Download - Supper - Issue 2
ISSUE 2
Tony Conigliaro The award-winning bartender onservice, storytelling and simplicity
Loh Lik PengFrom Singapore to Sydney, making the list
with the founder of Unlisted Collection
AvroKOA design and concept firm with a difference,
we speak to the four founders
ISSUE 2
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CONTENTS
Setting
Entrée 023 Raising the Bar Appetizers 027 Trends and concepts impacting the world of global hotel F&B
SERVICE
A Factory Man 032Award-winning bartender Tony Conigliaro on service, storytelling and working on a shoestring
On the List 036Founder of Unlisted Collection Loh Lik Peng discusses the importance of F&B to his business and why he always follows his gut
Tried and Tested 040The four founders of AvroKO on why owning their own restaurants gives them a unique perspective on design
Nordic Now 046 Magnus Nilsson explains why Nordic cuisine probably isn’t what you think
Members Only 050 Brian Clivaz on the rise of the private members club and why exclusivity is still key
SPREAD
Into the Unexpected 083Supper goes Dutch with our Amsterdam based centrefold. We chart a multi-sensory F&B journey with Studio Appétit and Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
SIPPING
CocktailsWhite Linen 102 Crosby Street Hotel, NYC
Mare Nostrum 104 Sun Gardens, Dubrovnik
The VirGIN 106 The Dylan, Amsterdam
DrinksThe St. Regis Bar 108 St. Regis Dubai
Experience Distilled 112 A Rum Resurgence 116The Art of Balance 120Punch on the Road 124Diageo’s One and Only 126
SIDES
GRIF 16 132Hotelympia 134Petit Fours 136
SPECIALS
StartersPulitzer’s Bar 055The Pulitzer, Amsterdam
Firebird Diner 056 Four Seasons DIFC, Dubai
The Bank Brasserie & Bar 058Park Hyatt, Vienna
ilLido at the Cliff 060 So�tel Singapore Sentosa
Artizen 062 The Camby, Phoenix
Stock Burger Co. 064 Holiday Inn, Brighton
Main CourseAutomata 066The Old Clare Hotel, Sydney
Krèsios 070Mercer, Barcelona
Jams 0741 Hotel Central Park, NYC
La Maison 1888 078InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula
Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol 080Amsterdam
La Grande Table Marocaine 092The Royal Mansour, Marrakech
Le George 096Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris
DessertsHotel Cafe Royal, London 100
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“F&B is driving practically every commercial endeavour at this point.” William Harris, founding partner of AvroKO
Setting
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For this issue I travelled to the recently opened Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. Amidst the humdrum buildings and typical airport fare it sits, a beast of a structure with design and service at its heart. As well
as sampling the hotel, it formed the location of our bold centrefold spread, a collaboration with Netherlands-based F&B concept agency Studio Appétit.
The concept of the shoot knowingly aligns with the destination’s ethos of ‘expecting the unexpected’, and for Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol this means a move away from the mediocre associations of airport hotels and the delivery of a complex and well-conceived concept that delivers style and service in equal measure. It got me thinking however: as guests demand more, are presented with increasingly innovative options and as hotel F&B evolves to become a driver of the hospitality industry at large, is the unexpected really just a matter of growing expectations?
Amsterdam is in many ways a perfect example of how hotels are progressively raising the bar in their F&B offer and delivering guests a benchmark of choice that rises ever higher. When Waldorf Astoria opened in the city in 2014 it quickly had plenty of superlatives thrown its way. Set in a series of interconnected 17th century canal-side palaces it features a two Michelin star restaurant from executive chef Sidney Schutte, a brasserie, glamorous bar and a local take on Waldorf Astoria’s signature Peacock Alley.
The Pulitzer, a hip boutique in an affluent neighbourhood, has seen its bar become of the hottest spots in the city. Pulling together dramatic interior design from Jacu Strauss and an inventive cocktail menu, it’s not just one of Amsterdam’s
best new hotel bars, it’s one of Amsterdam’s best new bars, period. Hot on its heels is Bar Brasserie OCCO at The Dylan, where classic cocktails are served with a twist and where the bar even produces its own non-alcoholic gin. At the other end of the spectrum, the newly opened Generator in Amsterdam’s up-and-coming eastern side proves that even the humble hostel is no longer so humble. Its bar, Nescio, is a former lecture hall where classroom-style seating flanks the serving area and a mezzanine chill out space provides room for guests to relax with a beer or cocktail from day to evening.
What we see in Amsterdam, not even one of Europe’s top 20 most populous cities, is indicative of a level of quality and originality being seen in hotel F&B globally – some of which we’ve tapped in these pages. Our team of contributors headed to the likes of Automata at The Old Clare Sydney and Krèsios at the Mercer Barcelona, while in our Starters section we looked to Brighton, where Holiday Inn is recognising the importance of creative F&B options in its elevated burger bar concept, Stock Burger Co. These are just a few of the examples of international hotel F&B destinations that are either ensuring the modern guest develops elevated standards, or are rising to meet them.
During my interview with the four founders of AvroKO, William Harris exclaimed, not missing a beat, “I think F&B is driving practically every commercial endeavour at this point.” It’s a point of some debate, but it’s certainly true that F&B is now more a part of our lives than ever before. So with the bar raised so high, choices so plentiful and innovation becoming the norm, perhaps the unexpected is exactly what’s expected, if not demanded.
ENTRée
Raising the Bar
Harry McKinley | Editor
Supper Magazine, Strawberry Studios, Stockport, SK1 3AZ, UKTel: +44 (0)161 476 5580 • www.suppermagazine.co.uk
Editorial
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What is hotel F&B when it’s not in a hotel? It might seem like a Trivial Pursuit question, but from pop-ups to burger vans and even market stalls, hotels are taking F&B beyond their own four walls in concepts designed to strengthen the brand and tap new audiences.
Long before 25hours Hotel Bikini Berlin had welcomed its first staying guest, its arrival was heralded with the appearance of Burger de Ville. A gleaming Airstream burger van, it served up classic Americana and gained such popularity that after the hotel’s opening it took up a more permanent spot on the terraces. At 25hours Vienna, another Burger de Ville complements the hotel’s traditional offer, forming part of an outdoor ‘burger garden’ with space for 80 people, where guests and locals alike can eat, drink and be merry on the edge of Weghuberpark.
In Dubai, where hotels complete with megamalls in enticing the hungry, Vida brought hotel F&B up a gear with its own
wandering food truck. Although mainly in situ at Town Square – where a 160-room Vida hotel is slated to open – it’s also available for boutique catering for up to 50 people. They’ll even bring the picnic tables and beach chairs.
The experience of sidling up to a bench in a public space, burger or coffee in hand, may not align with traditional notions of hotel dining but that’s arguably the point. Vida describes its food truck as reflective of a ‘carefree and laidback lifestyle’ and, at a time when more and more guests are shunning formality in favour of frivolity, it says something about the person they’ll shortly be aiming to attract - not just for caffeine and fries, but as a paid-up overnighter at Vida Town Square Dubai.
Flexible and cost effective, these concepts prove that whilst it’s difficult to take bricks and mortar to the customer, with wheels it’s a doddle. And after checking out what’s on offer on the move they may just check in to stay.
Tripping the Food Van-tastic
APPETISERS
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One of the criteria of F&B success is surely a happy guest but never has it been more defining than with the rise of mood enhancing mixology.
In food, the idea of menus conceived with mood in mind isn’t entirely new of course. The Serotonin Eatery in Melbourne has built its menu around foods that regulate neurotransmitters and hormone activity in the body. The aim? Not just healthier guests but demonstrably happier ones.
Drawing inspirational from this emotion-centric approach, Vincenzo Sibilia, bartender at Barts in London’s Chelsea, has devised a three-cocktail collection to either boost the mind or relax it, but all with the intention of improving happiness levels. Featuring serotonin-rich ingredients, the Happiness cocktail blends Belvedere vodka with strawberries, lemon, cherry tomatoes, maraschino cherries, sugar, basil leaves and black pepper. For those who want something a little more enticing
than an espresso, The Focus features smoked wheat coffee beans, Kamm & Sons and hazelnut syrup for alertness. Finally the Relax blends ingredients like chamomile, lavender extract, lemon, cardamom and Tanqueray.
Described as the British capital’s ‘first mood menu’, it may be seen by some as pure gimmick. After all, aren’t all alcoholic cocktails mood enhancing in some form or another? But the venue insists the science stacks up and that the beneficial nature of serotonin is not to be dismissed.
When it comes to drinks innovation, hotel bars are often early adopters of course, and the creative applications for the sector seem clear. From cocktails riffing off the need for a good night’s sleep to blends that reinvigorate the weary mind of a businessman or businesswoman on the go, mood mixology and the hotel industry would seem to make for natural bedfellows. If a happy guest is the goal, then perhaps the answer lies at the bottom of a martini glass.
Happy Drinking
APPETISERS
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Ethical eating has gone from niche interest to placing firmly on the menu for many modern guests. Most hotel brands now have a clear and well-promoted ethics and sustainability story, but it does occasionally veer into problematic territory when it comes to fine dining. Some might say that delicacies like veal and foie gras have a PR problem. They continue to divide diners and provide an endless bone of contention for more vocal ethical eaters. That being said, try convincing a formidable French chef to reconsider the menu.
Setting aside subjective notions of right and wrong, as an image issue it’s something that hotel restaurants are proving increasingly cognisant of.
One destination with a balanced solution is The Nai Harn, Phuket, that aims to ensure guests can enjoy foie gras, guilt free. Sourced from Spanish producer Eduardo Sousa, his
farming methods ensure that free-range geese roam wild, without gavage (force feeding) and in line with their natural migratory cycle. His approach is seen as harking back to the origins of foie gras, when farmers would guarantee geese were well treated, secure in the knowledge that consumers would be rewarded with a quality product. The final result has been dubbed by some ‘freedom foie gras.’
Sousa himself is notably something of a character and it’s fair to say that his geese enjoy a quality of life far removed from the norm of farming. His farm is part of the Spanish dehesa, the home of ibérico ham, and it is here that his geese wander the land, eating at will behind fences that aren’t electrified from the inside. He doesn’t want them to feel ‘manipulated’.
For Nai Harn, opting for a more ethical option isn’t simply a matter of catering to a discerning guest but about taking steps to promote more sustainable practices within luxury hospitality as a whole.
Got your Goose
APPETISERS
“They realised that there was an exciting new kind of bartender and a new wave of bartending that could bring more attention to the hotel than the rooms or the chefs could.” Tony Conigliaro on the hotel industry’s embracing of mixology.
SERVICE
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If chefs are the new rock stars, then in bartenders there’s something eminently more disruptive, subversive even. They’re perhaps more punk than rock.
With his restrained demeanour and measured tone, it’s an analogy Tony Conigliaro would perhaps choose to shirk, but nonetheless he embodies the wry confidence of a man whose work is globally celebrated.
Founder of Drink Factory – a collective of bartenders ‘pushing the boundaries of their respective crafts’ – he works from an East London laboratory, devising concepts that often revolutionise how we think of mixology. His first bar at 69 Colebrooke Row was opened in 2009 and quickly garnered praise, including being named among the ‘World’s 50 Best Bars’ by Drinks International. In 2014 he opened Bar Termini, an intimate coffee and aperitivo bar in Soho that seats just 25 and where traditional Italia meets modern creativity.
It’s in the Zetter Townhouse Clerkenwell, however, that we meet. A 13-bedroom Georgian property, it’s noted as much for its cocktail lounge as for its idiosyncratic accommodations. Conigliaro collaborated with the Zetter Group on the concept, creating the menus both in Clerkenwell and at the hotel’s sister boutique, Zetter Townhouse Marylebone.
But before we delve into his work and his creative success, let’s clear one thing up: Tony Conigliaro is not a ‘molecular mixologist’. Although he’s distanced himself from the term before, it continues to follow him around like a wayward ice cube – sliding back into his vicinity however much he bats it away. It even takes lauded position in the opening line of his Wikipedia page and in the introductions to numerous features on his work. With its mention a practiced smile crosses his face and we get the sense he’s resisting an eye roll. Understandably. So how has molecular mixology somehow become his signature? “Because it’s an easy term,” he explains. “Molecular doesn’t mean anything. It’s a misnomer, as it was with molecular gastronomy. It’s just a way for people to pigeonhole something that is different from what came before. It’s not what we do. It implies everything is scientific, when it’s not, it’s romantic and it’s about stories.”
Even at midday on a Thursday the cocktail lounge flickers with activity – guests with newspapers are huddled over cappuccinos and well-dressed arrivals shuffle through, weekenders in hand. It’s a contrast to Friday and Saturday evenings when the bar heaves with revellers, but it reflects an atmosphere carefully designed to feel more like a private residence than a traditional hotel. “We created a fictional
A Factory Man
Award-winning bartender Tony Conigliaro on storytelling, service and why working on a shoestring is the mother of invention...just don’t mention the ‘m’ word.
Words: Harry McKinley
SERVICE
character [Great Aunt Wilhelmina], who was a composite of all of these eccentric artists, grandmothers or matriarchal figures in our family,” says Conigliaro. “It helped us to create a story for the bar. At the beginning the designer [Russell Sage] would come around and make decisions based on this character. We would think about what she’s drinking, where she’s travelling to and what she would like. We fleshed out a story for her.”
This sense of narrative, fictitious though it may be, affords the lounge a life beyond typical design and adds another dimension to a cocktail menu that is succinct but varied. The Levante (Beefeater gin, saffron cordial, Amontillado sherry and paprika tincture) and the Köln Martini (Beefeater gin and dry Martini with homemade citrus aromatics) drop clues as to the history and voyages of Wilhelmina, someone we imagine would be riotously good fun as a drinking companion. “Obviously that continued with Zetter Marylebone and Uncle Seymour, who is her nephew,” continues Conigliaro. “It’s an enjoyable way to work.”
