Category Archives: coffee shops

15 days of travels and food around the world

Last 12th of February, with a colleague of mine, I went to Ljubljana to meet some potential clients willing to develop a new food concept project. It was snowing and as soon as we entered in Slovenia, the panorama changed. slovenia0

Beautiful. Striking.

We arrived at the perfect time to make the check-in at the hotel and to have some free time to enjoy Ljubljana downtown. Have you been there? You should, its beautiful! Again the time was perfect to have an aperitif. We went to one of the most beautiful wine bar I ever seen, the Movia. The atmosphere you can brief there is totally brought from the vineyards. We had Movia Cabernet Sauvignon. Outstanding ! Dinner at River House.

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On the 14th, I flew to Madrid to meet an architectural and engineering group for Retail and Food & Beverages projects. Their great services are complementary with those of DESITA, therefore we met to find a mutual benefit business collaboration agreement. We succeed! Later on, we went to visit some of their projects. Dinner at La Tagliatella an impressive franchising concept.

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Last week I was in Dubai to attend to Gulfood. I was there together with FCSI EAME colleagues to guard the booth at the exhibition. We have been successful. Foodservice Consultants Society International (FCSI) is the premier association promoting professionalism in foodservice and hospitality consulting. With over 1300 members in over 46 countries, FCSI members offer a wide range of consulting services including concept development, feasibility studies, food safety, design, marketing, operations and training. FCSI is changing a lot in its structure, philosophy and mission and we are all proud of this huge effort made by the Board of Directors. The website is brand new like the “foodservice consultant” magazine that provides authoritative insight, opinion and intelligence to help foodservice professionals keep in touch with the tings that matter.

It was nice to meet with clients, colleagues and old friends.

Dubai-Burj-KhalifaFor an important meeting I went to the Armani Hotel at Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. It was my second time there after its opening and to meet with my guest, I went to the coffee shop in the lobby. Time was nice so we decided to share an Italian bottle of wine. With all my surprise, the young waiter served us the ordered white wine with apparent difficulty and … the white wine wasn’t cold and not even fresh. Unbelievable.

We pointed out the regrettable inconvenience and the waiter brought us immediately a new bottle … with the same warm temperature. We had to call the waiter back and ask at least for an ice bucket and wait for a more pleasant wine temperature.

The fact is that I paid that bottle like 70 Euro and I didn’t receive any good service. It’s a shame as we were in THE Location. Now I probably understand why the f&b manager didn’t reply to my emails last year when I had my dinner at Mediterraneo. Beautiful atmosphere but very normal food. I think Armani Hotel has a lack in training human resources. Mr. Giorgio, please do something!

While I was in Dubai, I’ve been invited from a Sheikh friend of mine to attend the Peru Food Festival at Madinat Jumeirah’s Souk Amphitheater. What a surprise the Peruvian food. It’s just great! And it’s considered on the the next food trend worldwide.

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So hurry up my friends, let’s organize a trip to Peru and all its wonders. Ready?

Well, I can’t write about everything happened because 15 days are quite long and things are many. I hope you enjoyed these few facts.

Traveling and sharing time with great people while having good food. Yes, that’s life!

Stai calmo, beviti un caffè! Per favore!

I ritmi della vita odierna si fanno sempre più frenetici, il tempo a disposizione sembra sempre meno. Siamo di corsa.

Il modo di vivere la nostra quotidianità è cambiato, tant’è che un gesto semplice, come quello di bere un caffè, per molti è diventato: “la pausa alla macchinetta”. Ma pensate di essere Luca e Paolo su Camera cafè?

Purtroppo stanno proliferando i locali dediti ai distributori automatici. Nulla in contrario se, posizionati o utilizzati in circostanze “d’emergenza” o in azienda, ma se diventano l’alternativa al bar allora qualcosa non va. Infatti molte persone consumano caffè e derivati dalle macchinette automatiche anche in presenza di bar nelle vicinanze.

Forse sarò un italiano “vecchia maniera”, uno che si emoziona solo a sentire il profumo del caffè appena fatto, uno che cerca di “leggere diversamente” il disegno fatto dal barista sul cappucciono fumante, con tutto il rispetto del “latte art”, uno che se deve incontrare un amico gli da appuntamento al bar e non davanti ad una macchinetta; ma trovo questa tendenza poco affascinante e per nulla rispettosa di una tradizione italiana invidiata nel mondo.

