Boston University School of Hospitality Administration (SHA) has announced the launch of RevPASH: A web application (app) that calculates a restaurant´s revenue per available seat hour. This free app is now available to industry professionals, educators and hospitality students.
Westmont Hospitality Group announced today that a venture comprised of Westmont Hospitality Group and Thomas Tan, a member of the Bestford Hospitality Group, has acquired Boston's Battery Wharf Hotel, part of a luxury mixed use development in Boston's North End. The property features the 150-room Battery Wharf Hotel, Boston Waterfront, the 13,000 square foot Exhale Spa, a pocket Maritime Museum, a 24 hour observation deck, and over 15,000 square feet of available restaurant and retail space.
Oxford Hotels & Resorts announces Larry Casillo as general manager of The Godfrey Hotel, Boston (505 Washington St., Boston), a 242-room lifestyle boutique hotel in Boston's burgeoning Downtown Crossing neighborhood, opening in fall 2015. Drawing on over 15 years of luxury, lifestyle, and service-driven hospitality experience, Casillo knows what it takes to launch a hotel from the ground up, including building a high-performing team of hospitality professionals to assist him in providing the ultimate Godfrey experience to his guests.Casillo's extensive career in hospitality includes time in New York and the greater Boston area, as well as a notable stint abroad in London. While at The Bloomsbury Hotel, London as assistant general manager, Casillo oversaw the completion of a nearly $30 million repositioning and completely redesigned the customer experience, which led to the property ranking third on the upper-luxury hotel list of the British Travel Awards 2014.
Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE:PEB) (the "Company") today announced that it has acquired the Revere Hotel Boston Common ("Revere Hotel"), an attached 826-space parking garage and an adjacent land parcel for $260.4 million. The 356-room hotel is located in the heart of the historic Theater District of downtown Boston, Massachusetts.
To support their current demand and future growth, Groupize Solutions, the leading online group booking technology provider for hotels, resorts and chains, is pleased to announce further expansion with the addition of two new executives. Janssen Choong will join as CTO and Venkat Korvi as Vice President of Product Management. Living up to their reputation as travel technology visionaries, both of these key additions will leverage their expertise to bring the best of online travel innovations to the groups and meetings space to solve tough problems and evolve antiquated processes.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:HOT) today announced plans for a dual-branded hotel development in Boston featuring its popular Aloft and Element brands. Set to open in 2016, the 330-room Aloft Boston Waterfront and 180-room Element Boston Waterfront will be ideally situated on D Street, directly across the street from the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center. The hotels will be owned and developed by a partnership between majority equity partner Ares Management-controlled funds and CV Properties on a 5.2 acre-parcel of land leased from the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority (MCCA).
The Royal Sonesta Hotel Boston has announced the promotion of Executive Chef Brian Dandro to the position Director of Food & Beverage/Executive Chef. In this role, Chef Dandro will oversee banquets, the culinary team, the pastry shop, ArtBar restaurant and patio, and in-room dining for the property, along with the opening of two new outlets; a lobby lounge and coffee shop. Chef Dandro has been Executive Chef at the Hotel since 2011. Prior to joining Sonesta, Chef Dandro spent three years with the Hilton Corporation as the Executive Sous Chef in Hilton Cambridge and the Resort Chef at Hilton Fort Lauderdale. Chef Dandro also worked at the Seaport Hotel as the Culinary Supervisor.
Anna M. Gaffney has been appointed General Manager of The Verb Hotel, a dynamic new property located in Boston’s vibrant Fenway neighborhood. A seasoned industry leader, Gaffney brings with her an extensive background in hospitality management, marketing and sales. She will oversee daily operations for the property, as well as sales, revenue management, marketing and event programming. Robin Brown, long-time Boston hotelier and partner at The Verb Hotel, has tapped Crescent Hotels & Resorts to manage the property. Gaffney is returning to her roots with Crescent Hotels & Resorts, having previously worked with the premier hotel management company for a number of years. During her tenure with Crescent, she served as Director of Sales and Marketing for multiple properties, including the Holiday Inn Manhattan View and the 400-room Crowne Plaza in Somerset, NJ. Within her first six months at Manhattan View, Gaffney increased RevPAR by 90%, and in 2010, was awarded Director of Sales of the Year.
