their Winter Garden 2021. We have written about the idea behind the collaboration and now it turned out to be one of the largest outdoor Christmas trees in Amsterdam.

We think the design turned out really beautiful! We can completely imagine ourselves enjoying a warm drink in this Winter Garden at the Pulitzer Amsterdam, with dry weather and a thick coat or blanket of course. And if you take a walk through Amsterdam and enjoy the Amsterdam Light Festival, it is of course a nice stop for a hot drink and to warm up under the covers and the heaters in this Winter Garden.

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Liemès Food District Utrecht

9-12-2021

LIEMÈS Food District is the place to be for business appointments, while shopping or for a snack on the go. In this centrally located food hall in shopping center The Wall in Utrecht, different chefs cook their dishes from around the world and bartenders shake their top cocktails. Liemès is a food district like you’ve never seen before.

Foodhall meets restaurant, streetfood meets à la carte: at Liemès you take a seat at one of the set tables and order from the food stands and the bar using a QR. The hospitable staff then serves your order(s) at your table. They don’t use disposables at Liemès, everything is served on tableware. This enhances the eating experience and is more sustainable.

In August 2020 we wrote about the Liemès Food District, it was supposed to open that autumn. We wish the entrepreneurs the best of luck and let’s hope there will not be more COVID-19 measures!

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Trends we spotted | Week 48

7-12-2021

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…. Bacardi who has announced Astrophel “Troy” Arquiza as the new Global Master Blender for BACARDÍ® rum (the “Maestro de Ron”). And high-quality cocktails from Williams Premium such as the Margarita, Daiquiri, Espresso Martini and Old fashioned are now available in cans.

Butcher and steakhouse owner John Stirk, thought the price of the golden Tomahawk steak at Salt Bae’s new restaurant (in London) was way too high. Stirk Italian Steakhouse now has a much more affordable golden ‘Stirk-Bae’ on his menu…

Wagyu beef is known all over the world as a very exclusive piece of meat. But in Japan you simply ‘pull’ the steak from a vending machine these days! New on the market is the food safety device from Asus, which lets you know whether you have washed your fruit and vegetables sufficiently.

Foodspotting.com preceded the introduction of the app known as Foodspotting. The site allowed its users to take pictures of food that they loved. It was bought by OpenTable in 2013 and doesn’t exist anymore. ChefsTemp on about what happened to this app!

Designer water: this year’s limited-edition glass bottle of Evian water has been covered in Snowflakes by designer Not Vital. A collaboration with Moncler. Another great campaign for the Holiday Season in the UK, this time for the Bounty Bar: ‘The Lonely Bounty’.

 Online cooking tutorials called ‘The Secrets of French Cuisine’ at the website of ‘Fine Dining Lovers’. We included the tutorial of the ultimate croque monsieur! And the same website gives you all the details behind the 100 days pop-up in Paris: restaurant ADMO!

Chiqueolatte opened its 8th location in The Hague and The Hoxton hotel group will open four new hotels in Europe in 2022. Tony’s Chocolonely announced that it will not build its own chocolate factory in the near future.

 Reading time: 4 minutes

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