ahct march 2011 web

asian hotel& Catering times

Published since 1976 Vol 36 March 2011

hong Kong sAR hK$50 china RMb50singapore s$15 Malaysia RM30Thailand bt300Rest of Asia us$10

ANCIENT HOTELBoutique renovation project

CATERING TIMESContemporary desserts

DEGREE OF PRACTICETraining tools for hotel schools

Mischa Moselle

AsiAn Hotel & CAtering times is publisHed montHly by tHomson press Hong Kong ltd (tpHK)

The opinions expressed in Asian Hotel & Catering Times do not necessarily represent the views of the publisher or the publication. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information contained in this publication, no responsibility can be accepted by the publisher, editors and staff, agents and contributors for omissions, typographical or printers errors, inaccuracies or changes howsoever caused. The editors reserve the right to edit any material submitted at their discretion. All materials published remain the property of TPHK. Reproduction without permission by any means is strictly prohibited. Correspondence should be addressed to The Editor, Asian Hotel & Catering Times, Room 1205-6, 12/F, Hollywood Centre, 233 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong. Tel: (852) 2815 9111 Fax: (852) 2851 1933. Fantasy Print, Unit B 8/F, Tin Fung Industial Mansion, 63 Wong Chuk Hang Road, Hong Kong

All rights reserved (c) 2011Thomson Press Hong Kong Ltd

Welcome to the March issue of your favourite hospitality read!

Sometimes it only takes a trivial incident to put your property in a journalist’s bad books and the result can be years of bad publicity. Unfairly these incidents can even be down to misunderstandings or poor research by the journalist but the mud sticks. We asked two PR veterans how they would handle some real life situations. The advice is that solid answers to questions, humour and the odd freebie can go a long way to restoring a good name.

Internal communication is also crucial –

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HONG KONGThomson Press Hong Kong Limited/Media Transasia LimitedRoom 1205-6, 12/F, Hollywood Centre,233 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, Hong KongTel: +(852) 2851 7068, 2815 9111 Fax: +(852) 2851 1933, 2581 9531Email: [email protected]: Mr Mischa Moselle

AUSTRALIAMass Media PublicitasLevel 9, 215-217 Clarence Street Sydney NSW 2000 Australia Tel: + 61 2 9252 3476 Fax: +61 2 9251 3726 Email: [email protected]: Mr Charlton D’Silva

INDIAMedia Transasia (India) Ltd323 Phase IV, Udyog Vihar, Gurgaon - 122016 (Haryana)Tel: +91 (0) 124 4759500 Fax: +91 (0) 11 26867641Email: [email protected]: Mr Xavier Collaco

Media Transasia (India) Ltd1, A & B, Diamond House, 35th Road,Linking Road, Bandra West, Mumbai - 400 050 Tel: 91 22 26053702-06 Fax: 91 22 26053702-06Email: [email protected]: Mr. Xavier Collaco

THAILANDMedia Transasia Thailand Ltd14/F, Ocean Tower II, 75/10 Soi Wattana,Sukhumvit Soi 21, Asoke Road, Klongtoey,Prakanong, Bangkok 10110, ThailandTel: +66 2 204 2370 Fax: +66 2 204 2391Email: [email protected]: Mr Gaurav Kumar

UNITED KINGDOMThe Powers Turner GroupGordon House, Greencoat PlaceLondon SW1P 1PH, United KingdomTel: +44 (0) 20 7592 8300 Fax: +44 (0) 20 7592 8301Contact: Mr Chris Morgan

USARiverside Media159 Main Street, 2nd Floor, Lake Placid,NY 12946, USATel: +1 518 523 4794 Fax: +1 518 523 4708Email: [email protected]: Ms Christina Eccleston

Marston Webb International60 Madison Avenue, Suite 1011,New York, NY 10010, USATel: +1 212 684 6601 Fax: +1 212 725 4708Telex: (023) 420773 BRANINTContact: Ms Madlene Olson

Cutting Edge Media Pvt Ltd5th, Floor Mani MahalMathew Road, Opera HouseMumbai-400004, IndiaTel:+91-9821874547Email: [email protected]: Ms Nikki Maloo

ITALYEdiconsult Internazionale s.r.l.Piazza Fontane Marose, 3-16123 GenovaTel: +39 010 583684 Fax: +39 010 566578Email: [email protected]: Mr Vittorio Negrone

JAPANEcho Japan CorporationGrande Maison Rm 303, 2-2 Kudan-kita 1-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0073Tel: +81 3 3234 2064 Fax: +81 3 3263 5065Email: [email protected]: Mr Ted Asoshina

MALAYSIAPublicitas International Sdn Bhd.S 105, 2nd Floor, CentrepointLebuh Bandar Utama, Bandar Utama47800 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.Tel : 603 7729 6923Fax : 603 7729 7115 Email: [email protected]: Ms Shallie Cheng

if you have a journalist on the property make sure everyone relevant knows and behaves accordingly.

Looking after the details can be time-consuming but the rewards can be stunning. Take a look at the renovation of an ancient residence in Jodhpur in the Indian state of Rajasthan. The developer ran through 30 options before getting the result he wanted and the spectacular beauty of the property comes through in the photography on our front cover and in our design story, (see pp36-39)

MANAGING EDITORMischa Moselle

[email protected]

DESIGN byKoon Ming Tang

[email protected]

CONTRIbuTORSVictoria Burrows

Lena GidwaniMark GrahamZara HornerRobin LynamSaul Symonds

ASSOCIATE PubLISHERSharon Knowler

[email protected]

ADvERTISING SALES MANAGERClaire Sancelot

[email protected]

CIRCuLATION ExECuTIvEBecky Chau

[email protected]

CHAIRMANJS Uberoi

DIRECTORGaurav Kumar

endoRseMenTs

On a point of detail – can we make a plea to the authorities at Bangkok’s international airport? We hear passengers in transit are struggling to catch their onward flights and getting lost in the terminal building purely because the stunningly designed building lacks one thing – adequate signage.

La San Marco S.p.A. Via Padre e Figlio Venuti, 10 • 34072 Gradisca d’Isonzo (GO) Italy • Tel. +39 0481 967111 • Fax +39 0481 960166 • www.lasanmarco.com • [email protected]

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E d i t o r ’ s M E s s a g E

March 2011 AHCT 3

FOOD48 Why chefs love signature desserts

DRINK54 China’s growing love affair with coffee

EQuIPMENT64 Which spirits glass goes with which

drink?68 Pizza ovens – not just for pizza

EvENTS AND ExHIbITIONS74 Events Calendar

76 Previewing Hofex

78 Previewing Hosfair

80 Previewing SIAL

APPOINTMENTS90 See who is moving where

TECHNOLOGy32 Efficiently and effectively selling rooms

DESIGN36 Turning an historic gem into a modern-

day diamond in Jodhpur

FEATuRE40 Changing guest expectations in India

NEWS CuLINARy44 Heston Blumenthal; Starwood future

conference; awards & cups; Santi Santamaria

INDuSTRy6 Macau; more spas; energy efficiency;

what’s happening to Koh Samui

PRODuCT60 Perfect wine glasses; buffets by design;

tabletops; fizzy chocolate

MANAGEMENT16 The benefits of a practical education24 How to manage PR disasters

MARKET REPORT28 The growth of Guangzhou

Photography courtesy of the RAAs boutique hotel

28Dramatic Guangzhou

The cream of desserts

Coffee in China

48

54

4 AHCT March 2011 March 2011 AHCT 5

UpandComing...April• Recruitment• Market Report: India• Security• Resort design• Dairy• Wine• In-room safes; Outdoor furniture; Bakery

May• Housekeeping• Japan• CRM• Restaurant• Seafood• Beer• Mini bars; Bathrobes

CONTENTSV o l u m e 3 6 M a r c h 2 0 1 1

ADA 9 Alpha International 63 Athena Tableware 65 Beech Ovens 71 Boncafe 26 & 27 Bravilor Bonamat 57 Canada Beef Export Federation 45 Ecole Hoteliere Lausanne 21 Electrolux 31 Elle & Vire 11 Food Hotel Indonesia 81 Franke 55 GLION 15 Global Search International 7 HOFEX 79 Hotel Expo Macau 87 Hyperlux IBC IHIF 89 India Hotel Expansion Summit 83 La San Marco IFC Meiko 41 Ming Fai 13 & 43 Monin 47 Pegasus Solutions 35 Pevonia 22 & 23 Rancilio Macchine per Caffe 53 Restaurant & Bar 85 Safemark Systems 33 Santos 29 SIAL 86 SSTH, Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality 19 Taiwan Intl Food+FoodTech+Packaging+Horeca 82 Thaifex 84 The Hotel Show 88 Villeroy & Boch OBC Wine & Gourmet Asia 61 WMF 51 Wood Stone Corporation 73 Zieher 67

Advert isers’ index

IHG toasts eastern successThe InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG) enjoyed a great year in 2010, with 319 deals inked and operating profit up 22 percent.

Andrew Cosslett, Chief Executive of IHG, said, “After a slow start to the year, the industry staged the sharpest recovery in its history, exceeding all expectations. By focusing on our brands and using our scale, we delivered six percent growth in revenue per available room. The US$1billion Holiday Inn relaunch is almost complete, delivering improved guest satisfaction, and we are now working with our hotel owners to refresh Crowne Plaza,” he added.

Asia Pacific continues its strong performance with RevPAR growth of nearly 11 percent. In Asia, IHG opened new hotels in key locations such as India, Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore, with 20,000 new jobs to be created. Greater China was the brand’s strongest market with RevPAR up 25.8 percent for the year, including 55.9 percent in Shanghai, boosted by the World Expo.

In total, the group opened 24 hotels in 17 cities across China, including Asia Pacific’s first Hotel Indigo on the Bund and the Intercontinental at the Expo. In Vietnam, it opened two new Holiday Inn resorts in Cam Ranh Bay and Phu Quoc, while Bangkok welcomed the Crowne Plaza Lumpini Park.

The battle for Stanley Ho’s billionsMacau’s richest man, casino mogul Stanley Ho, is fighting for control of his multi-billion dollar fortune and after dropping one legal action, he’s recently filed new legal proceedings against members of his family as he fights for control of his gambling empire.

The first suit – which was issued after members of his family transferred his shares to them without his knowledge, he says – was spectacularly withdrawn in a televised statement on Hong Kong TV at the end of January after the family agreed to negotiate an agreement. Less than two weeks later, however, Ho was in talks with lawyers again, after two of his daughters, Pansy and Daisy, allegedly broke their promise to return his US$1.6 billion stake in his flagship company SJM Holdings, which has stakes in casinos, luxury hotels and slot machine lounges. This goes against his wishes of distributing the family wealth evenly between his four families, which includes three ‘wives’ (his only legal wife, Clementina, died in 2004) and 16 children. The ageing entrepreneur also later claimed he was forced to make the broadcast against his will.

Ho, whose net worth is estimated by Forbes magazine at US$3.1 billion, has built an empire that covers virtually every facet of the former Portuguese colony’s economy. Even with recent competition from United States rivals such as Las Vegas Sands and Wynn Resorts after his four-decade gambling monopoly ended in 2002, the Ho family takes more than 50 cents of every dollar bet in Macau.

Now in his 90th year, Ho suffered a stroke in 2009 from which he only recently recovered and is determined to distribute his wealth as he sees fit while he remains able.AsianpropertiessuchastheCrownePlazaLumpiniParkinBangkokcontributedtoIHG’sgrowth

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As Cyclone Yasi tore through Queensland this February, hotels in the region braced themselves against the storm, one of the worst in the state’s history.

The Shangri-La Cairns says it was very fortunate to escape the main impact of the severe tropical cyclone. As the city was evacuated, guests remained in the hotel, were moved to the ballroom for safety and remained there until the main part of the cyclone had passed by. After that, it was really just a case of clearing through the debris and re-setting our restaurants and bars,” said Gavin Weightmen, Director of Sales and Marketing.

“With limited staff in the hotel, spouses and partners pitched in to help in areas such as housekeeping and food & beverage, with the guests responding fantastically to directions and advice,” added Weightmen.

The Mirvac Hotel Group, which has five properties in the region, says all were well prepared for the intense weather conditions and had taken all necessary precautions for the well-being of guests, staff, and buildings where possible.

Stephen Burt, CEO Mirvac Hotels & Resorts said, “I am

MirvacpropertiesweresparedtheworstofCycloneYasi

Expedia’s Indian ventureLast month saw the launch of the latest brand campaign by online travel portal Expedia in India. The campaign, dubbed ‘Big Daddy of Online Travel’, showcases the company’s inventory of 130,000 hotels – the world’s largest hotel inventory – more than 430 airline partnerships, and more than 5,000 holiday activities. The launch comes two years after Expedia first entered the India market with expedia.co.in.

Expedia will be spending up to Rupees 250 million (US$5.54 million) on marketing and branding activities for the launch.

Expedia India says it is the right time to expand. “It is time for Expedia to invite more Indian customers and introduce value products,” says Dan Lynn, managing director of Expedia Asia Pacific. “We have spent the last two years understanding how Indians want to book and travel and are excited to be offering our ‘Zero Expedia Fee’ offer, as we launch our brand campaign. We expect this brand launch to result in an increase of over 150 percent shoppers on Expedia.co.in over the coming year.”

Golden prospectGalaxy Entertainment Group has commemorated the topping-out of Galaxy Macau, the newest integrated destination resort on the Cotai strip, with the last piece of real 24-carat gold leaf applied to one of the tower’s six cupolas. The amount of gold leaf used would cover 87 football pitches. This signifies the completion of the property’s exterior and the countdown to the property’s unveiling. Executives have noted Galaxy Macau is, “Built by Asians, for Asians,” with accommodation provided by three Asian hotel brands: the Banyan Tree; Hotel Okura; and Galaxy Hotel, marking the entry into the Macau market for both the Singapore-based Banyan Tree and Japan’s Okura hotel company. Total investment in the integrated resort has been HK$14.9 billion (US$1.91 billion).

very pleased to report that our properties were spared the worst of Cyclone Yasi and incurred no major structural damage. I am extremely proud of the way our general managers and their teams went about ensuring that all guests were well-cared for, and their amazing professional attitude to getting on with whatever needed to be done.”

Overcoming Cyclone Yasi

Thetopping-outceremony

i n d u s t r y n E w s

6 AHCT March 2011


March 2011 AHCT 7

Going wellA number of high-end and high-profile spas have launched across India, corroborating a recent wellness market study by the International Medical Travel Journal that found that the Indian wellness and health market is estimated to be growing at 25 percent a year. The journal cites that India has 2,300 big and medium spas. The next four years will see at least 700 new spas – both international and Indian brands – build their infrastructure in India.

The newly launched Imperial Spa at the Imperial Hotel in New Delhi offers 16,000 square feet (1,490 square metres) of spa facilities set in landscaped gardens. The attractive Mughal-style décor aims to evoke a feeling of spiritual harmony. The spa is available only for hotel guests and offers packages, healthy cuisine and personalised well-being programmes.

The Leela Palace Kempinski New Delhi has launched the country’s second Espa, the first opened last year at the Leela Palace Kempinski Udaipur. The 6,500-square-foot (604 square metres) spa is spread over two floors with a café, fitness centre, separate relaxation areas for men and women, changing rooms and sauna and steam rooms on the first floor. Seven treatment rooms, a spa suite for couples, and a relaxation room for women are found on the second floor.

In Hyderabad, the 10-year restoration of the more than 100-year-old Falaknuma Palace by the Taj Hotels group is complete, and the Jiva Spa therein offers a range of Indian-inspired treatments. The elegant spa uses no branded products, only its own hand-blended oils and treatments. The unique signature treatment at Falaknuma is the 150-minute Nawab-e-Khaas, which incorporates a foot wash, an exfoliating body scrub, a light facial scrub and a gentle restorative massage.

Improving energy managementWhy does a property consume the same amount of energy when the occupancy rate drops from 95 percent to 70 percent? This was the question recently posed by the GM of a leading hotel to Lloyd’s Register Quality Assurance (LRQA) team.

LRQA’s Vice President of Business and Sustainability Development, Richard Gunawan, addressed this very question at a recent conference in Macau. According to Gunawan, not all hotels track and analyse the energy consumption pattern in their property. Some of the activities that influence the energy consumption pattern are that guests require more heating or cooling under certain weather conditions; completion of renovations or installation of facilities such as mini bars; and revamping equipment.

Implementing international energy management standards such as EN 16001 and the upcoming ISO 50001 encourages property owners and hoteliers to plan for the future and consider what will happen to the property over the next 10 years. The standards also prescribe a guideline to help hoteliers to measure and report the activities. An external auditor such as LRQA can help the hotel management detect inefficiency or flaws in the system at a much earlier stage. The senior management should also be able to prioritise critical matters with help from a third party.

EN 16001 and the upcoming ISO 50001 will soon be adopted globally as companies aim to become more energy efficient. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) committee believes that the future ISO 50001 standard could influence up to 60 percent of the world’s energy demand. It is anticipated that corporations, supply chain partners, utilities, energy service companies and others will adopt ISO 50001 as a tool to reduce energy intensity use and carbon emissions in their own facilities as well as those belonging to their customers and suppliers to benchmark against international best practice.

Find out more about energy efficiency and climate change at www.lrqa.com

Indians welcome new travel experiences The Indian leisure traveller is eager to seek out new destinations with China, the Maldives, Indonesia, Africa and neighbouring Bangladesh listed by Indian travellers as destinations they plan to visit in the future according to a recent study by Nielsen and the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA).

