Christmas afternoon party Hengelo’s peak of the year!

15-12-2015

Bram Kosterink blogs about a tradition of his native region Twente, in the east of the Netherlands. An inspiration for cities all over the world.

Most Dutch trends are made and tested in the western cities of the Netherlands, like Amsterdam. Something which was mentioned during one of my trend presentations last Tuesday. This remark set me thinking, which cool successful initiative is conceived in my native region Twente? The first thing crossing my mind was ‘kerstmiddag’, our Christmas afternoon party! No it isn’t Christmas eve or a Christmas diner but ‘kerstmiddag’. For several years a successful tradition in my hometown Hengelo. The initiative was conceived by an entrepreneur with a restaurant in the city centre of Hengelo. After he initiated this event, many hospitality companies followed his idea. Nowadays almost all hospitality companies within the city centre are joining this event.

The Christmas afternoon party is an event which all citizens of Hengelo are looking forward to. Students who left their parents homes, citizens who emigrated to other parts of the country, all come back for this special event! Weeks in advance tickets are sold by several hospitality companies. Prices are ranging from € 15,=, some included entrance fee, other companies include drink vouchers.

Christmas afternoon party

What is the meaning of ‘kerstmiddag’? From eleven in the morning the real diehards are gathering together, others will join during the day. Meetings are set with family, friends and relatives to gather over drinks in several cafés and restaurants, just to meet. At four/five o’clock, after a full day of singing, dancing and talking, people are heading home (mostly a little tipsy). They quickly refresh, take a powernap or start drinking again, all to prepare for Christmas eve.

Annually 20.000 till 25.000 partygoers meet in the city centre of Hengelo, a huge success! The commonly support is the major strength of this event, almost every citizen and hospitality entrepreneur joins the festivities. Curious about the event? Join me at the 24th of December. If you are looking for a ‘good’ conversation, you can find me at café ‘t Uurwerk.

I am very interested in your Christmas tradition. If you have one, please share at tip@spronsen.com and I hope to inspire other hospitality entrepreneurs with your story! ^Bram Kosterink

Virtual Reality Cinema will be shown all over Europe

7-12-2015

An update regarding the Virtual Reality Cinema we wrote about back in October. The tour throughout The Netherlands sold out really quickly. &Samhoud media will now organise futuristic cinemas in Berlin, Munich, Zürich, London and Copenhagen in January and February.

Business model for the Virtual Reality Cinema

Initiator Jip Samhoud: ‘We can see that our cinema sells out time after time and we sense that there really is a market for Virtual Reality. We noticed that a real business model can be made for VR cinemas. We’ve received more than 2500 visitors, the first few days that we’ve been open.’

The success of the Virtual Reality Cinema will also be continued in The Netherlands. During the Christmas Season, the cinema in Amsterdam will open again! In this special Christmas edition the Virtual Reality cinema can be found at the Passeerdersgracht 19a in Amsterdam from the 18th of December till the 23th. Opening hours and tickets can be found at vrcinema.samhoud.com.

In October we wrote about the first Virtual Reality Cinema.

The croquettes in the leading role

4-12-2015

Kroketten (or croquettes) and Bitterballen (small croquettes) are a real Dutch treat. The last two years we spotted a couple of tasty varieties appearing in the market. We have made a list of them.

For years I used to make this Dutch treat at home, using recipes from the book ‘The great culinary croquettes cookbook’ by Edwin Kats, and of course I always got compliments! Truly amazing are the game croquets from this season but the croquettes with smoked eel are very special as well. We even wrote about croquettes with snails and goose meat on Horecatrends, both of whom are no longer for sale, but it truly indicates that the possibilities are endless! ^ Marjolein

Our list; croquettes in the leading role

1. CROQUÉTJE! a pulled pork-croquette

Sausage-maker Paul van den Hooven from Wild Vleesch in Rotterdam, has developed his own croquette under the name of CROQUÉTJE! The first CROQUÉTJE is a croquette with pulled pork which contains meat that is smoked low & slow on a barbecue.