The notion of creating bars that veer from homogeny and have their own story to tell, or certainly their own dynamic, is something that’s important to Conigliaro. “Ultimately bars aren’t individuals, they’re about individuals coming
in and meeting other individuals,” he says. “So if you don’t have individuals creating that space, you just have something that is sterile. You need to have that connection and that isn’t something that can be copied and pasted.”
Of course, when working with hotels, there’s a subtle uniformity that often needs to be applied to afford guests an understanding of the brand and allow them to develop a sense of relative familiarity. As with Great Aunt Wilhelmina and Uncle Seymour, they operate as members of a family, whether they reside in East London or West. So how does one balance distinctiveness with consistency? For Conigliaro it’s about training and service delivery. “You can serve everyone to the same standard but also serve them according to their needs. Beyond surroundings that will change, it’s a common quality of interaction and a personalised touch. Otherwise it’s just a series of serving actions as opposed to something that’s actually for the guest,” he explains. “Also a commonality of training. Even if you have ten hotels, if you have ten teams that are good and that have been trained and educated well, then you’ll have ten good bars with a common thread.”
Like most major cities around the world London isn’t short of bars. Swing a bulldog and you’re likely to hit a Starbucks or a drinking venue. And, culturally permitting,
this bar boom is reverberating the world over. From speakeasies to gastropubs, high concept cocktail bars to spaces than specialise in a single spirit, it’s a crowded market populated by an increasingly savvy consumer. But even with bars as his business, standing out in a competitive industry isn’t Conigliaro’s focus. “We don’t pay too much attention to what others are doing,” he says. “That’s said without arrogance. It’s just that our interests are different and what we do is different, so we don’t copy or consciously think too much about setting ourselves apart. We’ll always try to break things down to our interests and do things differently.”
It’s this alternative approach and, perhaps, distance from common tropes that may make Conigliaro such an interesting proposition for boutique hotels. Whilst he doesn’t feel “at all inhibited” when working with a hotel he’s pragmatic on the issue of hotel F&B as a driver of the wider bar industry. Even with the greater support it can sometimes afford bartenders seeking to bring a concept to market, Conigliaro speaks ardently about the benefits of stepping out without a safety net. “Even financial restriction creates innovation,” he says. “We opened 69 Colebrooke Row on a shoestring, but we became more innovative because of that. If you land in the lap of luxury it can be less stimulating. I’m not saying that’s what happens in most places, as in hotels you can also see the upscale of that creativity. Everyone always talks about the Artesian bar [at Langham London], for example. They realised that there was an exciting new kind of bartender and a new wave of bartending that could bring more attention to the hotel than the rooms or the chefs could.” As for who else is doing it well, Conigliaro singles out Agostino ‘Ago’ Perrone, master mixologist at The Connaught, for praise.
As our conversation nears its end, and wanting to make an exit before Conigliaro’s long-waiting lunch wilts to oblivion, we dive into our standard talking point: the length of cocktail menus. When asked if they’re bewilderingly long these days, Conigliaro is swift in his response. “Always,” he says. “You only need 12 drinks and anything else is overkill. We have always stuck to that rule and I think it’s an important one. There’s a precision. If you have 12 drinks, everyone knows how to make those 12 drinks. If you have 50, that’s less likely and half those drinks will never get made. But importantly you can tell a story better, convey more about what you’re doing and it’s inevitably more accurate to what you want to say.”
Tony Conigliaro is not your typical showman. In person he’s controlled and unostentatious. Whilst he’s adamant that he doesn’t have a signature mixology style, it’s a character that manifests itself in his work. He leaves the theatrics to others and in a world of high-flying Boston shakers, dry ice and eccentric serving vessels, he concentrates instead on flavour profile, guest experience and – crucially - the art of delivering a story worth telling.
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“You can serve everyone to the same standard but also serve them according to their needs.”
Madeira Sour at Zetter Townhouse Marylebone
Photography: Addie Chinn
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Loh Lik Peng is a dynamic force in global hospitality. Surprising considering his education in law and former profession as a corporate litigator, of all things. Yet the shift in trajectory has paid dividends for the Singapore-
based hotelier and restaurateur. His hospitality group, Unlisted Collection, encompasses properties in Sydney, London and Shanghai, as well as Singapore of course. It includes seven boutiques and, although they’re all starkly different from one another, they are united by a common theme: a commitment to world-class F&B.
It’s in one of these restaurants that we’re to meet Peng: the Typing Room at Town Hall Hotel in London’s Bethnal Green. We’re early, but no matter, it’s an opportunity to find the best seat and have a covert stroll past the open kitchen. The restaurant is overseen by Lee Westcott and it shows in the modern European menu. It’s a glossy, modern space that represents the continued gentrification of a neighbourhood that was once a little rough around the edges.
When Peng arrives it’s with little fanfare. He’s alone and greets the staff with warm familiarity. He doesn’t cut the figure of a traditional businessman. There’s no starched shirt or razor sharp suit, but instead a creased blazer and jeans. He’s a little breathless, power walking as he did from the
nearest tube station. “Have you eaten?” he asks in typical Singaporean style. It may be a traditional greeting for the region, but for a restaurateur it feels particularly fitting. At the very least we understand why he’d want to show off the wares of a venue that garners little but praise. He collapses into the seat opposite, immediately springing into conversation about his day. Anyone lunching nearby in the half-busy restaurant might think we’d met before; such is the informal ease with which Peng talks. “What do you think of the place?” Well, It’s marvellous of course. Exploring Unlisted Collection’s various hotel locations, the importance laid on delivering terrific restaurants is clear. From Jason Atherton’s Kensington Street Social at The Old Claire Sydney to unpretentious French dining at Cocotte at the Wanderlust Singapore, there’s a focus on quality and variety.
“Groups tend to be good at either the hotel side or the F&B side. Very few do both. Even fewer do both well,” says Peng, with a chuckle. “We are equal parts hotel and F&B. Our hotel F&B venues tend to be successful in their own right. We’re fairly balanced in that respect and that’s a relatively unusual thing.”
Then again there’s something unusual about Unlisted Collection. This isn’t a group that deals in run-of-the-mill and each project embodies a different attitude and a thoroughly
On the List
Founder of Unlisted Collection, Loh Lik Peng discusses the importance of F&B to his business, the hotel market at large and why ‘heart, mouth and instinct’ will always trump a market survey.
Words: Harry McKinley
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Table No.1 at The Waterhouse at South Bund, Shanghai
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different personality. Peng is insistent that this was the intention from the outset. “We never repeat,” he says.
It’s a smart approach from a group whose hotel work is centred on boutiques. It ensures every hotel and every restaurant remains the original and never the photocopy - each one with its own story to tell.
“It’s still a relatively niche market,” say Peng, on the issue of boutiques as Unlisted Collection’s ‘sweet spot’, “but it has grown dramatically. Ten years ago you had the Philippe Starck ones, now you have a lot of hotels operating in the 30 to 50 room range. People like Kit Kemp have changed the model dramatically. It’s definitely a different business model, but one that is much more viable today than before.”
Peng switches effortlessly between discussing hospitality in conceptual terms and the bottom line. Yet despite the scale of his business interests he’s a believer in intuition or what he calls, “a bit of heart, mouth and instinct.” He’s never conducted a market survey and readily admits that most of his projects are based upon the flash of an idea, the rest, as he says, “is filling in the gaps.”
“It’s tough because you never quite know what will work. I’m never super confident and that’s crucial because it keeps you on your toes,” he says. “Fear is important because it forces you to concentrate. You can control a lot of elements and have a sense that something is what the market wants, but until you try you never know.”
Though he’s keen to point out that it’s never plain sailing, it seems that Peng’s intuition has so far served him well. For for all of the importance placed upon F&B by hotels today, and certainly by his own company, he takes a surprising view of its place in the grand scheme. “If you look at London Edition with Berner’s Tavern, André Balazs with Chiltern Firehouse and groups like ourselves, then F&B is an important component. But that is a tiny sliver of the hotel market. I think to suggest that F&B is driving the market based on the success of those niche players would be an exaggeration,” he says. “Very large companies will build large hotels and they’ll have all day dining and banqueting. The majority of hotels are still built under that model. So the tiny sliver that does well is, I think, the exception at the moment, not the rule.”
So when it comes to these behemoth hotels and the large global players, what could they be doing to better capitalise on F&B as a revenue driver? “I think most of them are not agile enough to ever be meaningful players in the F&B scene, simply because the rooms component will always have to drive their business. The GM and the F&B director can never pay enough attention to it,” Peng says. “The hotel operators, by and large, do it terribly. So I think most of them are better leasing F&B spaces to outside operators to run independent restaurants that are part of the hotel, rather than do it themselves. The guest doesn’t care whether the restaurant or the bar is independent, they just care about their experience there. Claridge’s do it well. They have a very strong room component and they lease F&B out to the people who do it best. The experience for the guest is seamless.”
With Unlisted Collection, all of the F&B spaces are operated inhouse of course. The organisation’s mix of standalone units and hotels affords Peng something of a wide playing field to explore ideas, but he’s clear on the focus. For staying guests, “breakfast is fundamental”, room service,
“less so. Especially in a city where you have a wealth of choice and where great food is available at all times of the day,” he says. Anyway, guests don’t expect every bell and whistle when staying at a boutique asserts Peng. “I think the people who go to boutiques are different from those who are quite happy to go and stay in a big chain. They demand the same level of service that you would get in a larger hotel, sometimes even more, but for them it’s about the character of being in a smaller property with unique branding and a unique offering,” he says. “It overwrites the convenience that a large hotel might provide. A smaller hotel will not traditionally provide the same level of facilities, but I think in F&B terms, it’s not always expected or necessary. If someone orders room service all the time, for example, they’re missing a big chunk of what the city has to offer and I don’t think that speaks to the demographic of boutiques.”
Of his own hotels, Peng cites the Waterhouse at South Bund, Shanghai – part of Design Hotels - as a good example of what Unlisted Collection represents. “A 19-room hotel, really cutting edge,” he says. “You have to be very adventurous to stay there and part of that mix is a very successful restaurant.” Indeed the 60-cover Table No 1, with its ‘world-influenced’ modern European menu is often touted as one of the city’s best. It’s with restaurants such as these that the importance of non-staying guests becomes clear.
“For all of the talk of breakfast and room service, ultimately 95% of your F&B business is from people outside,” Peng explains. “If you have a hotel restaurant and you rely on staying guests, you’re in big trouble. That brings its own challenges. London and Sydney, for example, are foodie capitals. You have to be on top of your game otherwise you’re not going to go anywhere. Setting aside the hotel, if the restaurant is not excellent from day one it will sink. These markets are relentless and you have to hit those right notes from the start.”
With the opening of The Old Claire in Sydney last year and the completion of Kensington Street Social in January – the third restaurant for the 62-room hotel – Peng’s attention has shifted from new projects to established. “We are planning refurbishments in the next two years, so we’re undergoing the planning for that now. 196 Bishopsgate is going into major refurbishment next year, so that’s a focus.” As for the future, Peng is circumspect. “If you had asked me five years ago, I would have gone anywhere. But given our geographical reach now, I have to be careful I don’t spread myself too thin. I want to continue having fun and if we went into a new market my life would be unbearable. Naturally I’d like to do more projects, but I think they’ll be in markets I’m in now. Unless I find a really good project,” he says, rounding things off with a breezy exception. After all, when the flash of an idea is all it takes, who can say?
“If you have a hotel restaurant and you rely on staying guests, you’re in big trouble.”
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In your own words can you tell us about your organisation and how you came together as a group? WILLIAM HARRIS: It goes back to when we were friends in university. We were collaborating and working on projects as college creatives do. Ultimately Adam and Greg created an architecture agency called Avro Design. And Kristina and I had created a branding and strategy consultancy called KO Media. We’d always stayed in touch and we got back together and starting working on a project with architecture, branding and media. It was a very holistic project. Although an experiment at first, it was a lot of fun and we decided to keep it going.
A focus on hospitality has become central to your work. Although it’s a matter of some debate, do you think that F&B is driving the hotel industry at the moment? WH: I think F&B is driving practically every commercial endeavour at this point! Often people are approaching us for ways to break down the boundaries between ‘eat, work, sleep and play’. F&B is driving that.
KRISTINA O’NEAL: The Standard and Ace Hotels are the obvious folks, but the dynamic energy that they’re creating outside of the rooms is the biggest story. The room is the
static entity and the F&B is the dynamic energy. The shift of that axis has been happening for the last decade. I think it’s at a crescendo point now. The programmes around the F&B are so big that when people think of the hotel they think of the F&B components first and foremost.
GREG BRADSHAW: We’ve always approached it from the F&B component. The room is really a temporary sanctuary. So I think it’s a very true statement. Economically you hear about places like The Standard, that are making more than 50% of their revenues from F&B. I don’t think hoteliers would think of a hotel as being successful anymore if the restaurant wasn’t successful.
Is the issue of cohesion – between the F&B and the wider hotel – something you take into account? ADAM FARMERIE: We call ourselves a concept firm as opposed to a design firm. It just so happens that often design is how the concept manifests. We start with this one pure idea and let it filter down through the disciplines, so no part of a project feels discordant from the others. It’s all part of a greater whole so when you walk through a hotel it all feels as though it’s telling the same story.
Tried and TestedAvroKO is a design and concept �rm with a dierence. As well as working with the likes of Four Seasons and 1 Hotels, the group owns several standalone F&B destinations, using these projects as laboratories to test ideas and allowing the team to balance creativity with a practiced understanding of operations. Together founders Greg Bradshaw, Adam Farmerie, William Harris and Kristina O’Neal are the driving force behind AvroKO. Via modern technology we’ve come together across four time zones to discuss their work, innovation and why ‘wishy-washy’ spaces are the worst.