Singapore remains the top destination for both the business and leisure traveller but it’s slowly being edged out in favour of paths traditionally less travelled by Indians. Surekha Poddar, Executive Director of Nielsen said: “The diversification in destinations indicates a greater sense of adventurism and discovery that should be heartening for tourism as a whole, and a clear symptom of a confident Indian consumer mimicking their country’s confidence and prominence. The Indian traveller is set to become a prized possession as potential spending power and disposition to travel to new countries increases.”

With the growth of India as a source market for the travel industry, there is an increasingly greater focus on targeting the Indian traveller. One of the most critical observations is that the Indian traveller is not a homogenous entity. “Apart from the natural segments of those travelling for business or leisure, there are key sub-segments across tiers of towns and different life stages and work profile. Travel motivations also differ in each of these sub-segments as do their planning and choices,” added Poddar.

SingaporeisfacingtoughcompetitionfortheIndianvisitor

JivaSpaattheFalaknumaPalace


8 AHCT March 2011

Koh Samui struggles with oversupply

Koh Samui’s four-year hotel building boom is threatening to undermine the long-term success of the destination, according to Samui Hotel Market Update 2010, a report produced by C9 Hotelworks.

The report reveals that oversupply heavily impacted last year’s operating performance and if there was no airport expansion or relocation plans that would improve access to the island, the long-term potential of Koh Samui would be capped.

C9 Hotelworks Managing Director Bill Barnett said: “The simple problem is that you can’t stay there if you can’t get there, this is the key restricting growth in Koh Samui. Private sector development in the hospitality sector has surged well ahead of transportation infrastructure improvements, which has caused the market to go into a tailspin.”

According to report data, gains during 2010 in international arrivals were neutralised by diminishing European tourists and a drop in the volume of historically strong repeat guests. Marked declines were registered in occupancy by 7 percent, average room rates by 15 percent and RevPAR by 26 percent, compared to 2009.

However, Barnett added that future trading prospects were greatly bolstered by the high quality of much of the new supply, with several products entering the market in the luxury and upscale tiers.

Comparing the emerging destination to the more developed markets of Phuket and Bali, what is clearly missing in Koh Samui is a regional low cost carrier and charter flights, the report states. “As new markets are emerging, low cost carriers and charter flights are high demand generators. An example of competing regional destinations is the new international airport in Lombok, which looks set to leapfrog growth with its ability to land Boeing 747 and Airbus wide-body aircraft,” concluded Barnett.

Carlson looks to India

Global hospitality and travel company Carlson recently reported a 12 percent increase in sales in 2010 to US$6.5 billion.

“This strong sales performance is one of several key milestones that Carlson Hotels achieved in the first year of its Ambition 2015 strategy,” said Hubert Joly, President and Chief Executive Officer of Carlson. “Looking ahead, we have exciting plans to continue our momentum towards our objectives.”

Opening 66 new hotels globally, the company continued its rapid expansion in key emerging markets, which represented 60 percent of new signings in 2010. The company solidified its leadership positions in India, Russia and Africa in particular.

It increased its ownership in the Rezidor Hotel Group to more than 50 percent, and acquired its key partner in India, RHW Hotel Management Services.

Looking forward, the group is focused on continuing the implementation of its Ambition 2015 strategy, and the main priorities for one of its major brands, Radisson, is to implement property improvement plans and continue the global expansion of the brand, with 44 openings expected in 2011.

NagaCorp announces 73 percent increase in net profit Amid a competitive and robust gaming climate throughout the Asia Pacific region, leisure and entertainment gaming company NagaCorp, the largest company of its kind in Phnom Penh, recorded a profit increase of 73 percent for 2010.

Net profit for 2010 rose to over US$44 million compared to US$25.5 million in 2009, and the group says it achieved these results by staying focused on its remodelled strategy of building up its public floor and gaming machines business.

The group also witnessed an 82 percent increase in non-gaming revenue due to its hotel and entertainment operations.

Sustained tourist arrivals in Cambodia, along with a stable political environment, have enabled the group to continue its penetration of the mass gaming market. Tourist arrivals to Cambodia for the first 11 months of 2010 increased approximately 17 percent to 2.3 million visitors. The majority of these visitors to Phnom Penh also visited NagaWorld, making the hotel and entertainment complex one of the most visited sites in Cambodia.

C9HotelworksManagingDirectorBillBarnett

Radissonhasglobalambitions


10 AHCT March 2011

TheHiltonMelbourneAirportHotel will become the Parkroyal Melbourne Airport Hotel this April, and is the third Parkroyal hotel in Australia for Pan Pacific Hotels Group, which brought the brand back to Australia last year.

Commenting on the re-branding, Pan Pacific Hotels Group President and Chief Executive A. Patrick Imbardelli said, “We are delighted to bring Parkroyal back to its birth city of Melbourne, and guests can look forward to the brand’s unique offerings in more cities as we continue to expand in Australia.”

The opening of the Parkroyal Melbourne Airport along with the recent introduction of two Parkroyal properties, Parkroyal Darling Harbour, Sydney and Parkroyal Parramatta in Sydney, further drives Pan Pacific Hotels Group’s aggressive growth in Australia.

IN BRIEF

HotelGBeijing scooped three awards at the TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards and has also been recognised by Travel + Leisure magazine in China.

Based on millions of reviews from travellers around the world, TripAdvisor voted it the 10th Trendiest Hotel Worldwide and third Best Hotel in China, while Travel + Leisure magazine - the only Chinese-English magazine of its kind on the mainland - voted it Best Design Hotel 2010.

The hotel’s General Manager, Olivier Trinquand, said of the awards, “I would like to express our sincere thanks for these special recognitions and encouragement from the users of TripAdvisor and the readers of Travel + Leisure. It could not have been accomplished without all the hard work of each member of our Hotel G team.”

The Preferred Hotel Group recently honoured Phuket’s AndaraResort&Villasas Preferred Boutique Resort of the Year.

Following its launch in February 2010, Andara has met with a warm reception by the industry. Andrew Whitaker, General Manager of Andara Resort, says, “We have created a destination hotel in its own right that embodies the ultimate in luxury vacationing and travel. Winning another prestigious award recognises the efforts of our team to deliver consistently the highest standards of service and genuine hospitality to our guests.”

Preferred Hotel Group President Lindsey Ueberroth commented, “All of this year’s award recipients are the embodiment of Preferred’s ‘Standards of Excellence’, which is the defining element of our brands. We applaud their continued commitment to excellence in hotel-keeping and their ongoing leadership within the industry.”

Onyx Hospitality Group has been appointed to manage HeratheraIslandResort, a 273-villa property in the Maldives, the group’s first property outside Thailand.

During 2011, the resort will undergo enhancements to the beach and villas as well as the addition of sports and children’s facilities and will be re-

The Thai tourism industry recently received a detailed briefing on how to tap the global weddings and honeymoon market at a half-day seminar organised by the TourismAuthorityofThailand (TAT).

Entitled ‘Love & Money: The Most Powerful Forces in Bridal Marketing,’ the seminar covered the latest wedding and honeymoon trends, including bridal spending habits and trends likely to influence 2011 sales. It also included a state of the industry report, and ways to help Thailand effectively compete and win market share.

According to wedding expert Jacqueline Johnson, who conducted the briefing, “When it comes to love, clients absolutely will spend money despite a sluggish economy as couples still dream of that fairytale wedding or honeymoon experience.” To complement the seminar, TAT launched a micro-site, Honeymooning-in-Thailand.com, to help couples plan their trip of a lifetime.

One of the TAT’s key marketing strategies for 2011 is to position Thailand as a top honeymoon destination in the United States, focusing on Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Krabi, Phuket, Koh Samui, and Hua Hin.

launched under the Amari brand in late 2011.

At the official signing ceremony, Mohammed Mihad, Chief Executive Officer of Maldives Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC), said: “We are confident that the experienced management team at Onyx will significantly enhance the services and systems at our resort. We are focused on further developing the southern part of the Maldives with Gan International Airport as the hub, and the relaunch of Herathera under new management will play a significant part in this.”

Set on Addu, the southern-most atoll in the Maldives, the 273-villa resort features three natural lagoons, a turtle hatchery and a 4km beach, the longest of any resort within the archipelago.

Thecontract-signingceremony

HonouringtheHotelGBeijing

RebrandforMelbourne’sairporthotels

AndaraResort&Villias–infinitypoolvilla


12 AHCT March 2011

A two nights for the price of one opening offer has been announced at TheCapitol HotelTokyu, the new 5-star landmark in the centre of Tokyo. The US$360 rate in a deluxe King room is available until April 30.The hotel is built on the site of the former Tokyo Hilton Hotel, the first ever international hotel in Japan, built in 1963.

StarwoodHotels&ResortsWorldwidehas reached an agreement with Fisherman Harbour Company to develop Four Points by Sheraton and Aloft hotels in Patong, Thailand. Both hotels are scheduled to open in 2014 as the companies hope to cash in on Phuket International Airport’s current expansion, which will double its capacity and, it’s hoped, generate demand in the mid-market section.

The ninth annual HongKongPolyUWinterSchoolwas recently held at Hong Kong’s Disneyland. Co-organised by the poly’s School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) and the Hong Kong Hotels Association, and sponsored by the Pacific Asia Travel Association, the Royal Garden and the Institute of Hospitality, the two week programme is designed to immerse hospitality executives from around the region in hands-on problem solving, case analysis and in-depth discussion and is led by SHTM faculty members and other educators. Six course modules this time included hotel investment and development strategies, marketing mix and online marketing, environmental management, managing people diversity, food and beverage marketing, with the final module covering the Disney approach to quality service.

The 135-year-old MandarinOriental,Bangkokhas completed the refurbishment of the hotel’s main lobby and reception area. All new upholstery, carpeting and furniture has been chosen by interior designer Jeffrey Wilkes, working to a brief that stipulated the ‘DNA’ of the hotel be preserved, but combined with a modern interpretation on traditional themes. Other areas that were part of the refurbishment included the book kiosk, spa desk, the Oriental Corner cake counter and the addition of luxury retail showcases.

Cinnovation CG, the US$1 billion investment company and a subsidiary of Nepal-based conglomerate Chaudhary Group, which is behind Zinc|InVisionHospitality, has pledged US$170 million investment in the new hotel company. During a five-city Asian investor roadshow, Cinnovation CG Chairman, Binod Chaudhary said the investment would allow the company to open or brand 30 hotels in Asia by 2013. Zinc | InVision Hospitality, was formally launched in January this year, currently operates three brands at nine hotels in three countries in Asia and has developed seven hospitality brands catering to different market segments: Zinc City, Glow Studios, Zinc Edge, Zinc Living, Soma, Zinc Journey and Touch by Zinc.

Cambodia’s first luxury private island resort, SongSaa, has recently completed the first mock-up villa. Australian-owned company, Brocon is behind the development being built on Koh Ouen and Koh Bong in Koh Rong Archipelago. The resort will feature 25 rainforest, beach and over-water villas, each featuring a private pool with a design inspired by Cambodian fishing villages. Construction is scheduled to complete in November this year. Development on Cambodia’s coastline has been limited to date with tourism concentrated on Angkor Wat and Siem Reap. However, regular airlifts from Siem Reap and Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville, scheduled to begin this month, are expected to provide a major catalyst for growth in Sihanoukville and Cambodia’s south coast tourism.

MandarinOrientalSingaporehas introduced an ‘artistic getaway’ room package to launch its largest harbour facing accommodation, the Bay Suite. Spanning 68 square metres, the suite comprises a bedroom with king-sized bed, a living area, panoramic views of Marina Bay, it may be converted into a two-bedroom suite with an adjoining bedroom and is decorated with original pieces of Oriental art. Included in the package are private guided tours to the Singapore Art Museum, as well as an art advisory service from a gallery that specialises in acquisition and management of private art collections.

RestDetailHotelHua Hin’s fundraising Christmas tree raised US$1,456. The funds will be equally divided between three local charities: Kasetsart Veterinary Teaching Hospital; Ban Wang Bot School; and Conservation and Restoration of Kuiburi Forest. The charitable Christmas tree acted as an innovative guest donation box from mid December 2010 until early January 2011 and was so successful that it will now become an annual event at the hotel. In other charitable news the PureBlueFoundation, has generated US$13,000 from its inaugural gala fundraising auction to help rebuild damaged reef eco-systems in Phuket’s Phang Nga area. The foundation was co-founded last year by Aleenta Resorts and Akaryn Hospitality Management Services group and estimates the total cost of rebuilding various reefs will reach US$100,000 over three years.

Following the success of the fundraiser, the foundation plans further gala events in both Phuket and Bangkok, hoping the movement will spread to other areas off the Thai coastline.

TheMiraHongKonghas become an entirely smoke-free hotel. In compliance with the Hong Kong government’s existing and expanding law covering public areas including restaurants and bars, smoking will only be permitted on the al fresco terrace garden and in specialty rooms and suites.

As part of Sentosa’s S$300-million (US$235 million) Transport Management Plan, Sentosa Development Corporation has opened the SentosaBoardwalk. The new footbridge spans 700 metres between Sentosa and mainland Singapore, and features five garden-themed landscapes, 10 canopy-covered travellators and can accommodate 8,000 people per hour per direction. The boardwalk features a specially designed catchment structure beneath the timber board surface to capture up to 120 cubic metres of rainfall, thus reducing the need for freshwater supplies. The cost of entering Sentosa via the Sentosa Boardwalk is S$1.

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14 AHCT March 2011

“What is the use of having theoretical knowledge if you do not know how to use it?” asks Martin Jeffrey.

The Senior Lecturer at Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality in Switzerland (SSTH) adds that, “Knowing their product both in theory and in practice gives confidence and an added competitive advantage to all our students.”

SSTH has three in-house training restaurants and Jeffrey says the restaurants attract a great many students and also place the school in the international spotlight.

While researching their hotel school options, “students quickly realise that it is not simply the types of subjects and the promise of a degree or diploma that gives the ability to succeed, the methodology and the environment in which the education is delivered are also of equal importance,” Jeffrey says. “With this in mind, having training restaurants at SSTH is a deciding factor.”

SSTH’s restaurants are Balsaal, which welcomes students and guests for lunch and dinner and for larger private functions; La Campigiana, a fine-dining restaurant for students and school visitors; and Paulaner’s Passugg, an all-day restaurant offering local specialities and open to the public.

Working in the restaurants gives students not only confidence but reinforces their knowledge to the point that Jeffrey says the

school’s students become highly sought-after.“We have constant inquiries for our students to work for special

functions and events during and on completion of their studies, such as the recent World Economic Forum in Davos. Fact is, due to our high standards in providing a thorough education, both in theory and in practice our students are able to increase the quality of service provided in their place of work, wherever they may be,” says Jeffrey.

The whole packageAt the Ecole Hotelière Lausanne in Switzerland , reflections on the planning to develop a training hotel in the future are taking place, while the school currently has many training restaurants and banqueting facilities that provide students with practical experience.

Christophe Laurent, Director of the Preparation Year (AP) for the Bachelor Programme, points out that the school has had training restaurants for over 100 years and they have been serving guests for all that time. Laurent characterises them as places where students can develop many different skills and, in one of the restaurants, students are given the opportunity to plan and run their own concept. He tells AHCT that, “The more students face clients, the better. The restaurants are a link between the campus and real life and the students are better for working in them.”

The students also have the benefit of being able to eat in all the

Hospitality industry schools and training programmes are finding that a hands-on approach from early on is the best way for students to learn the business, Mischa Moselle reports

“The more students face clients, the better” Christophe Laurent

TRAINING THE FUTURE

campus restaurants, included of course the flag ship restaurant, the Berceau des Sens listed in the Swiss edition of Michelin guide, and Laurent suggests the students “learn as much as by being a customer as by being a waiter or waitress.”

While Laurent adds that working in the restaurants exposes the students to much technology they will need to be familiar with in their working life, far more importantly they will gain, “the knowledge of two human beings communicating.”

Experience means the students will ultimately be able to apply many different skills , practical, social, artistic and would become more “efficient, organized and gain confidence when ask to sell the product.”

Andrew Wong, Hong Kong-based Regional Admission Director for Les Roches International School of Hotel Management and Glion Institute of Higher Education, tells AHCT, “Industry leaders

SSTH’seducationblendstheorywithpractice

DCT’strainingrestaurantsarefor

thestudents

OneofSSTH’sthreerestaurants

ThemainbuildingatLesRoches

HotelIconGeneralManagerRichardHatter

M a n a g E M E n t

16 AHCTMarch 2011

M a n a g E M E n t

March 2011 AHCT 17

Your Benefi ts at Swiss School> First English taught program of higher professional education under process of accreditation according to the new Swiss legislation.

> Long tradition in offering hospitality management programs within a familiar and friendly athmosphere. > A perfect blend of theory classes, practical training, hands-on work and self-study with a strong reference to work and business related situations.

> Multi-national environment, with a strong connection to Swiss tradition, culture and way of living, while studying on the same campus as our Swiss students.

> Wonderful location in the Swiss Alps with top holiday resorts such as St. Moritz, Davos, Laax or Arosa just around the corner.