2. Croquette made of Shiitake mushrooms

A croquette with Shiitake mushrooms. Shiitake mushrooms are healthy, delicious and a good substitute for meat. FungiFuturi grows delicious and super nutritious mushrooms in the cellar of an abandoned office building in Eindhoven. They are crowdfunding an innovative snack line of mushrooms. The first product of the line is the shiitake croquette, they presented these croquettes during the Dutch Design Week last October.

3. Bieterballen, croquettes with beetroot

The vegetarian Bieterbal, from Jonathan Karpathios of restaurant Vork & Mes. It’s content? Beet, beet and even more beet! The Bieterbal is available in wholesale at: Deli XL, De Kweker, HANOS and VHC de Jongens. The Bieterbal has also been nominated for the Dutch Horecava Innovation Award 2016 in the category Food & Beverage.

4. Bitter Balzz, a bitterbal with insects

At BUGZZ they make food with insects. Their goal is to bring the durable snack, the ‘Bitter Balzz’ in production. They reached their target amount by 117% on their crowdfunding page. We recently ran into them on the Foodfestival in Amsterdam, where they were already completely sold out halfway Saturday evening.

5. Croquette made from 100% organic spelt

The first croquette and bitterbal worldwide made from 100% organic spelt. Prepared with fresh spices, vegetables and the best organic beef, made by Royal Spelt.

6. Restaurant Valuas’s gluten free croquette

Star restaurant Valuas (*) in Venlo has developed a gluten free croquette. The gluten free croquette is made from ragout of corn, rice and 36% pure beef and contains a crust made of rice.

7. Croquette made from the queen of vegetables

Kwekkeboom introduced a croquette made of the queen of vegetables, the asparagus, in 2013. Since I regularly make a variety of the bitterbal with asparagus in the leading roll, this croquette proves that you can make endless variations with the salpicon of the croquettes and bitterballen.

8. Arancini, the Italian bitterbal

Lightly fried balls made from risotto with a core of mozzarella and smoked ham. Simple and a delicious appetizer! Italian restaurants would have their own variation of ‘our’ bitterbal.

9. Sichuan Bitterballen

For her Sichuan bitterballen Robin Kok used ‘Sichuan style red boiled beef’ that includes ingredients like ginger, chilli bean sauce, rice wine and Chinese dark soy sauce. The Asian bitterballen.

10. Chef Thor

Chef Thor makes bitterballen with different flavours and flavours you won’t expect, such as spinach with Dutch blue cheese, coconut curry with peas or scrambled eggs with porcini mushrooms and truffle. The traditional Dutch concept of a kroket, but just something different and delicious without meat. Chef Thor has been around for six years and have seven different flavours, all vegetarian.

11. Fingerfoodballs

Scelta Mushrooms is the founder of a healthy alternative for the snack range: the Fingerfoodballs. The Fingerfoodballs are vegetable snacks that doesn’t contain artificial colors or flavors.

DWDD pop-up restaurant

3-12-2015

Yesterday was the official opening of the DWDD pop-up restaurant and the presentation of the accompanying cookbook ‘DWDD cooks with Kranenborg’. Horecatrends attended the presentation and took the following pictures of the presentation, food and restaurant.

DWDD pop-up restaurant

Right in front of the studio of the successful Dutch TV-show ‘De Wereld Draait Door’ (The World Keeps Turning), on the Westergasterrein in Amsterdam, the DWDD pop-up-restaurant is now officially open. The pop-up restaurant is in cooperation with famous Dutch chef Robert Kranenborg. During the next three weeks a five course dinner will be served here for € 79,95. The profit of this project will be donated to the ‘Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Foundation’. On the menu is a selection of forgotten classics that were discussed at the TV-show DWDD in the last four years. Chef Robert Kranenborg is a regular guest who presented, almost forgotten, classical dishes in cooperation with famous chefs from The Netherlands, Belgium and France. Guests can choose between three main courses during their lunch or dinner.

I already tasted a few dishes during the opening and really enjoyed the bastilla with pigeon and the cervelas de fruits de mer (sausage made of fish and seafood).

