Something To Talk About
In this blog, I’ll share the best or most compelling piece of information I get each day (sometimes augmented by a bit of insight or analysis). Whether it’s a list of trends, a set of facts and figures, or even insights into great marketing strategies, look no further for ideas you can borrow and build upon to grow your business. We’ll call it “news you can use.” Exactly what you do with it is up to you, but if nothing else, I hope to give you something to talk about.
Hotel Restaurants Get Recognized
Esquire magazine’s Best New Restaurants of 2009 list appears in the November issue, and the "restaurant of the year" is none other than a hotel restaurant: The Bazaar by Jose Andres at SLS at Beverly Hills, a Luxury Collection Hotel. Also on the list are five other hotel restaurants: - Area 31 at Kimpton’s EPIC hotel in Miami - Pacci Ristorante adjacent to Hotel Palomar Atlant ...... Read More
Comments (0)20 Items Under $20? Brilliant!
A press release from The Ritz-Carlton, New Orleans, just popped into my inbox. It looked to be a typical sort of round-up of offerings release, so I quickly scanned through it. Something near the bottom caught my eye, however, and made me wonder why it wasn’t up at the top, or sent separately, on its own. "LAST BUT NOT LEAST- 20 Under $20" "For the cost-conscious consumer, we o ...... Read More
Comments (1)The Human Buffet
I just received this photo of "the human buffet" from the NYLO Dallas/Las Colinas grand opening party in August, and had to share it. Yes, that’s a server wearing a white hoop skirt-turned buffet table, surrounded by hors d’oeuvres, such as grilled figs topped with blue cheese and prosciutto. I love the idea–it’s a creative take on catering service and pres ...... Read More
Comments (0)Hilton Working on Branded Restaurant Concept
In talking yesterday with Steven Peterson, Hilton Hotels Corp.’s new corporate chef for the Americas, I learned that the company is working on a couple of things in the way of branded restaurant concepts, with the idea of rolling one out across some suburban or secondary market Hilton properties. The one that Peterson was willing to talk about specifically was a gastropub concept cal ...... Read More
Comments (2)Chef Brings Cooking Classes To Life
Despite marketers’ enthusiasm for them, cooking classes from hotel chefs are not an innovative F&B offering, and packages built around them are pretty run-of-the-mill these days. So why am I blogging about one such offering in particular? Because longtime RockResorts executive chef Rahm Fama has what it takes to sell a cooking class package–a big personality and the ability to s ...... Read More
Comments (0)AMResorts, Cap Cana and Jack Nicklaus
In case you hadn’t heard, the first Golden Bear Lodge & Spa (123 one- and two-bedroom suites) is set to open November 1 as part of the Cap Cana master-planned resort community in the Dominican Republic. The joint-venture between Newtown Square, Pennsylvania-based AMResorts and Cap Cana (which also have partnered on two other properties) partnered with the Nicklaus Companies t ...... Read More
Comments (0)A Modern General Store - Brilliant!
The following is an example of a good idea that has been well-executed. The Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa & Casino decided to transform one of its seasonal restaurants into a modern general store–a 1,300-sq. ft. specialty gift shop, grocery and gourmet market for guests and resort visitors seeking quick and affordable bites throughout the day (6 a.m. to 8 p.m.), as well as ...... Read More
Comments (5)W To Bring On Fashion Director, Music Curator
Back in February, Starwood named Eva Ziegler global brand leader for W Hotels. Prior to this appointment, Ziegler was global brand leader of Le Méridien, responsible for defining the vision and brand strategy across disciplines (Ziegler continues to oversee Le Méridien). So why is this "something to talk about" now? Because in my conversation late last week with Carlos Becil, vice pres ...... Read More
Comments (2)W Brand Busy This Summer, Fall
Last night, the W Chicago-City Center threw a party to show off its "re-wondered" guestrooms, meeting space and living room. It was said to be quite an affair with a runway fashion show, an LA-based DJ, body-painted models, a human vending machine and a special performance by Pop/R&B artist Kat DeLuna (see photos here). Meanwhile, here’s an update on the W brand from Car ...... Read More
Comments (1)HOTELS' 325 Is Nearly Live!
For all my fans out there asking where I’ve been, what I’ve been working on and why I’ve been neglecting my blog, there’s a very simple, very good answer: HOTELS’ 325: The World’s Largest Hotel Companies This annual project is a signature feature of our HOTELS brand, and this year we’ve taken it to the next level with a truly robust Web presence t ...... Read More
Comments (3)A Great First Impression
On Friday (May 29) I had the chance to stop by theWit, a new Doubletree property at a key intersection in downtown Chicago, and I have to say I was blown away. The hotel made quite a first impression, from the ground-level STATE AND LAKE gastropub to the 7,000-sq. ft. rooftop lounge, and everything in between. The food I sampled was rave-worthy, and the sights I took in–from ...... Read More
Comments (0)Consider Menu Overlap To Save Money
In this month’s F&B feature on menu trends, I quote Jean-Pierre Etcheberrigaray, IHG’s vice president of F&B — The Americas, who says hoteliers should be looking at consolidating their various menus to save on the cost side. "How do you consolidate and criss-cross items to make better sense of your trimmings?" he asks. "There is more focus [today] on the use of food a ...... Read More
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