> Safe and friendly environment

SSTH Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality Ltd.Comercialstrasse 19 • P.O. Box • 7007 Chur • Switzerland • Tel +41 81 255 11 11 • [email protected] • www.ssth.ch

The experience of a different culture in Switzerland makes it very valuable to study and to be prepared for a hospitality career. I have learnt a lot at Swiss School, not only because of the high standard of ed-ucation, but also because of the faculty and student colleagues from Switzerland. The school gives you the best experience to be prepared for the future.

Sahil, India

Bachelor of Arts in International Hospitality Management> 3 academic years plus 12 months paid internship

Swiss Higher Diploma in Hotel and Restaurant Management> 2 academic years plus 12 months paid internship

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Your Future is our MissionHospitality Management - The Gateway to an Exciting Career

come to our campus to observe and recruit our students for both internships and management trainee positions after graduation. In fact, a notable 5-star hotel chain recruits 85 percent of its management trainees for Europe from our Glion and Les Roches Hospitality Universities.”

The schools have found that craft-based learning is one of the keys to providing work experience and in grooming students to become industry leaders.

Craft-based learning has also become a lure for potential students. “The proven track record of our alumni excelling, in part due to our craft-based learning system, inspires the next generation of hospitality industry leaders to industry excellence,” says Wong.

The DCT University Center Switzerland, Hospitality Leadership & European Culinary Arts in Vitznau Switzerland’s Academic Dean, Birgit Black believes that practical training and experience prior to joining the hospitality industry is an absolute must.

“How else can future employees, supervisors and leaders of the hospitality industry empathise with their guests and employees; how else will they gain the credibility to train and lead?” Black asks.

Alumni successThe Dean believes that although having a training restaurant open to the public “would be nice” it is not absolutely essential. It would “not make a significant difference in developing the students’ maturity and confidence when compared to training facilities that are not open to the public.”

Unlike the faculty of some other schools, Black believes that having a training restaurant is really only of secondary significance in attracting students. No doubt prospective students may be impressed by the school’s commitment in providing such facilities

“How else can future employees, supervisors and leaders … empathise with

their guests and employees; how else will they gain

credibility?” Birgit Black

TheexecutiveteamatHotelIcon

EducationatEHLputsastressoncommunicaiton

M a n a g E M E n t

18 AHCTMarch 2011

A fAscinAting cAreer in A booming field

the ecole hôtelière de lausanne (EHL) was the first hotel school in the world. it provides university-level training to talented, ambi-tious students aiming for fast-track careers in the hospitality industry. The Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (Switzerland) which was founded in 1893, is the world’s leading educational institution for the international hospitality industry. The training it provides is based on a balance between the arts and the sciences, or between the scientific aspects and the artistic aspects of management. With an enrolment of over 1’800 students from 90 different countries, the School trains future leaders, who will be in charge of developing the

sector in years to come. Its active and extensive network of 25,000 alumni worldwide includes many of the great names in the world of hotels, and plays an important role in supporting those aiming for an international career. EHL offers three programmes (a diploma, a bachelor and a master) devised to satisfy the highest standards in hotel management. These courses ensure up-to-date teaching of high level managerial skills, while placing the accent on the strategic dimension of commercial mana-gement in the food and beverage and hotel sectors. Courses in management and strategy are combined with practical work, projects and the organization of

events. In addition to hotels as such, the industry is vast, varied and dynamic: wellness centers and spas, cruise ships, golf and country clubs, airline catering and conference venues are all closely related to it, and are booming.

EHL graduates are typically appointed to positions in marketing, finance and human resources. The world of hospitality today extends far beyond its traditional field: private banks, hospitals and clinics, humanitarian organizations… must all take into account the wishes of their clients.

[email protected] Phone: +41 21 785 11 11

www.ehl.edu

The school’s Pousada de Mong Ha, a former army barracks converted into a small hotel in 1979, was recently awarded 16th out of the top 25 hotels in Macau by the TripAdvisor website.

The hotel front office is run by students during the academic year where they gain not only basic knowledge of running the counter but also supervisory skills. Senior students coach the more junior ones and in the process learn how to train.

The students become a ‘one-man-band’ capable of checking guests in, making and combining beds and providing room service

at night. A supervisor is available in case of extreme difficulties but remains behind the scenes.

Gloria Wong, Director of Pousada, tells AHCT that the process “boosts confidence” and “some outstanding students have gone to hotels and within two years become assistant managers.” The experience of dealing directly with clients adds to the students’ maturity and leaves them capable of handling anything.

The training hotel and restaurant also complement the school’s “pen and paper classrooms and give more opportunities to our students,” says Wong, also noting that the hotel and restaurant guests are “very kind and patient with student errors.”

She adds that it is interesting to watch students progress in maturity over the four years of their course, a maturity that partly comes from dealing with clients.

The school is in the process of expanding its courses and student intake, which will now be around 400 a year.

Soon to be competing for some of those students will be the Hotel Icon in Hong Kong, a training and

research hotel developed by the PolyU’s School of Hotel Tourism and Management. The hotel aims to offer 5-star facilities at 4-star prices and to be the “world’s first teaching and research hotel,” says the hotel’s General Manager Richard Hatter. He explains that students will not only have the opportunity to work in the hotel but that the confidential commercial information generated by the business can be the basis for thesis research.

Guests may not even be aware that they are in a teaching hotel. The building is not on campus and service will be by a staff of 360 full-time professionals. In a practice called ‘Work Integrated Education’, students will be rotated through various hotel departments for two to six weeks each or they can take a summer intensive programme from June to August that concentrates on a specific track. The school’s Elite Management Programme will allow a small group of top students to shadow hotel manager positions for a year.

The property’s prototype rooms will allow students to explore different hotel concepts by changing the design of the rooms and the students will also get hands-on experience of hotel technology.

The variety of experience means that students will realise what life is like in all departments of the hotel, explains Hatter. “Students will have different opportunities and not be pigeon-holed,” he says. “It will enable students to find out what they are good at and what their passion is.”

Glion’sBullerestaurant–providingcraft-basedlearning

StudentsatPousadadeMongHamanthefrontoffice

GuestroomfacilitiesatPousadadeMongHa

but the deciding factor for most students is going to be the track record of the school’s alumni, the expertise of the staff and the learning environment.

Macau’s Institute for Tourism Studies (or IFT to give it its Portuguese acronym) has taken many awards for its provision of hotel education and in 2000 was the recipient of TedQual certification, becoming the first educational institution in the world to be so accredited by the UNWTO. The certification is for quality education in tourism.

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“In a service business customers have to come first otherwise your reputation suffers,” PR professional Paul Seaman tells AHCT.

He adds that the main ‘don’t’ is never to antagonise customers or journalists more than is already the case following a complaint – even if the customer or journalist is being unreasonable.

Seaman knows a tough situation when he sees one – one former client is Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

“There’s a fine line between a genuine cause for complaint and someone who is just taking the hotel for a bit of a ride. However, by far the most sensible approach is usually classic service recovery,” says Eddie Veale*, a regional hotel PR executive.

Veale adds that while it’s impossible to pre-empt every situation, good briefing can ensure some problems are avoided.

The key weapons in the PR armory are: remaining calm, humour, a willingness to investigate and try and fix problems, plus the budget to smooth ruffled tempers with free nights or meals.

AHCT asked the two veterans how they would respond to a series of situations taken from real life.

One – the angry hackA tired, very angry journalist with a severe hangover is at reception, checking out. He has a long list of grievances and is, at the moment you encounter him, definitely going to go into print with them. His grievances include:• The lock on his door broke three times over the course of a

one-night stay• He is a non-smoker and found a cigarette butt in his bathroom• He was promised a complementary breakfast but has no

paperwork to show for it and due to internal miscommunication the front desk has no record. He is refusing adamantly and loudly to pay

• He is shocked and upset that he almost witnessed a fist-fight at breakfast when two sets of people were promised the same table.

Mischa Moselle asks PR industry veterans how they would deal with some of the major mistakes that can happen in hotels and restaurants

Rescue and recovery

brigade and police. A journalist calls a few days later and says that a guest has told him:• Staff dithered and didn’t seem to know how to react to the

situation• Staff evacuated the guests but not far enough away from the fire• Staff seemed as interested in getting the diners to pay their bills

as in getting them to safety.

Both PR veterans suggest that you need to get a very full version of events from the staff themselves before answering any queries. Veale makes the point that hotel staff are generally well-trained in these situations, making the story a little far-fetched.

Seaman suggests that it might have been too great a concern for safety that caused the confusion but that any inconvenience should be acknowledged and compensated with a discounted meal or bottle of wine. If the restaurant erred the first time round it should use the ensuing publicity to make an apology while making clear that no one was ever at any risk.

However, if the evening really did come to an end with the evacuation and staff then collected the bills, “that’s outrageous,” says Seaman as the goods were never delivered properly or as promised.

Four – you’ve been had!A guest chef comes to your property from a small country with an obscure cuisine. You spend some time with him planning a promotion that will promote the chef ’s native cuisine and then put out a press release doing just that. The next day a journalist whose mother happens to come from that small country tells you that there is not a single item on the menu that is ‘authentic’. It turns out the journalist is right.

Seaman and Veale are unanimous – fire the chef! Seaman suggests turning the situation around by using humour and by

finding a real chef and running a proper promotion. “This could seriously damage the reputation of the property,

and gossip lingers,” says Veale. After discussions with the chef, the F&B team and executive management a more genuine promotion could be run.

Five – making a meal of itYou have invited a journalist and one friend to your restaurant and recommended that they order the most expensive dish on the menu, which is the restaurant’s signature. You are not accompanying them to the meal.

You check with the journalist for feedback the next day and the journalist tells you that he ordered the dish but got the message back from the kitchen that the chef is “too busy” to make it. You are an advertiser in the publication but have not been promised a positive review.

Something has gone wrong in the kitchen and it needs to be investigated, Seaman and Veale say. There may have been a good reason why the chef couldn’t provide the dish but it got lost in translation. An honest explanation and a profuse apology could defuse the situation.

The PR spin doctors further suggest winning points by inviting the journalist back for a better experience, and making sure they meet the chef and perhaps even get a tour of the kitchen.

“What happened was unacceptable and that message must be conveyed to the journalist by you in a slightly angry manner – the anger being your outrage at what happened and directed at whomever was responsible,” says Seaman. *Name changedPaul Seaman’s online PR review 21-st Century PR issues is at paulseaman.eu

Both Seaman and Veale suggest that turning the complaints around can have positive benefits for the hotel. Ensure that the complaints are investigated and that the journalist knows this, they advise. Ask the writer to delay filing any story until the complaints have been dealt with, Veale further suggests, while Seaman recommends inviting the journalist back for a better experience.

“Journalists love to feel they have made a difference and have been taken seriously. They will love and forgive you if you show that you are genuine and making amends,” adds Seaman.

Two – the innocent errorA major international newswire has put a story about your hotel on their wire, accessible by newspapers across the world and the general public over the internet.

The story wrongly states that restaurants in your hotel have been closed down by the public health authority. The error has occurred because your hotel has a similar name to the adjoining shopping mall, where there are restaurants that have been closed down, having poisoned their guests.

You need to secure an immediate retraction and apology, say Seaman and Veale, either by talking to the journalist or their editor.

“I would have statements prepared and proactively issued to the local press to minimise the impact,” argues Veale.

An error such as this can even be a source of humour, says Seaman. He advises sticking the original story and the apology on a notice board and on the hotel website so that customers can have a chuckle over it and defend your reputation among their friends.

Three – creating a drama out of a crisis?There is a small fire in your restaurant. It’s not big enough to have ever posed a serious threat to guest safety but it was certainly a major disruption to their evening and big enough to bring the fire

“Journalists love to feel they have made a difference and have been taken seriously” Paul Seaman

PaulSeaman–oftenuseshumourtodiffusesituationsAnunacceptablebutt

Wascheftoobusyorwasthemessagelostintranslation?

M a n a g E M E n t

24 AHCTMarch 2011

M a n a g E M E n t

March 2011 AHCT 25

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The Asian Games have been a catalyst for investment in hotels, infrastructure and tourism. Lena Gidwani reports

Seven years ago Guangzhou won the rights to host the 16th Asian Games.

As a result, international hoteliers like Starwood and their ilk expected a flood of eager tourists from around the

world and mainland China to flock to the Southern Chinese capital in 2010 and invested accordingly. Correspondingly, to help cope with the expected demands and effects of increasing tourism on its infrastructure, Guangzhou spent an impressive 122 billion RMB (US$18.3 billion) on projects to improve the urban landscape and environment for the Games, which included the construction and expansion of subways, city roads and bridges.

However, as the Games ended in a splendour of fireworks, hospitality industry analysts were left to question the seemingly obvious truth – a lot of work needed to be done to maintain the post-games momentum. Approximately 20 5-star hotels and 60 4-star hotels are currently operating (less than half are managed by international brands) and a dozen more internationally-managed 5-star hotels are in the pipeline. However, what’s interesting is that all of the new hotels scheduled for opening in 2011 and 2012 will be managed by international brands. To cope, what has Guangzhou done to its current landscape to ensure that it maintains a steady flow of tourists post-Games and how will this benefit the hotel industry in turn?

Tourist infrastructureWhile Guangzhou has always been a magnet for businessmen coming to the city for the bi-annual Canton fair, it has never been regarded as a tourist destination. But that is changing. Besides greatly furthering the internationalisation of Guangzhou, the successful hosting of the Games created a better environment for its residents and more opportunities for the development of tourism. Of course, while the reconstruction and upgrading work has put plenty of unwanted stress on the city’s traffic congestion and its workforce, the government’s initiatives have also created a number of jobs and spun the city in to the world’s spotlight.

The city’s transport system has been thoroughly extended,

with the introduction of new metro lines and stops, more bus routes, tree-lined bicycle lanes and a brand new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) network. The BRT corridor can transport more than 23,000 passengers per hour; more than triple the capacity of any other BRT system in Asia and the second largest in the world after Bogota, Colombia. In fact, the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), an international non-profit that works with cities on projects to reduce greenhouse gases and improve the quality of urban life, named Guangzhou the winner of its 2011 Sustainable Transport Award. Not bad at all for a city that just six years ago was fighting an uphill battle to clean up the city and reduce pollution.

The city has also seen remarkable improvement to its water and air quality. More than 48.6 billion yuan (US$7 billion) was spent to battle water pollution from January 2009 to July 2010. To make Guangzhou’s waterways cleaner, the city built another 30 sewage treatment plants to increase the city’s sewage treatment capacity by 2.25 million tons a day. According to the Environmental Protection Bureau, the water quality of the touristic Pearl River has been visibly improved, reaching the Grade IV environmental quality standards of water quality.

Retail has also seen a facelift. A number of international brands such as Zara, Marks & Spencer, H&M, Max Mara, BreadTalk Group’s Food Republic and Ole Supermarket have sought out new opportunities in the newly opened One Link Walk and the soon-to-be-opened TaikooHui Mall and Wanda Plaza, eliminating the need for residents in need of retail therapy to flock to neighbouring Hong Kong.Guangzhou

competition continues

Raising the roofBy tapping into the opportunities generated by the Games, famous attractions also scaled new heights. Tourism facilities were given a facelift, with more tour guides now proficient in foreign languages such as Japanese and Korean to cope with the increasing influx of tourists from these nations. Some 70 new itineraries were introduced and greatly promoted by the Tourism Bureau before the Games. The 610-metre Canton TV Tower, which officials claim is the world’s tallest television tower, houses restaurants, viewing galleries and a 4D cinema, among other attractions. “New, state-of-the-art facilities such as the Pazhou Exhibition Center, Guangzhou Opera House, and the Guangzhou Museum have been established to support the many large-scale and internationally-prominent exhibitions and events which are being courted by the city. This means new opportunities, and greater national exposure for the city of Guangzhou. “Increased competition does not faze us and we look at it as an opportunity to showcase our new, dynamic city,” says Michelle Caporicci, General Manager of The Ritz-Carlton Guangzhou, which celebrates its third year anniversary this month. The hotel has seen a steady year-on-year growth since its opening in 2008, amid strong competition from other 5-star hotels in the market.

The city’s efforts to get up to speed with other world-class destinations have paid off handsomely. Guangzhou’s 2010 GDP surged by 100 billion RMB (US$15 billion) or 12.5 percent to hit a trillion RMB, becoming the third Chinese city after Beijing and Shanghai to register annual GDP of a trillion RMB, causing

Guangzhou’snewoperahouse–thecityisaddingtoitsculturalattractions

TheHiltonGuangzhouBaiyun


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average salaries and overall standard of living to increase. During the Games, statistics from Guangzhou Tourism Bureau show that the city welcomed a total of 8.7 million local and foreign tourists, up by 42 percent over the same period of last year. Of those tourists, 3.9 million stayed in hotels, up by 32 percent. The 27 main attractions in Guangzhou received 2.1 million tourists, an increase of 22 percent. As a result, tourism revenues of 7 billion RMB (US$1 billion) were generated during the Games itself, bringing the total of tourism revenue raised in 2010 to a staggering 70 billion RMB (US$10 billion). Visitors had nothing but rave reviews about the city’s new look, causing median prices for hotels to increase overnight and hotel occupancy rates to remain at a steady level. Royal Mediterranean Hotel, a 4-star hotel run by a local hospitality company, is now charging about US$75 a night, a marked increase of more than 50 percent from last year’s rates.