Words: Harry McKinley
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William Harris, Kristina O’Neal, Adam Farmerie and Greg Bradshaw
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WH: I think if you have a strong backbone to a project, whatever your ultimate programming is, a space can always be manipulated and bent to convey a concept. I think to have different spaces and have consistency is a great glue to create something that is resolved and cohesive.
GB: Yes, it all starts with the underlying conceit and concept that we’re developing for the entire property.
KO: I also think that sometimes the contrast is where the fun shows up. The room is the temporary sanctuary, as Greg mentioned, and if you have an F&B element then often cohesion is less important than contrast. That’s what a lot of operators are doing today. It has to feel as though it is the same market but you might not want the spaces to feel like one unanimous vote.
Does your approach differ then in creating standalone F&B spaces versus those within hotels? AF: You have to start by understanding and identifying with the client, what their history is and where their brand is going. So we create a concept that fits within that narrative but is still distinctive. If you have an independent restaurateur or hotelier you have to pull something out of the ether that everyone can grab on to. It’s a little bit harder. Everyone says it must be great when the sky’s the limit, but actually limitations can create more interesting responses. Sometimes with so much open space it can be hard to find a voice that the client wants to have.
You take a 360-degree approach to the projects you work on. How do you do go about resolving some of the other aspects that form a complete F&B concept? GB: Throughout our history of designing these spaces our opinions, or certainly my opinion, has started to shift from thinking that design was perhaps 70% of the importance and the rest of the elements of the experience were 30%. That has almost shifted to the opposite percentage. Now, the design is almost secondary to the other aspects of the experience. The experience might be the touchpoints of the graphic, the uniform of the person in the hotel, the music in the space, or the blankets they give you when you go and sit outside. Different restaurants call for different strategies. There are certain restaurants where we play a lot of attention to the acoustics, because we want a less buzzy environment for a fine dining venue. Then the opposite might be true of a bar space where you might want to create a little buzz, even when there are less people. The audio aspect has such a high impact of the experience of the space.
WH: The foundation of our studio has been to be holistic and we’re ultimately all control freaks of some form or another, so that has led us to want to touch on all of these different aspects of an F&B space. Over the years we have grown several arms of the practice to help us realise that. All of our furniture and lighting tends to be bespoke for each of our projects. We have a group [Goodshop] that not only designs those pieces but can also manufacture them. Brand Bureau is our strategy and branding arm. So you can have more typical touchpoints like a name,
Denver Union StationPhotography: Garrett Rowland
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right through to graphic touchpoints that come with an F&B experience: the menus, the business cards, all of the collateral, even down to the uniforms as Greg mentioned. Our favourite projects are the ones where all of those specialties are engaged. But we’re also quite nimble.
AF: I don’t know of very many other design firms that also own and operate their own F&B venues. So it gives us an extremely unique perspective on the projects that we work on with our clients. We have experience in what they’re going through and what they’re going to go through relative to the operation of the venue.
WH: I think that’s important point. The restaurants are not just business ventures but labs to take risks and push things further than a client project would afford. It’s a great way to test and to see what works and what doesn’t work. That’s a valuable opportunity.
So what do you think have been the most valuable lessons you’ve been able to take from the venues you own and operate and how are you able to apply these to client projects?KO: I think the number one thing would be that we consistently experiment with operations and how design is affecting operations, as well as bottom line. There are a lot of designers, even in integrated firms, who think only of aesthetics and outside experience. We’re thinking, when we hand-off to the client, about how they are going to be able to operate the venue when they have to do it for a decade. Public has been open for over ten years and we’re still using it as a lab and asking how the bar can be formatted to make a faster drink or how the greeting experience can be formatted to offer something different from the norm. If you have your own labs and you’re willing to transform them at will, and change their whole service style in a week, it gives you a different design experience when it translates to someone else.
AF: And we also think about customer psychology and stickiness. What you can do on a design front to affect both those things. Customer psychology is one of the things that has always connected the four of us. All of these aspects of how people feel and act in a space, whether it’s reducing anxiety or increasing pleasure by including these twists in the design that affect peoples’ psychology. That’s one of the things we really enjoy taking from our own operations into our client work. The other thing is understanding the stickiness of a brand. What makes people want to come back? How do you create ‘Instagrammable’ moments? There’s a social agenda that most projects would need to have to ensure they’re creating a sticky experience.
But of course you work from a position of subjectivity so is there such a thing as bad taste? KO: I will say that sometimes the most vulgar projects are those I enjoy the most, because they take risks, they’re more fun and they have a quality that you can enjoy because they’re pure. There are probably bigger sins than bad taste.
WH It’s about whether you’re aligned with the taste of your demographic or if you’re discordant with it. So if you have someone that loves gold-gilt lions, massive tusks and gold chenille, and you get a bunch of people together who all love that sort of thing, well then
they’re all slapping each other on the back and congratulating each other on what amazing taste they have. And that’s not wrong. It’s simply about understanding your core demographic and who you’re speaking to.
AF: And it’s about managing who we work with. So we don’t get that elephant tusk chair.
GB: I think it comes down to commitment. There are places that I go to and they just haven’t committed to being really bad. It’s the wishy-washy spaces that I think are the worst.
Do you take issues of longevity into account when it comes to an F&B concept and the design of the space? AF: For us it’s really important to steer clear of what the colour du jour is or what the trend is. It means the project will start to feel dated and the people who show up because something is flashy and shiny will move on. We mine historical eras, concepts and ideas. Something that people can relate to in a way that feels more sincere. We’re flipping it, twisting it and re-presenting it, but we’re often utilising history to try to encapsulate and situate a design in a way that allows it longevity.
KO: Sometimes if you can create emotional connectivity you can supersede these kinds of issues with ‘trend’. So that it always feels connected - forever. That’s a really successful project.
Do you think guests are seeking more intimate F&B experiences?GB: I think for the most part we agree with that. That’s very much in our DNA – these smaller spaces and more intimate zones, and variety of experiences. But we’re not always given that. Take Denver Union Station, which is this massive train station incorporating a hotel, F&B and retail spaces. The energy is created by the pedestrians walking through, but we added these seating groups that created a little bit of that intimacy.
AF: It can happen in a variety of ways it doesn’t always have to come down to scale. That personal connection is key. We’re working on a 6000 ft2 food hall in Shanghai and one of the main reasons the group came to us is that they were terrified of this monster and they didn’t want to lose sight of the sense of intimacy. They wanted people to have diverse experiences. One is able to do that in large spaces as well, it just takes a bit of creativity.
KO: Food halls, even when connected with a hotel component, generally take the opposite approach. You have a central gathering area, a series of vendors and high-energy spaces that aren’t necessarily intimate
“Sometimes the most vulgar projects are thoseI enjoy the most, because they take risks, they’re more fun and they have a quality that you can enjoy because they’re pure.”Kristina O’Neal
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typically. There’s obviously still a demand for that kind of hospitality experience as well.
Talking about some of those different F&B models, how do you think the provision of F&B in hotels is evolving? AF: You used to have an acceptable model where a hotel would have a well-known chef and the F&B didn’t have to make economic sense. It was more to ‘capture’ a guest. Now hotels are thinking more about why people would want to commune in a space and that’s not always a straightforward sit down restaurant.
KO: I think there are some interesting things happening with integrated ideas in hotel F&B. A good example would be Blackberry Farm, Tennessee, where the whole intention of going is to have a very elevated food experience. You can be fly-fishing by day and then be dining on the same fish you netted that night, or you can go picking truffles in the garden with their truffle dogs. The culinary aspect is driving three quarters of the demand for the hotel rooms. The same goes for somewhere like Fogo Island Inn.
GB: Farm-to-table ideas are so prevalent that education becomes part of the experience of the stay.
Be they established or new, which hotel F&B concepts do you feel are
particularly successful outside of your own projects?WH: Every time I visit London I find myself either staying at, or gravitating towards, the Hoxton at Holborn. I think they’ve done an excellent job of creating a space that ticks a lot of boxes without feeling like a formulaic F&B space, even thought it’s a significant component of the space.
KO: At the Paramount Hotel New York they have Queen of the Night, an immersive dinner theatre style experience. It’s taking something that is cutting edge in the theatre world and then applying a very old school concept like dinner theatre. The innovation of it is so exciting.
And so finally, what’s in the pipeline for AvroKo that you feel particularly excited about?WH: We have a lot in Asia. We’re doing F&B at the Waldorf Astoria in Bangkok and we’re doing three levels of eating and drinking at the top of the new Park Hyatt in Bangkok.
GB: There’s also a lot happening in California. One is in Calistoga and it’s a motor lodge type property that we’re renovating on a challenging budget. But that creates a lot of fun opportunities and it’s not what you expect from the usual luxury Napa.
www.avroko.com
Tivano at The Temple House, ChengduPhotography: Jason Lang
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Nordic NowFrom Fäviken, the world-renowned restaurant-
with-rooms in Sweden’s remote north, we speak to head chef Magnus Nilsson about why Nordic
cuisine probably isn’t what you think.
Words: Harry McKinley with elements from The Curious Pear
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Far from the tourist hub of Stockholm, in the remote and frequently frosty north of Sweden lies Fäviken. Frequently listed among the world’s best restaurants, this culinary outpost features just 16-covers and six rustic guestrooms, but has become required
pilgrimage for fans of Nordic cuisine. Rene Redzepi of Noma once proclaimed, “If I had a chance to go anywhere in the world right now, I would go to Fäviken.”
The restaurant’s prodigious success lies firmly in the hands of its head chef, Magnus Nilsson. And although Fäviken sits in the sprawling alpine lands of Åre - in the Jämtland province where Nilsson grew up - he honed his talents working in the likes of L’Astrance and L’Arpèpe in Paris. Disillusioned with food upon his return to Sweden, Nilsson was initially hired as a sommelier for the Fäviken estate, tasked with overseeing the wine cellars. His tenure in the kitchen is a result of both happy coincidence and, perhaps, fate, as he took on the role only after another chef couldn’t be found.
In many ways it’s eloquent that a man who had fallen out of love with cooking is now one of the leading figures in a global food movement. In Fäviken, he has created a destination that is high on experience and low on pageantry. The six lodge rooms are compact and unfussy but are, somehow, the perfect continuation of a meal that feels grounded in authenticity and Scandinavian solemnity. Even the restaurant theatrics
Photography: Erik Olsson
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– the extraction of marrow from a shinbone in the middle of the dining room, and a curmudgeonly-sounding ice cream maker – feel more understated than most. As Nilsson says, “some of the techniques are very rooted in the old cultures of the area.”
Last year saw the publication of The Nordic Cookbook, Nilsson’s most recent foray into food publishing. An impossibly thick tome from Phaidon, in it Nilsson lifts the lid on a rich culinary tapestry that he sees as misunderstood. “Geographically, it is such a large region,” says Nilsson. “So considering the nature, the weather and the landscape, you naturally have a huge variety of food. One of the things I discovered whilst making the book is that it is not a homogenous region. What you eat in Finland and what you eat in Greenland are incredibly different, but I never realised the degree to which these foods would become part of the menu. It’s not like I’ve just found dishes and put them on the menu, it’s more about bringing the processes into the kitchen at Fäviken.”
More than your typical recipe book, what the Nordic Cookbook ultimately showcases is Nilsson’s affinity for the region. His dramatic landscape photography is as integral to demonstrating the character and context of the recipes as the handsomely styled dishes. “The landscapes of the countries I explored were so integrated with the food,’ he explains. “So showcasing their beauty just seemed like the natural thing to do.” A new title – Nordic: a Photographic Essay of Landscapes, Food and People - presents a personally curated collection of Nilsson’s documentary photographs from The Nordic Cookbook as well as many previously unpublished images taken during his research.
Understanding this synergy between surroundings and cuisine helps, in part, in understanding Fäviken. The region is a postcard of rural Sweden, made up of red wooden buildings and imposing forests, backlit by dramatic changes in temperature and light across the seasons. Nilsson himself catches much of the fish served in the restaurant, ingredients are foraged on the grounds of the estate and local produce is preserved in stores for the bitter winter
months. This connection to the earth and to the story of this secluded slice of Sweden is part of the experience that proves such a pull for guests. But despite the international renown of the restaurant, Nilsson thinks there’s still a way to go before we’ll have a grasp on what Nordic cuisine is really all about. “You see the most obvious dishes: herring, gravlax, meatballs, those kinds of things. And then you have some very obscure foods like Icelandic shark. Almost curiosities,” he says. “Beyond that, most people don’t really have a grasp of the full food culture, simply because it’s very inaccessible. If you compare Nordic food culture to Spanish food, for example, you could go into a random restaurant in Madrid and there is a pretty good chance of you finding a true representation of traditional Spanish cooking. But in Sweden, you won’t find anything. That kind of restaurant doesn’t exist, because in the Nordic region the food culture is carried more within the home, rather than in restaurants. If you don’t have someone in the Nordic region to invite you into their home, the chances are you probably won’t get a taste of the food culture.”
Whilst Nilsson acknowledges his place in the vanguard of Nordic food success, and is pleased with the camaraderie between the region’s top names – Noma’s Redzepi extended his congratulations to his fellow Nordic restaurants after the release of the 2016 Michelin Guide to the region – he’s also conscious that guests don’t make the mistake of confusing accomplishment with representation. “People know the stereotypical recipes and there has been a lot of media coverage about places like Fäviken and Noma,” he explains. “But I think people are a lot more intelligent than to think that what we do at the restaurant is an accurate representation of Nordic cooking, because it’s not. The amount of exposure has inevitably shaped the way people see Nordic food, but there is much more to it. What we can see now, and what I hope to see more of, is restaurants with their own clear identity, showing the characteristics of the chef. It makes for much more interesting eating.”
www.favikenmagasinet.se
Both The Nordic Cookbook and Nordic: a Photographic Essay of
Landscapes, Food and People are published by Phaidon.
