Besides the traditional concierge, Renaissance Hotels introduced a digital concierge. The hotel started working with the Navigator program last year. The Navigator offers suggestions for restaurants, shops and sightseeing in the surroundings of the hotel. The Navigator displays information that is generated by hotel employees and by Wcities, an online destination content provider. You can open the program via the site or an App.
Heineken was looking for an intern events and sponsorship when they received 1,734 applications. For this reason Heineken devised an interview where the candidates could not be prepared for. Heineken examined how the candidates responded in unexpected situations, such as hand-in-hand walking, a recruiter who feels unwell and on a fire alarm. After the applications, the three best candidates were selected and people could vote on the candidates. Guy Luchting won the internship.
The Japanese brewery Sankt Gallen Brewery has brewed a stout beer that is chocolate-flavored by using chocolate malt. The beer has 8,5 percent of alcohol and can be served in a glass made entirely of chocolate. After drinking the chocolate-flavored stout beer, you can also eat the glass to enhance the chocolate flavor of the beer.
The Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad opened a restaurant cafe on the ground floor of a new building in Amsterdam on 18 February. On the second floor the editors of NRC Handelsblad and NRC.next are located. The official opening is on 6 March, until then, NRC readers can test the menu. The restaurant gets a ‘newsy’ look, there are screens with the latest news and the ceiling has a see-through to the editors. Soon there will open some meeting rooms for training, lunches, dinners and meetings. From April onwards NRC will organize daily lectures, debates and courses. NRC is not the first newspaper that opens a restaurant, earlier we saw that the Canadian newspaper Winnipeg Free Press opened a cafe.
Our former colleague Christel Hendriks started working at a new hotspot in Amsterdam; Wannemakers!. Since early 2013 Wannemakers! opened its doors at the Singel in Amsterdam. At Wannemakers! you imagine yourself in a ‘La Dolce Vita’ atmosphere and surprising and enjoyment are high priorities. Wannemakers! is open from 08.00 am onwards for breakfast, lunch or dinner. But also for a cup of Single Estate coffee or a coffee-to-go. The restaurant is open Monday through Saturday and offers a French-inspired menu which is being renewed every two to three weeks. During the summer guests can relax on the terrace that is located next to the canal.
After the unique locations like the ‘Laurenskerk’ in Rotterdam and the ‘Concertgebouw’ in Amsterdam, this year on 6 April the fifth edition of MUST will be celebrated in the Kurhaus Hotel in Scheveningen. The party is in the Kurzaal, with entertainment and DJ’s like Erick E and Funkerman. All of the 252 rooms of the Kurhaus hotel are available for the visitors of MUST. The sale of the hotel package starts on 21 February.
Jiva coffee cubes is a new form of instant coffee with a deep stronger taste. The coffee beans used for the Jiva coffee cubes are from Colombia. The beans are freeze-dried and blended with unrefined cane sugar, known in South America as panela. Panela acts as a bonding agent and the coffee is pressed into cubes and individually hand-wrapped. The Jiva coffee cubes dissolve in hot water or milk and taste strong. At the moment, the coffee cubes are wrapped by hand, the owners are looking for funds to purchase a standard packing machine.
The video above shows how to make music with vegetables and fruit. Through a special technique the electrical signals are converted into keyboard signals. By making music with the vegetables you create more experience during making a salad.
By using the font Ecofont you can save on ink and it is a simple way to anticipate on sustainability. The Ecofont software leaves small holes in the letters and saves printer ink. These holes are never visible on screen and our brains ignore them on paper. The savings on ink costs can be up to 50%. Hospitality businesses can save on ink by using this font for invoices and letters and it promotes environmentally sound behavior within the organization.
Two Parisian patisseries have transformed the classic choux pastry with a new look. With the opening of the two stylish boutiques the éclairs become more popular in France. Every morning the pastry chefs of l’Atelier de l’Éclair make the éclairs fresh and by hand. Besides the famous sweet versions of the éclairs, the two boutiques are also selling savory éclairs. For example goat cheese pesto and chorizo-sun dried tomatoes éclairs. The unexpected savory flavours allow customers to settle in for an entire meal of éclairs.