With these noteworthy figures, it’s no wonder that Sarah Tao, Director of Sales and Marketing at the soon-to-be-opened 5-star Sheraton Guangzhou in the lucrative Tianhe District is extremely optimistic. “With the establishment plan of new CBD Zhujiang New Town and further development of Tianhe as a city hub as well as all the recent developments to the city’s infrastructure, more and more multi-national corporations and international hotels have set their bases or footprints here. In the year 2010, the new phase of Guangzhou captured plenty of attention by hosting the Asian Games, pushing the city’s development forward by at least 10 years.” However, she is adamant that “to cope with this market situation (competition) and meet international class level, it’s crucial to have a well-trained and educated work force and skilled service talents.” And indeed, the city’s experts are listening. With 270 starred hotels under its belt, the Guangzhou Tourism Bureau has plans to open a hotel management school to train young job seekers. Hotels in Guangzhou are in urgent need of local managers with a profound understanding of the foreign hotel industry and a good command of foreign languages.

More competitionUnlike its counterpart Beijing, whose tourism in 2008 suffered from increased security measures, reduced business activity and tighter visa policies, Guangzhou’s ‘can-do’ attitude and proactive approach seems to have fared better for its hotels.

“Even though Guangzhou’s GDP ranks third in China, there are far fewer international hotels here than in Shanghai and Beijing. The hotel market situation can only become more exciting and in turn offer more choices for both local residents and travellers to the city,” says Tao.

Caporicci agrees. “Following the 2010 Asian Games, Guangzhou has gained national exposure as a tourist and leisure destination; which complements Guangzhou’s reputation as a business destination with a great variety of cultural offerings.”

With more than 3,500 hotel rooms to open in 2011, only time will really tell whether or not the Asian Games will prove to be a cash cow for the local tourism industry in the long-run. The city’s economy has become increasingly service-oriented and the local hospitality industry is thoroughly confident. One look at its shining skyline, built by a plethora of award-winning international and local architects, shows the best is yet to come.

Majoropeningsin2011

Sofitel Guangzhou SunrichOpening March 2011493 rooms

Guangzhou Marriott Hotel TianheOpening May 2011278 Rooms

Sheraton Guangzhou Hotel Opening June 2011445 Rooms

Hilton Guangzhou BaiyunOpening mid 2011 313 rooms Four SeasonsOpening mid 2011 344 rooms

Hilton Guangzhou TianheOpening mid 2011 504 rooms

W Guangzhou Opening December 2011320 rooms

Jumeirah Guangzhou, ChinaOpening late to end 2011205 rooms

Hotel Nikko GuangzhouOpening late to end 2011411 rooms

Mandarin Oriental GuangzhouOpening 2012262 rooms

Ritz-CarltonGuangzhouhasexperiencedsteadygrowthinthethreeyearssinceitopened

TheAsianGamesbroughtinvestmentandtouriststoChina’scommercialcapital

Guangzhou’snewskyline

Photography courtesy of the Ritz-carlton guangzhou

Starwoodisaddingtoitspresencein

thecity

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In November of last year Amadeus released the findings of a report which identified the characteristics of future hotel guests and also released its new end-to-end Amadeus Hotel Platform.

The concurrent events signal the importance that changing guest trends are having on hotel management and, by implication, room selling strategies.

“The Amadeus Hotel Platform combines central reservation, property management and global distribution system (GDS) into one fully integrated platform,” said Kartikeya Tripathi, Regional Director of Hotel Distribution, Amadeus Asia Pacific. “It offers a single and real-time view of the entire business, enabling hoteliers to deliver innovative guest services, generate additional revenues and also quickly react to market changes as new trends, behaviours and demands emerge.”

Other software providers have also pointed towards integration as an emerging trend. Ric Leutwyler, COO and President, Representation Services at Pegasus Solutions said that hoteliers need to turn their attention to “next generation solutions”, in which the boundaries and limitations that currently exist between the variety of systems supporting the hotel’s business operations – a PMS often coupled with a revenue optimisation system and various additional internal or external systems – will no longer apply.

“All of these applications have their own features and functions,” Leutwyler said, noting that “in some cases, the only practical way for one hotel system to communicate with another is when there is some human intervention involved to make it happen. If each system is able to have a common view of the information it exchanges with another system, or better still, if the two systems can share a single source of information, a whole new set of possibilities opens up.”

When it comes to a booking engine, rich media capability, mobile technology and relevant content for different groups of travellers are a few of the key differentiators that hoteliers should look for, according to Trust International Hotel Reservation Services Managing Director Richard Wiegmann.

“The internet booking engine is the most cost-effective distribution channel for a hotel group and is the best channel to provide direct and convenient access to rooms,” Wiegmann says. “Therefore, a web booking functionality should provide the entire range of options for personalisation and generating extra revenue, such as dynamic packaging and upselling. It should also be available in the languages of the hotel group’s markets.”

Guest perspective“The underlying drivers for consumers today can be summarised by several ‘Cs’,” says Bonnie J. Knutson, a Professor in The School of Hospitality Business at Michigan State University, explaining that the three Cs are Cost, Convenience and Comfort. “When it comes to online promotion, then, the more these drivers can be conveyed, the greater the chance that the room will be ‘sold’.”

The three Cs have also led to the upsurge of online bookings. “Access to online channels – hotel websites, online travel agents and auction sites – gives the consumer much more choice and opportunities to compare offers and prices. Therefore, hotel distribution strategies focus on offering guests parity across all channels so that they can choose the best way to book and trust the brand,” says Simon Kerr, Commercial Director of Como Hotels and Resorts. Como recently consolidated its hotels under the same GDS chain code to strengthen its brand name to the travel community.

The growth of online channels is an important trend, and as Wiegmann pointed out, guests are no longer relying on travel agents for recommendations, rather, conducting their own research online and through social media, all of which he says have changed the technology requirements of the Central Reservation System.

“Key factors for this growth have been, and will continue to be, convenience and flexibility,” according to Daniel Finch, Deputy Group Product Director (Accommodation) Asia for AsiaWebDirect.com.

Sharing information in the hotel and on the internet is selling

rooms, Saul Symonds reports

Netting new customersThePDAcanbeanothertouchpointforguests

Theconvenienceofonlinebooking

Photography courtesy of como hotels + Resorts

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that a “flexible approach to selling rooms meets both hotels’ need for sales and travellers desire for great deals. This way of selling rooms also does not require upfront payments nor constant updates from hoteliers, who can concentrate on their core business. RoomAuction.com can have positive influence on hotel industry with low entry cost and efficient marketing opportunity.”

The internet has affected room pricing in other ways as well. “The internet has brought transparency to the pricing market and has forced hotels to preserve rate hygiene – which means parity between different channels – and allowed for dynamic pricing to be optimised,” said Roland Jegge, Vice President Asia Pacific, Worldhotels.

Carmen Lam, Managing Director at Micros-Fidelio Hong Kong at the time of writing pointed out that although hotels are favouring channels that allow them to lower costs, in the long-run they will have to find a balance between control, costs and market penetrations.

“Hoteliers will talk about ‘high touch high control’ channels such as Web Direct but unless they are part of a major chain that has the marketing network, they will need to work with online travel agents (OTA) for reach and penetration,” Lam says.

She added that even the big hotel chains are still working with OTAs to ensure coverage. “In a nutshell,” Lam said, “what we need is not just revenue management or channel management but cross channel management. This requires unique tools and a strategic skill

set to understand and manage multiple channels.”Micros-Fidelio’s portfolio of products includes

a range of distribution solutions that help single hotels as well as major chains connect and distribute their inventory to a variety of external channels, portals and systems including the hotel’s own website, third party websites, the GDS, a variety of OTAs and alternative distribution systems.

Other technologies are also impacting the way that hotel rooms are sold. According to Tripathi, mobile computing devices have the potential to serve as “entirely new hotel brand touchpoints for guests.”

However, he explained, “the deployment and use of these devices cannot be a simple software upgrade for hotel companies right now – it needs to be rooted in a business decision that is strategic and integrated, applying and aligning device rollout with business critical processes.”

Lam believes that as 3G and mobile internet connections become more stable, the mobile direct

channel for booking rooms will grow. “PDA bookings are still at an early stage as potential users are still worried about security and connectivity disruptions. The user interface of existing PDA booking engines also has room for improvement,” she says.

“Technology has given the industry new channels of communication and sales,” Knutson adds. “The interesting thing here is that all of these channels reduce the interaction between guest and hotel service staff. And for an industry built on ‘hospitality’ such a shift presents both a challenge and an opportunity. How can a hotel give the ‘gift of hospitality’ via a computer?”

Models of successFinch notes that there are many benefits for hoteliers in working with an online travel agency, not least that they can reach a wide international customer base. “Whereas a hotel website relies largely on direct searches and type-ins for online traffic, selling rooms on our site means that our partners can immediately access a sizeable global audience of travel seekers.”

Another online model finding popularity is Roomauction.com, which allows customers to offer hotels the rate they want to pay at up to a 50 percent discount. Roomauction.com’s Bob Drapella said

RicLeutwyler,COOandPresident,RepresentationServices,PegasusSolutions

TrustInternationalHotelReservationServicesManagingDirector,RichardWiegmann

RolandJegge,VicePresidentAsiaPacific,Worldhotels

TrustInternational’s‘costeffectivedistributionchannel’

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Turning a 200-year-old family residence into a hip, 21st-century boutique hotel is no easy feat,

especially when it is located in an ancient walled city in a desert. But brothers Nikhilendra and Dhananajaya Singh have, through sheer dedication and determination – plus a number of bullock carts – transformed the former residence of one of Jodhpur’s noble families into a serene and stylish getaway.

Nestled below Mehrangarh Fort’s imposing stone walls in the Thar Desert of western India, the new 39-room Raas hotel showcases ancient Rajasthani architecture, but during renovation was also hampered by it.

“Trucks are not allowed in Jodhpur’s ancient, winding streets, so everything had to come in on small carts,” says Nikhilendra Singh. Everything from the sandstone screens hand-carved by local craftsmen to the cast-iron bathtubs, the potted plants to the dark, minimalist furniture had to be transported this way.

Renovation work was also delayed by staffing issues. “The number of holidays we have in India meant we would have

long gaps in work and I had to constantly galvanise the workers to come back on time,” says Singh. “In the end it worked out alright as we opened on the set date … with the grace of God!”

Paranoia sets inBalancing the preservation of a heritage site with the requirements of a modern, luxury hotel also had its share of difficulties. The Raas site is comprised of four old buildings and three new ones, and Singh says designing the new buildings was a nerve-racking experience.

“In the initial stage of development, it took eight months for me to make a decision on the new buildings. I was so paranoid that

I would be responsible for messing up such a beautiful site,” he says. “What you see now was the 30th option; luckily the architects loved the site as much as I did.”

The architects behind Raas are the acclaimed Delhi-based team of Ambrish Arora and Rajiv Majumdar. Singh says he had known Arora previously before bringing him onboard with this project.

“I had known Ambrish Arora for a while already and had discussed a project in the

walled city with him many years before I even set eyes on Raas,” he says. “My father had worked with him and found his work very intelligent and non-interventionist. Arora then brought on Rajiv Majumdar and together we worked really well together.”

AdaptationAfter the eight months of deliberation, the team settled on a look that is “distinctly different, contrasting and complementing

Adding modern comforts to an ancient building proved a rewarding challenge at one

boutique hotel. Victoria Burrows reports

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not only the old buildings but the city as well,” says Singh.

The four original buildings, all built from Jodhpur’s rose-red sandstone, comprise the main haveli, or residence, which was built towards the end of the 18th century and features exquisite carved stone panels; the multi-pillared open pavilion, called a baradari, which was used mainly for entertainment; the pol, or entrance gate which contained the staff quarters and guard house, as well as a guest house and temple; and a stable complex.

As each of the buildings had different functional roles, Singh says they decided to adapt these roles to fit a modern hotel.

“The haveli was residential and features very traditional Rajput architecture so this was easy to visualise as guest rooms, while the baradari is a Mughal pavilion for entertaining and dancing so we used it as restaurant. Stables were for horses but we made these in to lounges, so instead of horses we have humans,” he says.

In the suites located in the old buildings, the architects retained the stone interiors and the arches and pillars, but added light green and pink terrazzo installed by local craftsmen to lighten the rooms. The blue suites in the new buildings aim to replicate the living quarters of Jodhpur’s old city – often called the ‘Blue City’ as homes are painted with indigo – with smaller rooms and a duplex flat.

The 39 rooms, all with balconies, include seven suites with separate sitting rooms. Most rooms have views of the

Mehrangarh Fort, while four have private gardens overlooking the old, restored buildings.

Making sure the old buildings were not damaged while amenities such as air conditioners and heaters, showers and safes, were installed was also tricky, but here the ancient architecture helped the process.

“Luckily, as the old buildings are made entirely from stone, we could remove the stone blocks and put them back for wiring and plumbing; we sometimes used the floors for concealment as the floors are all new,” says Singh.

Where possible, the hotel was designed to be eco-friendly. All hot water in the hotel is generated by solar power, and waste water is treated at the hotel’s sewage treatment plant and is reused for landscaping. The traditional stone jaali (screen) acts as a skin for the buildings and absorbs and retains the sun’s heat, reducing the need for heating in winter and air-conditioning in summer.

ImpressiveRaas offers two dining zones in the baradari, the covered Darikhana restaurant and the al fresco Baradari Café. Both offer local specialities as well as international dishes. The café sits next to the swimming pool, which was located in a position that gets maximum sunlight and offers stunning views of the fort above. As the Mughal pavilion is structurally so impressive, Singh says they went for simplicity.

“We softened the effect of the stone inside the pavilion by using lime plaster. The

idea was to give people’s senses a break by having a simple off-white wall which gave a cool feeling,” he says.

Raas, a member of hospitality services group Design Hotels, also has a spa with four treatment rooms, a steam room and a relaxation area. Treatments are a blend of Ayurvedic principles and European health concepts.

Raas is the Singh brothers’ first foray into the hotel business, and while it was a lengthy process, Nikhilendra Singh says he would not dissuade other potential hoteliers from trying the same.

“Have patience, and don’t be afraid to experiment with combining the new and the old as it doesn’t disrespect the old but can often highlight it. But choose your architect carefully, and truly respect old buildings,” he says.

Lightingeffectsenhancethebeautyofthenight

Gardens,lilypondsandalfrescodiningareoverlookedbyMehrangarhFort

ThehotelreflectsthecommandingpresenceofJodhpur’shistoricMehrangarhFort

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Ma n y h o t e l s i n In d i a repor t tha t they a re finding themselves in an increasingly competitive

and sophisticated market compared with 10 years ago. As the number of people who travel both for work and pleasure in India increases, as does their frequency of travel, hotels are being driven to match their needs with high-standard facilities and added services.

Now, guests expect a variety of dining options at any hour of the day, a spa and exercise facilities – preferably including an infinity-edged swimming pool – and a plethora of personal touches to make their stay both comfortable and memorable.

Innovation and dealsIn 2011, a hotel, especially one located in one of India’s major cities, needs to go the extra mile to build loyalty among guests, be they leisure or business travellers, says Vijay Wanchoo, Senior Vice President and General Manager at The Imperial New Delhi.

“In the hospitality industry, expectations mean a great deal. Today’s guests are avid travellers and arrive at a hotel with a high level of expectations – a hotel room needs to be their home away from home, and offer new services,” he says.

India’s price conscious,

detail oriented guests are now looking for an experience as

much as a stay. Victoria Burrows

reports

India hotels adapt to

changing demands

“There have been substantial changes in the expectations of western guests since the economic recession in the United States and Europe,” she says. “They have become exceedingly price-conscious, a factor which probably has driven them towards looking for package deals – certainly deals to include full board. There is less spend on extras such as massage and day trips.”

The hotel has responded by creating a wider variety of packages: “We now offer packages that include full board and reduce the retail costs of extras,” says Baskin.

Domestic travellers, she says, have always been price conscious. “For Indians, value for money is a guiding principle and deals are sought and expected; the really important issue is to give a discounted rate when booking and to make perfectly clear absolutely every detail that is included, and to deliver.”

Expectations in terms of décor and facilities have not changed much since the hotel opened seven years ago, according to Baskin.

Adding, “The industry’s biggest challenge currently is maintaining a balance of achieving a healthy bottom line while enhancing the guest experience, creating guest loyalty and attracting new guests.”

The Imperial hotel opened its doors in 1934, and its elegant Art Deco interior, reputation for 5-star service, and respected fine-dining venues have all worked as major draws in attracting visitors over the years; but Wanchoo says guests, especially leisure travellers, now also expect packages that include discounted offers for dining and exploring the city.

“Our guests look for more innovative stay packages which give them a world-class stay combined with discounted food and beverage deals and tour offers,” he says.

Bibi Baskin, Managing Director at the boutique hotel Raheem Residency, located in the small coastal town of Alleppey in south India’s Kerala state, says that expectations when booking have changed more for western guests in recent years than for her Indian guests.

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says. “Even when travelling for pleasure, this would be a key requirement for me as I need to keep up-to-date with developments at the office and work emergencies.”

Fringe benefitsOther technology he would look for would include an iPod dock and DVD player, especially when on holiday.

“When travelling for business, my primary concerns are functionality and efficiency,” he says. “Fringe benefits and facilities are important on holiday; a swimming pool, and at least one restaurant are musts, and a spa is always appreciated.”