Elements of this piece have appeared previously in Suitcase Magazine.
www.thecuriouspear.com
www.uitcasemagazine.com
“I think people are a lot more intelligent than to think that what we do at the restaurant is an accurate representation of Nordic cooking”
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The Nordic Cookbook: Lamb Mutton
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Members Only The rise and rise of private members clubs continues unabated, but the stuy wood-panelled destinations of old are giving way to destinations that fuse bedrooms with F&B spaces in models more akin to boutique hotels than classic meeting spaces. Brian Clivaz is one of the most noted names in the sector. Behind such projects as Home House and the Arts Club, he has also previously served as F&B director for The Savoy Group and is the owner of L’Escargot in London’s Soho. With the opening of the Devonshire Club, a 68-room private members club in East London, he adds another destination to his exclusive list. He speaks to us about the evolving role of private members clubs in the hotel sphere and explains why a great F&B experience is about more than just food.
Words: Harry McKinley
How do you think rooms and F&B must work together to create a complete experience?They have to be very closely aligned. Guests can go out once or twice during their stay, but you want to make their first point of call your own F&B operation. It’s interesting how some hotels get this very right and others get it very wrong. So if you look at somewhere like the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park or The Goring they get it very right, because the restaurants are difficult to get into. Of course if you’re staying in the hotel, they’ll find you a place. If you look at somewhere like the Athenaeum Hotel, the whole F&B is being given over to the Galvin Brothers. So it will be interesting to see how that evolves.
At a time when the services provided by a private members club are in many ways akin to those of a boutique hotel, how important is the element of exclusivity?It’s essential that a private club is just that: private. It must be exclusive but, for me, not exclude. The distinction of course is that with a private club you pick and choose who you have
as your principal clients.In terms of the F&B, I don’t think exclusivity
is necessarily allied to the price you pay. There are some places that are not at all exclusive, apart from the fact that they charge lots of money. Look at the standalones: a restaurant like Beast for example, where you can expect to pay £200 a head for dinner, you would expect to be exclusive but isn’t at all. Then there’s Wiltons, which is less pricey, but is like a private club. La Gavroche is very much like a private club. Maggie Jones is like a private club.
So with the exception that one charges a membership fee and the other is open to any paying guest, where does the distinction lie in experience between a boutique and a private club?Even if someone stays at a boutique, it’s likely that they’ll be entertained in a private members club. But a private club is fundamentally about creating a community with a particular common thread. With Home House we created a traditional gentleman’s club, but for a far more liberal guest, so
someone wouldn’t have to wear a suit and tie to fit in. But I think clubs have driven the popularity of boutique hotels and, you’re right, some boutique hotels are almost clubs. Take Haymarket, Charlotte Street or Ham Yard, they’re really clubs. If you look at Firmdale and look at Soho House, they’re both brands that people like to follow. In a way, Soho House has almost become the Marriott Hotels of private restaurants. It’s got thousands of members and they’re going all over the world, bumping into each other. There’s also Soho Farmhouse now. So it does pose the question of how long it can sustain such popularity and be a private club. I tend to create different spaces for different markets altogether.
How does that manifest itself in the F&B? Because of course a private members club, by virtue of the model, relies on consistent patronage.At a private members club, versus a traditional hotel, there’s the benefit that the staff gain much more familiarity with the guest. They know who likes a certain drink and who prefers
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The Devonshire Club
their meat well done. Recognition is important. It makes me laugh when you see people putting out brochures saying, ‘we have really good cocktails’ or ‘we have a really good chef’, because one would expect that they would have those things. That’s the minimum expectation. A club, however, is always about the bar. If you don’t have a great bar, it’s difficult to make it successful. At a private club you have to be able to go in by yourself, sit and feel very comfortable.
Is there an expectation that the F&B will deliver at a superior level to that of a hotel?To be exceptional is actually disproportionately expensive on your bottom line. To go that extra mile is not necessary. There can be an averageness, but it depends on the extent of the averageness you’re will to accept. It’s not all about the food but about the experience. If you take The Wolseley, it’s a consistent standard. It’s never brilliant, it’s never bad, but it’s consistently good. I think with Devonshire Club our average will be high.
Speaking of which, the Devonshire Club is set to combine 68 guestrooms with F&B. Can you tell us more about the concept? Devonshire Club started off as a building with amazing open spaces. It had potential for a lovely big brasserie. It’s got the bedrooms, the bars, the drawing rooms and the lounges. It’s got a very nice garden and I think having a smoking space is quite important. A club is first about the building and then the people who are going to populate it. For Devonshire,
it’s City workers of course, but we also want people to come to us. We want to be a magnet. People said Home House would never work and it could have been the biggest white elephant in London, but people loved it: stars of stage and screen. So for Devonshire Club, of course the City workers will come but our biggest priority is to make it very female friendly. We want it to be very La Dolce Vita. We’re certainly not looking for people who are going to sit at a table with a cup of tea, clicking away on a laptop all day long. We don’t want people sitting there doing their ‘laptopery’, as I call it.
How will the F&B offer differ from other destinations in the area? The F&B is going to be South of France, crossed with my favourite cuisine, which is British of course. If you go to the City of London, there are quite a few places with a sushi element and you also get steakhouses. Then there are places in the taller buildings that are all about the view, but there’s nowhere that gives you high-end sophistication. If I want to take someone out for afternoon tea, there’s nowhere similar to Claridge’s or One Aldwych. There are hotels of course, but their F&B offering is not of the calibre of the West End.
Our F&B director, Simon Whitley has worked with the Dorchester Collection at Coworth Park and he’s also worked all over the world for the likes of Jean-Georges Vongerichten. So he has a great backing in Asian flavours. Head Chef Oliver Lesnik was trained at The Connaught and was head chef at Claridge’s for many years.
We’re going to cater for people who eat out
every day. A lot of these people have breakfast, lunch and dinner in restaurants and they do not want to have a giant slab of steak. They want something light and tasty.
What do you feel are some of the shifts in the industry that will have the greatest impacts on your operations? It will be interesting to see the effect of the living wage and the EU Working Time Directive. Customers have to learn that they have to pay for it. They want a cheap meal, served by trained professionals with quality ingredients but they want to pay very little. People have to understand that they have to pay a bit more so that we can pay our staff well.
I also think many of these pop-ups destroy restaurants because they come along, it’s all fun, and then disappear. For restaurants that have to survive it makes it much more difficult. Devonshire Square, the home of the Devonshire Club, is a good example. You have these pop-ups that don’t pay rates and that pay their staff in cash. It’s controversial but they’re really sucking business from the ‘proper’ businesses.
On a lighter note, I remember when I was in school and I told my careers master that I wanted to go into hospitality. He said it was shameful and that it was the lowest of the low. At that time you either went into the army or you went into hospitality. Now people promote the idea that they want to become a chef or a sommelier. I think that’s a wonderful shift and it really demonstrates the appreciation being bestowed on the F&B industry. Long may it continue.
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“I try to create dishes with a lot of adjectives, not with a lot of ingredients.” Chef Giuseppe Iannotti on his restaurant Krèsios at the Mercer Barcelona.
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Set within 25 interlinked 17th and 18th canal houses, the recently refurbished Pulitzer is one of the city’s most recognisable boutiques. Opened in February, the hotel’s bar aims to fuse hedonistic modernity with a sense of timelessness.
The 80-cover venue was designed by Jacu Strauss and features an appealingly downbeat interior, in which sumptuous velvets and leather add depth to an otherwise black space – flickering candles inside merging with the glowing street lamps outside to dramatic effect.
Tableware comes courtesy of Churchill, Sambonet and Maxim World, whilst the bar’s signature tipples are served in a mix of Libbey and Schott Zwiesel glassware. For menus and logos the bar worked with KesselsKramer, an independent communications agency who have previously collaborated with the likes of CitizenM and Grand Marnier. The result? Collateral
and branding that blends old world character with a contemporary eye. It’s a style that aligns with the bar’s demo of bright young things and cosmopolitan creatives.
Overseen by head bartender Andrei Talapanescu, the cocktail menu follows a formula that is classic in style but inventive in execution. Each drink features a consistent recipe that is reflective of the ethos of the bar as well as the wider hotel: one part the past, one part the present and one part ‘revolutionary’ technique. The pineapple old fashioned is served on a bed of haw to heighten the aroma, while the G&T features a carbonated gin to aid in the mixing process and strengthen the flavour.
www.pulitzersbar.nl
STARTERS
Pulitzer’s BarPulitzer Amsterdam
IN A BITE Covers: 80 • Interior Design: Jacu Strauss • Head Bartender: Andrei Talapanescu • Bar Consultant: Andrew Nicholls • Menus and Logos: KesselsKramerGlassware: Libbey and Schott Zweisel • Tableware: Churchill, Sambonet, Maxim World
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The DIFC [Dubai International Financial Centre] is often associated with the upscale and contemporary - its Gate Village elevated off street level and home to many of the city’s commercial art galleries. At the recently opened Four Seasons DIFC, the humble diner is also being elevated, with an Adam D. Tihany-designed space that retranslates the American institution as an elegant dining destination.
A creative collaboration with chef Michael Mina - and his eponymous restaurant management group - Firebird Diner is described as a ‘whimsical’ take on the form. Classic open booths provide relaxed group seating, while a diner-style counter offers perching space for those who wish to enjoy the view of the Downtown skyline through the floor-to-ceiling windows. With 87 covers in the main dining room, 36 on the terrace and seven at the counter, the restaurant aims to attract a diverse
guest – with a special ‘late nite’ menu available on weekends from midnight until 3am.
Overseen by executive chef Matthew Dahlkemper, the restaurant’s menu features American diner staples given an extravagant flourish, with Maine lobster corn dogs, ‘chicken fried’ wagyu steak and duck fat fries.
“I am thrilled to be partnering once again with Four Seasons on such an exciting project,” says Michael Mina, who was born in Cairo, Egypt. “Being of Middle Eastern heritage, I couldn’t be more pleased that our first project in the region is with such a trusted partner, and in such a vibrant part of Dubai.”
www.firebirddubai.com
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Firebird DinerFour Seasons DIFC, Dubai
IN A BITE Concept: Mina Group • Interior Design: Tihany Design • Operator: Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts • Executive Chef: Matthew Dahlkemper • Covers: 87 dining room, 36 terrace, 7 counter • Cadillac Sculptures: Bram Tihany
Creating Hospitality Artesano Authentic. Ingenious.You.
Villeroy & Boch S.à.r.l. Hotel & Restaurant 330, rue de Rollingergrund 2441 Luxembourg Tel.: + (352) 46 82 11 · Fax: + (352) 46 90 22 E-mail: [email protected]
www.villeroy-boch.com/hotel
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Recently reopened after a month long renovation, The Bank Brasserie & Bar sees the focus shift from pure dining to a bar-driven concept, with interior design by Dutch agency FG Stijl. The 108-cover space features room for 44-covers in the bar area, 16 at the bar counter and a 12-seat private dining room at the brasserie.
Drawing upon the building’s illustrious past as Vienna’s grand bank, the design incorporates wood, leather and copper in an evocatively contemporary take on tradition.
The menu also nods to the heritage of the venue in creations such as the Tresor, one of the bar’s 11 signature drinks. Made with golden water and refined with saffron, it is served in a wooden vault box – challenging the drinker to think conceptually about notions of worth, albeit with a nudge and a wink.
Schott Zweisel provides the mainstay glassware, with bespoke pieces for signature dishes and cocktails. With table linens from Kaechele, crockery from Médard de Noblat, copperware from Ruffoni and silverware from Robbe & Berking, the restaurant traverses continental Europe in its eclectic table styling – a chance reflection of The Bank Bresserie & Bar’s internationally cosmopolitan guest.
Heading up the concept of the bar, Reinhard Pohorec – or Reini as he likes to be known – is already a globally established name in the drinks industry and is the creative mind behind Vienna’s boutique bar project Tür 7. ““With its exceptional drink creations, The Bank Bar occupies an internationally leading role,” he says.
www.restaurant-thebank.com
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The Bank Brasserie & BarPark Hyatt, Vienna
IN A BITE Design: FG Stijl • Operator: Hyatt Hotels Corporation • Developer: SIGNA Prime Selection • Covers: 108 • Glassware: Schott Zweisel • Linens: Kaechele Tableware: Médard de Noblat, Robbe & Berking • Copperware: Ru�oni
Dining Culture. Pleasure. Experience.Everything for the perfect sense experience.
WMF Professional | www.wmf-professional.de
Visit us ... Hotelex Shanghai, March 29-April 1st, 2016
FHA Singapore, April 12-15, 2016NRA Chicago, May 21–24, 2016
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Overlooking the Singaporean Straits, ilLido at the Cliff takes its design cues from the undulating waters outside. The subtly nautical theme from JPA Design (James Park Associates) incorporates turquoise furnishings and Roman blinds, whilst carpeting in a linear pattern from Interface hints at a ship’s planked deck. Sunlight is filtered through the terrace’s glass roof by an elaborate screen of tensile sailcloth from RIO Interior, reminiscent of the sails of the yachts that occasionally pass on the nearby shipping routes.
The restaurant features 52-covers in the main dining room, 28 across two private dining rooms, 12 at the bar and 104 on the covered outdoor terrace, where, in the evening, table lights echo those bobbing on the waves just beyond the cliff that gives the venue its name.
Tableware is modern and understated with plates and dishes from Patra
Porcelain, glassware from Riedel and cutlery from Degrenne. If the tabletop is clean and unfussy, then the menu is rampant with bravado. Overseen by executive sous chef Simone Fraternali, it offers a taste of Italy with options including tagliolini with scallops and truffle, and fettuccine with venison ragù and radicchio Tardivo.
