Hotel Cuisine & Menus
Special Edition: October 2008 Click here to subscribe» |
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Taking Off Hilton Toronto Airport “Bliss” elevates traveler dining By Michael Costa Airport hotels have often been equated with a culinary crash landing, due to hosting a captive audience—business travelers hopping from city to city, using the hotel as a place to sleep and eat, trading a quality meal for easy access to their next flight. Additionally, because many airport hotels don’t focus on local customers, there isn’t much incentive to upgrade based on competition.  Bliss Restaurant (click to enlarge) Today's road warrior, however, is like most other contemporary diners: more savvy about food than ever and, consequently, demanding a higher quality experience. “Business travelers tend to see the same things every time, so it’s nice to be able to offer something different,” says Jason Mercier, director of F&B, Hilton Toronto Airport. What’s different at Mercier’s property is Bliss Restaurant & Bar, a 104-seat outlet that replaced a decade-old, 113-seat “country buffet” restaurant called Harvest. “It was very dated and wasn’t really meeting guest needs,” says Mercier. Bliss opened in March. Since then, Mercier says it’s surpassed last year’s revenues compared to Harvest by 5 percent, and is generating positive feedback from their target demographic of 40- to 55-year-old business travelers. First-Class Upgrade At the core of the Harvest-to-Bliss transformation is a streamlined a la carte menu that combines traditional comfort foods, signature creations from Executive Chef William Huang, suggested wine pairings, and selections from Hilton’s brand-wide “Eat Right” program. The result is a choice of dishes wide enough to meet the changing moods and needs of regular business travelers, with attention to quality and presentation that’s a clear upgrade from Harvest. “The menu we’ve come up with is based on food that people know well, but also dishes that you’re not necessarily going to see in an airport hotel restaurant, such as Singapore noodles or striped bass,” says Mercier, adding that Singapore noodles has been the top seller so far. Mapping the Territory Along with the menu, the décor has been modernized as well. The hotel hired Toronto-based design firm Cecconi Simone to create a dining room with muted colors, clean lines, and open spaces. Mercier says the overall experience at Bliss has made an impression on its core clientele; few have asked what happened to Harvest. “It’s not that what’s old is bad,” says Mercier. “You learn from every single concept, and everything has its time. It was Harvest’s time to retire, and now we’re opening our door to Bliss.” 
Stranger in Town New chef invigorates menu at Omni San Antonio By Michael Costa  Chef John Brand “One time I moved across the country to a place that I had no clue about, and the advice someone gave me was, ‘Be patient. Even grass turns to milk,’” says John Brand, executive chef, Omni La Mansion del Rio, Watermark Hotel and Spa, San Antonio. Brand speaks from experience, having worked as a chef at more than ten properties in 21 years. Recently, he moved from the Broadmoor to his current role overseeing culinary operations at two adjacent San Antonio properties. His goal is to make a solid first impression on guests and staff through a carefully planned menu, which he introduced at Omni La Mansion’s Las Canarias restaurant last summer. Return Flight “I didn’t come here to make the same food somebody else was doing. They could have promoted from within if they wanted that,” says Brand. Before he constructed his new menu, Brand surveyed the competition nearby, and made sure he wasn’t duplicating “the same thing I can get two doors down.” He also asked the existing staff at Las Canarias what diners liked previously. Using that information, he came up with a locally sourced “New American” menu, which gives Las Canarias an identifiable, upscale niche in San Antonio’s crowded River Walk area. Next, Brand identified local vendors and farms where he could source his ingredients, especially from the Gulf of Mexico. He also researched local game plentiful in the area, such as quail, and put it on the menu. “There should be sustainability in the products we’re serving, so it’s not simply my ego on the menu,” says Brand. The menu planning process took about two months, and Brand rolled out the first version in July. Educating the Customer Las Canarias already had a local customer base before Brand arrived, and because of its location on the River Walk, it also catered to tourists. Despite a wide range of guest and customer profiles, Brand says trying to be all things to all taste buds is a trap to avoid at a new property. “The menu changed 100 percent and took people by surprise. I heard comments like, ‘We have to have crabcakes in San Antonio.’ But I didn’t move across the country to make another crabcake. If a diner wants crabcakes, we can make them, but we don’t need to put them on the menu,” Brand says. Sticking to his plan has been good for Brand at Las Canarias. Guests have responded to what he calls the “new energy” of the menu, and the local media have given the cuisine favorable reviews. But he says having a strong point of view should not be confused with being inflexible when evolving the menu. Once a chef becomes rigid to all suggestions, it’s probably time to move on. “Get to know the guests and your associates, and listen to them,” says Brand. “You can learn a lot just by listening.” A Sense of Place Arizona resort showcases history through F&B By Mckenzie Brown 
Carefree Resort & Villas in Carefree, Arizona, has been open since 1961, but only recently realized it had an identity crisis. Recognizing the rich American West history offered by their location, general manager Frank Ashmore decided to define Carefree’s sense of place through the culinary traditions of the area’s early ancestors. “We break it down into three local cultures: Native Americans, Miners, and Cowboys,” explains Ashmore. “Each culture has a celebrated history and distinct things that make each unique,” he adds. Ashmore and his F&B team incorporated that history into the property’s Lariat Grill menu. “Now,” explains Ashmore, “our guests not only learn about the romanticized ‘Wild West,’ but also partake in the lifestyle by eating indigenous foods.” Location Impact Geographically, Carefree is at an elevation of 2,500 feet in the high Sonoran Desert. Unique plants and animals, like the Saguaro cactus and the wild javelina, coexist here and nowhere else in the world. Due to its unique surroundings, Carefree began offering flora and fauna tours for guests, “and soon realized that the natural progression was to incorporate tactile stimulation with the food and beverage [program],” Ashmore explains. “Instead of just learning about a cactus plant and its fruit, we created a way for our guests to actually touch and taste it.” Guests can sample ingredients like prickly pear and Opuntia cactus during their walk and follow it up with a dish from the New West menu afterward. The feedback from customers has been “absolutely tremendous. The capture ratio of guests on property has increased by 75 percent,” states Ashmore. “It’s rather amazing considering the food is very simple with big, bold flavors and unique ingredients.” Some of the locally sourced dishes on the menu include:
To help the diner understand some of the ingredients sourced near Carefree, like rattlesnake beans, a glossary is included on the side of the menu. Some of those ingredients are so specialized they can actually cost more than typical products. “However,” explains Ashmore, “we harvest some of our own produce, and are also working on a Native American herb and seed garden,” he says, adding that cross-utilization is another goal on the menu, like using prickly pear in sauces and marinades as well as in cocktails like Pioneer’s Prickly Pear. An updated version of the New West menu is being rolled out this fall. Ashmore says the 350-room resort is popular with European travelers and people looking for adventure vacations. Carefree is defining itself as an “interactive” guest-destination resort, with the objective of educating people using all the senses, especially through cuisine. “They leave us having experienced a true sense of place,” he says. A Convincing Change New restaurant replaces local favorite; hard work retains customers By Michael Costa The saying, “what’s old is new again” doesn’t always apply to hotel restaurants. Sometimes, what’s old is…well, old. Hyatt Regency Sarasota closed its Boathouse restaurant in April after 33 years at the property. It was a three-meal outlet constructed in an earlier, simpler era of hotel dining, but it had become a favorite in the Sarasota community. Nearby, the hotel built a modern three-meal restaurant called Currents, featuring seasonal Floribbean cuisine, using locally sourced Gulf of Mexico ingredients. To complement the menu, a more elegant décor was installed, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering views of the nearby marina and pool. 