But while technology and facilities are relevant to most sectors of travellers, some hotels in India are trying to get one step ahead and offer something unique to

make them stand out from competitors. The Imperial has recently introduced rooms specially designed for single women travellers. The 12 rooms comprise an entire floor, and are staffed entirely by women housekeeping staff and butlers. Female associates accompany guests on airport transfers, and all telephone calls are screened before being put through to the rooms. Pink dressing gowns and a welcome gift of a basket of cosmetics and hair products are also provided.

“Our Eliza rooms provide a distinct ‘stay experience’ associated with comfort, convenience and care, and prioritise safety,” says Wanchoo.

While the average traveller may not expect a pink dressing gown in their room, guests in India are increasingly looking for this high level of detail. As standards increase, far from just a night in a hotel, today’s guest is, as Wanchoo says, “increasingly looking for an experience.”

allows guests to learn more about the cuisine served in the various restaurants at the hotel. The events centre around live cooking demonstrations that are followed by a 5-star lunch. These sorts of events add value to a guest’s experience and build guest loyalty.

Hotels in the major coastal tourist areas are also coming under pressure to provide high standards in terms of dining. Malabar Escapes runs five boutique hotels – Malabar House, Trinity, Serenity, Purity and Privacy – around Fort Cochin on India’s southeastern coastline, and reports that since Malabar House partnered with Relais & Châteaux, the global hotel and dining fellowship, diners expect an excellent dining experience.

“Guests have very high expectations of dining at Malabar Junction since our

partnership with Relais & Châteaux,” says Adrian D’Souza, Manager at Malabar House. “We have had to keep cuisine and service standards strict.”

Technology is another important guest expectation that has become more pressing in recent years. Siddharth Mougdil, a frequent business traveller who works in the finance industry, says that while he thinks his expectations have not altered that much over the past decade, he now expects free in-room wifi when he travels for business: “Whether a hotel offers free wifi would be a serious consideration when booking,” he

“In our experience, there has been no substantial change in the expectation of Indian guests; they still prefer television in the rooms, sometimes white tube lighting rather than atmospheric lighting, and they like to have large buffets for both lunch and dinner, and facilities for children,” she says.

Service, service, serviceBut in terms of service, hotels in Delhi and Mumbai particularly say they are increasingly driven to expand the services and activities available for guests. The Imperial hotel now offers cultural activities, such as art tours and events that allow guests to experience local festivals.

“Our tours for art connoisseurs are particularly popular,” says Wanchoo. “We also celebrate all major Indian festivals with our guests, involving them in local culture and the festivities.”

In response to the growing global interest in all things food, the hotel has also recently set up a Culinary Club that

“When travelling for business, my

primary concerns are functionality and efficiency” Siddharth Mougdil

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Three-Michelin-starred Heston Blumenthal, renowned for his unique and multi-sensory approach to cooking has opened his first restaurant outside the village of Bray in the UK.

Joining forces with Mandarin Oriental

Following the success of the inaugural Food and Beverage Conference & Expo in 2007, Starwood Hotels & Resorts recently staged its, ‘The NextCourse’ at the Sheraton Pudong in Shanghai. Running from February 28th to March 4th 2011.

Over 300 executive chefs, F&B directors, general managers, Starwood executives and outside speakers are meeting to discuss and define the future of hospitality services in the Asia Pacific region.

“Over the next decade, our business is expected to undergo profound changes and with such growth and diversity, decision makers in each Starwood property must be empowered to respond to the major changes that lie ahead,” says Martin Jones, Vice President, F&B, Starwood Asia Pacific Hotels & Resorts.

“It is therefore important that our

Winning entries of the prestigious culinary competition the Bocuse d’Or have been announced, and include a regional success.

Best commis has been awarded to Maiko Imazawa who works with Chef Tatsuo Nakasu in Tokyo.

First place – Bocuse d’Or 2011 – was awarded to Danish chef Rasmus Kofoed who as well as the trophy took away €20,000 (US$27,000) in prize money. The owner of Copenhagen’s Geranium restaurant – and firm favourite having won bronze in 2005, silver in 2007 and Bocuse d’Or Europa in 2010 – prepared a Scottish lamb dish and another of monkfish, crab and Scottish langoustine to win.

Bocuse d’Argent or second prize was given to Sweden’s Tommy Myllymäki together with €15,000 (US$20,400) while Gunnar Hvarnes from Norway won third prize Bocuse de Bronze and €10,000 (US$13,600).

The Bocuse d’Or began in 1987

Heston hits London … and SydneyHotel Group, Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck Group has created Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, at the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, London.

The menu will reflect Blumenthal’s inimitable style of culinary alchemy and will be influenced by historic British gastronomy, focusing on the revival and modernisation of traditional British recipes.

Some recipes Blumenthal’s research has uncovered date back to the 16th century, such as scallops with cucumber ketchup and peas, slow cooked short rib of beef in red wine juice with triple cooked chips and tipsy cake, made with spit roast pineapple and Jersey cream.

Inspired by Chef Blumenthal’s interest and knowledge of 15th and 16th century cookery, the design of the Mandarin Oriental-based restaurant is a contemporary concept around rich, natural materials such as wood, leather and iron, and designed by Adam D. Tihany.

With uninterrupted views over Hyde Park, the 140-seat restaurant features floor to ceiling glass walls providing a glimpse into the open kitchen and

an unusual one-of-a-kind large-scale chrome and steel pulley mechanism modelled after the contraption originally designed for the Royal British Court’s kitchens.

A private dining room is available for up to 10 guests as well as a chef’s table for six in the kitchen.

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal will open for lunch, afternoon tea and dinner from May 2011 and will be headed by Ashley Palmer-Watts, Group Executive Chef of The Fat Duck.

Before the anticipated opening of the restaurant, Heston Blumenthal has taken a trip Down Under to host a private lunch at Sydney’s Tattersalls Club, catered by one of Sydney’s leading caterers, Avocado Group.

The lunch was held in the club’s elegant Chelmsford Room overlooking … Hyde Park.

The ‘Evolution of Taste’ three-course lunch explored tasting items to demonstrate the role played by the senses while Blumenthal talked about his life, approach to cooking, signature dishes, as well as his new London restaurant.

Blumenthal’snewLondonrestaurant

Serving up Starwood’s next course

decision makers are encouraged to think laterally about excellence in all facets of their personal and professional

development. It is appropriate that this year’s conference is being held in the high growth region of China, where Sheraton Hotels will open another four hotels before the end of March 2011,” added Jones.

The conference also includes off-site dining experiences, a trade show, and keynote speaker American chef, Charlie Trotter who likes cooking to the sounds of improvisational jazz.

ExecutiveChefFredericColinofStarwood’sSt.RegisSingaporeproperty

Victory for Tokyo commiswhen world renown chef and author Frenchman Paul Bocuse devised the idea of a live cooking competition to be held biennially at the show Salon International de la Restauration, de l’Hotellerie et de l’Alimentation (SIRHA).

Since then the contest has evolved to become one of the grandest on the culinary calendar showcasing the best young talent in the industry and often acting as a springboard for stellar careers.

With five and a half hours to prepare one meat and one fish dish in front of a gallery audience, the jury of international gastronomy stars rate the chef’s performance, cooking methods as well as the final outcome (presentation and taste).

The event was also marked by a gala dinner for 2,000 guests at which each received a plate from Villeroy & Boch’s new Modern Grace tableware series; the plate was designed by well-known artist and designer Alain Vavro.

According to the company, “Modern Grace is produced using a premium bone china, impressive for its brilliant white, smoothly shimmering lustre and fine transparency, it is at the same time extremely hard and thus superbly robust and perfect for use in a hotel and restaurant setting.”

Bocuse d’Or competitions are now held throughout the world. The first one in Asia took place in 2008.

TheBocused’OrplatefromVilleroyandBoch

CorrectionIn a story on chocolate in the February issue of AHCT we gave an incorrect company name. The French manufacturer of chocolate is correctly called Monbana.

We regret the error.

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The Louis Lesaffre Cup, which recognises and rewards achievements in the baking world, has launched its Asia competition.

To run from 26th to 28th May this year, the Louis Lesaffre Cup final stages will be held at the Interbake Show in Guangzhou, China.

The Cup was first held in 2003 and has become the benchmark competition

Guests at Le Méridien Taipei will now find an exclusive location dedicated to premium chocolate desserts.

Santi SantamariaOn Wednesday February 16th Santi Santamaria collapsed in his Singapore kitchen and later died in hospital. He had suffered a heart attack.

The self-taught, world-class chef and author was in the city state to unveil his latest venture, Santi.

One of six celebrity chefs taking part in a marathon food tasting event at Marina Bay Sands, Santamaria had been jovial and chatting with media just hours before his collapse.

Santamaria owned and ran the Can Fabes in Sant Celoni, the town

where he was born, for 30 years and in 1994 the restaurant was awarded three Michelin stars, the first eatery in Spain to receive so many. Santamaria also ran Evo in Barcelona (one star) Tierra in Valdepalacios near Madrid (one star) and Sant Celoni in Madrid (two stars). In 2008 he opened Ossiano in Dubai.

Championing locally sourced produce long before it was fashionable, the chef was a severe critic of molecular gastronomy saying he feared its potentially unhealthy harmful effects. Comments he came under attack for, but never withdrew.

His latest venture in Singapore was to showcase his signature tapas dishes, including chilled Gazpacho, oysters escabeche and pinos morunos. The

restaurant was to be run by his daughter, Regina who has vowed to continue the venture.

Santamaria was 53.

Industrycolleaguesrememberachefwhoenjoyedlifetothefull

ChocoArt offers single-origin chocolates from all over the world, but is the country’s exclusive purveyor of the Gran Couva.

Gran Couva chocolate was first produced in 2000 and is made from cacao grown on a Caribbean island situated between Granada and Venezuela. The Gran Couva beans are harvested from the oldest and finest Trinitario trees and are deep black in colour with a rich, smooth roasted cocoa bean fragrance coupled with a mint-like freshness. Due to the very low yields, only 150 pieces are produced each year.

As well as the plain Gran Couva, ChocoArt will carry the chocolate with hazelnuts, which contains imported French hazelnut meal.

The chocolate shop is the brainchild of Executive Chef Chiu-Sheng Li and Deputy Executive Chef Chi-Hsien Cheng. A rising star in the chocolate world, Chef Cheng won the Taiwan regional championship at the 2011 World Chocolate Masters with his raspberry chocolate with lychee and rose, inspired by Taiwan’s homegrown lychee fruit and represents Taiwan at the Asian Cup this month.

As well as raw chocolate, ChocoArt will carry cakes, bread, hand-made chocolates, macaroons and beverages. Visitors may customise their purchase by choosing a preferred single-origin chocolate and cocoa ratio or select from one of the combinations of ingredients prepared by chef.

Premium chocolate

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INTERNATIONAL COOK-OFF COMES TO ASIAof the baking world. There are legs of the contest held in Europe, the Americas, the Africa-Mediterranean region, and now Asia.

Particitpating countries are represented by a national team, competing in three categories: bread, artistic creation and Viennese pastry.

Seven countries will take part in the Guangzhou bake-off: Australia, China,

South Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Japan.

Two winning entries will be selected and will go on to compete in the Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie, or Bakery World Cup in Paris next year.

The contest aims to raise the status of baking and baked goods by demonstrating the art of pastry and bread-making.

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46 AHCT March 2011

Spice kingdomOne of the latest additions to Hong Kong’s Wyndham Street strip of restaurants is new Indian eatery Rana Raj.

The name derives from the Sanskrit word for royalty and also honours the restaurateur who has ensured the restaurant has a fresh concept. Mr Rana has been in Hong Kong for several decades and set up the renowned Tandoor restaurant.

The chef is Shaym Pandey who comes from Delhi and his menu is based on the use of fresh ingredients and judicious spicing to create wine-friendly food. Most dishes are from northern India.

The chef makes his own paneer (cheese), which is cooked in the tandoor and a heavily garlic-laden naan bread to accompany butter chicken. Lesser known dishes also feature on the menu including banana chat – the surprising combination of banana, tomato, cucumber and tamarind has an acidic tang and a mostly smooth texture accented by the crunch of the cucumber.

Aloo tikki is a potato fritter stuffed with a chickpea mash that is much lighter than that combination of ingredients would suggest. The daal has the authentic smoky flavour familiar to anyone who has eaten the dish in India. How this smokiness is achieved is a secret.

While the wine list is global, many bottles come from smaller producers such as New Zealand, Portugal, Hungary and India itself. The Tiger Hill Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 comes from the Nasika Valley in Maharastra state, said to be India’s Napa Valley. The wine was chosen because of its balanced fruit and gentle tannins – heavier tannins are a poor mix with spices according to Annabel Jackson, the wine educator who helped compile the wine list.

Wines were chosen on the basis of how well their weight and texture matched the dishes during tasting sessions.

Culinary journeyThe Langham, Auckland’s new restaurant, Eight, promises to take diners on a culinary journey.

The restaurant has eight kitchens each named for an iconic journey, including the Silk Road, Spice Route, Tokaido, Route 66, Great Ocean Road, Garden Route, Champs-Elysées and Dessert Road.

The seasonal food will change daily and be matched by 40 wines by the glass. The chef behind the project is Langham’s Executive Chef Volker Marecek. The hotel’s Managing Director Jeffrey van Vorsselen hopes that the restaurant will show New Zealanders that hotel dining can be very different from their current expectations.

TheRoute66NewYork-stylegrillekitchen

Executive Chef Gilles Galli of Napasai, an Orient-Express property in Koh Samui, has pineapple carpaccio with fresh Koh Samui fruits as his signature dessert.

“I have been making this dessert for more than seven years now. It became my signature dessert because it is a simple, light and very fresh dessert. It is a perfect light plate to wind up a nice dinner.”

Classically the dish marries ingredients of different tastes, textures and even temperatures. “I make the dessert using mascarpone and yoghurt mixed with local fresh seasonal fruit such as pineapple, papaya and mango and fresh mint accompanied by pineapple sorbet,” Chef Gilles explains.

A signature dish encapsulates a chef ’s cooking philosophy – source and type of ingredients, methods used and values of health and well-being – as well as their personality.

Sugar and spiceTracy Wei is Head Pastry Chef at new Japanese restaurant Sakesan and claims a “light … refreshing … cleansing” frozen lemongrass mousse with goma shortbread, mango shichimi sorbet and orange segments as her signature dessert.

“This dessert most represents my style of combining flavours people don’t usually expect to go together such as mango and spicy. I think that the sweetness of mango pairs really well with the Japanese seven spice (shichimi).”

Representative of how signature dishes can come about, Wei’s mousse has evolved over time. “Every component is something that I have carried along with me in my career, slowly combining new techniques to make each component better and enhancing it each time.”

To prepare the dish, Wei combines milk, cream, sugar, yolks and lemongrass. “I blend the lemongrass with a little bit of yoghurt to bring out some tartness and heighten the lemongrass in the mousse. I use both black and white roasted sesame seeds from Japan in the shortbread to give the dessert texture. For the mango sorbet I bring sugar, water, mango puree and shichimi to a boil. After it has cooled down I let it freeze overnight and run it through the Pacojet. The anaho and purple shiso cress that I use for decoration is shipped from Japan daily.”

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Wei says she is pleased to note that restaurant guests respond to the “uniqueness” of the dish with many complimenting its combinations.

Signature dishes are the chef ’s equivalent of an artist’s masterpiece and like a great artist the chef may actually have several.

A pineapple by any other nameProducers and distributors are responding to the demand and Thierry Loyen, Brand Manager at Lactalis says convincing chefs your products are good enough for these signature creations is about ensuring reliability.

“Top chefs need to work with ingredients which they can always count on when creating first-class desserts. This [is a concept] we even use in our latest advertising campaigns, which say: ‘Behind excellent dessert is an excellent cream’.”

Using a blend of milk which has undergone rigorous testing and quality control procedures, Président whipping creams and butters are produced in the west of France. “The head pastry chef at Hotel Le Bristol in Paris, Laurent Jeannin will only use Président whipping cream and butter to create his signature ‘Exquisite chocolate sphere with light chocolate mousse’ ” Loyen says, adding this is just one example he could point to.

Steven Grande is Executive Chef of Karma Kandara Resorts. Chef Steven has several signature desserts but says one of his favourites has pineapple, in several different preparations, as its main ingredient. Chef has given the dish a number of names since he first made it.

“I’ve called it ‘Tasting of Pineapple’ on some of my menus in the past as well as ‘Vanilla Roasted Pineapple’ at other times. The dish is still evolving and I plan to create a couple of additional preparations to pique the curiosity aspect of the dish,” Chef explains.

Using a kaffir lime leaf with caramel candied pineapple madeleines, pineapple dusted tuile, coconut sorbet and pineapple chips, Chef Steven didn’t intend for this dish to become a signature one, saying it just evolved and that this is often the case for chefs.

“The evolution of this particular dish has taken place over a period of years and started off as a very simple dish on one of my menus when I was working in San Francisco,” he says.

“I am always adjusting elements to many dishes and this is what leads to the development of signature items on my menus. The process of adding and/or subtracting elements of any particular dish and tweaking the balances of flavours, textures and temperatures is something that I really enjoy and when the dish comes together perfectly, this gives a great sense of satisfaction.”

This dish is based on pineapple so Chef Steven says, “the first initiative is to source the fruit at the peak of quality.”

How toThe pineapple is roasted in a flavoured syrup of honey, Tahitian vanilla beans and a few drops of lemon juice for about two hours or until the pineapple is roasted throughout. The oven temperature is kept low so that the pineapple has time to take in the flavours of the syrup without becoming overcooked. The sorbet is prepared using fresh coconut in combination with coconut milk and “a few other ingredients” chef is reluctant to divulge, to give the final product a smooth texture and the taste of fresh young coconut.