The restaurant’s bar, an imposing slab of Black Forest marble, is framed by spherical brass pendant lights and flanked by a row of bespoke barstools and tables, also in brass. Serving up classic cocktails, the outdoor space provides a welcoming haven for those who wish to enjoy a sea breeze of the more literal variety.
www.sofitel-singapore-sentosa.com
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ilLido at the CliffSofitel Singapore Sentosa
IN A BITE Covers: 58 dining room, 28 private dining (2 rooms), 104 terrace, 12 bar • Interior Design: JPA Design • Owner: Royal Group • Operator: AccorHotels / So�tel • Contractor: Sunray Construction • Executive Chef: Simone Fraternali • Head Bartender: Davide Mollica • Tableware: Patra Porcelain • Glassware: Riedel Cutlery: Degrenne Paris
MODULAR BUFFET SYSTEMBUFFET PRESENTATIONHOLLOWWARECHAFING DISHESURNS & DISPENSERSTROLLEYS www.tigerhotel.co.kr
TIGERHOTELANNIVERSARY 1996-2016
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The Camby is Phoenix’s newest luxury boutique. With 277 guestrooms it draws upon five Cs defining of Arizona in its Stonehill & Taylor-led design: cotton, cattle, citrus, climate and copper.
In the restaurant, Artizen, the same influences can be found. Statement freestanding metallic light pieces from iWorks and natty diminutive cacti on the tables nod to the hotel’s location but provide a thoughtfully conceived sense of balance between cliché and modernity, obvious and abstract. The restaurant is accessible from the lobby, where large metal screens depicting a nonfigurative southwest pattern separate the two spaces, one bright and light, the other more contemplative in its design with deep cerulean walls and dark wood floors.
“We wanted to create an intimate and luxurious space,” says Sara Duffy, senior interiors associate at Stonehill & Taylor, “and ‘look-then-look-
again’ moments, continuing the hotel’s theme of refined revelry and using the five Cs.”
The restaurant features 56-covers and director of culinary experiences Dushyant Singh directs a menu that focuses on modern American cuisine, from prime New York steak to grilled boar strip loin. Signature cocktails include the location-appropriate Under the Desert Sun, with Bombay Sapphire, Domaine de Canton, lemon, simple syrup and orange bitters; and the saucily titled Thai Me Down, with Bombay Sapphire East, lime, ginger syrup, egg white, celery bitters and cucumber.
Cocktail glasses and china are from Steelite, barware from Modern Mixologist and HF Coors provide custom porcelain pottery.
www.thecamby.com
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ArtizenThe Camby, Phoenix
IN A BITE Covers: 56 • Interior Design: Stonehill & Taylor • Owner: Host Hotels & Resorts • Operator: Destination Hotels • Director of Culinary Experiences: Dushyant Singh • Tableware and glassware: Steelite • Barware: Modern Mixologist • Porcelain: HF Coors
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When the Burger Theory chain launched in 2014 it signalled a sea change for IHG and its Holiday Inn brand. More than merely another throwaway concept piggybacking on the still-going-strong ‘burger boom’, it was the cornerstone of a new approach for the organisation, one that framed F&B as a key component of Holiday Inn’s revenue picture.
At the IHG brand conference in Las Vegas that same year Maurice Cooper, at the time VP of Holiday Inn in the Americas (now VP of the global Holiday Inn family), said that, “F&B is at the heart of how we will compete differently.” Fast-forward to 2016 and Burger Theory and its gourmet classics have proved to be a remarkable hit – both with punters and the bottom lines of the hotels that carry the concept.
Now in the UK, Holiday Inn are remoulding the idea into a differently flavoured patty with the opening of Stock Burger Co. at the brand’s Brighton location. With interiors and branding from Superfutures, the restaurant follows in the same vein of delivering gourmet burgers and craft beers, but with an attitude and identity all of its own. “After market research and design insight we concluded a new burger brand had to compete with the existing high street offers,” says Ben Webb, director of Superfutures, on translating the concept for the UK. “Therefore we had to start from scratch with redevelopment of the menu, rebranding and design.”
With 146-covers inside, and 40 al fresco covers on the terrace, Stock Burger Co. is positioned not just as a distinctive - and perhaps unexpected - F&B offering for the hotel, but as a neighbourhood destination with its own off-street entrance. “One of our key design hallmarks is the independent high street entry point,” says Webb. “It psychologically disconnects the F&B concept from the main hotel and more importantly allows us to design every part of the guest journey from start to finish. The concept offers the guest a contrast to the main hotel, which in turn makes them feel as though they have entered a different environment with its own unique personality. The hope is that the guest completely forgets they are in a hotel F&B space and that they immerse themselves in the brand experience.”
In its design Stock Burger Co. isn’t derivative. Nonetheless it is intelligible to a broad market, mixing inventive touches with riffs on familiar elements and archetypal burger joint touchpoints. A central bar defines the space,
which is otherwise composed of a mix of private booths, banquettes and a large communal table. Customised pendant lighting helps to define these various zones, intuitively providing for bawdy groups and intimate meets alike. A retractable glazed frontage opens up to reveal a stretch of Brighton seafront that will soon play host to the British Airways i360, an observation tower under construction from the same design and engineering team as the London Eye. Scheduled to open this year, the soon-to-be landmark will likely reap dividends for the restaurant and bar, as tourists and residents flock to fill up on modern Americana after their cable car trips.
Despite the quality of Stock Burger Co.’s design and branding, it’s the quality of the product itself that is central to the restaurant’s ethos. “It was vital that we didn’t just design a nice space with a substandard food offer,” says Webb. “Where possible, local high quality produce is used to make sure that Stock Burger Co.’s product is delivered to the highest standard.” Beef is 100% ‘Glenarm Shorthorn’, sourced by Hannan Meats from select farms in Northern Ireland. Craft beers are supplied by Naked Beer Co. and Marston’s and Blackdown Distillery throw a number of their finely crafted spirits into the mix, including Sussex Dry Gin and Silver Birch Vodka. Coffee comes courtesy of the Brighton-based Small Batch Coffee, an artisan roaster founded in 2007. It’s a credible and encompassing list central to the Stock Burger Co. brand narrative.
As for the future of this new Holiday Inn concept, Superfuture’s Webb is clear that there’s possibly a super future for Stock Burger Co. beyond Brighton. “Based on the current success it would appear we have several Stock Burger Co. sites planned for both the UK and the rest of Europe. The thinking behind the concept is that it’s a kit of parts that can be easily applied across the estate. With IHG we have developed a checklist of design hallmarks that will enable the selection of new sites and ensure they meet the same quality standard. We appreciate every site is different and has its own challenges, but the key design hallmarks must stay at the forefront of the concept.”
www.stockburgerco.com
Stock Burger Co. Holiday Inn, Brighton
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IN A BITE Covers: 146 inside, 40 terrace • Interior design and branding: Superfutures • Suppliers: Hannan Meats, Naked Beer Co., Marston’s, Blackdown Distillery, Small Batch Co�ee • Operator: Kew Green Hotels
When Loh Lik Peng, the owner of the Unlisted Collection, opened the Old Clare Hotel in central Sydney in late 2015, the international press focused on its location
– on the site of a former brewery in the once-gritty Chippendale neighbourhood – and its eclectic interior design. But for Sydneysiders, the real story was the property’s food and beverage offering: three fine-dining restaurants, each helmed by a chef of considerable repute, and an elegant bar with Art Deco furnishings.
For decades, hotel dining in Australia was limp and uninspired. Only recently, as Sydney and Melbourne have begun asserting themselves as luxury destinations, have five-star hotels begun moving away from safe menus and anonymous chefs. Now, the Old Clare has pushed the entire industry forward. Opening four distinct F&B outlets is an ambitious move for any new hotel, let alone one with just 62 guestrooms. The fact that each restaurant at the Old Clare is serving challenging, costly food makes the undertaking seem even more audacious.
The restaurant attracting the most attention is Kensington Street Social, the latest addition to British chef Jason Atherton’s fast-expanding empire. Michelin-starred Atherton has a knack for capturing the zeitgeist, which in 2016 means an artfully disorganised menu and an endless wine list - there were over 180 drops at last count. Next door at Silvereye, former Noma sous chef Sam Miller is offering a 17-course degustation menu
that, unsurprisingly, focuses on foraged ingredients. Locals who were unable to secure a table at Noma’s recent Sydney pop-up are flocking here for a bit of Nordic flair.
Arguably the underdog at the Old Clare is Automata, an unassuming place run by a young chef, Clayton Wells, who has spent most of his career to date cooking at local restaurants, albeit well-regarded ones such as Momofuku Seiōbo. Automata’s five-course set menu and resolutely casual approach don’t immediately lend themselves to newspaper reviews or internet buzz. But many of Sydney’s food lovers are becoming regular customers at Automata.
First and foremost, the food is excellent: inventive but accessible, and light enough to be enjoyed for lunch or dinner. Wells focuses on fish and seafood, and enjoys playing with textures – for example, the pre-meal snack on a recent weekend was a puffy, crunchy piece of dried salmon skin that tasted like an upscale Chinese prawn cracker.
Unlike some longer small-plate menus, Automata’s five-course offering feels coherent, and the servings are large enough to give diners a strong sense of the ingredients used. In a refreshing twist, the dessert offering – such as the recent pumpkin-seed sorbet with freeze-dried mandarin – is rarely very sweet, acting more as a palette cleanser.
“The menu is about finding the perfect balance,”
AutomataOld Clare Hotel, Sydney
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Crispy salmon skin with yuzu kosho emulsion and sake
says Wells, “and the emphasis is on Australian produce. We change our menu as often as possible, and therefore offer our guests a different experience should they pop in on a regular basis.”
Regulars, be they repeat hotel guests or Chippendale locals, seem to be the target demographic at Automata, which has been carefully designed to make diners feel at ease. The small restaurant accommodates 60 across two levels, with the majority of seats at two long, communal tables - there is also a scattering of two-person tables. The ground-floor kitchen is open, with a sturdy chef’s bench in full view of diners. Staff are young and stylish but also professional, treading the line between friendly and efficient with aplomb.
“We want everyone to feel comfortable at Automata,” says Wells, “whether you’re hoping to dine or work with us.” For staff, that means a relaxed dress code and contemporary tunes on the stereo. For diners, it means unpretentious food and the ability to rub shoulders with your companions. Says Wells, “Both our dishes and the communal tables allow for a sense of comfort.”
Like the other two restaurants at the Old Clare, the interior of Automata was designed by Matt Darwon, aka Matt Machine, a local motorcycle mechanic who has recently turned
his attention to hospitality spaces. Darwon has taken a ‘blank canvas’ approach, opting not to cover up the building’s original concrete floors or replace its floor-to-ceiling windows. Decorative details include a radial engine reborn as a chandelier, but there is no artwork or bright colours. The goal, according to Wells, was to create a venue that felt utilitarian and remained connected to the site’s industrial past.
“The design by Matt Darwon focuses on the bare and industrial look of the building, which was formerly Carlton & United Brewery’s administration building,” Wells explains. Because Sydney is a young city, historic spaces that have been repurposed are relatively uncommon, and Wells says Automata’s interior is, in some cases, as much of a draw as his menu. “Our clientele ranges from creative types to young professionals,” he says – “in fact, it’s anyone who is remotely design conscious.”
The mezzanine level has a wonderfully tucked-away feel, with a curved ceiling that features original dark-wood panels from the former administration building – arguably the least ‘industrial’ element of the whole design. But even this space feels minimalist.
That clean, uncomplicated vibe extends to the European tablewear: Spiegelau water
glasses from Germany and Nachtmann whiskey glasses from Austria, as well as Mepra cutlery from Italy. The plates and bowls are perhaps the least conventional elements: they’re heavy and bulky with rough finishes and cream colouring, giving them an almost prehistoric feel. “The tableware was designed and created by Loh Lik Peng’s cousin, Loh Lik Kian from Singapore,” Wells explains. “He has a small production so we were lucky to work with him on this. The colour scheme and bare materials reflect our minimal style allowing the focus to be on the food.”
While Wells admits that some hotel guests might feel intimidated by Automata’s set-menu concept and fish focus, he seems confident that the restaurant’s other charms will endear it to international visitors, particularly those who want a more low-key experience than those offered by Silvereye and Kensington Street Social. Sydney locals, meanwhile, seem to have been won over already. “We’ve received an overwhelmingly positive response since opening,” Wells says. “Small-plate menus are uncommon in the city, but Sydneysiders always seem ready to try new or different things. We’re incredibly grateful.”
www.automata.com.au
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Launching a restaurant with Michelin-star aspirations in Barcelona – a city already heaving with top-notch dining options – is a dicey business. Even more so with an
unfamiliar foreign chef, in an area well known for championing its local cuisine. But Francesc Holgado, General Manager of the Mercer Hotel, insists that to remain competitive a destination restaurant that offers something distinct is in order. “There is a lot of good food in Barcelona,” he explains. “But we don’t have any Italian chefs, so we thought maybe this is something we can offer that’s different.”
So, after three years of trial and error – along with a string of Catalan chefs there was a brief stint with the late French chef Jean Luc Figueras – the hotel seems to be back on track to fulfil its fine dining mission, boldly appointing Giuseppe Iannotti to take the helm and bring his fresh Krèsios brand to Barcelona’s discerning palates. And while the 33-year old chef admittedly doesn’t have the required celebrity status in Spain, he does hold considerable clout in Italy, where along
with a series of accolades, he is the holder of one Michelin star for his restaurant, Krèsios in the city of Telese Terme.