Il mio timore, è che questa tendenza in aumento sia dovuta al fatto che sempre più persone disconoscono il prodotto caffè e quanto ne gravita attorno. I consumatori sono bombardati da offerte più o meno valide e fanno fatica ad aggiornarsi; i “baristi”, sono spesso persone volenterose ma gettate dietro il bancone senza nessun tipo di formazione, con il rischio di passare per cafoni. Ma sapete quanto vi costa la formazione che non fate? Molto di più di quanto scuole professionali, e ce ne sono diverse, potrebbero chiedervi.

Infine, se condividete quanto ho scritto sopra, la prossima volta che andate al bar, ricordatevi di chiedere un caffè, o meglio un espresso, aggiungendo semplicemente: per favore. Vedrete, sarà più buono.

Barista, lei è proprio un cafone!

Il 29 agosto scorso mi sono recato all’aeroporto di Bologna, per partire alla volta di Catania e quindi raggiungere Messina. Un importante incontro di lavoro mi stava aspettando.

Visto che il mio volo era previsto subito dopo l’ora di pranzo, mi sono avvicinato al bar Bollicine, quello situato proprio frontalmente alla salita delle scale mobili, zona partenze ovviamente. Dopo aver aspettato il barista che doveva monitorare il passaggio delle turiste e dopo essere riuscito a fare lo scontrino per: panino, bibita e caffè, mi sono spostato al lato della cassa per poter consumare il mio “pasto” in tranquillità.

Ecco l’assurdo manifestarsi improvvisamente: dopo aver provato a masticare il panino, impresa ardua dato la sua consistenza – avete presente il pane scongelato e riproposto probabilmente dopo alcuni giorni? – mi sono rivolto al barista dicendo educatamente: “mi scusi, ma questo pane è immangiabile”. Di tutta risposta il barista mi ha lanciato un sguardo di insufficenza, come se il pane fosse cattivo per colpa mia, e dopo aver allargato le braccia come se fosse passato li per caso, se ne è andato dall’altra parte.

Per il nervoso, pur di non aver a che fare con quel cafone, non ho neanche chiesto il caffè. Naturalmente il panino è finito nel bidone.

Andando verso l’imbarco, mi sono detto: quest’episodio è da condividere ed ho incominciato a scrivere col cellulare su Twitter: “Il barista del Bollicine e’ veramente un cafone!!!” Stavo per inviare, quando la provvidenza mi ha portato davanti un cartello dell’aeroporto che invitava i passeggeri a comunicare attraverso Twitter, questo l’indirizzo: @BLQairport

Letto, aggiunto, fatto!

Al mio arrivo a Catania, mi sono piacevolmente trovato la risposta: “@norman_cescut Ci dispiace per l’accaduto, lo segnaliamo subito affinchè non si ripeta più”. Il tutto visibile nella mia Timeline di Twitter.

I famosi “complain form” presenti all’estero, non hanno mai funzionato in Italia, ma finalmente adesso c’è la possibilità di comunicare in diretta con chi d’interesse.

Ora, non ho la certezza che abbiano preso veri provvedimenti, anzi invito l’aeroporto di Bologna a comunicarmelo, ma certo è che comportamenti del genere non possono e non devono passare inosservati.

Aggiungo solo una cosa: saper fare un caffè o allungare un panino al di là del bancone, non significa essere baristi, professione nobile e altamente qualificata ma non è solo colpa del barista ma anche del gestore che non fornisce la formazione adatta o se lo fa, non monitora l’operato.

Fino a prova contraria, mai più al bar Bollicine!

Say it with an espresso!

We’ve seen numerous ways to add personalized messages to products ranging from chocolate bars to cookies to cans of soup, but recently we came across one that has an interesting new twist.

Created by Seattle cloud texting company Zipwhip, Textspresso is an espresso machine that can not only send and receive text messages, but can also print those messages on coffee foam using edible ink.

To create the Textspresso device, Zipwhip installed a Jura Impressa Xs90 espresso machine with SMS and printing capabilities using an Android app, servo motors, an Arduino microcontroller and a retrofitted Canon printer. Users can text their order to the device, which will then brew their coffee and keep it hot on a warming plate until they pick it up. Perhaps most interesting of all, though, is that the machine can use edible ink to print text on the coffee’s foam, opening the door to a world of personalization possibilities. For example, the machine can be used to text the last digits of a customer’s phone number, enabling them to easily identify their coffee when they go to pick it up. The video below explains the premise in more detail:

Zipwhip actually created its Textspresso machine as a way to showcase its cloud texting service, and it has no plans to produce more of them, it says. The code and plans for making the device are open source, however, and available to anyone seeking to make their own. Tech-minded entrepreneurs and coffee shop owners worldwide: time to build one for yourself?

via Espresso machine can print text messages on coffee foam with edible ink | Springwise.