Once again, balance of flavours is what chef is keen to achieve. “Pineapple and coconut are classic together,” says the chef. “The kaffir lime caramel is prepared using a combination of palm sugar and honey with the addition of sliced lime leaf at the end of the cooking process.

“It became my signature dessert because it is simple, light and

very fresh” Gilles Galli

“Pineapple and coconut are classic together” Steven Grande

Extradrybutter–richerinfat–fromElle&Vire

PrésidentbutterfromLactalis

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“ultimate in taste” firmly at the front of their mind. To that end, the company’s Excellence whipping cream,

company literature points out, whips 18 percent faster than others with a 36 percent greater whipping volume as well.

With a creamy taste and bright white colour (due to no artificial additives), the cream, “Even with acidic ingredients, is easily incorporated [into recipes] and will preserve its volume, and that of the finished product, up to 48 hours after whipping.”

Meanwhile, Elle & Vire’s Dry Butter is slightly richer in fat than traditional butters (84 percent compared to the usual 82 percent). With a relatively high melting point (34°C instead of 28°C) the butter allows chefs to “obtain an optimal plasticity and the perfect shape and thickness for full incorporation during the rolling process,” explains the company.

Even chefs working in Asian traditions are finding a use for cream in their creations.

Healthy appetiteGoh Mong Choon Jackson is Executive Chef at Parkroyal on Beach Road in Singapore and has been making the popular Nyonya (Straits Chinese) dessert Bubur Cha Cha as his signature dessert for 16 years.

Like his industry colleagues Chef Jackson is keen to emphasise that his take on the dish is much healthier as he substitutes the usual rich coconut cream with low fat milk and low fat cream as well as using brown rock sugar.

The colourful dessert consists of sweet potatoes – yellow, orange, and purple varieties – pumpkin, yam, tapioca jelly – “which gives the dessert the chewy and stretchy texture,” – and sago cooked in a sweet pandan base.

Chef Jackon believes it is “very important” for a chef to have a signature dessert dish, “As it provides a connection to the diners and similarly, the diners to me,” he says. “I have diners coming up to me requesting the Bubur Cha Cha when it is not available on the buffet spread as we rotate the types of dessert on the buffet spread. It goes to show that they appreciate the effort I put into making that dish.”

Similarly, Chef Gilles says one of the joys of creating a signature dish is the reaction from diners. “They are happy to have something different to the classic desserts,” he says. “[It’s] the last plate of a dinner, so it is very important to leave a good impression,” he says.

And Chef Steven agrees, saying signature dishes enable chefs to showcase their exceptional skills and creative talents. “When you create your signature dish there are no boundaries or rules. Ideally what you should enjoy in a signature dish cannot be replicated in any other restaurant. I would recommend any guests when visiting a restaurant who are unsure of what to eat to go for the chef ’s signature dishes, they should hopefully be ‘wowed’, at least that is what I would want my guests to experience.”

“[A signature dish] provides a connection to the diners and similarly, the diners to me” Goh Mong Choon Jackson

The lime leaf really helps to bring the dish into balance as it gives the caramel an essence that better relates to the other components of the dish rather than caramel alone.”

Admitting that he avoids verbosity in his menu descriptions, Chef Steven prefers to let the dish speak for itself. It is, after all the diners who will ultimately decide if a dish enjoys longevity – or not.

“This dish is a perfect example and guests often [voice] their delight with this dish as being light but packed with flavours. Many times, I have been told this dish is the perfect ending to the meal. Often times desserts are heavy and fill – or overfill – the diner; this dish does not and people really enjoy that aspect.”

But dairy products remain the staple ingredient for many desserts. French manufacturer, Elle & Vire say they are making their creams, milks, yoghurts and cheeses with chefs seeking the

StevenGrandeisExecutiveChefofKarmaKandaraResorts

Guestswantlightandhealthybutindulgent

JapanesecuisineatSakesan

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EVOLUTION PLUS FOAM MASTERThe Evolution Plus Foam Master with Flavour Station is the key to a limitless selection of coff ee specialities: with frothed milk in a selection of consistencies, coff ee and chocolate specialities and up to six diff erent syrup fl avours, innumerable trendy coff ee beverages are available at the simple push of a button. – A professional coff ee machine for higest standards of taste and performance!

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During the early years of China’s opening-up to the world, foreign visitors were invariably puzzled as to why taxi drivers used Nescafé jars to hold their brews of Chinese tea. Hop in any cab, in any city, and the driver would

take noisy swills from the brown-glass jar so familiar to westerners.The reason for the coffee-jar usage was, as so often in China, a

matter of face. Being able to afford a jar of imported Nescafé was a symbol of affluence, so instead of chucking the glass containers away when the granules had been used, they were adapted for storage of the nation’s most popular drink, green tea.

Nowadays, Chinese demonstrate their new affluence in an updated way, but the basic concept is pretty much the same. Strutting around the city clutching a Starbucks latte is a way of announcing to onlookers that you are affluent (US$4 for a coffee is still a big chunk of change for most of the 1.3 billion people in China), worldly and brand-conscious.

It is little wonder that Starbucks and other coffee chains such as the home-grown SPR and the British-based Costa Coffee are embarking on massive expansion campaigns, opening additional stores in major cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou and seeking out premises in second and even third tier cities, where coffee-drinking is still something of a novelty.

WesternStarbucks boss Howard Shultz says the company, which currently has under 400 stores in the country, plans to open thousands more in the coming years. At one point, the Seattle-based chain had a branch in the entranceway to the Forbidden City, which was ultimately closed, after a jingoistic, internet-led protest campaign claiming that the American brand’s presence was inappropriate at one of China’s most renowned imperial sites.

Urban Chinese are adding gourmet coffee to their tea-drinking lifestyle reports Mark Graham

Grounds for optimism

BoncaféaimstoexpandfromitsGuangzhoubase

GourmetcoffeefromRitz-Carlton

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“It’s a complicated market that requires significant discipline and thoughtfulness,” Shultz recently told a business newspaper. “Cracking the code in China for any company is not an easy task – there will be a number of winners and lots of losers who go there and rush to judgment and don’t succeed. The thing I am most interested in when I go to China is whether or not local Chinese are buying Starbucks coffee and sitting in our stores.”

The increased demand for coffee in general – whether it is at Starbucks, the local supermarket or in hotel outlets – has been a boon for coffee-supply companies who are already established in China. Boncafé International, which has its base in the southern city of Guangzhou, is looking at expansion, particularly in the

major cities such as Beijing and Shanghai.

“Instant coffee currently dominates the Chinese market, which could be attributed to the convenience of preparation,” says Christian W. Huber, Managing Director, Boncafé International. “However, we do see a potential in the fresh gourmet coffee category. Consumers are more well-travelled and well-heeled and influenced by the western culture of drinking coffee.

“Most Chinese consumers relate coffee drinking to being

part of the western lifestyle. The consumers who drink coffee are more exposed to the western culture and are more adventurous, open-minded, young, affluent and modern. There are other emerging trends of coffee drinking in China as well, such as Taiwanese, Japanese and even Guangdong-style.

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“Some of the challenges that we are currently facing would be on how to really educate coffee drinking as part of the lifestyle of our targeted consumers, maintain consistent marketing communication, and also to ensure that the regulations of doing business in China are managed well.”

Paolo Fenu, Commercial Director at Italian coffee machine supplier La San Marco notes that coffee drinking is a Chinese expression of an international fashion – for consumers to be focused on lifestyle choices.

Fellow supplier Franke Kaffeemaschinen AG is finding that education goes hand-in-hand with doing business in China. As with any venture in the Middle Kingdom, there are ample rewards in store for companies who do the legwork and are committed for the long term.

Eastern daily espresso?Says China Regional Sales Manager Tracey Bao: “China with its large urban population of close to 600 million people is slowly being influenced by western culture especially with food and beverage.

“To Chinese, coffee drinking has always been associated with western lifestyles, and it appeals more to the ever-growing richer China middle and upper class. The fast growth of this group – which also includes expatriates and Chinese returning from living overseas – is helping coffee gain a foothold in the land of tea-drinking.

“I really think the reason the Chinese drink coffee is more lifestyle than taste, but slowly they will learn to enjoy the taste and appreciate better coffee. Espresso-based coffee and drinks such as cappuccino and latte are becoming more popular. Chinese can

Themarketforcoffeeis600-million-consumersstrong

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Encompassing: n Hotels n Restaurantsn Catering operationsn Equipmentn Technologyn Human Resourcesn Investment

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d r i n k

58 AHCT March 2011

drink tea anywhere, anytime, so they prefer to have coffee outside with friends.”

Fenu also says drinking coffee is more of a lifestyle choice than a question of taste but – in terms of taste – capuccinos and lattes work best.

Chinese peope will drink coffee all day, he adds.At the Ritz-Carlton Financial Street in Beijing, tea remains the

drink of choice for most local guests, with scores of different options on the menu. However, coffee drinking is gradually becoming popular, particularly the latte and cappuccino styles which, at the Ritz-Carlton, are made from beans provided by Lavazza and Milangold.

Friends culture“Tea culture in China has been in place for over 3,000 years,” says Cedric Klein, Executive Assistant Manager for F&B. “Consequently, I don’t believe the coffee culture would ever overtake the tea culture. Nevertheless, based on the youth generation, influenced by western coffee-shop culture such as TV’s Friends, we could easily see a big increase in coffee consumption in the next few decades.”

At the Hyatt on the Bund in the port city of Shanghai, the house coffee is made from Arabica beans imported from Central and Southern America and Africa. The roasting is Viennese style, making it suitable for espresso and with milk-based coffees. “China is a traditional tea drinking country, but coffee has been accepted by the young generation as a new lifestyle drink with milk; iced, or flavoured with syrup,” says Director of F&B, Heiko Roeder.

One company right in tune with the tastes of local coffee drinkers is SPR, which has branches in 60 cities throughout the vast country. Rather surprisingly, SPR hails from the northern port city of Qingdao, known for brewing the country’s most famous beer Tsing Tao, rather than coffee.

“SPR Coffee is the pride of the Chinese coffee industry,” boasts the company. “We also have established a government-approved SPR Coffee School to fulfill the mission of teaching coffee lovers, and franchise store owners, to become professional baristas.

“The company’s Chinese headquarters and flagship store are located near Shilaoren Beach in Qingdao. This white marble coffee palace is located amid the most scenic possible setting.”

Scenic their headquarters may be, but SPR stores do not quite achieve the relaxed ambience of Starbucks or Costa Coffee, even though the coffee itself is excellent. Their stores can also be found in less-obvious locations, away from the CBD or the airport; many caffeine-starved foreign visitor to China has been delighted to spot an SPR sign in an outer suburb.

The coffee boom is set to continue apace but it will be many a long year yet before the majority of the 1.3 billion population is grabbing lattes on the way to work. Most people in China still live in rural areas – and paying US$4 for a paper cup of coffee remains a shockingly expensive extravagance. Those brown jars of Nescafé filled with tea leaves will be around for some time to come, particularly in the less-developed regions.

ThepapercupreplacestheusedNescaféjar

LaSanMarco’snew105seriesmachine

“Chinese can drink tea anywhere, anytime, so they prefer to have coffee outside with friends” Tracey Bao

CedricKlein,ExecutiveAssistantManagerforF&BattheRitz-CarltonFinancialStreet

p r o d u c t n E w s

AHCT March 201160

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International Wine & Gourmet Foods,Hotel & Foodservice Equipment,Supplies & Services Exhibition &Conference in Macau, China

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Locking onTo support a one-card solution, Cisa has introduced its Mifare technology. A tamper-proof magnetic clutch ensures battery life, improves product stability and makes maintenance easy. Pure stainless steel rotating structures ensure a working life of more than 10 years, while the free rotating handle prevents forced entry. Water-proof, dust-proof, and cover-plated, the unit batteries may be accessed outside the door, ensuring speedy maintenance. Different customer master keying requirements are met with the interchangeable cylinder, which has up to 400,000 cycles.

Formoreinformation:www.cisa.com

Harmonious tasting wineTo answer the question of how wine may be more accurately graded, judged … and tasted, Rastal has introduced its Harmony glassware range. According to Martin Darting, sommelier trainer and sensory science expert, taste perception comprises four key points: smelling to define the aroma; tasting to distinguish sweet, sour, salty, bitter or fats; mouth feel for gustatory perception; and seeing the colours, shapes, structure and viscosity of the wine. The Harmony range of wine glasses is designed to answer these criteria needs, with the Harmony 53 glass perfectly suited for full-bodied mature reds and the same series’ 35 glass for whites.

Formoreinformation:www.rastal.com

Sparkling chocolatesLong known as a chocolate powder and liquid maker, Monbana has been developing a range of snacks, fine chocolates and spreads and is now presenting two new ranges. The first is a line of seven chocolate bars available in 80g or 90g blocks and named after French regions, such as La Champenoise, La Recette Occitane and Les Alpilles. Secondly, what the company is calling its “pop ‘n rock” chocolates, which are made with popping candy inside. In dark and milk varieties the sparkly chocolate squares come in red and silver coloured boxes of 55.

Monbana’sLaRecetteOccitane

Formoreinformation:www.monbana.com


AHCT March 201162


March 2011 AHCT 63

DualZone

Model: D-290

2 temperature zonesfor professionals

The first “product” from the EuroCave Professional, Dual Zone, is a 2 temperature zone wine serving cabinet combining a modem design with the latest technology.Two large zones, which are completely independent, allowing your red wines, white wines all to be kept at the right serving temperature.In this way, Dual Zone allows you to easily access bottles when dealing with customers’ wine orders.

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World leader in Wine Cellars

Down on the rangeCommercial cooking equipment provider, Vulcan has delivered what the company is calling the “ultimate” in “durability, innovation and versatility” with its latest line of heavy duty ranges and customised cooking suites.

The Vulcan V Series is “modular from top to bottom and side-to-side,” providing complete flexibility to foodservice operators as menu and/or kitchen needs change.

The heavy-duty range is made especially for large-volume kitchens, from stainless steel for long-term durability. Its design enables easy integration with all other kitchen equipment. The cooking suites are one piece 12 gauge stainless steel units for durability, and ease of cleaning. Company representatives will consult with clients to provide the best customised options, which include refrigeration, heated plate cabinets, bains-marie, prep sinks, hand sinks, taps, pot racks and more.

Formoreinformation:www.vulcanequipment.com.

Casual diningTabletop manufacturer, Steelite introduces its latest collection – FreeStyle. What the company is calling “a new concept in casual dining,” FreeStyle is a creative and functional range, designed to “present menus in an exciting and contemporary way”. Efficiently stored, with plating portion control, heat retention and ease of use, FreeStyle combines sculptural, curvy forms with multifunctional items comprising four plates – 37.5cm, 30.5cm, 25.0cm and 15.5cm and three bowls – 28.0cm, 18.0cm and 13cm. FreeStyle items come with a lifetime edge-chip warranty.

Formoreinformation:www.steelite.com

Designer buffetsWhile Zieher’s new buffet system ‘Bloxx’ may have a filigree appearance, it is surprisingly sturdy. Black blocks (hence the name) of different heights (eight, 16 or 24 cm) can be invisibly interconnected to support units of “bubble-free, crystal clear” glass, which has been specially treated to prevent discolouration from sunlight. Novelty items such as glass test tubes are included in the range to add interest to any buffet design. The glass is also available in black. Two different types of menu holder, napkin rings and a cigar ashtray, complete the range.

Formoreinformation:www.zieher.com

hundreds of subtly varied bowls. Production costs however are likely to hold back the full extension of this policy into the spirit world.

Riedel makes different glasses for VSOP and XO cognacs, but so far only one malt whisky glass, although the company’s usual logic would suggest that subtly varied designs for the different Scottish regions, or even distillers, might be appropriate.

The lead crystal single malt glass has nevertheless been highly successful, and

guiding principle as Riedel wine glasses that “Content commands shape”.

Gidumal argues that many of the glasses tradition dictates for spirits service are in fact unsuitable for the role, and that in time the “brandy balloon” will come to be as much of an archaism as the coupe which used to kill the bubbles in champagne so effectively.

“One of the problems i s that manufacturers have focused on big glasses – big tumblers, big brandy balloons – and the problem with big glasses for spirits is you get this evaporation of alcohol which can totally overwhelm the aroma,” he asserts.

Far more suitable for the appreciation of fine spirits, Gidumal argues, are the Riedel single malt and port glasses – both of which are more versatile than the names imply. The bell-shaped malt glass, he says, has been found by connoisseurs to be suitable for cognac. The stemless spirit glass in the bar range reproduces the bowl of the port glass, and is considered suitable for a wide range of fortified wines and spirits.

“That’s the entry level glass,” he says. “It’s spirit friendly without getting specific.”

In wine, specificity has long been Riedel’s calling card, with a range of

Glass menagerieThe matching of glasses to drinks is not the simple matter it used to be. robin Lynam reports

In recent years much has changed in the world of restaurant glassware. Where previously the choice would often have been a simple one between

a glass for red wine and a glass for white, sommeliers now insist on a wide range of designs, often specific to particular regions and grape varieties.

Bars, beyond introducing the occasional novelty glass, have been more conservative in the receptacles they employ to serve even the finest spirits. From shot, highball and martini glasses to tumblers and brandy snifters, generally speaking the options have remained simple and generic.