The company PerfoTec provides the solution for a part of the food that is lost between harvest and consumption (30-50%). PerfoTec has developed a technology to extend the shelf life of fresh fruit and vegetables. By measuring the respiration rate of fruit and vegetables and adjusting the packaging accordingly, the shelf life of fruit and vegetables can be extended significantly. This gives the package the right amount of oxygen. According ‘Duurzaambedrijfsleven.nl‘ PerfoTec belongs to one of the world conquering innovations in the Netherlands.
We always say that local tapas is often received with enthusiasm by the guests, this is also the case at Catering Hanenburg. The company introduced the Frisian tapas 5 years ago and recently opened its cookery school at LOKAAL55. What started with organizing a reception for little budget with local dishes for a Frisian client, resulted in a success. Today the Frisian tapas is still a success. Many ingredients are besides local also sustainable. For example the Frisian cheeses, such as Riperkrite, Terschellinger red cheeses, clove cheese and blue cheese. But also the Frisian dry sausage from various butchers and tapas with shrimps and Frisian crostini are sustainable. On the picture you see smoked eel from the Sneekermeer with sushi rolls of beetroot and cream of potato.
In Canada Budweiser is appealing to hockey fans by offering them their very own ‘red light’. Every time their team scores, the light will go off with a honk. The light is connected via Wi-Fi network. Fun applicable for pubs as well! Maybe an ‘orange light’ for the Dutch soccer fans?
Rachel Howard searched in the heart of London for unusual bars en restaurants. She visited more than 100 locations looking for authentic dishes, magical interiors or eccentric hosts. At the Condé Nast Traveller website she gives a preview and reveals a few of her favorites. Like the secret cinema Wirled Cinema, shown on the picture above. The cinema is intimate and has a small bar where you can order cocktails, pizza and popcorn. The cinema is hidden in an alley and hard to find. Read the whole preview at the website from Condé Nast Traveller.
Hospitality is a subjective matter. What I experience as hospitality can be bothersome for others. However there are hospitable gestures that always score with guests. Especially small gestures can make quite the difference, these are the gestures that guests will remember fondly in years to come and maybe even make them come back. In the article ‘Small gestures in hospitality’ we do give great examples…. Click here to download the bookled for free.
We’re already in the third week of October, and more and more festive inspiration is popping up online. Pinterest remains a wonderful source of ideas, read more
We’ve been enjoying glorious summer weather for a few weeks now, and the popular seasonal drinks are already known. Mocktails, cocktails, spritz variations, rosé, and read more
A fishing boat from the ’50s has been transformed into a “Spaboot”. There is a Turkish Hammam (bath, shower and heated floor) and a Zen Lounge with fireplace, sauna and panoramic views. With a number of bedrooms and a restaurant, guests are provided a good weekend.
The famous French three-star chef Marc Veyrat started a self-service restaurant in Annecy, France that is called”Cozna Vera ‘. He presents the old-fashioned food in jars filled with natural products such as veal or chicken with turmeric ourguignon (heated bain marie). Starters, Main courses and desserts cost between € 5 and € 10. Guests can sit at stainless steel tables and stools are on transparent plastic. The restaurant will strongly promote that they do not sell products with pesticides, they do this through the slogan, ‘0 pesticides = 0 illness.
During NYC Restaurant Week in 2010 for the first time a truck is used. The truck will be used between the 25th and 29th of January and from the first of February to the 5th. The truck will drive through Manhattan during lunch and people in busy locations will be offered a cup of soup. Each day a different restaurant will provide the soup. Via twitter and www.nycgo.com/restaurantweek, people can track where the truck will be located.
Aston Martin has designed a Ski line which is inspired by the cars behind the brand. The skis are excellent for an all-round skier, the materials used ensure that the skis are suitable for all types of runs.
The company Ultimate Ears produces earbuds that can be custom made and styled to everyone’s own idea. Beside choosing your own colour the earbuds can also be styled with different prints.
Designer Marc Jacobs, will soon open his own café in Milan. The cafe will be open from 7:30 in the morning until 2 o’clock at night. The cafe will be attached to the store with a blue glass sliding door. Both rooms will have the Marc Jacobs look with neon signs, dark blue concrete floors and steel racks.