6 steps towards a healthier Google Cafeteria

Much has changed since Google earned a reputation for fattening its staffers with food on demand. These days, the company is focused on advancing its healthy eating initiatives. Explains Jennifer Kurkoski, who has a PhD in organizational behavior and runs a division of Google’s HR department called People Analytics, “When employees are healthy, they’re happy. When they’re happy, they’re innovative.” google cafeteria

In pursuit of that healthiness, happiness, and innovation, Google has turned to “nudges”: simple, subtle cues that prompt people to make better decisions. Behavioral economists have shown the idea works, but Google has taken it out of the lab and into the lunchroom. This is a sampling of the encouragement you’d get during trips through the company’s eateries–and naturally, Google is measuring the results.

HARD CANDY

No longer are M&Ms in clear hanging dispensers. If you’re in Google’s New York office, you now have to reach into opaque bins. The grab takes effort; the obscuring vessel quells enticement. The switch led to a 9% drop in caloric intake from candy in just one week.

SALAD GAZE

Waiting for you as you enter the cafeteria is the salad bar. According to Jessica Wisdom, a member of the People Analytics team, studies show that people tend to fill their plates with whatever they see first. Thus, leafy greens get the most visible real estate. Desserts, meanwhile, are down another line of sight.

SIZING DOWN

While grabbing a plate to load up on grub, you see a sign informing you that people with bigger dishes are inclined to eat more. It doesn’t tell you what to do, but it affects your behavior. This simple “meta nudge” caused small plate usage to increase by half, to 32% of all plate traffic.

COLORING OPINIONS

Harvard recently revamped its food pyramid, and those lessons in metered portions have translated into a colored tag system in the cafeterias. you see green labels paired with veggies, giving you liberty to dig in. Most desserts have red ones, warning potential gluttons to proceed in moderation.

DESERTING DESSERTS

So you’ve had a bad day, and even a glaring red tag isn’t enough to discourage you from indulging in a treat. Fortunately, desserts are designed to be downed in just three bites. By making people think about having to take a second dessert plate, Google is nixing potential binges.

WATERWORKS

You’re back at your desk and thirst is setting in. You head to the kitchen. In the past, water was on tap and soda was in the fridge. Now bottled water is at eye level in the cooler, while soda has been moved to the bottom. That shift in placement increased water intake by 47%, while calories from drinks fell by 7%. Taking a sip of agua, you feel better already.

via 6 Ways Google Hacks Its Cafeterias So Googlers Eat Healthier | Co.Design: business + innovation + design.

At Babochki Anticafé, patrons pay by the minute

At Babochki Anticafé consumers pay nothing for their refreshments. Instead, they arebabochki anticafe 1 charged by the minute for the time they spend there.

The Concept

The concept is quite simple yet striking: customers pay one ruble and 50 kopecks for each minute they stay. Drinks and snacks, on the other hand, are free.

Aiming to create a space where consumers can relax and pursue their favorite diversions, the venue offers tea, coffee and desserts at no charge, and patrons can bring their own refreshments as well. An assortment of board games are on hand for entertainment, meanwhile, as are Xbox games, wifi and a cinema hall.

As in our ECOFFEE’s projects, the café (or Anticafé) has been designed as a place where conversation is central and where people can meet and spend time together – a place where people pay for entertaining themselves.

via Free food and drinks at Moscow café, where patrons pay by the minute | Springwise.

Where is the future of coffee shops? EVERYWHERE!!

We have never agreed that much to a future scenario such as the one depicted by Steven Gordon of the Speculist. Gordon writes about the “coffeeshopification” of many public venues –  bookstores, museums, libraries and retail stores. His point of view is very interesting to the projects we have been developing so far with DESITA and ECOFFEE.

Here it is what Gordon writes in his very interesting article

Universities Will Become Coffee Shops

As reported by TreeHugger “The traditional university lecture is a completely anachronistic institution; there is no reason my Ryerson University students couldn’t watch my lectures on their computers at home or in a coffee shop. Most do; rarely more than 50% of the class shows up, because they know I post the lectures on the school website. As you can see in the photo above, even the students that show up have their noses in their computers. It is all a silly leftover from the days before books were printed and were too expensive for students, so the lecturer would stand up at the front and read from them. The reason for showing up these days is for, as Gordon notes, to “seek tutoring, network, and socialize.”- pretty much a big coffee shop.”

