For this 6th edition of "Trends Watcher", we'd like to tell you about a selection of innovative concepts for snacks and restaurants which guarantee a unique, even totally bizarre experience.

 

Do it yourself :

The latest trend is to get consumers involved in the preparation or even just the service side of eating :

• In Britain you can go to Recipease to get stuck in. Launched by Jamie Oliver, these shops sell fresh ingredients and kitchen utensils so customers can put together their dishes themselves, following the chef’s instructions, and then take them home.
• No more waiting around to put in an order at Pilsner Unique Bar(Czech Republic). Help yourself from the beer pumps set into each table. Speedy and fun.
• At Minibar in Washington, in exchange for a passport, you get an ice bucket and the key to a fridge crammed with alcohol… so no more queues, and you can rummage around in the bar as if it’s you’re very own.
• Then there’s the Geschmackslabor restaurant in Germany which gives consumers the chance to add a bit more flavour to their dishes with dozens of different flavoured oils which they can add using a pipette. 

 

 

Art & tech :

It's no longer enough just to eat and drink, so art and technology are joining the party to liven things up.

• You can go to the Raw Canvas café in Vancouver for just a snack, or discover your artistic flair with a bit of painting. Just be careful not to get your ketchup muddled up with your paint.
• Inamo, in London, describes itself as an “interactive bar and restaurant?. Make a game out of ordering from your dishes from the digital menus projected onto every table instead of a traditional menu.
• Then there’s the Adour bar in New York (St. Regis Hotel), where the bar itself is transformed into a huge touch-screen. There are games, Bluetooth technology and the Internet, all at the touch of a button. A great opportunity to give technophile customers interactive content.

 

 

 

And finally the two concepts which we think are the most exciting (and pretty impressive).

• At Kidfresh in New York, it’s children who are the guests of honour. Firstly, there are cooking lessons for children, so they can learn about healthy eating whilst having fun. Then they offer take-away dishes which are suitable for children aged from 0 to 10, which only use fresh, natural ingredients. Their packs are a huge success – colourful and fun.
• And last but by no means least, Dinner in the Sky gives you the chance to dine way up high in the sky. Tables and chairs are laid out on a platform which hangs from a crane 50m from the ground. On a parallel platform, a violinist and a pianist play gentle melodies to accompany your meal, while waiters fearlessly serve you with wine and food.