RobertDouglas announced today that it advised KHP Fund I, L.P., a Kimpton sponsored hotel real estate fund, in the $44 million refinancing of the Nine Zero Hotel, a Kimpton Hotel, in Boston, Massachusetts. The 5-year, floating-rate financing was provided by Mesa West Capital.
A passion for regional American cooking informs Chef Souza's guidance of all culinary operations at Taj Boston. Among his many responsibilities, he oversees The Café, with its popular daily breakfast, lunch and dinner options, including New England favorites and authentic Indian specialty dishes; The Bar, that offers small plates nightly to accompany its extensive list of cocktails and wines and Champagnes by the glass; The Lounge, which features traditional afternoon tea on weekends and holiday teas from Thanksgiving weekend through December 31; seasonal Sunday Champagne Brunch on The Roof; 24-hour in-room dining, and all banquet and catering for the hotel's many corporate meetings and social gatherings. Previously Chef Souza spent seven years as Executive Chef with Noble House Hotels & Resorts, including Riviera Resort & Spa, Palm Springs, Calif.; Portofino Hotel & Yacht Club, Redondo Beach, Calif; La Playa Beach & Golf Resort, Naples, FL, and Grove Isle Hotel & Spa, Coconut Grove, FL. He also served as Executive Chef for Natasha's in Portland, Maine, and with Havana in Bar Harbor, Maine; as Executive Chef and Chef de Cuisine for two Chispa restaurants in Florida, and as Executive Sous Chef for Little Palm Island Resort & Spa, Florida Keys, and The Claremont Resort & Spa, Berkeley, Calif.
Brian brings more than 20 years of hospitality industry sales and marketing expertise to his role overseeing all sales and marketing initiatives for the 273-room landmark hotel. Previously he was Task Force Director, Sales & Marketing, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, where he led sales efforts for a variety of Starwood hotels in Chicago, Atlanta, Texas, Colorado and Birmingham. His prior experience includes various sales leadership roles for Starwood at The Boston Park Plaza Hotel and Towers, The Sheraton Stamford and The Westin Stamford. Brian began his career in hotel sales with Hyatt and Wyndham hotels, after graduating from University of Massachusetts, Amherst with a degree in Hotel, Restaurant and Travel Administration.
Hyatt Regency Boston announces the appointment of Melanie Walent as the new director of sales and marketing. In this role, Melanie will be responsible for all aspects of Hyatt Regency Bostons short and long-term planning and preparation of the marketing, sales plans, programs and annual budget.
Paul S. Tormey, regional vice president, North East United States and Bermuda and general manager of The Fairmont Copley Plaza, is pleased to announce the appointment of Craig Reaume to general manager of Fairmont Battery Wharf, Boston's premier waterfront retreat located along the Boston Harbor Walk. As general manager, Mr. Reaume will manage the operation of this 150-room hotel, which features Aragosta Bar & Bistro, Battery Lounge, Fairmont Gold and 6,000 square feet of meeting space. Mr. Reaume brings more 19 years of hospitality experience to Fairmont Battery Wharf. He began his career at the 1,600 room Delta Chelsea Hotel in Toronto in 1992 where he held several progressive positions, including Reservations Manager and Front Desk Manager. In 1997, Mr. Reaume was promoted to Director of Rooms/Operations at the Sandman Hotel Vancouver Airport. Within the same year Mr. Reaume was appointed to Rooms Division Manager, Delta Vancouver Airport. Mr. Reaume opened the Marriott Pinnacle Hotel as Hotel Manager in 1999 where he stayed for two years until he returned to The Delta Chelsea as Director of Operations. In 2004, Mr. Reaume was promoted to General Manager, Delta Toronto Airport West and in 2008 he joined Fairmont as Hotel Manager at The Fairmont Royal York. In 2011 Mr. Reaume was promoted to his most recent position as General Manager of The Fairmont Vancouver Airport, voted the best Airport Hotel in North America in 2011 and 2012 by Skytrax.