A self-taught cook, known for his strong technical approach and modern interpretations of classics such as roast chicken or fish and chips, Iannotti agrees with Holgado in saying that this was a collaboration that was meant to be. “We have the same outlook,” he says emphatically. Holgado reaffirms: “Our points of view and attitudes to service are completely aligned. We are both always looking for perfection.” Happily, the two locations also aesthetically coincide, giving Iannotti little reason to change the décor in the Barcelona venue. Of course, the fact that the restaurant – along with the rest of the hotel – has been smartly outfitted by Madrid-based firm Gastón y Daniela is a huge boon; understated furnishings by Italian brand Cassina, dramatic full-size paintings by Catalan artist Agustí Puig and low, considered lighting sits within a gem of a building composed of a variety of architectural elements including Roman remains from the
Krèsios BCNMercer Hotel Barcelona
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original city wall and medieval arches. Restored and stitched together by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Rafael Moneo, the hotel – located within the city’s charming Gothic Quarter – successfully merges the old with the new, adding further significance to Iannotti’s cooking philosophy.
The interiors might have remained the same, but the food is certainly a departure, with the new menu riding on the success of Iannotti’s Telese outpost. “Everything here is the same as what I have in Krèsios Telese,” affirms Iannotti. “The only things I asked for were my ingredients and some of my guys. This was necessary to continue with my philosophy and my life, because Krèsios is a project of my life.” Indeed the owner of the hotel, Pedro Molina, has wisely given the chef carte blanche, providing him with the necessary resources in order to succeed, including a farm where his ingredients are specially grown.
The result is slick and inventive, emphasising Iannotti’s sincere and honest ethos. The Tarantino-inspired names of the two tasting menus (Mr. Black and Mr. Pink) hint at his
offbeat attitude, which is evidenced in each of the dishes that don’t fail to delight. From the pizza marinara which, wrapped in greaseproof paper, reveals itself as an Italian iteration of a Chinese bao (a steamed, filled bun) to the zhushed-up version of a Russian salad – molten egg yolk coated in tuna mayonnaise and topped with a freeze-dried caper – each is testament to Iannotti’s instinctive passion, creativity and skill. Salty, crispy fried cod skin with paprika; rich, flavourful al-dente risotto vongole; and an expertly executed goose dish done three ways, are just a few of the courses – suitably presented on specially designed crockery by local studio Luesma & Vega – that with an efficient flourish, are placed carefully on the starched white tablecloth, under the glow of a pendant lamp that highlights the dish like a prized work of art. “I try to create dishes with a lot of adjectives, not with a lot of ingredients,” says Iannotti. “For me, the design of the dish and the presentation is one of the things that completes the experience.”
And while a stellar chef, a clever menu and an elegant, low-key setting in an impressive
building, ticks all the right boxes for potential superstardom, there is some stiff competition, not only from a city that already boasts 22 restaurants with Michelin stars, but from a country that has nurtured the likes of Ferran Adrià and the Roca brothers - currently holders of the best restaurant in the world title for their Girona venue, El Celler de Can Roca. Expectations are high; discerning culinary tourists are seeking exceptional experiences and many conservative locals remain loyal to the crew of Catalan chefs that have, in part, built up Spain’s culinary reputation. But Holgado insists that attitudes are changing. He also believes that the making of a first-class hotel is in the service and that the restaurant is part of the package. For him, the final ingredient is that coveted star. “The most important thing is to try and realise what the best service is and work towards offering that,” he explains. “If we close the circle with the perfect service at The Mercer, then we need to have a good restaurant with one Michelin star, minimum.”
www.mercerbarcelona.com
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It’s interesting how Jams, the new restaurant at the equally new 1 Hotel Central Park, manages to be so New York, yet at the same time, not very New York at all. The restaurant, with its vaulted ceilings and warehouse
vibe — combined with its huge picture windows revealing a bustling midtown Manhattan — is clearly embedded in the patchwork of the Big Apple. But a wide range of naturalistic elements keeps it down to earth and offers a lofty, almost West Coast attitude.
It makes sense considering the restaurateur: Jonathan Waxman, the chef who introduced California cuisine to NYC with his restaurant of the same name on the Upper East Side in the 1980s. Here, the focus is on fresh, unpretentious farm-to-table finds and the design - urban-chic yet rustic - reflects that ethos. The floor is concrete. The ceiling and columns are left in their natural state, as are the unadorned brick fire block walls. It’s almost all track-lit, with very few decorative fixtures save for 1940s vintage double halophane industrial pendants and a huge tent-shaped glass light (in the double-height space) from Radio Guy in Peekskill, NY. Reclaimed white oak tables in flat tung oil finish (by NYC’s Shimna), and vintage dining chairs reupholstered in a linen blend complete the picture.
Kemper Hyers, SVP of Design at Starwood Capital notes that it comes down to one thing: keeping it simple. “We pulled out so much ‘design,’” notes Hyers, who led the restaurant’s design along with AvroKO, a firm that worked on the entire hotel in conjunction with Hyers.
“It’s a less-is-more look, which works well with the 1 brand,” says Hyers. “It’s not about piling it on. I didn’t want it to look mannered, like so many hotel restaurants. It was about keeping the lines clean and the finishes simple, then layering them with cues from nature. It aesthetically respects what Jonathan does, which is to say with his spaces: ‘I found this garage, I opened the doors, I made homemade food and everyone has a good time.’ That’s the quality I wanted to capture. I wanted it to look effortless, like you don’t have to work to understand it. Yet I put a lot of focus on making sure the textures, materials, and furnishings were of great quality.”
Another reason for pulling out that design was to keep the focus on Waxman’s legendarily simple yet appetizing creations. A recent Friday evening dinner was heavy on the Waxman specialties like red pepper pancakes topped with smoked salmon, and simple grilled chicken, infused with the flavours of the Spanish brick oven. Pastry chef Heather
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Heath ceramic plates, La Tavola Cutlery
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Miller was inspired to create one of the signature desserts - a frozen tropical trifle, with layers of ice cream, icy sorbet and fresh fruit - after the city’s 26-inch February blizzard.
It’s all served simply, but on pieces with quality and weight, with Heath ceramic plates, Rona water glasses, La Tavola flatware, Masa linen napkins, Bormioli Rocco wine
glasses, even leather cheque presenters repurposed from old leather chairs and embossed with the Jams logo.
The bar is often as busy as the rest of the space, which is to say packed. Rough reclaimed oak pantry shelves hold the liquor, and the wooden stools by Rich Brilliant Willing and Goodshop make a sculptural statement.
The bar is an especially cavernous open space. Greg
Bradshaw, one of AvroKO’s four partners, had to reduce the size of his original lobby concept to accommodate the restaurant, which grew considerably from the original floor plan. Rather than being located off the lobby, it essentially wraps around it. Bradshaw had to make sure that the two elements, though disparate in size, worked well together.
“We conceived of the lobby as much larger,” Bradshaw says, “but in the end the challenge is the same: to make sure they work well together. It’s like you have a restaurant, but have a living room off to the side of it. In both areas, the focus was on exposing the structure. There’s a lot of exposed brick, plenty of woods and there’s stone in the lobby space and concrete in the restaurant.”
Bradshaw notes that reconciling the two spaces was a challenge, but “it made for the synthesis of ideas, which always yields a rich experience.” In this case, it also yielded an inspired space.
www.jamsrestaurant.nyc
The focus is on fresh, unpretentious farm-to-table �nds and the design - urban-chic yet rustic - re�ects that ethos.
Photography: Eric Laignel
© 2016. MARTINI ITS TRADE DRESS AND THE “BALL AND BAR” LOGO ARE REGISTERED TRADEMARKS.ENJOY MARTINI RESPONSIBLY
Martini Riserva Speciale Vermouth di Torino has been crafted using
carefully selected Italian wines and unique botanicals that are rested for 2
months in traditional oak “Tino” barrels.
The result: a rich, complex and balanced vermouth, perfect for the preparation of
classic Italian cocktails.
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La Maison 1888InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula
Words: Chris Fynes
Taking a seat at our booth, we gaze out over the sweeping panorama of a private bay, the East Vietnam Sea rolling ashore and receding in a cyclical repetition. It’s as far from the usual portrayals of Vietnamese travel as can be. Removed from the
hustle and bustle of cosmopolitan life and sheltered amongst the luxury fortress of InterContinental’s Danang Sun Peninsula Resort, the gourmet offerings of La Maison 1888 are in turn a little removed from the norm.
Having been voted the World’s Leading Luxury Resort for 2015, there are high expectations regarding the experiences that await inside the gates. The resort itself can be dissected into four realms - Heaven, Sky, Earth and Sea - but the primary draw is La Maison 1888, IC Danang’s premiere restaurant. It was formerly captained by Michel Roux from its opening in 2012 and handed over to the talented hands of three Michelin-star chef, Pierre Gagnaire late last year.
Owner of the world-renowned, self-titled Pierre Gagnaire in Paris, he rose to fame with his abandonment of the classics and the championing of fusion cuisine. Not satisfied with a conventional approach to flavour, texture and ingredients, Gagnaire asks questions of his diner’s palates, purposely looking for reactions to his incongruous concepts. For that reason, it would seem a fitting application of this creative attitude that he should now reside at La Maison 1888, an establishment with contrast at its heart.
The black and white design of Bangkok-based architect Bill Bensley flows through the entirety of this hillside retreat - including the F&B spaces - and is based on the concept of an antique French mansion. A private dining space, Le Boudoir de Madame, provides the arena for Gagnaire’s tasting menu, a series of eight courses involving juxtaposing combinations.
As Gagnaire says, his mission is to, “transcend the raw material and reveal its true substance.” Guided by the pull of ‘un principe
d’emotions’ he states that he prefers to be, “frank and direct without being duplicitous and without affectation, whilst conducting his kitchen orchestra in a score of virtuoso savoir-faire.” In simple terms, he describes his work as a combination of “art, love and technique.” Japanese cutlery from La Tavola frames Narumi’s black-accented, fine white bone china for every course. Gagnaire’s equivalent to an artist’s easel and canvas. These details not only act to cement a mark of quality but convey a considered relationship with Bensley’s concept for the interior.
The tasting menu, La Maison’s ‘Espirit Pierre Gagnaire’, is a meticulously crafted harmony of Vietnamese produce, with a supporting cast from more familiar horizons, helping to ensure that the menu’s adventurousness and creativity can be delivered with the full force, flavour and finesse that Gagnaire demands of his ingredients.
Each dish is playful yet created with purpose. Grey shrimp
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consommé plays host to oyster with accompanying green apple and cauliflower, whilst a cucumber and cheese sorbet slowly smoulders atop a fruit tartar, providing the refreshing intermezzo ahead of Nha Trang lobster fricassee paired with brown butter, white onions, white lard and a coconut lobster bisque.
Long slender-stemmed glassware lines the table, keeping watch over proceedings, adding to the theatrics and mirroring the height of the vaulted mansion ceilings above. There is a regimented decanting of fine French wine to partner each dish – the menu continuing with creamy morel cocottes with Vietnamese coffee, asparagus tip, soursop and sugar snap; followed by rack of lamb with couscous broth, date, fig, apricot, raisin and a turmeric potato waffle.
If it’s transcendence that Pierre is looking for however, it’s the Gagnaire Grand Dessert that encapsulates the full spirit of his work, enveloping multiple flavours, techniques and textures into a
miniature tasting menu of five desserts. Whether it be the pistachio and Dulcey chocolate parfait with chocolate and coffee soup and olive oil dacquoise, or the pineapple carpaccio with basil, cheesecake cream and lychee, each ingredient is deserving of its place and slowly reveals itself as the flavour develops with the help of a fresh 2011 Saint Albert, Pacherenc du Vic Bilh.
Delivering an intentioned guest experience Bensley’s design ensures that following the finale at La Maison 1888, the only way to return to reality outside of the retreat is to proceed via ‘Heaven’.
Fully aware of the role France plays in this land’s history, it may not be the most surprising contrast to find a French gem in the hills of East Vietnam’s coastline. However, inside it certainly asks the questions that diners are more than happy to answer.
www.danang.intercontinental.com
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Airport hotels are fundamentally about service and function. The often fleeting nature of the guest – on a stopover or business trip – means a focus on facilities can trump the
flourishes that frequently make for a truly dynamic guest experience. At the Hilton Amsterdam Schiphol, however, guests can ‘expect the unexpected’ in a hotel that combines bold design, contemporary thinking and F&B spaces that are more than mere pit stop.
Architectural firm Mecanoo was responsible for the build of the hotel, which comprises 433 rooms and 1700 square metres of event and meeting space. It’s a commanding structure and, with is distinctive exterior pattern and a-typical forms, it strikes a daring note on an otherwise drab airport skyline. A covered walkway, the ‘Traverse’, connects guests directly with the airport’s terminals.
Axis, Hilton Amsterdam Schiphol’s bar, will be the first interaction with the hotel’s F&B offer for many – not just led by the desire to imbibe post-flight, but because it forms part of the open plan, multifunctional ground floor space. Here check-in, concierge, seating spots and
drinking venue slot together under a 42-metre high glazed roof that forms the crown of the central atrium, perhaps the hotel’s most remarkable architectural feature. With its fluid, almost Bauhaus lines, it forms an impression of scale and gravitas. LED lighting transitions from bright white to strips of deep colour, transforming the mood from day to night.
Despite the expansiveness, Axis isn’t simply a bar counter in a sea of seating, but rather its own island. Through the use of laser-cut timber screens and varying patterned carpets, interior design agency The Gallery HBA has created a sense of delineation. These thoughtful gestures retain a sense of openness but create pockets of intimacy and purpose.
The menu is extensive, recognising the diversity of needs a lobby bar must satisfy. But with a particular leaning towards gin, for example, is also displays personality. Bartenders in relaxed uniforms from Dutch Apparel – think witty denim flat caps and bow ties - are ripe with drinking suggestions and able to wax lyrical on the plethora of spirits at hand, from local batches to international favourites.
Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
Words: Harry McKinley
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Axis BarPhotography: Hufton+Crow
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From the covered walkway drawing guests in, to the escalators and steps that help piece together mezzanines and balconies, there is an intentioned sense of uncluttered interconnectivity. It’s equally apparent in the hotel’s restaurant, Bowery, which doesn’t hide behind walls but flows from the lobby space, curving along the front of the building.