Has the time come to re-examine the range?

One man who thinks so is Ravi Gidumal, Managing Director of Town House, the Hong Kong distributor for Riedel. The pioneer of wine specific stemware is now expanding its range of professional glasses for spirits and fortified wines.

“Obviously the market is much smaller than for wine glasses,” says Gidumal, “but I think the traction is starting. In our Riedel Restaurant portfolio we have a single malt glass and cognac glass and we will soon be introducing a port glass. There is also now a Riedel O [the brand’s stemless range] glass for spirits.”

Riedel Restaurant is the manufacturer’s range for the trade, and the wine glasses are to be found on many of Hong Kong’s top

tables. Some restaurants also use the more expensive – and fragile – glasses from the company’s Vinum and Sommeliers ranges.

“Most of our consumer lines are produced in lead crystal,” explains Gidumal. “Our restaurant line is produced in non-lead crystal, a totally different material and one which is less expensive. In addition the glasses are marginally thicker which contributes to durability.”

Break with traditionThe lead crystal Riedel range already features Riedel Bar, a collection that currently includes glasses for tequila, grappa, martinis, cognac, port, brandy, bourbon, and single malt whisky, all designed on the same

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since being introduced to the Restaurant Range a year ago, Gidumal says, a broader professional customer base is building.

Even when only the more expensive version was available it was a popular choice in specialist whisky bars. At the New York Bar of the Park Hyatt in Tokyo, which offers a wide range of single malts, they are automatically served in Riedel glasses.

Following the normDesirable though fine spirit specific receptacles may be, bartenders like versatility, and as Raymond Tam of UK based tableware company Athena’s Hong Kong branch office points out, tradition has a certain grip on customer expectations.

“ C h o o s i n g g l a s s e s i n v o l v e s considerations of function, size and outlook, and of course the taste of the bartender. Some glasses can be used for several kinds of wine, for example, but some can be used

only for one special wine or cocktail. Norms or expectations have been built up which the bar somehow has to follow,” says Tam.

Athena’s range of glassware includes several handmade double wall thermo glass receptacles ideal for keeping chilled drinks cold, or for keeping winter warmers such as punches and hot toddies hot. The company uses lightweight borosilicate glass for extra strength.

Durability is an important consideration for bars when choosing glasses, and another company with a strong reputation in that field is Schott Zwiesel. Its core range for bar use, Basic Bar, was designed in partnership with Charles Schumann, proprietor of the famous Schumann’s American Bar in Munich.

The 17 piece collection is designed to give bartenders maximum room for creative manouevre with a manageable number

glassware that offers an element of novelty. At the recent Ambiente 2011 trade fair in Frankfurt, for which Schumann was on hand to demonstrate the Basic Bar range, Schott Zwiesel introduced the “Dancing Tumbler”, a curved bottomed glass which cannot tip over but constantly rocks backwards and forwards when resting on a bar or table. The base also fits comfortably into the palm of a hand, and the glass was one of the hits of the fair. It will be available in Hong Kong from April, and will be featured by Global Hotelware at Hofex.

Also on display at Hofex will be the Stolzle Bar and Liqueur range of glasses, represented in Hong Kong by Equip Asia.

Stolzle’s designs, like Riedel’s, aim to maximize appreciation of spirit aromas by minimizing the “burn” of the alcohol, and the line includes glasses specially designed for cognac, grappa, port, vodka or aquavit and schnapps as well as general purpose shots.

The range also includes modern and more traditional tumblers and The Glencairn Glass, a tasting and nosing glass now extensively used in Scotland by the whisky industry and also in use in Asia at bars with a strong single malt focus such as The Canny Man in Hong Kong’s Wanchai district.

Much of the high quality glassware seen on Asian tables is still imported from Europe or North America, but Asian companies are increasingly claiming a share of the market.

Thailand based Ocean Glass with its Ocean Professional and Lucaris lines, represented in Hong Kong by Kung Kai Hong & Co, supplies a range of modern glassware for the bar trade, including its angular Scirocco and Trinity triangular tumblers which offer a modern slant on classic bar glasses. Salsa glasses with their zigzag stems give a modern look to an essentially classic martini glass.

Kung Kai Hong also represents leading US glassware manufacturer Libbey, which offers a range of spirit and liqueur glasses in addition to its well-established Wine Master range.

French company Arc with its Luminarc range of glassware is known for coloured glasses, and unusual stemware such as the Collection Curl, favoured by bartenders looking to give their drinks a modern look.

An ever-increasing range of choices in specialist glassware is available to bartenders looking for different avenues to express their creativity.

“The problem with big glasses for spirits is you get this evaporation of alcohol which can totally overwhelm the aroma” Ravi Gidumal

of glasses, and is intended, according to Schumann, to reflect “international bar trends from the cone shaped beaker to the filigree martini glass”.

Back to basicsTrade acceptance of the range has been encouraging, according to Umesh Bhasin of Hong Kong distributor Global Hotelware Ltd.

“Charles Schumann’s collection Basic Bar, is used by all Hyatt hotels in Hong Kong and Macau, Zuma, Tango Argentinian Steakhouse, Lily & Bloom Bar & Restaurant, Roka, Cecconi’s, 208 Duecento Otto, and also at the upcoming Galaxy Resorts, Banyan Tree & Hotel Okura in Macau,” says Bhasin.

While Basic Bar involves giving classic glasses a modern twist, he points out that bartenders and their customers also like

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The ZIEHER catalogue 2011 !

www.zieher.com

HOTELEX SHANGHAI29.03. - 01.04.2011

(with Equip Asia Ltd.)

„Skyline“

„Modul“- Melamin

„Collina“

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Executive Chef Vinny Lauria makes pizzas to relax.The head chef of Italian restaurant 208 Duecento

Otto in Hong Kong says “cooking centres you” as he demonstrates to AHCT how he makes the authentic

Napoli pizzas served in the upstairs portion of the restaurant. Sometimes he even makes pizza “just to play,” adding lardo, rosemary, semi-dried and smoked cheeses, a combination he describes as “awesome”.

While most of the restaurant’s menu is described as “a New York interpretation of rustic Italian cuisine”, the pizzas are in authentic Naples style, where the dish was invented. The pizza menu – now supervised by Chef Vinny – is the creation of Enzo Carbone, a specialist pizza chef from Naples and from a family of trattoria owners.

Carbone’s expertise means that the pizzas meet the specifications of The Association Verace Pizza Napoletana. Only buffalo mozzarella from Campana is used and the crust is thin and has the cornicione or charring at the borders that a native of Naples would recognize.

“It encapsulates the dough and chewiness that Napolitana pizza is all about,” says Chef Vinny.

That crust comes from baking the pizzas in an oven that was custom-designed and imported from Naples. The gas-fired oven has a flat stone base and a domed ceiling that reflects heat down. Chef Vinny tells AHCT that the heat is dispersed across the entire dome and the temperature reaches 489-495ºC. The high heat kills the yeast as soon as the dough hits the oven and the pizzas come out in 90 seconds.

While Chef Vinny thinks wood-fired ovens are “awesome” he also says they are difficult to control.

The New Yorker, who previously worked for Mario Batali at Babbo, keeps the pizzas simple. The dough is a mix of several flours that are leavened with fresh yeast and proved for eight hours before cooking. The base is stretched by hand and then topped with milled tomatoes and only one or two other toppings. The signature D.O.C is just tomato, mozzarella and basil. Chef Vinny often finishes the pizza with a splash of olive oil “because it gives an instant aroma hit the minute the pizza lands on the table.”

Like many other chefs, the Sicillian-American finds that the high and even heat of the pizza oven make it ideal for other dishes and he is currently contemplating putting baked pastas on the menu or specials of oven-roasted cockles, clams or prawns.

Chefs are using the

characteristics of pizza ovens

to cook a range of other

dishes. Thora Jacobsen reports

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Custom DesignedStone Hearth Ovens

Char GrillsParillas & ChurrascosCustom Designed Grills

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Rotisseries

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TherapyPhilip Kraal, Executive Chef at Langham Place Beijing Capital Airport, is another chef who loves his pizza oven and finds making the dish therapeutic. Chef Philip says the pizza oven is one of the most valuable pieces of kit in the kitchen.

“I love them! I love the way they look, the way they perform,” he tells AHCT.

“I actually find the pizza oven quite stimulating and therapeutically healing at times! When I feel myself getting bogged down with desk work and overzealous managers, I will often quietly slip away to the kitchens and knock up some bread or bang out a couple of pizzas … just to release a little tension. Sure beats hitting someone and the staff love sharing in the results,” the New Zealander adds.

Chef Philip loves his ovens so much he has given them nicknames. The Lady is in all-day dining restaurant The Place and can knock out three or four pizzas at a time. Big Boy in signature restaurant Fuel can cook eight-10 at a time. While both ovens can reach temperatures of 450ºC they are generally set at 350ºC and can pump the pizzas out in about three minutes.

The ovens are gas-fired but chef puts a block of hickory in the corner of the oven that smokes away giving what he describes as “a beautiful, smoky finish to our work.”

In fact the ovens don’t even have to be on to be useful. At night racks of fruits and vegetables are placed in the entrance to dry out as the ovens cool down. As well as roasting and braising meats the ovens come into use in the morning for baking Danish pastries and croissants for breakfast.

“It encapsulates the dough and chewiness that Napolitana pizza is all about” Vinny Lauria

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Helen Kenniff, Sales & Marketing Manager at leading supplier Beech Ovens says the company finds chefs are using their pizza ovens to “cook a diverse menu. This includes roast meat dishes, potted dishes such as stews and … bread and other baked dishes.

“Beech Ovens has even designed a combination oven which is a two door oven offering pizza and dish cooking on one side, with a dedicated grill on the other for meat, fish, poultry and vegetables.”

The company believes that 310ºC of even heat is high enough to kill the yeast and ensure the pizza crust and topping are cooked properly.

The even heat and high temperature come from a patented manufacturing technique. The ovens have reinforced steel shells with a thick refractory cement domes and 75mm thick super high density bricks.

HeadspaceRival Wood Stone has a different technique for producing high, even heat.

“One of our points of difference (something that makes our ovens stand out) is that we offer an infra-red under floor burner. The infra-red burners assists with the heat up of the ovens and also ensure that the floor maintains temperature,” says Tamra Nelson of the company’s Sales and Marketing department.

“A larger thermal headspace means that the heat generated in the oven stays where it should, inside the oven for cooking rather than immediately exiting out the doorway and flue. Less fuel is required with Wood Stone ovens! This also allows Wood Stone to manufacture ovens with wider doorways, which leads to greater visibility for both the chef and the customers,” she adds.

“I love them! I love the way they look, the way they perform” Philip KraalWood Stone customers are equally catholic in what they put in their

ovens. “We cook everything in the ovens, not just pizza,” says Nelson.

RoastMiwe’s cube oven is also versatile. The electrically heated high-temperature deck baking oven with stone plates is not only good for pizza but also for “attractive and high-profit-margin products like snacks, quiche, tarte flambée, puff pastry dough and pretzels,” according to the company.

At Melbourne’s Downstairs At Bluestone, Chef Jason Smythe cooks tapas, burgers and wood-fired pizzas for 80 covers a night. As well as finding the oven ideal for roasting duck bones to make duck jus, Chef Jason also cooks tandoori chicken, which ends up as a pizza topping.

Chefs at the two branches of Criniti in Sydney, serving between 4-6,000 covers per week, find that the pizza oven is perfect for finishing a traditional southern Italian dish called Panzerottini. The dish consists of a pocket of dough filled with varying amounts of melted mozzarella, Napoli sauce and other fillings that is wrapped, salted and deep-fried. It is then placed in the pizza oven to rise and create a softer, fluffier dough.

The restaurant also serves steaks, vitello, pollo and fish, accompanied by vegetables roasted in the pizza oven.

Chef Philip Kraal is surely not alone when he says “Yup, it’s true … I’ve got a thing for my pizza ovens!”

Chef Vinny’s oven is giving him one minor headache. As much as he would like to introduce specials cooked in the oven he can’t – his pizzas are so popular there is usually at least one in the oven and no space for any other dishes.

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Intenseheat(PhotographycourtesyofBeechOvens)

The HA+D Expo focuses exclusively on products and services for the design and build of Asia Pacific hospitality projects with its comprehensive industry trade show and two-day design conference.

HOSFAIR Guangzhou has been successfully held for eight years with a 30 percent rate of growth every year and has already become one of the hospitality fairs with the quickest development, highest internationalisation degree and best impact in China.

The international exhibition for natural, organic and health products and supplies.

FHM 2011 is anticipated to be bigger and more elaborate than the last edition, with countless delightful activities that will entice and benefit the trade buyers of the food & beverage and hospitality sectors. The FHM series has always been a contributor to the hospitality and tourism sectors of Malaysia.

Food&HotelVietnam2011, the sixth edition of Vietnam’s most established international food and hospitality trade event is the unrivalled sourcing ground and networking trade event for food and hospitality trade professionals in Vietnam.

A show specialising in décor, technology, foodservice equipment, flavours, linens, amenities, tableware and other essentials.

The 15th international exhibition for food, drink, hospitality, foodservice, bakery and retail industries.

Texcare Asia is the leading international laundry and dry-cleaning trade fair in the region. Over 10,000 sqm will feature a wide array of products and services including laundry, ironing, dry-cleaning, dying machinery and agents, equipment, textiles and accessories for rental services, laundry and dry-cleaning related measuring instruments. The sixth edition will focus on environmental compatibility and sustainability.

Hotel Equipment & Supplies Expo incorporates not only the largest collection of hospitality-related exhibitors in the country but also foodcourts, stalls, and demonstration areas where visitors can sample the latest foods and flavours, coffees and other beverages all at the one event.

Guangzhou Huazhan Exhibition Co., Ltd9H, Jinsui Tower, and No.900 Guangzhou Ave. Mid, Guangzhou, ChinaTel: +86-20-38866965Fax: [email protected] www.hosfair.com

New Hope Natural Media, a division of Penton Media Inc.,Unit B, 3/F, EIB Centre, 40 Bonham Strand, Sheung Wan, Hong KongTel: (852) 2975-9051Fax: (852) [email protected] www.naturalproductsasia.com

Malaysian Exhibition Services Suite 1401, 14th Floor, Plaza Permata, Jalan Kampar, Off Jalan Tun Razak 50400, Kuala Lumpur Tel: + 603 4041 0311 Fax: + 603 4043 7241 [email protected]

Singapore Exhibition Services Pte Ltd1 Jalan Kilang Timor #09-02 Pacific Tech Centre Singapore 159303 Tel: +65 6233 6638 Fax: +65 6233 6633www.foodnhotelvietnam.com

GLM1133 Westchester Avenue, White Plains, NY 10604-3547Tel: +1 914 421 3346Fax: +1 914 948 [email protected]

China International Exhibitions LtdRoom 2402, Singular Mansion No. 318 - 322 Xian Xian Road Shanghai 200336, ChinaTel: +86 21 6209 5209Fax: +86 21 6209 5210 [email protected] www.fhcchina.com

Messe Frankfurt Shanghai (Beijing Office) Rm 1721, Tower 2, Bright China Chang An Building No. 7 Jian Guo Men Nei Avenue, East District Beijing 100005, PR China Tel: (86) 10 6517 1388 Fax: (86) 10 6510 [email protected]

Coastal International Exhibition Co., Ltd. Room 2106, China Resources Building, 26 Harbour Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong Tel: (852) 2827 6766 Fax: (852) 2827 6870 [email protected] www.hotel-exhibition.com

May 31-June 2 Hospitality Architecture + Design Exhibition & Conference Singapore

June 30-July 2 China Import and Export Fair Complex Guangzhou China

25-27 August The 9th Natural Products Expo Asia Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, Wanchai, Hong Kong

Sept 20-23 Food and Hotel Malaysia 2011 Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

Sept 28-30 Food & Hotel Vietnam 2011 Saigon Convention and Exhibition Centre Vietnam

Nov 12 – 15 International Hotel, Motel Restaurant Show Jacob K Javits Convention Center 655 W 34th St New York, NY 10001

Nov 16-18 FHC China Shanghai New International Expo Centre Pudong, Shanghai China

Nov 17-19 Texcare Asia China International Exhibition Center Beijing China

Nov 23-25 The 7th International Hotel Expo <Hotel Expo 2011> Cotai Strip®CotaiExpo TM (The Venetian Macao)

HA+D ExpoMarina Bay Sands, 10 Bay Front AvenueSingapore [email protected]: 65 63954592

DATE EvENT DETAIlS ORGANIzER

27 Feb – 2 Mar Gulfood Dubai World Trade Centre Dubai

Mar 29 – 1 Apr Hotelex Shanghai 2011 Shanghai New International Expo Center Shanghai China

Mar 29-Apr 1 Horeca 2011 Biel Beirut Lebanon

April 6 – 11 Food and Hotel Indonesia The Jakarta International Expo Kemayoran Jakarta Indonesia

May 11 –14 Hofex 2011 The 14th International Exhibition of Food & Drink, Hotel, Restaurant & Foodservice Equipment, Supplies & Services Hong Kong Exhibition and Convention Centre WanChai, Hong Kong

May 17-19 The Hotel Show Dubai Dubai World Trade Centre UAE

May 18-20 Sial China 2011 Shanghai New International Exhibition Centre Shanghai China

May 19-20 India Hotel Expanson Summit JW Marriott Hotel Mumbai India

May 25-29 Thaifex – World of Food Asia Impact Exhibition Center, Bangkok Thailand

Gulfood is the Middle East’s leading dedicated exhibition for the foodservice and hospitality sectors. The event provides industry suppliers with the region’s largest central business hub, ultimately delivering an unrivalled product and service showcase and the opportunity to meet serious international buyers face to face.