 BEFORE (BOATHOUSE) AFTER (CURRENTS) Despite the dramatic upgrade, long-time customers of the Boathouse were skeptical. “The reaction from locals was bad. They were asking, ‘Why are you closing the Boathouse now?’” says Aaron Chavarria, executive chef of the property. Winning Them Over Instead of wondering what to do next, Chavarria went on a campaign of convincing, involving multiple approaches:
As a result, the 105-seat Currents does around 100 covers on a busy night, more than the 80-seat Boathouse used to do. Why Change? “The Boathouse was more like a sports bar, and the food was not up to the level that we are now,” says Chavarria. That’s just one reason the Boathouse was retired, but the real catalyst was a $22 million renovation that the hotel started last November, after becoming the Hyatt Regency Sarasota (previously the Hyatt Sarasota), which meant a higher level of accommodations and amenities for the guest. As a result, the Boathouse’s days were numbered. The space it occupied is being turned into an event facility by the hotel, taking advantage of its over-the-water location. “Going from the Boathouse to Currents was a big jump. But at the same time it was very exciting,” says Chavarria. “We were looking for a little more elegance, and now locals see a beautiful place that’s very different from anywhere else in town.” Dreaming of Ice Cream at the Muse Custom flavors give the hotel a niche menu hit By Michael Costa Pick a flavor… any flavor. Chances are, Chef Patricia Williams can turn it into ice cream.  Chef Patricia Williams At the Muse Hotel in New York City, Williams is part chef, part culinary magician in executing the property’s Ice Cream Dreams program. With 48 hours notice, Williams will make a pint of any flavor a customer can conjure up and send it directly to their room. “Guests have told me it makes them feel special,” says Williams, executive chef of the Muse’s District restaurant. “We’re always trying to upgrade what we do for our guests, because they come first.” The program launched just over a year ago, and it has given the 200-room Muse a destination menu item in the crowded and competitive New York City hotel market. “No one else is doing this,” says Thomas Mathes, general manager, the Muse New York. “We often get kids for special occasions. Parents bring their children to New York for a birthday, for example. We’ll give them a call beforehand and ask if their child has a favorite food or a favorite sweet that we can turn into ice cream. It’s such a custom experience, the children are usually surprised,” he adds. Prepare the Pacojet Mathes says the idea for Ice Cream Dreams was inspired by a Pacojet machine in Williams’s kitchen, which makes ice cream and sorbet a liter at a time. Williams uses the Pacojet to create frozen desserts for District. “Patricia makes wonderful concoctions for the restaurant, so this was a natural way to offer something extra to the guests,” says Mathes. 
Within the 48-hours, Williams will procure the requested ingredients, mix them in the Pacojet’s liter container, then freeze it for at least 24 hours. When the guest arrives, Williams puts the frozen mixture in the machine, and it becomes ice cream in a matter of minutes. A pint of it is sent to the guest’s room when they’re ready.
Williams says they normally locate even the most obscure ingredients within the 48-hour window, but there was one order they almost didn’t fill—Samoa Girl Scout Cookie ice cream. Luckily, a hostess at Muse had a connection to the Girl Scouts, and they were able to find the cookies in time. Pint-Sized Pricing Mathes says Muse sells about five Ice Cream Dreams a month, with at least five more given away to VIP guests. Customers are charged $14 for their initial custom pint, and additional ingredients are $6 each. For example, chocolate ice cream is $14; chocolate ice cream with cookie dough is $20; chocolate ice cream with cookie dough and toffee chunks is $26. According to Williams, the key to keeping the program fresh is delivering exactly what the customer wants, no matter what their ingredient choices are. “Allow yourself to be inspired. If that happens, the guest will be inspired, and you’ll have somebody who wants to stay at your hotel again.” How to Make Your Hotel Kitchen More Sustainable Be an integral member of the sustainable design movement. Listen to our one-hour Webinar on this topic. On September 23, 2008, Hotel F&B and Hobart premiered their first Webinar, How to Make Your Hotel Kitchen More Sustainable. This Webinar addresses a very important, timely topic. If you were unable to attend the Webinar or would like to listen to it again, we've attached a link for your convenience: www.hobartcorp.com/popups/kitchensustainability_email.html About the Webinar: In this Webinar, sponsored by Hobart and Hotel F&B, David Zabrowski, senior project manager for the Food Service Technology Center (FSTC), shared his experience with designing an energy-efficient kitchen for lodging facilities. David was followed by Chef Duncan Firth of Barona Valley Ranch Resort, who shared the sustainable practices Barona Valley has implemented to support water and energy conservation and waste reduction. And Kevin Woods, LEED-AP at Hobart, highlighted ENERGY STAR® certified products and technologies that save energy, water and money. Kevin discussed recent lodging case studies and how foodservice equipment can contribute toward achieving LEED points. 
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In this issue: How to Make Your Hotel Kitchen More Sustainable Be an integral member of the sustainable design movement. Listen to our one-hour Webinar on this topic. Dreaming of Ice Cream at the Muse Custom flavors give the hotel a niche menu hit A Convincing Change New restaurant replaces local favorite; hard work retains customers A Sense of Place Arizona resort showcases history through F&B Stranger in Town New chef invigorates menu at Omni San Antonio Taking Off Hilton Toronto Airport “Bliss” elevates traveler dining 
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Hotel Cuisine & Menus is edited by Michael Costa and published in affiliation with Hotel F&B Magazine
and Hotel F&B Online (www.hotelfandb.com). To submit story ideas or images, contact Michael at mcosta@hotelfandb.com. © 2008 Hotel F&B Magazine, Hotel Forums LLC |