With 225-covers, Bowery forms the F&B backbone of the hotel. Executive chef Edwin van den Heijkant oversees a menu that springs effortlessly from continent to continent with Asian classics and Dutch specialities. The restaurant’s name is derived from the Dutch word for farm and this presents itself through fresh local produce and a nod to seasonality.
A series of open kitchens line the restaurant, each focused on a different culinary chapter of Bowery’s menu – from a grill kitchen to an Asian kitchen. Each features its own tiled wall adorned with illustrations from Israel Paez that articulate the kitchen’s identity whilst pulling the workspaces together under a common aesthetic. It’s a creative touch that emphasises the open kitchens as theatrical, as well as practical galleries from which guests can observe the buzz of a dinner service. In the evening the energy of the chefs and the cooking process filters out into the restaurant creating a dynamic air.
Villeroy & Boch provide Bowery’s tableware and also collaborated with the restaurant on a series of mugs highlighting Paez’s work. Glassware is from Luigi Bormioli and cutlery from Studio William.
It is with Bowery that Hilton Amsterdam Schiphol sets itself apart and presents its manifesto: to be more than one expects from an airport-based hotel. It isn’t a restaurant conceived with transience in mind. Of course from a functional perspective, one can grab a quick bite and
hit the travelator, but from the design to the quality of dining, Bowery creates an impression intended to last.
At the end of the long stretch that forms the restaurant nestles the Vine Room, a 20-cover private dining room. A discreetly disguised entrance affords an element of exclusivity – an opening floor-to-ceiling mirrored panel within the mirror-clad wall that seemingly provides the end point to Bowery.
Although an extension of the restaurant, the Vine Room differs extensively in look and feel. The accents of blue and easy minimalism are replaced with black surfaces and a bespoke wine display wall. Dutch chandeliers by Moooi hang from the ceiling and an original work by Armando – from Schiphol Group’s art collection - adorns the wall. There’s an air of lavishness that provides an appealing counterpoint to Bowery’s clean informality. Here plates and dishes from Serax and cutlery from Studio William continue the sense of distinction.
At Schiphol, Hilton is demonstrating a modernity in its approach to hotel development and this is reflected in F&B destinations that wouldn’t feel out of place in a city centre. Amsterdam is a mere 15 minutes away by train but, on the whole, the traditional hotel offer means the two locations can feel worlds apart. With airport hotels travellers are often used to service at the expense of experience, convenience in exchange for character, but Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol manages to combine these elements. In doing so it not only defines itself as a go-to choice but demonstrates an attitude towards development that translates to guests of all nationalities.
www3.hilton.com
Bowery RestaurantPhotography: Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
Into the Unexpected
Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is a hotel at an airport, but not a typical airport hotel. It created F&B for a design focused, culturally rich, executive oriented destination, sitting atop a global transportation hub.
The journey of a guest through a hotel’s F&B is not only a culinary adventure, but a multi sensory exploration. In every bite and sip one should be offered a taste of the hotel’s essence and gain a better understanding of its identity. With multidisciplinary design studio Studio Appétit, we imagine that journey.
SPREAD
A Welcome Drink at Axis
Gin Sul with Fever Tree Mediterranean Tonic
Glassware: Luigi BormioliTableware: Limited Edition by Studio Appétit in
collaboration with Hilla Shamia
Take a Seat at Bowery Restaurant
Plates: SeraxCutlery: BroggiGlassware: Luigi Bormioli
Dutch Blue Inspiration
Executive Chef: Edwin van den Heijkant Plates: SeraxCutlery: BroggiGlassware: Luigi Bormioli
Location:Hilton Amsterdam Airport SchipholConcept & Production: Studio AppétitStyling & Art direction:-ISM by Studio AppétitPhotography: Studio Appétit
studioappetit.com
NagelhoutCroatian roast beef cured with spices
Smoked Rib Eyealmonds, mozzarella, panko, tomato
Tuna Tatakisesame, avocado, ponzu
Beef Tartaremustard, shallot, truffle
Umami Oystercucumber, radish,black pepper
Bowery Bread by Desemenzo
Seasonal Garden red beetroot, quinoa,carrot, celery
The Diamond Suite
The diamond shaped wood inlay parquet flooring - from Bohemian Works and interior designers The Gallery HBA - is custom made for the hotel’s suite and is inspired by acclaimed Dutch artist M.C. Escher. It continues the diamond inspiration that exists throughout the hotel’s design.
Diamond shaped chocolate made from 100% cocoa Oialla organic chocolate.
Black doughnuts made with burnt corn peal coal natural colouring and cedar smoked sugar glaze.
Pate de Fruit: rye whiskey and anise flavoured, custom
Salty liquorice coins
Narcisse: gold mirror diamond presentation
plates. Engraved acrylic with solid wood base
by Studio Appétit
Creamy diamond pastry withdiamond top
Confections:Ido Garini for Studio Appétit
For future issues of Supper we are seeking to collaborate with hotel F&B outlets, chefs, bartenders, suppliers, creative agencies and food stylists. Please contact us for further details.
Broken cinnamon candy sticks
www.chefworks.com
JACKETS • APRONS • PANTS • SHIRTS • HEADWEAR
Dressing Hospitality Professionals Across the Globe
Steps from the maze of 3,000 tiny winding derbs (alleyways) of the medina, lined with fruit stalls and open sacks of brightly-coloured spice, the
whirr of mopeds and cries of market traders, is the Royal Palace of Marrakech. Cross the road and you’ll find another palace. This time a luxury hotel designed in the style of a mini medina. An orange tree lined boulevard leads us to the imposing Royal Mansour.
As you enter there’s instant sanctuary and respite from the heat and dusty streets. The scent of rose petals fills the air of the courtyard, the coolness thanks to walls tiled with a stark white zellij (geometric mosaic) flecked with blue. Occasional dark wood furniture is carefully placed around a criss-cross of watery walkways leading to a trickling fountain at its centre. All is tranquil.
King Mohammed VI of Morocco himself commissioned hundreds of artisan tradesmen to take inspiration from, and blend the best elements of, all of his palaces to create this gleaming example of North African extravagance. Behind its stately bronze doors, interiors by designers Nicolas Papamiltiades and Fabrice Bourg include huge bronze lanterns, exquisite honey and cream mosaics,
carved cedarwood, stained glass, intricate stuccowork, beaten bronze and inlaid marquetry in every one of the 53 terracotta-coloured private riads.
By royal command the lavish experience includes dinner fit for a king, served up under the sophisticated watch of three Michelin-starred French chef, Yannick Alléno, Gault Millau’s Chef of the Year 2015 and culinary mastermind behind the F&B offering. Here he draws up the blueprint for the three Tables, the spa, and in-riad dining. There is also the option to request supper in the comfort of the riads for a private dining experience.
‘The Prince of the Palaces’, presides over a string of other restaurants around the world including Le Meurice, Le Dali and Terroir Parisien, his own bistro in Paris, Le 1947 in Courchevel, the One & Only at The Palm in Dubai, the Shangri-La in Beijing and restaurant concepts in the Beirut Souks and Taipei, Taiwan.
“I love to adapt my creativity to different markets,” says Alléno. “My many travels inspire me. I love playing with ingredients, trying new things, incorporating new flavours, tasting, transforming, shaping the product and coming up with new recipes. Smells, colours,
tastes, shapes and textures all inspire me.” His gastronomic vision blends contemporary flavours with traditional Moroccan culinary heritage. “It’s a real pleasure to develop my cuisine through a different culture and the revival of its gastronomy. Morocco is an endless source of inspiration, pushing me to perfection and to discover the wealth of the Arabian Nights.”
Known as the master of reinvention, hard work and precision lie at the core of Alleno’s craft and ideology, which is why Le Grand Table Marocaine now counts among the country’s top tables and is the jewel in Royal Mansour’s culinary crown. It’s at this progressive Morrocan fine dining room we sit down for supper. Grandeur pervades every nook of the restaurant, with rich velvet drapes and drop crystal chandeliers from Lalique, Baccarat and Venice. It is indeed a scene straight from Arabian Nights.
Chef Alléno has immersed himself in local domestic cooking. “Moroccan cuisine is visceral, even emotional – it took me right out of my usual way of thinking,” he says. “I had to learn the techniques and references behind familiar dishes such as tajine and pastilla to bring me to a new understanding
La Grande Table MarocaineThe Royal Mansour, Marrakech
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Words: Renate Ruge
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of the immense scope of Moroccan flavours, not just for savoury dishes, but for patisserie too: working with sugar and the importance of honey and the variety of spices.”
Working closely with Executive Chef Jerôme Videau and Restaurant Chef Karim Benbaba on maintaining the integrity of local tradition, Alléno says, “It’s a matter of knowing how to enhance Moroccan flavours, which are already intense. This country and its produce give so much in terms of flavour, colour, subtlety and honesty. In fact, to bring this kind of cooking into the realm of fine dining is to betray what it stands for, in a way.”
According to local custom, the pace of dining is leisurely. The table is lower than average. We sit comfortably on a gold brocade banquette on one side of the table, which is strewn with plump velvet cushions and face our dinner partners sat in grand studded carver chairs on the other.
The pewter tabletop has an intricate pattern that gleams in the light of the flickering flame of occasional candles. It’s set with chunky solid silver cutlery by Saint-Joanis. Plates and bowls, white with a thin gold trim around the rim, are from Bernardaud, JL Coquet and Raynaud. Toasts are raised in crystal glasses from Saint-Louis and Schott Zwiesel, with ruby red cups
and long, clear stems. Tiny vases of crimson roses jostle for attention.
The traditional gleaming silver vessel, a tass, is brought to the table for the ritual hand washing marking the start of our feast. Fragrant orange blossom and rose water is poured from a m’risaht – similar to a teapot for a quick hand rinse. If you close your eyes and make a wish, it’s said to bring good luck. We oblige.
A profusion of dishes comes one after another – a succession of unexpected flavours and a unique gourmet experience. A flurry of Moroccan salads arrives delivered by waiters wearing traditional Jellaba (for men) and elegant silk caftans for ladies. Service is impeccable and hyper-discreet, as you’d expect. The behind-the-scenes team is just that: seldom seen as they scurry around via a network of subterranean passages.
The salad course elicits an enthusiastic response as small beautiful plates of aubergine Zaâlouk, orange with beetroot, mechouia-style bell peppers, purple artichokes and lemon and olives from the souk, turnip from Agafay, dried tomato and fresh coriander courgette salad make a refreshing and colourful start.
Small briouates – parcels and cigar-like shaped cylindrical savoury pastries– are filled
with spinach and tangy cheese, marinated king prawns, lamb flavoured with mint and chicken with honey and almonds.
Though the royal pigeon pastilla is the show stealer: buttery crunch on the outside and stunning flavoursome game meat on the inside. More food arrives; delicate sea bream punctuated by pungent purple olives with saffron potatoes, then a mouth-watering lamb tagine with parsley, olives and delicious preserved lemon. Desserts like red fruits chlada with delicate rose jelly make for a sweet finish. The Orange Pearls with dates, mint and cinnamon transports right back to those fruit stalls of the medina, where old men sell fat juicy oranges. Fresh mint tea in polished silver pots is poured from a great height into traditional gold leaf trimmed glasses to wash it all down. Post dinner, guests pass the fumoir where patrons sip XO Cognac and puff wispy clouds of smoke from fine Montecristo cigars. The rooftop beckons to wind down next to a private pool and fireplace, where nightcaps can be savoured looking up at the starry sky and listening as the haunting call to prayer rings out across the city.
www.royalmansour.com
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Gold rimmed plates from Bernardaud
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Octopus cooked over a wood �re
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The Four Seasons Hotel George V has always been a world-class leader in the hospitality industry, as much for the high standards of its rooms and amenities as for its gastronomic
offerings. Its gourmet restaurant, Le Cinq, has hosted high level French chefs such as Philippe Legendre and Eric Briffard. With charismatic world champion sommelier Eric Beaumard as its director, it has always drawn top talents, recently culminating in a three star Michelin rating under most recent chef, and former Ledoyen chef de cuisine, Christian Lesquer. To ensure optimum quality, all other dining outlets fall under the command of the head chef - including La Galerie (run by the talented and aspiring David Bizet), Le Bar, and all aspects of room service.
It is quite the foodie event then that the hotel has recently launched its first new restaurant since it reopened its doors a decade and a half ago, in what was most recently the Salon Anglais private function room, and formerly the first restaurant to open in the original Hotel George V, the luxury brasserie Les Princes.
The new incarnation, known as Le George, is a luminous dining room looking out onto the interior marble courtyard, designed, like the rest of the hotel, by Pierre-Yves Rochon.
An entranceway of black metal framework, embedded with Lalique crystal panels, opens onto an ivory and white dining room with vaulted ceiling, well spaced tables covered in brown leather (no tablecloths here), and supremely comfy Damask upholstered wing chairs and 1930s grey leather armchairs.
Light from the interior Marble Courtyard is filtered through made-to-measure grey cashmere curtains, and the easy on the foot carpeting is straight from the archives of the venerable French house of Branbuenié. The room is given a surprisingly contemporary touch with optic illusion ‘paper sculpture’ paintings from artist Junior Fritz Jacquet, rounded out by Artistic Director Jeff Leatham’s elegant, sometimes provocative floral arrangements. His installations often provoke ‘oohs and ahhs’ from diners..
Le George Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris
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The cherry on this opulent design cake is a breathtaking 2½-metre Baccarat crystal chandelier, also conceived by Rochon for the Lalique house. In the coming months, a seven-metre high, glass enclosed ‘orangerie’ will give guests the opportunity to dine year-round in the marble courtyard, protected from the elements.