DWDD cooks with Kranenborg

Do you prefer to cook at home? The cookbook ‘DWDD cooks with Kranenborg’ will be available (€ 24,99) starting today, unfortunately only in Dutch. The cookbook contains all the recipes that Robert Kranenborg presented in the ‘De Wereld Draait Door’. Like Matthijs van Nieuwkerk said, ‘a history book and a cookbook’. The book, in honour of DWDD’s 10 year anniversary, contains exclusive ‘forgotten’ dishes like grilled woodcock, haggis and timpano. Including an easier recipe to prepare at home. ^Bram Kosterink

Launch Primedinners “Business, Friends, Romance… it’s all on the table”

17-11-2015

Horecatrends was present at the NH Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky in Amsterdam to attend Primedinners’ official launch. The evening, which was entirely devoted to the global top of gastronomy, started with a walking-dinner. You can watch a video about the event here.

Eleven international Michelin star chefs, ranging from one to three Michelin stars, with a total sum of 18, each prepared their own signature dish. The sous-chefs of famous Dutch restaurants, appraised with a Michelin star, were also present to support the international chefs. The eleven chefs and their dishes:

1. Peter Armellino * – Smoked salmon mousse-cannelloni with caviar
2. Fabio Bragagnolo ** – Slowly cooked John Dory, quinoa, clip fish and horseradish
3. Cornelius Speinle * – Langoustine tartare, cream of fruit and sour vegetables and caviar
4. Peter Rudolph * – Poached rabbit loin, celeriac, truffle, chanterelle and burnt bread
5. Yusuke Takada ** – Smoked eel with Japanese spices
6. Viki Geunes ** – Foie gras, North sea crab, miso, celeriac and buckthorn
7. Matteo Ferrantino ** – Black Cod “Caldeirada” -style
8. Jarad Gallagher * – Foie gras, roses, apricot, brioche and chocolate bottom.
9. Mitsuru Konishi ** – Beef & carrot
10. Phillip Foss * – French fries and a Frosty
11. Jacob Jan Boerma *** – Happy Berry, citrus, mango, yuzu, blueberries and goji berries

About Primedinners

Primedinners will be the new connection between Michelin star restaurants, suppliers and guests. The international network founded by Chanine Steffers and John Rietdijk offers the Michelin star chefs the platform that is so desperately needed, says Jacob Jan Boerma. On the website, that launched yesterday, you can book at the affiliated (Michelin star) restaurants and buy products from renowned suppliers.

The evening came to an end with the official Dutch premiere of the movie Burnt. The movie is about chef Adam Jones and his struggle to achieve three Michelin stars. It contains a lot of action, humour and love. Whether it actually reflects the truth is debatable. Despite that it’s a fun movie for people that love the culinary world, as well as people who don’t!

We really enjoyed it and wish Primedinners all the best! ^Bram Kosterink

The iSommelier by iFavine

13-11-2015

The iSommelier filters oxygen from the air and herewith the decanting process is being accelerated, reducing the time from a few hours to minutes. The iSommelier is a product of iFavine.

Glass carafes fit in the neatly designed device in which purified oxygen is added to the wine. In the corresponding mobile app the knowledge concerning thousands of wines from around the world is collected. The device is programmed in a way that the winemaker tells the user how the wine should be drunk.

The iSommelier by iFavine, a perfect balance between oxygen and wine.

That is the effect of the iSommelier, which excludes all the limitations of traditional decanting. Several natural elements in the air can affect the quality of a wine when it is traditionally decanted; pollution, odours, moist, differences in air pressure or temperature. This first ‘smart decanter’ uses new technology to provide solutions to these problems. Three filters purify the air and increase the oxygen content from the average of 21% to a maximum of 90%. Moreover, it removes pollutants and moist. The device isolates oxygen from nitrogen, and carbon dioxide. The iSommelier includes a patented glass carafe. This carafe is specially designed to distribute oxygen evenly throughout the wine. This results in a constant level of oxygen in the wine which makes tannins rounder and the wine tastes more elegant. As a result of this method all flavours will be enhanced and the full potential of the wine will be revealed.

According to the Dutch ambassador of the iSommelier by iFavine, Edwin Raben (famous Dutch sommelier) each restaurant should have a iSommelier. “Restaurants will be able to decant their (arrangement) wines by the glass. Moreover, also young wines can be consumed much earlier because of the softening effect at the tannins. The effect on white wines is also huge, think for example of young Riesling.”