Hotelex shows are the meeting point for the hospitality industry. Managers, manufacturers, traders and distributors gather annually to source, sell, network and debate future trends.

Horeca is the region’s largest hospitality exhibition. Established in 1994, it serves as an annual meeting place for both the hospitality and food & beverage service industries both within and beyond the Middle East region.

International exhibitors showcasing a full range of food and hospitality products including food and drink; foodservice equipment and supplies; bakery equipment and ingredients, and hotel interiors.

Join 35,000+ trade buyers and 1,800+ exhibiting companies including 44 national groups at Asia’s most anticipated and established tradeshow - Hofex 2011. This biennial tradeshow will showcase the newest collections of hospitality and foodservice equipment and the trendiest food and drink products from worldwide exhibitors.

SIAL China 2010 had 1339 exhibitors from 76 countries and regions with 28 Chinese provinces represented and more than 30,000 visitors. Organisers are looking forward to welcoming everyone to SIAL China 2011.

Established in 1999, The Hotel Show is the exclusive international B2B hospitality event for the Middle East and GCC region. An important event in the industry calendar for international and regional suppliers, manufacturers, distributors to meet qualified buyers, procurement directors and general managers from dynamic markets like UAE, Saudi Arabia, North Africa or the Levant.

Riding on the economic growth and rising income levels that India has witnessed in recent years, hospitality has emerged as one of the key sectors driving the country’s economy. The current market size is US$23 billion, accounting for 2.2 percent of India’s GDP. The India Hotel Expansion Summit will examine hotel expansion in India and how international and domestic players can come together to create the most advanced hotels for the fast-growing hospitality market.

International Trade Exhibition covering Food & Beverages, featuring Halal and organic food, food catering, food technology, hospitality service and retail and franchise.

DWTCDubai World Trade CentreP.O. Box 9292Dubai, UAETel: +971 4 332 [email protected] www.gulfood.com

Shanghai UBM Sinoexpo International Exhibition Co., Ltd. 10/F, Xian Dai Mansion, 218 Xiang Yang Road (s), Shanghai, 200031, China Tel: + 86 21-6437 1178 Fax: + 86 21-6437 [email protected]

Hospitality Services s.a.r.lDekwaneh, Main Road, borghol Bldg, 2nd FloorP.O Box 90155 Jdeidet-El-Metn 1202 2020 Beirut, LebanonTel +961 1 4800 81 Fax +961 1 48 28 [email protected] www.hospitalityservices.com.lb

PT Pamerindo Indonesia13F Deutsche Bank Building, Jl. Imam Bonjol 80Jakarta 10310, IndonesiaTel: +62 21 316 2001Fax: +62 21 316 1981www.Pamerindo.com

Hong Kong Exhibition Services LtdUnit 2010, 20/F, China Resources Building, 26 Harbour Road, Wanchai, Hong KongTel: +852 2804 1500 Fax: +852 2528 3103 [email protected] www.hofex.com

Comexposium Shanghai Room 301, Dongyi Building, 88 Changshu Road,Shanghai 200040, China Tel: +86 21 62 49 20 28 Fax: +86 21 62 49 34 14www.sialchina.com

Suite 502-509 The Palladium Cluster C, Jumeirah Lake Towers PO Box 33817 Dubai, UAE Tel: +9714 4380355 Fax: +9714 4380358www.thehotelshow.com

Catriona Scanlon, Communications ManagerNoppen CoT: +86 21 6085 1000 F: +86 21 6192 [email protected] : www.noppen.com.cn

Koelnmesse Pte Ltd152 Beach Road, #25-05 Gateway EastSingapore 189721Tel: +65 6500 6700Fax: +65 6294 [email protected]

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Heating up for Hofex

HOFEX 2011Hong Kong Convention &

Exhibition CentreWan Chai

Hong KongMay 11 – 14, 2011

www.hofex.com

Held biennially since 1987 the 14th edition of Hofex will be staged at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre this May.

With an increase in exhibition space of 10 percent, this year’s International Exhibition of Food and Drink, Hotel, Restaurant and Foodservice Equipment, Supplies and Service show stretches through 11 halls taking up 48,000 square metres, making this the biggest edition ever.

Featuring hospitality industry service and equipment providers, manufacturers and distributors to capture all buyers’ needs, Hofex will also present signature events such as the Hong Kong Culinary Classic, the International Wine Challenge, and the Allwood Open Cup to recognise creative and classic bartending flair.

The always well-supported Regional Hotel General Manager’s Forum promises to be a lively affair while the Asian Club Management Conference and the newly launched Asian Hospitality Technology Education Conference will also be staged.

Within the 1,800-strong list of exhibitors, the national group sector shows the strongest growth.

The more than 35,000 trade buyers who are expected to attend Hofex 2011 will be treated to a range of exotic and novelty items.

Fresh milk, premium meats, olive oils, teas, coffees, kimchi, seaweed and aloe vera will all be on display.

These latest collections hail from Australia, China, Cyprus, France, Italy, Japan, Korea, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey, the United States and others. In all 44 national groups will be represented.

Bottled goodsFine wines will no doubt be of particular interest as more and more wine becomes the beverage of choice in China and Hong Kong reaps the rewards of a zero wine sales tax rate.

Last year, Australia alone recorded a 36 percent year-on-year increase in wine exports to China, accounting for 55 million litres, while the region’s love affair with French appellations continues to grow apace. The wine growing district of Bordeaux, for example exported more than 251,000 hectolitres – for a total of €333 million (US$455 million) – to China and Hong Kong in 2010.

For these reasons, and more, the wines and spirits section at Hofex is always a popular venue. For the 2011 show, a number of fine, award-winning red, white and sparkling varieties will be showcased as well as wine-related products such as Montelvini Spa’s wine dispenser and the world’s first fully automated Champagne serving system – Enomatic’s The Flute, which as well as delivering the bubbles at a perfect temperature and in exact quantities, captures data related to the service and profitability of the brands which have been included in the machine system.

Hofex is of course also all about food preparation concepts and service both of which will feature heavily at this year’s show, particularly as the demand for a complete range of hospitality equipment, technology and systems grows.

Kenwood are presenting the Total Food Preparation Concept – the Kenwood Cooking Chef, which they describe as a powerful, robust mixer with the ability to cook and stir at the same time.

Numerous well-known international and regional exhibitors such as Equip Asia and Kolb will show their latest foodservice ranges and products, as well as those companies that specialise in hygienic, space optimising food storage systems, barware lines and one-touch cooking functions.

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March 2011 AHCT 77

Hosfair builds on past successes

HOSFAIR 2011China Import and Export Fair

ComplexGuangzhou, China

June 30-July 2, 2011www.hosfair.com

With several months remaining before the show starts, the organizers of Hosfair have already recorded bookings by 580 exhibitors of 1,800 stands.

The biggest show in the middle of the year in China is expected to fill five halls and have 3,000 stands occupying 54,000 square metres of exhibition space. The organizers anticipate more than 5,000 industry professionals will attend.

Each of the last eight editions has shown a growth rate of 30 percent. The 2010 event was typical of the show’s strengths. The 41,022 visitors from 57 countries and regions included 4,180 from overseas and they had the opportunity to see nearly 10,000 kinds of exhibits.

Aside from mainland China, the 928 exhibitors came from Italy, Spain, Australia, South Korea, the United States, Sweden, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

A good trade show is about the quality of the exhibitors and the impact they make. In 2011 the international and regional industry leaders that will be exhibiting include Lucky, Kian, Technogym, Newyuehai, WMF, Baiyun, Karcher, Castello, Amain and Auphan.

Total showcaseHosfair is not the only attraction this year – the 2011 Guangzhou Coffee Equipment & Supplies Fair, 2011 Guangzhou Cleaning Equipment & Supplies Fair and 2011 Guangzhou Hotel Kitchenware Fair will be concurrently held to create a one-stop-shop. Visitors will find it provides a total showcase of the latest trends, innovations and technological developments in the industry, from kitchenware and catering equipment, hotel furniture, cleaning and laundry equipment to textiles, interior supplies, tableware, wine, coffee and food.

Pre-register NOW @ www.hofex.com/register

gLOBALFOOD &HOsPitALitYAt YOUrDOOrsteP

exhibit Profile• Food & Drink• Foodservice / Bakery Equipment & Supplies• Wine & Spirits• Tea & Coffee• Hospitality Technology & Interiors

exciting events• Hong Kong International Culinary Classic• Hong Kong International Wine Challenge• Asian Hospitality Technology Education Conference• Asian Club Management Conference

Hong Kong Tourism Board

Show Supporters

Hong Kong Hotels Association

The 14th International Exhibition of Food & Drink, Hotel, Restaurant & Foodservice Equipment, Supplies & Services

11 – 14 MAY 2011Hong Kong Convention & exhibition Centre

Hong Kong Exhibition Services LtdTel: +852 2804 1500Fax: +852 2528 3103Email: [email protected]

Organiser

• 48,000m² Exhibition Area• 1,800+ Exhibiting Companies• 44 National Groups• 35,000+ Professional Buyers

The Hong Kong Chefs Association


AHCTMarch 201178

Sial of the times

SIAl CHINA 2011Shanghai Pudong SNIEC

www.sialchina.com

May 18-20, 2011

Food safety issues dominate the newspapers and no country is more aware of them than South Korea and probably no set of visitors is more aware than the 35,000 professionals expected to attend SIAL China.

South Korea , the SIAL China 2011 Guest Country of Honour, was one of the first to ban German products after a recent dioxin scandal and is noted for its cautious attitude to food. The country will be showcasing its high quality and innovative beverage, bakery, confectionery and preserved products at the expo.

The South Korean pavilion will likely be a lively affair as organizers demonstrate the excellence of both the cuisine and the food culture with cooking demonstrations.

“It’s going to be the most intimate take on bonding with mainland China and to open market opportunities for Korean food products,” say the organizers.

PoetryFans of wine and the Scottish novelist Robert Louis Stevenson will know his opinion that “Wine is bottled poetry”. Fans of wine will also be interested to know that there will be over 500 ‘poets’ exhibiting their wares in the Wine & Spirits section. These exhibitors bring the total number to 1,500 from 45 countries.

Food is also poetic in its sensuous appeal and adding to the poetry of the event is the return of previous exhibiting countries after a long absence – South Africa, Malaysia, Vietnam, Iran, Tunisia and the Netherlands.

As demand for imported food grows and as the show builds on the success of a record breaking edition in 2010, there will be products and innovations from more than 30 F&B sectors.

Last year, according to official figures, imports grew by double digits with a leap in the cereal crop of 60.7 percent over the previous year. The demand for food is almost limitless.

Among the top items most in-demand are wines and spirits; coffee and coffee related products; sweets, chocolates and confectionery; gourmet foods; and dairy products.

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AHCTMarch 201180

India Hotel Expansion Summit19-20 May 2011 [JW Marriott Hotel] Mumbai, India

Sponsors

Deliver your Products and Services to India’s Expanding Hotel Market!

Boutique Exhibition Opportunities - Limited Spaces Available!Reserve Your Space Now! First Come, First Served

Media Partners

For more information please contact:Catriona Scanlon Communications ManagerEmail: [email protected]: +86 21 6085 1000 F: +86 21 6192 1908Website : www.noppen.com.cn

Confirmed Speakers include:• Mr. Nakul Anand, President, Hotel Association

of India; Divisional Chief Executive ITC Ltd• Mr. Vithal Kamat, Executive Chairman & MD

Kamat Hotels (India) Ltd.; Vice President Hotel & Restaurant Association

• Mr. Rajiv Kaul, President, The Leela Palaces Hotels & Resorts

• Jyoti Narang, Chief Operating Officer Luxury Division Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces

• Mr. Sudeep Jain, Executive Vice President Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels

Riding on the economic growth and rising income levels that India has witnessed in recent years, hospitality has emerged as one of the key sectors driving the country’s economy. The current market size is US$ 23 billion, accounting for 2.2% of India’s GDP.

The India Hotel Expansion Summit will examine hotel expansion in India and how international and domestic players can come together to create the most advanced hotels for the fast growing hospitality market. Noppen is one of the leading producers of business conferences and professional trainings in Asia.

Reserve your Exhibit Space Now!

www.worldoffoodasia.com/www.thaitrade.com

for Successin Asia

Your Recipe

IMPACT Exhibition CenterBangkok, Thailand

25. - 29.05.2011

THAIFEX – World of Food Asia covering

· Food & Beverage featuring HALAL & ORGANIC Food

· Food Catering & Hospitality Services

· Food Technology

· Retail & Franchise

Jointly organized by

Thai Chamberof Commerce

International

Ms Lynn How

Tel: +65 6500 6712

Fax: +65 6294 8403

[email protected]

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A showcase for the latest products and a forum for industry thought leaders, The Hotel Show 2011 is the ‘must attend’ event for the world’s top hoteliers. Meet suppliers, specifiers, asset managers, architects, designers, technologists, innovators and fellow professionals at the heart of one of world’s fastest growing markets. Altogether, The Hotel Show 2011 offers great hospitality.

Register Now! www.thehotelshow.com/visit

Only at The Hotel Show.

In May 2011,where do the world’s leading

hospitality professionals connect?

17th - 19th MAY 2011

DUBAI WORLD TRADE CENTRE

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BriceBorin

AmandaHite

TabathaRamsay

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group has announced the promotion of Richard Baker to Executive Vice President, Operations Director – The Americas. Baker will be responsible for all Mandarin Oriental hotel operations in The Americas and oversee Residences at Mandarin Oriental projects.

Regent Hotels & Resorts has announced the appointment of Brice Borin as General Manager of The Regent Phuket. French Borin worked in F&B across the world, rising to the rank of executive chef before switching to management in 2002. He has since worked in French Polynesia, Malaysia and Thailand.

STR has announced the promotion of Amanda Hite to President. Hite was previously Chief Strategy Officer with the hotel consultancy. The Hendersonville, Tennessee resident was Director of Research for the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce before joining the company.

STR has announced the promotion of Mark lomanno to CEO. Lomanno has been President of the group of companies for the last 12 years and will now focus on strategic opportunities for the hospitality industry and STR. Prior to joining STR, Lomanno was National Director of Research for Laventhol & Horwath with over twenty years of experience in lodging industry research.

Worldhotels has announced the appointment of Richard Munro as Director Hotel Development Australia, New Zealand & Pacific. The award-winning former chair of the Australian Hotels Association has had management roles with Parkroyal Hotels and IHG. His last posting was as General Manager of casino hotel Star City Sydney.

Ayana Resort & Spa Bali has announced the appointment of John Nash as Chef de Cuisine. The American has previously worked at several Michelin-starred restaurants in Japan. The fan of the sous-vide cooking technique last worked as Chef de Cuisine at the Ritz-Carlton’s La Mer restaurant in Doha, Qatar.

Minor International has announced the appointment of Tabatha Ramsay as Vice President Sales for Minor Hotel Group. The Australian most recently worked in an area director role for IHG for Thailand, Indochina and the Maldives. Prior experience includes posts at Le Meridien and other leading hotels in Thailand, Indonesia, Australia, Britain and Japan.

STR has announced the promotion of Randy Smith to the post of Chairman. Smith is both the founder of the company and a former CEO. Last year Smith was presented with a Lifetime Achievement award at the Americas Lodging Investment Summit.

Swissôtel Hotels & Resorts has announced the appointment of Adnan Yucel as General Manager of Swissôtel Foshan, Guangdong. The Istanbul University graduate has had lengthy experience with the company working at its properties in his native Turkey and the United States. Yucel also has experience with Golden Tulip and Hilton.

MHD Macau ha s announced the appointment of Anita Kei as General Manager. Kei will be responsible for the overall Macau market performance, business planning and management. She has over 10 years of extensive sales experience at MHD Hong Kong with significant contribution to the International Accounts channel.

JohnNash

RandySmith

RichardBaker

AdnanYucelMarkLomanno

RichardMunro AnitaKei

ROLL-TOP MOBILE CARVING STATION

Baby Wave SpectraCha�ng Dish

InductionSoup Station

Hy-TideCha�ng Dish

Baby WaveInduction Server

Two heating source: heat lamp and heatedbase with temperature regulatorEasy ‘plug and play’ lamp installationGranite Carving board on removable trayWooden mobile cart with granite countertopFull roll coverCabinet with slide-in door4 x swivel casters with brakesAuto rewind cableCE & ETL

a p p o i n t M E n t s

AHCT March 201190

The New Architecture of Premium Bone Porcelain

MODERN GRACECreating Hospitality

HOTELEX ShanghaiMarch 29th – April 1st 2011Hall E4 · 4C09

Villeroy & Boch S.à.r.l. · Hotel & Restaurant330, rue de Rollingergrund2441 LuxembourgTel.: + (352) 46 82 11 · Fax: + (352) 46 90 22E-mail: [email protected]

www.villeroy-boch.com/hotelASSOCIATE MEMBER

VLH_1611_Anz_MG_AsianHotelCateringTimesMag_210x297_U4.indd 1 14.02.2011 14:01:14 Uhr

ahct march 2011 web

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