With the Muji Silicon ice ball machine it’s easy to makes iceballs.
This hotel asked 10 designers from 10 different companies (including surf brands Billabong, Quick Silver, Roxy) to design 10 suites. The hotel, La Casa del Camino is located in the heart of Laguna Beach (USA), this way the hotel established a bit of sponsorship. There is also a room that’s designed by the “Riviera Magazine”. All rooms are themed to the sea and have a link to surf and skate borders.
Taxi2 is a service free of charge for Virgin Atlantic and other airlines passengers who want to share their taxi from the airport to their home / hotel. An initiative to share costs and preserve the planet. Travelers can register online and submit flight and arrival details. The system ensures that you are linked to a suitable companion to share a taxi.
The French designer, Philippe Starck, has designed the cans and bottles of this organic extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. The products are made in Andalusia (southern Spain).
Opinion Maker allows you to survey the guestexperience with a modern and user friendly touchscreen computer. The opinions of the guests are measured by means of a scientifically approved system.
The Dutch company Freeline has made the move from a rustic style to a more refined style. This sunbed has a modern circular shape and is suitable for two people. The bed can be used as one part but it can also be set as two separate parts. The matching parasol can complete a 360 ?shade.
Back in 2006 Ineke Hans introduced cutlery in the format of a credit card. Back then, this inventive design wasn’t noticed because it was ahead of its time. Nowadays however, this cutlery is very usefull when eating on-the-go.
Oxfam Novib launched a project to promote sustainable shopping. The goal is to let consumers know that life does not drastically have to change to make the world a little better. They compiled honest shopping routes and put them on a map. These are available in cafes, hotels and shops.
Designer Martin Angelov has won the first prize at the international ‘Line of site’-contest for his ‘Bike above the road’ concept. The concept is nothing more than half a pipe and some cables. The half a pipe is designed for cycling and safety cables suspended parallel, near the steering wheel on the bike. The bike and the biker are secured to a safety cable so you do not have to balance.
A new advertising campaign for the dairyfactory Meadow Fresh was very green. A train station in Auckland got a green makeover. The hard 1,250 square meters of concrete was replaced by a green lawn. Unfortunately, the campaign only laste a short period of time.
Designer Nick Bampton has designed this concept for the Japanese store Muji. This book is a mini-collection of spices and herbs. Each page is removable and can be torn out when preparing your meal. The idea behind the book is to avoid problems when traveling with spices.
Tequila is best known as a man’s drink but this variant of Rosangel is perfect for women. The tequila has the flavor of hibiscusflowers with a hint of vanilla. With Valentine’s Day in prospect, this is the perfect idea for a romantic cocktail.
This sixpack can carry six bottles of beer, soft drink or water. The big difference between this six pack and a normal six pack is that it remains intact after use.
A mobile phone that does not need to be charged by a battery. This eco-device gets its energy from sugars in soft drinks. The back of the phone is a box where you can pour in soda. According to the designer, Daizi Zheng, the phone has a three to four times longer lifetime than an average phone battery.
People in Chicago can now order food at restaurant ‘Wow Bao through an iPhone application. This new app allows people to customize their meals, order and pay through their iPhone or iPod touch.
Google has designed a “location-based feature” for mobile phones. This technology makes it easy for restaurants, bars and ATMs to be found in an unknown area. ‘Near Me Now’ is available on the Google homepage, I-Phone and Android. Unfortunately, it is now only available in the US.
The famous tearoom Angelina in Paris, which Coco Chanel often visited, has launched seasonal chocolate milk in a bottle. This way the delights of the famous tea room can be enjoyed at home.
The OZ Vodka bottle was designed by Bronco Trade Marketing. They emphasize the the purity and quality of the drink by transparency and the cool blue design of the bottle. The vodka is made from 100% corn, the distillprocess took place in Canada.
This wall lamp is designed by Jos Muller and is inspired by showers and water. The lamp is made of stainless steel, aluminum and glass for the water drops. The use of glass water droplets results in reflection of light.
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