We gave a formal tea tasting for the Valentine’s Day reveal of Kye Intimates at Carmen. At this intimate gathering of fourteen people, we ritually poured two of our Taiwanese teas and shared black sesame mochi. We let guests witness methods of preparing tea, enjoy the freshly steeped liquid and hear short stories about our tea. Such a serene ceremony aligned with how Kye Intimates reminds us to foster a gentle relationship with ourselves and those we love.

Black sesame mochi

Tasting from one of our Tea Cups

Time flies by, flows along or freezes entirely, just like water, a motif of IWC’s brand. For the opening of their Amsterdam location, we engineered the phases of time and water into festive canapés.

A wavy pumpkin purée on shokupan toast

Pear sponge cakes topped with meringue

Charcoal tartlets with brandade and cubes of apple vinegar jelly

Nasturtium leaves filled with rice, topped with vinegar drops

Vinegar drops on top of a nasturtium leaf with rice tucked into it represented evaporating. A wavy pumpkin purée on shokupan toast reflected moving. Charcoal tartlets with brandade and cubes of apple vinegar jelly, as well as a pear sponge cake with meringue, captured freezing.

We created three snacks for a Valentino showcase at the Bijenkorf in Amsterdam. Each bite was inspired by the shapes and textures in the brand’s upcoming SS24 collection. Big fortune cookies were modeled after the form of a handbag. Beet tartlets filled with beetroot hummus, pickled daikon and fish eggs accentuated velvety materials. A rice crisp on top of a herb frittata with aioli reminded viewers of cloud-like tulle fabric.

Beet tartlets and herb frittatas on one of our metal tea trays

Big fortune cookies next to the bag that inspired them

Crispy rice paper sheets

During the summer of 2023, we had the joy of making soft serve with Oatly at their first ever pop-up shop. For two days only, we took over the tiny venue on a corner by the Noordermarkt in Amsterdam to serve our own ice cream flavours of matcha from Uji, Japan, houjicha from Shizuoka, Japan, and stone-ground toasted black sesame seeds. We gave customers the option to add a blend of genmai and sobacha, cacao nibs, tapioca pearls in Kuromitsu syrup, and miso caramel on top of the perfectly swirled, plant-based treat. We designed digital and print posters to promote the event, as well as corresponding menus to display at the location and stickers to adorn the paper cups.

Our poster hanging out front of Oatly's pop-up shop at Prinsengracht 16, near the Noordermarkt

Toasted, Stone-ground Black Sesame Soft Serve topped with Tapioca Pearls in Kuromitsu syrup

Matcha Soft Serve topped with Genmai and Sobacha

At an event for Hermès during Dutch Design Week, we created a buffet around the luxury design house’s 2022 theme of ‘lightness’. 

A welcome drink of sake with yuzu, kukicha and a purple shiso leaf

A welcome snack of crispy rice, black kale furikake and pickled daikon

Guests served themselves from a two-tiered table, which was covered with Hermès plates presenting our Banchan dishes

Matcha-pistachio opera cake sponge cake taking over an entire table's surface

Japchae (cold, seasoned glass noodles) served from elevated stainless steel half-pipe we had especially made for this event

Sticky rice in lotus leaf with lotus root unwrapped on a guests' plate

The dishes on our menu were made of ingredients that are innately light in weight, were transformed to be lighter, or were presented as being so. The main course took inspiration from the delicacies of Korean and Japanese temple food. We incorporated elements like lotus leaves, to subtly refer to the deep yet light meanings carried by such buoyant symbols. Based on the traditions associated with the ‘light’ ingredients we chose, we designed custom table settings and unconventional surfaces to present our food on.

We presented a multi-course feast celebrating the opening of Loewe’s flagship store in the Netherlands. This intimate, seated dinner was held in De Thomas, a brutalist church in Amsterdam. 

Starters, like a long goat-cheese-watercress cheesecake, set on the table for guests to share

Throughout the night, we poured glasses of Constel.lació by Cosmic Vinyaters

Three kinds of petit fours: honeycomb-matcha chocolates, brandy snaps, and pâte du fruits

Smoked eel brandade and egg yolk raviolo with preserved lemon and cavolo nero as a main course

We served shared starters, individual main dishes, and a grand arrangement of bite-sized desserts. As the purpose of the gathering was to welcome Loewe to a city in the Low Countries, we incorporated ingredients typical of the Dutch agricultural landscape, like seaweed, eel, kohlrabi watercress, and cheese.

For Abel’s latest Eau de Parfum, we developed a cocktail inspired by the scent Black Anise alongwith packaging to present this drink with the perfume in a gift box. The cocktail was based on the notes of the fragrance to give recipients a different sensorial way to experience the perfume. 

Each recipient was gifted our cocktail, a glass, and the perfume

Graphic treatment on a slightly-transparent, texture wrapping paper to reveal the mystery of what is in the cocktail

Lapsang tea steeping in the Mono Classic teapot

A smoky lapsang tea has been stirred into a cognac infused with bitter cocoa nibs and bright star anise. The moody mix is saturated with black currant syrup and Chinati Vergano’s red bitter vermouth. Abel’s dark and daring perfume is full of mystique. We embraced that intrigue in our boxes by disguising the cocktail within layers that need to be unveiled.

For the launch of Amsterdam-based skincare brand, Routinely, we created a conceptual food installation inspired by their products. As Routinely makes the pure and potent products, we focused on the “essential” extracts used in their serums. We created bites based on the main ingredient in three of their thirteen serums. Our presentation of the three different snacks was based on the shape of each ingredient in its raw and original state.

