In my youth, my parents would take me to Joes Steakhouse in Montreal where we would eat massive rib steaks on wooden cutting boards with copious amounts of butter and sour cream lathered on baked potatoes. Posh dining equivalent might include a chateaubriand for two, expertly prepared tableside.
Food allergies are not only commonplace nowadays but continue to become more prevalent, particularly in a North American context. This means that allergic considerations will only become more prevalent as millennials and post-millennials come to dominate the travel economy as well as the workforce.
When you hear 'Executive Chef' the likes of celebrity chef Pete Goffe-Wood or the renowned Jamie Oliver spring to mind but this title, certainly at hotel level, whilst essential, is a rather unobtrusive, often thankless job that comes with very little celebrity status. This multi-layered profession is not just about creating delicious dishes and hollering on the pass, it's also about managing a kitchen, supervising staff, planning menus, sourcing ingredients, and maintaining and implementing food hygiene. It requires good leadership skills, quick thinking, a knack for problem-solving and a generous measure of patience.
Think of leading chefs like Alain Ducasse and Wolfgang Puck, and consider their restaurant businesses which have become truly global. How can they ensure that their restaurants in, say, Doha, Shanghai or Singapore are in line with, and reflect, their demanding standards and personal branding?
Located on the Cornwall coast of England in the picturesque port of Bude is the quaint, 32-room Falcon Hotel which includes a single three-bedroom, self-catering apartment.
'Upscale' or gastronomic restaurants have seen many changes over the past 20 years as we have experienced the influence of social media, the globalization of cuisines, and the role of wine in the cellars and menus of restaurants. Several experts came together at Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne recently to discuss the latter issue in a roundtable session.
Celebrity chefs are 'very expensive' but they can bring instant brand recognition to your hotel restaurant. That was the general consensus among panelists at the F&B breakout session at the International Hotel Investment Forum held recently in Berlin.
Dining out, going for a movie or enjoying a bottle of fine wine all have a common feature. They are experience goods, for which consumers can only evaluate the true quality after they have been consumed - i.e. experienced. This means that buyers must have access to information on quality in order to make informed decisions on their potential purchase and consumption.
There's a short expression in Italian I'm fond of written simply as, 'L'ambiente del vino'. The direct translation is 'the ambiance of wine' but really it means so much more.
I am constantly perplexed at the continued reluctance of hoteliers to recognize activities that truly are unbecoming unbearable for guests. In this case, I am referring to our proclivity towards affixing outrageous prices to such basic amenities as bottled water.
One of the most important elements of a modern hotel property is its coffee service, both within the guestroom and at any restaurant outlet. Given this beverage's significance in everyday life, it's a definite no-no for a hotel that cuts corners in its procurement and preparation of this brown elixir. Hardly a drug, though, coffee is not only big business but an aspect of our culture that continues to evolve.
Giving the proper credits to your food and beverage operation is an important task. You want to ensure it is done consistently and fairly. This article examines all the usual credits, different types, the proper way to take them and why we need to take them.
In recent years, wine has made a remarkable entry into the world of alternative investments. This emotionally charged asset has all the necessary characteristics to thrill not only amateurs and collectors but also investors. In particular, it offers attractive returns and interesting diversification potential.
Walk along the gallery leading from the hotel's lobby towards the restaurant, and you will see photographs of Marlene Dietrich, Catherine Deneuve, Tom Hanks, Sharon Stone and many other well-known figures posing with Küchler— not the other way around. Werner Küchler has met, served, and conversed with the world's great, rich, and famous. He has even sung to them.
Choice is a tricky thing. Confronted with too much of it and you are stymied by indecision. Yet faced by too little and you feel shortchanged or indifferent to the whole buying process. It's all about finding that happy medium, and to help you decipher this golden mean there's better place to start than by examining how prix fixe menus subtly work to build revenue and customer satisfaction.
Spending by Muslim travelers is expected to rise to US$220 billion by 2020, with the number of Muslim tourists growing to 156 million from 121 million in 2016. That's according to the Global Muslim Travel Index (GTMI) 2017, which was produced by Mastercard and CrescentRating, a 'halal-friendly' travel consultancy.
A futuristic landscape deeply rooted in tradition, the great nation of Japan will always be a fascination for travelers. Visiting for the first time just recently, every aspect of the society offers key points of contrast to its Western counterparts, as well as numerous lessons to improve your sense of hospitality.
If food is our engines' fuel, then coffee is the injector. Whether traveling for business or leisure, it's a vital part of many adults' mornings and a deeply personal experience.
In a bygone era of hospitality, the ultimate evening experience was that of the grand hotel's dining room. Dressed in one's finest fashions, a patron would enjoy the best that the city or region had to offer in both culinary fare and service delivery. A property's premier restaurant was often a perennial draw for both out-of-towners as well as locals, with reservations coveted and those seated immediately attaining a pseudo-celebrity status. Such an establishment would be the place to see and be seen as all the other high society rubberneckers, all matched by memorable food and prices well beyond what most could afford.
To use wine as an case study but feel free to ruminate on your own example, a big part of the sales process is helping customers decide upon what bottle or glass to buy. While it's always a delight to exchange a few sentences with a fellow oenophile who understands some of unique qualities of specific growing regions or varietals, most of the time we end up dealing with beginners who know the difference between red, white and rose, and not much else.