There are already a couple of Dutch restaurants working with the iSommelier: for example FG restaurant and FG Food Lab by Francois Geurds (Rotterdam), restaurant Beluga (Maastricht), Restaurant Fred (Rotterdam), Wolf Atelier (Amsterdam) and the Sotto Wine Lounge (Ermelo).

Alain Rosier (sommelier restaurant FG & FG Food Labs) over the iSommelier

“We started working with the iSommelier last week and we are experimenting as we speak. This week we opened a great Château Mouton Rothschild 1985 (see photo) and we were able to serve the wine after 30 minutes with a great bouquet. With the iSommelier you can act quickly if a wine needs a little more oxygen to make the wine more tasteful. Heavy tannins as in wines with 100% Tannat grapes, break down easily with the iSommelier. Additionally, you can serve wine more quickly and you do not have to decant the wines for hours if they are ordered beforehand.”

The iSommelier by iFavine is sold from 24 November at the Makro and for consumers in the Netherlands at Oldenhof Kookwinkel.

Dim Sum Now

11-11-2015

On 4 November Dim Sum Now opened an eatery in Amsterdam, ‘De Pijp’, for eat–in and take-out. Dim sum is part of an international revival, will dim sum also become more popular again in The Netherlands?

Healthy and tasty

After selling dumplings and gyoza at various festivals became a success, the owners of Dim Sum Now felt it was time to take the next step. These entrepreneurs, Guido van der Meijen and Ting Yiu Cheung have found a natural flavour enhancer to use in their dishes. Because of the fact that the food is being steamed, no flavour and nutrients are lost. That’s what makes dim sum so healthy and delicious, and that’s also the reason why it has become increasingly popular. The founders Guido and Tin Yiu see the eatery as an opportunity to make dim sum accessible to everyone. Dim Sum Now is dim sum from now – it’s all in the name.

Dim Sum Now

The counter is filled with steaming steam baskets full of dumplings and gyoza. Each of them served in five different variations with pork-, chicken-, duck-, fish- or a vegetarian filling. Next to that there are specials such as the BBQ Bun, the Lotus Leaf Wrap and sides like edamame and seaweed salad. On the façade of the eatery is displayed in mint green neon letters that they are selling ‘baskets of steamy goodness’. The eatery can be found at the Ferdinand Bolstraat 36 in Amsterdam. In addition, it’s also possible to pick up the dim sum or have it delivered to your home.

Inspiration

Dim sum is currently very popular in cities like London and New York. Top chefs who are inspired by the Asian cuisine are also using the small steamed Chinese snacks in their kitchen regularly. For example, I recently ate delightful dim sum ‘Peking Duck’ at Tim Raue (**) in Berlin. And since you can make almost unlimited variants by using different ingredients and flavours, we expect that dim sum will also become more popular in The Netherlands. ^Marjolein

Bitter Balzz, variant of our famous Dutch ‘bitterbal’ filled with insects

2-11-2015

At BUGZZ they create food with insects. Their goal is to bring the sustainable snack ‘Bitter Balzz’ in production and that is why they started a crowdfunding project.

Bitter Balzz

BUGZZ uses our traditional ‘bitterbal’ (a Dutch treat; a small round croquette) to let us, consumers, get acquainted with healthier insects in an accessible way. BUGZZ created the ‘bitterbal’ with buffalo worms. Everybody in the Netherlands has tasted a ‘bitterbal’ at least once, why wouldn’t they try the Bitter Balzz? At events where BUGZZ was present, the Bitter Balzz were very popular. Because of the fact that the insects are hidden, it is easier to move beyond prejudices against insects.

Why insects?

80% of the world use insects in all their dishes, and insects are, according to BUGZZ and their customers, very tasty and versatile. In recent years, we increasingly hear about insects as a healthier and more sustainable alternative to meat. Insects take up much less space, they need less nutrition and water and produce much less emissions in relation to, for example, the cow. Next to those facts they also contain a lot of calcium! There are many more initiatives in the field of insects, we spotted amongst others a pizza with grasshoppers and a spread made of mealworms.

Who are the people behind BUGZZ?