From day one, Sium dreamed of holding a leadership position with Four Seasons. While confidently ascending the management ladder, never lost sight of this dream. Sium began his career as a front office manager in Washington, DC, then moved on to become director of guest services at a property in Alexandria, Virginia. From there, Sium held management positions for two luxury resorts in Turks and Caicos and, following his time on the islands, returned to the hustle and bustle of city life, assuming the position of assistant general manager for Hotel Monaco, a luxury hotel in Washington, DC. Sium held the same position with the Hotel Monaco in Baltimore as part of the opening team and, following a successful opening, was promoted to the position of general manager for Vero Beach Hotel and Spa in Florida. Never losing sight of his Four Seasons dream, however, Sium joined the company in 2012 as Hotel Manager, Four Seasons Hotel St. Louis. Sium's ability to speak several languages including Tigrinya and Italian, paired with his love for travel and adventure, make him the consummate hotelier – and leader. The John Quincy Adams quote that sits front and centre in his office speaks volumes: "If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." Sium states: "I've always subscribed to this philosophy. It reminds me to constantly push the envelope – and to dream big." When not at work, Sium enjoys spending time with his wife and young son and cooking homemade Italian cuisine. An avid sports fan, Sium will fit in well in Boston, which is best known as the Sports Hub.
The Langham, Boston is proud to announce the appointment of Richard Bussiere as the hotel’s new Managing Director. As a 35-year veteran of the hospitality industry, this appointment is a homecoming for the New England native, who has spent the majority of his career managing hotels overseas in Asia, Australia and the South Pacific. Bussiere succeeds longtime Managing Director Serge Denis, who retired after 20 years at the iconic hotel located in the heart of the city’s bustling Downtown neighborhood.
Known for his inspired mastery of American regional cuisine, Chef Dumont is responsible for all hotel culinary operations, overseeing The Café, the intimate 66-seat restaurant on fashionable Newbury Street offering popular daily breakfast, lunch and dinner options, including weekly two-and three-course prix fixe lunch and dinner menus; The Bar, which offers small plates to accompany its extensive list of cocktails and wines and Champagnes by the glass; The French Room, which features traditional afternoon tea on weekends and holiday teas from Wednesday to Sunday from Thanksgiving weekend through December 31; seasonal Sunday Champagne Brunch on The Roof with panoramic city views; 24-hour in-room dining, and all banquet and catering for the hotel’s many corporate meetings and social gatherings.
Hotels in Boston and to a lesser extent, New York and Washington D.C., have tightened security in the wake of the bombing attacks near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. Some are restricting access to guests, others are encouraging guests to stay indoors per police department instructions and still others have stopped accepting checked luggage.
“Hotels have become much more than a place where someone drops off luggage and sleeps for a few hours and it’s on to the next business trip,” said Pat Moscaritolo, president of the Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau. “Hotels have become meeting points, collection points for locals or international travelers.”
Paramount Hotel Group, an independent hotel management and ownership company, today announced it signed management contracts to operate the Aloft Lexington and Element Lexington hotels here in suburban Boston. It also marks a new relationship with real estate investment firm, Rockwood Capital, which recently acquired the hotels from Starwood Hotels and Resorts, Worldwide, Inc.
Loews Hotels & Resorts, a wholly owned-subsidiary of Loews Corporation (NYSE: L), today announced that the company has entered into an agreement to purchase The Back Bay Hotel in Boston from The Doyle Collection. The acquisition is expected to close in February 2013. "Boston is one of the most vibrant markets in the U.S., and an excellent city for a Loews property," said Jonathan Tisch, Chairman of Loews Hotels & Resorts. "This one-of-a-kind, historic hotel is a unique addition to our growing portfolio."