Book Stores Will Shrink to Coffee Shops

Ebooks are coming of age – for many reasons. You can keep your library in your pocket. You can annotate and share your thoughts within social networks. Writers can publish more directly to their audience. Once completed, the unit cost of each ebook sold is essentially $0. Those savings can (and sometimes are) passed on to the customer. Also, an ebook doesn’t have to be limited to the written word. An ebook can incorporate video, audio and other methods of presentation. Your book store is always with you and has every book ready to sell. Nothing ever goes out of print because there are no print runs.

Compare that with your local Barnes and Nobel. Those stores are huge but can accommodate only a small fraction of the titles available in the Kindle store. They require expensive real estate, buildings, and employees.

If you don’t like reading from an ereader, there are new on-demand printing options like the Espresso Book Machine that can print a book within minutes.

Between ebooks and print-on-demand, Barnes and Nobel sized stores shrink down to just their coffee shops – or maybe Starbucks takes over their business. Either way, custormers keep the experience of reading with coffee and those big comfortable chairs.

The Coffee Shop Will Displace Most Retail Shops

My Christmas shopping this year was 90% through Amazon Prime. Not having to fight the crowds and having it delivered free of charge to my home is a big plus, but as with the Kindle store, the online retail selection is much better that even the largest retail outlet.

Which is more enjoyable: Starbucks or Walmart?  For the sane: Starbucks.  So if you can accomplish your Walmart shopping at Starbucks, why do it any other way?

Also, imagine the 3D print shop of the future. You put in your order, probably from your smart phone, and then go pick it up. What does the lobby of such a business look like?  Again: a coffee shop.

Offices Become Coffee Shops… Again

We’re going back to the future: the modern office was birthed in 17th century coffee shops. Steven Johnson has argued that coffee fueled the enlightenment. It was certainly a more enlightening beverage than the previous choice of alcohol.

The need for offices grew as the equipment for mental work was developed starting in the late 19th centuries. That need appears to have peaked about 1980. It was a rare person who could afford the computers, printers, fax machines, and mailing/shipping equipment of that time.

Now a single person with $500 can duplicate most of those functions with a single laptop computer.  So the remaining function of the office is to be that place that clients know to find you… and that kids and the other distractions of home can’t.

Going forward the workplace will need the same sort of flexibility that I described for education. Groups for one project will form and then disband and then reform with new members for the next project. What will that workplace look like? Probably closer to Starbucks than Bob Par’s cubicle.

What will remain other than coffee shops? Upscale retail will remain – people paying as much for the experience as for the goods purchased. Restaurants remain. Grocery stores remain.

Brick and mortar retail stores will be converted to public spaces. Multi-use space will be in increasing demand as connectivity tools allow easy coordination of impromptu events. Some large retail stores will be converted to industrial 3D printer factories. These heavy-duty fab labs will fabricate products that are too big or complicated to fabricate at home.

A new shop concept by DESITA and …ECOFFEE

I am glad to announce that DESITA is planning a shop concept for the new image of the Saadeddin pastry shops chain located in many states and cities of the Arabian peninsula, whose first restyling project has been planned for one of its Riyadh branches.

After having spent a couple of months briefing with the client in Italy and in Saudi Arabia and after having visited the shop location in Riyadh, we are now defining its layout following the client wishes and our already confirmed inputs about the sale process. The chain’s new brand image will be a young, fresh, trendy and European one.

The pastry shop project will be developed over an area of about 350 square meters and will include an innovative sale formula, for the Saudi habits, which we are sure will generate great interest and attention not limited to the Arab area only.

Thanks also to our fortnightly experience in the foodservice business, to our knowledge of the Arab culture and customer behavior and to the unlimited trust from our Client, we will merge the local traditions and habits into a new shop concept, designing innovative interiors and also a new way to intend the coffee shop area along the “single” (reserved to men only) and the “family” rooms areas.

It is in fact required in Saudi Arabia that food shops with catering facilities have specifically reserved entrances, men-only sitting rooms and other ones for women and families.

Furthermore, in agreement with the client, the concept is going to be developed following, where possible, the ECOFFEE guidelines as per the use of materials, equipment, products and sustainable solutions.