Dark Reishi chocolate with dehydrated mushrooms inspired by Serum 06

All three snacks, including a pumpkin jelly with fermented pumpkin seeds inspired by Serum 02, on a guests' plate

Kombu and rice chips with sea salt inspired by Serum 15

Our signature green iced tea of Kukicha with lemon juice and honey

To launch smokewear products made in collaboration by High Minds and J. Hill’s Standard, we hosted a dinner in our canteen. Our four-course menu reflected the features of both what is smoked (buds) and what is used to smoke (pipes). 

Flat tart with fig leaf cream, green gooseberries and fig leaf oil

Courgette flower tempura, burrata, miso mayo

We highlighted the merit of materials that both these Irish brands work with. Flowers guided our decisions for flavour and form, while crystals led our choices with texture and appearance. By having both flowers and crystals on our plate, we showcased how the two brands have grown together through this collaboration. 

Spanish denim brand Lois Jeans invited us to serve a high tea in Ibiza for the presentation of their Collection Número Dieciocho launch. The characteristics of Oxfordshire fields, with their dry stone walls weaving through the countryside, were the source of our inspiration for the menu and styling, as this atmosphere was also the inspiration for the collection itself.

The regenerative farm Terra Masia, that provided us with fresh produce for the event

A row of pitchers of Iced Kukicha, Iced Tamaryokucha Tsuyuhikari, and Sencha Cold Brew and the respective tea leaves on display

An edible pebble made of dates and nuts covered in cocoa and kinako powders to welcome guests

Savoury tea sandwiches were placed on the table, scones were raised slightly above, and sweets sat higher than the rest

Wagashi Mochi made with fig leaves picked on site, Linzer cookie, and a traditional Meringue Tartlet

More than 80 guests were welcomed with a stone-shaped snack and a vibrant display of tea. They were then led to a 22-meter long table, upon which we reimagined a high tea’s tiered-stands by using separate slate surfaces to elevate the three courses. While following the classic format of the British culinary tradition, we showcased the Spanish setting by serving dishes such as mint, star anise scones as an adaptation of Flaó d’Eivissa.

For a small symposium organised by Hermès in their Amsterdam store, we translated the brand’s annual theme of ‘lightness’ into a menu. Each item we served that night displayed the qualities of either drying, floating or transparency. 

Our snacks spread over a vitrine, to showcase our interpretation of 'lightness'

Onigiri with seaweed and umeboshi, next to candied citrus peels dipped in white chocolate

Glass potato chips, to show lightness through transparency

Miso white bean dip for crudités positioned adjacent to meringue clouds with cream

An onigiri, a glass potato chip with spring onion aioli, an herb cracker with a slice of Comté cheese and some crudité on the side

While drying, ingredients become lighter in weight as they lose moisture. When floating, ingredients reveal their density in relation to one another. If transparent, ingredients let more light in, allowing us to see beyond their surfaces. Our menu, with an array of different kinds of sweet and savoury snacks, exhibited the materiality of lightness.

In the spring of 2022, Renessence, a holistic centre in Amsterdam where patrons can go to reconnect with their true essence, opened its doors. Their restorative services are interconnected with the four classical elements of water, fire, earth and air. 

Mushrooms and potatoes buried below crushed black kale furikake

Thin crackers for a spread of smoky eggplant

Blocks of honeycomb covered in white chocolate

The team behind Renessence hosted a celebratory gathering in their space to welcome guests in for the first time. For this opening, we served one dish per classical element. We wanted to nourish the age-old, almost innate wisdom that well-being comes from these fundamental building blocks existing in harmony.

Orginics is an organic gin made in Amsterdam. The distiller, Nils, experiments in small batches with niche Dutch ingredients. We were tasked to devise an identity for Orginics, a new product line that would still carry an authentic edge of the core brand. 

The shipping boxes

The labelling process

Our label design for Orginics has two stickers, one is notably an enlarged ‘seal’ that was historically used in distilleries. The icon on this seal is an adaptation of the “O” and “G” of Orginics, as it is an OG (short for “Original”) product.

Up-cycling was the core value of this collaboration between Viktor & Rolf and Zalando. The Dutch fashion designers utilised overstock fabric to make a unique collection. We were invited to serve bites and drinks for the launch of this collection. 

Toasted bread with fermented radishes and black garlic oil

Thin chocolate sheets with dehydrated raspberries

A deconstructed station to create your own wrap, using all the parts of the beetroot in different forms

To do so, we extended the theme of up-cycling into our menu. Our concept took shape through three thematic, unconventional encounters, each using up-cycled food. The styling of our food was inspired by the setting of a gallery space.

In celebration of the work of sound artist Jennie C. Jones, we were commissioned to create an edible installation at Philip Johnson’s Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut. For our menu, we took inspiration from Jones’ audio collage as well as the Sculpture Gallery’s geometric architectural forms.

Date, pecan and chocolate balls rolled in coconut flakes

The long buffet table

We started this project at the beginning of the pandemic, when restaurants in The Netherlands had to first close their doors. We noticed that many farmers were struggling to get their produce in the hands of locals. This was especially true for the farmer we work closely with, Wim Bijma, especially since he only works with restaurants. 

Cooking the Garden Salad

The zine with the shopping list

We decided to collaborate with Wim by giving people a chance to cook with his vegetables, ones that you usually couldn’t find anywhere else. This project consisted of a print publication with recipes and was accompanied by a box of Wim’s fresh vegetables.