Anne-Marie and Patrick, the founders of BUGGZ have different backgrounds, but have one thing in common: they love to cook tasty and adventurous meals. BUGZZ has only been operative for half a year and they have been seen at different festivals like the NeighbourFood Market, ‘Rollende Keuken’, Best Kept Secret, Amsterdam Kookt and the Amsterdam Woods Festival. Anne-Marie, Patrick and their team try to convince people to try insects as an alternative food source, in an enthusiastic manner.

Preparation is a key component of Restaurant C

2-10-2015

Restaurant C opens early October in Amsterdam. It’s a restaurant initiated by Michiel van der Eerde and his brother Lucas where different cooking methods are an important part of the menu.

Restaurant C: Michael and Lucas van der Eerde

In 2012 Chef Michiel van der Eerde opened the pop-up restaurant BAUT at the same location on the Wibautstraat 125 in Amsterdam. After the huge success he came with a sequel called ‘BAUTZUID’ a pop-up restaurant that’s a hit as well. Next to that, the Dutch public might know Michiel from the television program ‘Masterchef Holland’. Lucas has over twenty years of experience in the media, he was for instance commercially responsible for MTV Networks Netherlands.

Menu in temperature zones

The menu with small dishes is divided into temperature zones from 0 to 200 degrees. The method of preparation is more important than the products. One and the same product can vary completely depending on the cooking method at different temperatures.

Interior design Restaurant C inspired by L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon

The open kitchen is located in the middle of the restaurant. It is the heart of the restaurant and inspired by L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon in London. The interior design is done by architect Ronald Hooft from &PRAST&HOOFT in collaboration with Sandra Shelves / Studio Noun and Donald Beekman / DBXL. It is a blend of sophisticated comfortable elements and raw materials. Brass, concrete shell, velvet, wood, leather and steel alternate.

Furniture and decoration

The barstools are made of steel and leather and finished with a leather belt and were custom developed by WDSTCK, Studio Noun and C. Bar lamps made from old gas cylinders are hanging above the kitchen. On the side of the restaurant there are green velvet sofa booths with round wooden tables. A melt lamp by designer Tom Dixon hangs above the tables. The acoustics are taken care of as well, there are acoustic panels fitted throughout the restaurant. The capacity is 120 persons, of whom twenty people are able to sit at the kitchen bar.

Reservations are already available: c.amsterdam

KOST event to promote a healthy Dutch cuisine

18-9-2015

KOST is an event about the Dutch food culture for everyone who cares about our daily foods. The first edition will take place on 21 September.

Dutch cuisine

Chefs, producers, scientists, farmers and policymakers explore the possibilities to put the Dutch food culture and Dutch cuisine firmly on the map and make it healthier. They will do that together with speakers like Kobe Desramaults, Robert Kranenborg, Julian Baggini, Linda Roodenburg and Martin Caraher during the KOST event on 21 September at the Westergasfabriek in Amsterdam.

Platform ‘Van Moeder Natuur’

KOST is an initiative by the ‘Van Moeder Natuur’ platform (freely translated as the ‘Mother nature platform’). The platform focuses on a healthy Dutch food culture. This includes enjoying healthy, delicious and natural products packed with nutrients. Next to that, it means making time for food again by home cooking and enjoying meals together.

Day program

During the day program interesting topics are addressed. The program is compiled by various well know curators from the Dutch food culture like Mac van Dinther, Joris Bijdendijk, Joris Lohman, Samuel Levie and Helen Kranstauber).

Kostelijk dinner

In the evening there is a Kostelijk dinner (translated: Delicious dinner). The chefs responsible for the dinner are Joris Bijdendijk (RIJKS®), Albert Kooy (Dutch Cuisine), Luc Kusters (Bolenius), Benny Blisto (BAK), Sander Louwerens (Citroen), Willem Schaafsma (Eindeloos), Jonathan Karpathios (Vork en Mes), Geert Burema (Merkelbach), Nel Schellekens (de Gulle Waard), Dick Soek (Piloersemaborg) Eef Bolado (As) and René van der Veer (De Veldkeuken). Drinks are arranged by Niek Beute (De Klepel) and Ard Muntjewerf (The Lobby).

A delicious program. Unfortunately, it’s merely in Dutch and both the day program as well as the dinner are completely sold out.