This important client has been collaborating with us for many years and his trust has always been rewarded allowing his company to be a trendsetter one in his area of business. His willingness to embrace sustainability in this new sales formula will grant him a sure competitive advantage. It is a honor for us to collaborate with such of farsighted and open minded client.

The combination of the new business formula and of the ECOFFEE guidelines applied to this first pastry shop will be next used in all the other chain branches, so that to make it a point of reference for the sustainability trend in a geographical area more and more sensitive to this issue.

Coffee and tea drinking habits in Asia: when culture matters.

Evening drinking habits differ from country to country, and this is very important when creating customer-centric food Retail concepts, as our DESITA and ECOFFEE projects are. In Singapore, for example it’s not unusual to see coffee shops packed at 11pm/12 midnight every night of the week including weekends. This experience is replicated across many countries in the region from India to Malaysia, Vietnam to Indonesia.

The culture of drinking in Asia is not about alcohol it’s about coffee and tea. It’s still about friends but it’s sober conversation as oppose to drunken ones. There are more coffee shops in Singapore than bars. Coffee shops are growing at a faster rate in India than any other form of F&B outlet. This appears to be down to more affluence, a desire to eat and drink out and a predominantly non-drinking culture. Of course there are a mass of bars in Singapore and across Asia but these tend to be filled with expats and Chinese and focused on certain areas and linked to Karaoke.

Religiously Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists – the main religions across the region – actively prescribe non-drinking of alcohol to their followers. Singaporean’s are just not brought up to get drunk in the way their English and American counterpart’s inparticular are. This in turn leads to a more civilized society, there are no drink related injuries for hospitals to deal with and society to pay for. There is not the violence that happens every weekend in most towns in the UK, no alcohol means that it just doesn’t happen, it’s just not accepted and not desired.

From a marketing point of view it means that if you want to target these people you have to think in a more sophisticated and creative way. Starbucks may be much maligned but they, Costa and other Western brands are growing in Asia at a rate of knots and along with the monster Asia coffee brands like Gloria Jean’s,Café Coffee Day and Coffee Bean are more effective at reaching many Asians than marketing through bars and alcohol. (Source: BrandRepublic; Picture: 4theloveoffood).

Starbucks getting creative about contactless payment

The introduction of contactless payment options at Starbucks dates back on January 2011, when the coffee-shop chain launched mobile payment in all U.S. company-operated stores, allowing customers to pay for in-store purchases with select smartphones.

Building on the earlier introduction of Starbucks Card Mobile App for select BlackBerry® smartphones, iPhone® and iPod® touch and a successful mobile payment test program, USA customers now have access to the largest mobile payment program in the U.S. and the fastest way to pay at Starbucks.

Starbucks Card Mobile App on iPhone (Photo: Business Wire)

Customers can pay with their smartphone by holding their mobile device in front of a scanner on the countertop and scan the Starbucks Card Mobile App’s on-screen barcode to make a purchase. Customers have successfully adopted this technology in test markets in Seattle, Northern California, New York and more than 1,000 Starbucks in U.S. Target stores.

Mobile payment is built on the Starbucks Card platform, which continues to experience significant customer adoption. Customers loaded more than $1.5 billion on Starbucks Cards in 2010, an increase of 21 percent over 2009, driven in part by the My Starbucks Rewards program which provides benefits to customers who pay with a registered Starbucks Card at participating stores. With the introduction of the quick and easy Starbucks Card Mobile App and the mobile payment feature, customer will find yet another reason to use their Starbucks Card for payment.

“Mobile payment is just one example of how we’re continually innovating on behalf of our customers to enhance the Starbucks Experience,” said Brewer. “A growing segment of our customers use smartphones, and through the Starbucks Card Mobile App, we’re providing them with the fastest way to pay.”

Just a couple of days ago, the coffee-shop chain has signed a deal with Barclaycard, in partnership with Visa Europe, allowing consumers to pay for products by scanning their contactless credit or debit card over a payment terminal.

‘[This] follows our successful adoption of other technologies including Facebook Deals and geo-fencing mobile couponing,’ said Brian Waring, vice-president, marketing and category, for Starbucks UK and Ireland.

Whether they are using the same Starbucks Platform in the UK or not is not clear, especially because there is a big difference between the media that is going to be used for paying – QR code on mobile phones in USA, debit/credit card in UK. Let’s wait until 2012 to see what will happen in UK (Source: Starbucks.com)