The ambiance is subtle, relaxed and Parisian. The majority of diners come from around town, with only 20% hotel residents. This mostly local crowd are doted upon by Director Quentin Garreau de Labarre (formerly number two at Le Cinq) and the charming Vanessa Bonnaud, who for years catered to every whim and caprice of the world’s most famous fashion designers, stars and billionaires at the legendary avenue Montagne restaurant L’Avenue. It’s a brilliant move to ensure a star-studded clientele.
The cuisine, described by the hotel as “a journey between the French Riviera and northern Italy”, is thanks to Marco Garfagnini - born in Carrara, the same town from which the majority of the hotel’s marble is sourced.
Chef Marco, who was brought over by General Manager José Silva and with whom he worked at the Four Seasons Hotel Les Bergues, has an impressive culinary background. He earned his first Michelin star at the age of 29 in his native Tuscany, and a few years later in 2005, was named young Italian chef of the year by the Gambero Rosso guide. While working at Les Bergues, he also obtained a Michelin star rating for its fine dining establishment Il Lago and opened an innovative rooftop Japanese fusion restaurant called Izumi, which remains to this day one of the Swiss city’s most coveted tables.
Le George was created with the idea of providing a modern French and Mediterranean table with a distinctly Parisian vibe, a ‘convivial gastronomic experience’. The light and healthy dishes, meant to be shared, are composed of crudos, vegetables and fresh pasta, which is made twice daily. Risotto is made to order.
Although many of its style-savvy mannequin-sized guests may be calorie conscious, the food satisfies on many levels, embracing fine dining while remaining
healthy. Tuna crudo, with petals of black truffle; onion “tarte tatin” with parmesan sorbet and an astoundingly fresh langoustine with Mostarda di Cremona (an ancient north Italian concoction wherein preserved fruit is marinated with mustard oil or seed) are but a few of the dishes on the menu.
Whilst the defining characteristic of his cooking is simplicity, chef Garfagnini says, “I use the best products available to me and promote the product in its purest form. I don’t want to disguise it or hide it in any way.” He does feel lucky to be at the epicentre of the gastronomic world, especially being able to use the best produce from his own country as well as the south of France, and while the majority of his cooks are Italian, there are also teammates from Ireland, Korea and Japan. All adhere to the same values: “A good work ethic and atmosphere are absolutely essential in the kitchen.”
It makes for eminently satisfied customers as well.
www.legeorge.com
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Diners with a sweet tooth will be celebrating the launch of London’s first dessert restaurant at the Hotel Café Royal. Devised by the hotel’s executive pastry chef, Sarah Barber, the concept features a series of tasting menus inspired by childhood memories and the whimsy of Lewis Carroll.
A respected figure in the F&B industry, Barber has honed her craft internationally, most recently as executive pastry chef at Corinthia Hotel, and previously as head pastry chef at ME London Hotel, Yauatcha and Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, as well as holding positions at Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz and The Connaught.
“We felt there was a gap in the market and that it was time to give desserts a temple,” Barber says. “The concept is built around a journey and creating a tasting experience.”
The carefully orchestrated menus feature a range of savoury bites to cleanse the palate, followed by sweet creations designed to dazzle. “The ‘Jaffa Cake’ is served in a woodland forest with mandarin chocolate mushrooms,” explains Barber, who also puts her creative spin on rhubarb and custard, and an elevated ‘Snickers’ bar. “These are flavours I remember growing up and the idea is to create sweet memories the guest will cherish.”
Each menu features an optional wine pairing, with varieties selected to complement the sweet flavour profiles, including Prosecco di Valdobbiadene, Henriques y Henriques from Madeira and a range of traditional dessert wines such as Château Roumieu, Sauternes.
www.hotelcaferoyal.com
Dessert Restaurantat The Café Hotel Café Royal, London
“Cocktail making is about putting your inspiration on the bar. It is about the journey that you go through as a creator, and part of that journey is taking your guest along with you.” Ariel Leizgold
SIPPING
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COCKTAILS
The Crosby Bar in NYC stretches from Crosby Street at the front to Lafayette Street at the back. A spacious room with high ceilings, long pewter bar, grey oak floors and tall warehouse-style windows looking out to the trees at the hotel’s entrance, it has a vibrant buzz and flows into an all day dining space. Part of the Firmdale Group of boutique hotels, Crosby Street manages to combine British charm with Big Apple attitude and so it’s fitting that one of the bar’s signature cocktails features quitessentially anglo-flavours with a little added bite.
The White Linen features a classic combination of Hendricks gin, cucumber, egg white, lemon juice and sugar: blended, poured over ice and topped with a generous sprinkle of cracked black pepper.
www.designhotels.com
White Linen The Crosby BarCrosby Street Hotel, New York City
S A L E S @ F R O B I S H E R S . C O M T : 0 1 3 9 2 8 2 5 3 3 3 @ F R O B I S H E R S
# F R O B I S H E R S C L A S S I C S W W W . F R O B I S H E R S . C O M
A N E W P R E M I U M R A N G E O FD E L I C AT E LY C A R B O N AT E D F R U I T D R I N K S
M A D E W I T H P U R E F RU I T J U I C E S .
Available in four timeless flavours: Apple, Pear & ElderflowerSparkling Raspberry, Sparkling Ginger and St Clements Orange & Lemon.
27105 Frobishers_Classics 236x275.indd 1 05/04/2016 11:05
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Situated six miles from Dubrovnik, Sun Gardens is a five star resort on the Adriatic Coast, boasting views of the Adriatic Sea and the Elafiti Islands. Known for its inventive cocktails, the resort’s various bars serve up original creations from bar manager Mirko Strazicic.
The Mare Nostrum is one of Sun Gardens’ two signature cocktails and derives its name from the Latin for ‘our sea’. Described by Strazicic as, “a light yet powerful mix with a refreshing scent of herbs and fruits,” it features a combination of Gin Mare, orange liqueur, Blue Curacao, 1724 Tonic, fresh grape juice and a mint reduction.
www.dubrovniksungardens.com
Mare Nostrum Maraska Lounge Bar
Sun Gardens, Dubrovnik
SIGNATURE | EXPORT STRENGTH | DISTILLER’S CUTPremium London dry gin craft distilled in the heart of England using eleven of the world’s finest botanicals.
Incredibly crisp and fresh the Burleighs unique recipe includes silver birch, dandelion, burdock and elderberries.
A TRULY ARTISAN CREATION
www.burleighsgin.com
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The Dylan’s newly reopened and refurbished Bar Brasserie OCCO is aiming to cement its position on the map as one of Amsterdam’s premier mixology destinations.
With a succinct list of signature cocktails, each option is intended to provide a surprising twist on a classic. The traditional Bloody Mary is reimagined with fermented tomatoes and carrots, while ‘A Fisher’s Friend’ is an inventive take on an Old Fashioned, featuring chocolate bitters.
Perhaps the most novel, however, is The VirGin. Made with the bar’s own non-alcoholic gin, it is served on the rocks with lime and Fever-Tree Mediterranean Tonic.
www.occo.nl
The VirGIN Bar Brasserie OCCOThe Dylan, Amsterdam
H A N D C R A F T E D N A T U R A L S P I R I T
56 Sunbeam Road, London, NW10 6JQ+44 (0) 20 3602 9980 [email protected] www.bimberdistillery.co.uk
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The St. Regis Dubai was the first to open of several hotels at Al Habtoor City, a $3 billion mixed-use development that straddles Sheikh Zayed Road and the soon-to-open Dubai Water Canal.
Anyone with a lasting familiarity with the city will remember what stood before. The Metropolitan was one of Dubai’s oldest hotels, it’s quaint but dated pink façade completely at odds with the gleaming high-rises of nearby Business Bay. It often struck an amusingly discordant note on journeys from one side of the city to the other, a souvenir from a Dubai that has long since moved on.
It’s unsurprising that was has replaced it is a vision of modern grandeur and pomp. Far from a faded remnant, the St. Regis Dubai sits proud and resolute, a beaux-arts monolith at the end of a striking, garden-lined drive. It may be smaller in stature than some of the city’s cloud-embracing stays, but it nonetheless makes a bold statement. With its own fleet of Bentleys circling outside, the aura is one of expensive exclusivity. If the Metropolitan was old Dubai - or as old as its possible to be in the ‘City of Gold’ - then the St. Regis is unashamedly new Dubai.
Inside a sweeping grand stairway, marble floors and crystal chandeliers complete the image. In terms of F&B the hotel is well stocked. Among the options are a French brasserie, steakhouse, 1930s Parisian café, champagne lounge and a spot for afternoon tea overlooking the gardens and lobby.
But of all of the destinations within the hotel it is perhaps the St. Regis Bar that feels most distinct. A wood-adorned space on the ground floor, it exudes a traditional atmosphere that harks to New York City’s Gilded Age - the bright lights of Manhattan swapped for the Middle Eastern equivalent.
The interior was led by Hong Kong-based Bilkey Llinas Design (BLD) and brought to fruition by Khatib & Alami, one of the region’s most prominent architectural firms.
With a theme of ‘speed and sport’, the space features a myriad of polo-inspired elements. Leather saddles are repurposed as decorative objects; previously ridden by the hotel’s owner Mr Mohammed Al Habtoor, Al Habtoor Group vice chairman and CEO. The equine inspiration continues in the sculptural pieces that dot the wooden shelves and heavy furnishings.
For the artwork, Dubai-based consultants Ophelia sourced a number of exclusive pieces. A mix of polo-themed and abstract works hangs both in the main space and the glass-fronted cigar lounge, where guests can retire to sample the venue’s fine Cuban selection. It’s a refined, social space where a curved leather banquette draws together groups of guests. The ambience is one of stately homeliness: more private study than hotel bar.
Behind the bar purples and oranges undulate in a mural by local artist Roberto Raad. Art Deco in style, it features an interpretive take on a Bentley Mulsanne and continues the
The St. Regis BarSt. Regis Dubai
Words: Harry McKinley
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St. Regis tradition of featuring murals inspired by the hotels’ location. Alongside, the more lavish spirits sit framed in inset cabinets, on view but secured by lock and key. A bottle of Hennessey Paradis and Johnnie Walker Blue Label peer out from behind glass.
The back bar itself is an unfussy affair. Bottles huddle together on a single shelf. With such ornate surroundings, there’s a pleasant, classic ease to it. Bartenders mill behind the counter ready to strike up conversation. St. Regis worked primarily with African + Eastern, and also with MMI, to supply the drinks offer, which includes Remy Martin, Louis XIII, King George V and Hennessy as signature brands.
More signature to St. Regis than any liquor range, however, is the Bloody Mary. A quick skirt of the menu reveals regional options from the St. Regis Rome, Florence and New York. Each is local twist on the classic, the Mary Terranean (Rome) featuring olive oil and oregano; the Bloody Brunello (Florence) grappa, honey and rosemary; and the original Red Snapper (New York) a taste of tradition
with Worcestershire sauce and a slick of fresh celery.
Dubai’s version, the Golden Mary, plays on the traditions of the region with date paste, rose infused vodka, pickle jalapeños and tomato juice made from the golden variant as opposed to the usual red. In a flourish befitting of the city’s moniker, gold dust floats liberally atop the mix, the flaxen flakes catching the light and clinging to the cubes of ice in clusters.
Glassware is a mix of Stölzle, Villeroy & Boch, Waterford Crystal, Silo and Eisch. Riedel decanters catch the eye on entry - on display as ornamental pieces awaiting an order of quality red.
As well as a substantial but curated drinks menu, overseen by head mixologist Ilhan Beser, the bar offers a variety of nibbles. Served on dishes from Bernardaud and with cutlery from Sambonet, Octopus croquettes, wagyu sliders and short ribs with mac and cheese are some of the options devised by Chef Stephane Bulchholzer. Culinary director for Al Habtoor
City, he also be heads up the newly adjacent W Dubai and Westin hotels.
For a space that prides itself on its richness and detail, the St. Regis Bar embodies a relaxed sensibility. Despite the polished exactness, there’s little that feels stiff or uninviting. Guests sink into bulky leather sofas and armchairs, the lighting is warm and considered, and there’s an air of privacy that feels all the more remarkable considering the grandness of the hotel at large.
Dubai is not a city to shy away from ostentation and this can sometimes present itself in F&B spaces that feel imposing but impersonal. The St. Regis Bar isn’t an exercise in understatement, but it is executed with a sense of commitment, an eye to intimacy and with a well-conceived concept. It culminates in an experience that manages to live up to the expectations of the first St. Regis in Dubai and set itself apart in a region all-too-familiar with luxury bar and restaurant spaces.
www.stregisbardubai.com
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It’s one thing serving a customer a Plymouth Gin in your bar, but it’s quite another to be able to share your experience of sipping a gin and tonic in Plymouth Gin Distillery’s Refectory Bar - the very room that the Pilgrim Fathers stayed in the night before they boarded The Mayflower and set off
for America.That’s the view of Neil Macdonald, who is responsible for meeting the
demands of an ever-growing number of distillery visitors, for welcoming on-trade staff from across the country to the distilleries, and training bar managers, restaurant staff, company personnel, and a growing legion of brand ambassadors on the provenance and heritage behind his brands.
It says much about the growing importance of drinks tourism that Macdonald has been tasked with making sure that the company’s two gin and four whisky distilleries with visitor centres offer an experience every bit as good or better than the competition. He has been involved with the marketing of Chivas Brothers and what was Campbell Distillers for more than 20 years, most recently with the prestigious Royal Salute brand.
He is relishing the challenge, arguing that drinks tourism is in its infancy.“I think we’re just starting and the challenge will be how to accommodate
all the people wishing to visit,” he says. “Increasingly people want more than just the brand, they want a story, too. When they buy a drink in a bar they want to have experienced that drink in the place where it was made, and to have met the people behind it.”
Macdonald says that a growing number of bar managers and staff are taking the opportunity to learn about the brands they are serving in situ, whether it
Experience DistilledNeil Macdonald is brand experience director for Chivas Brothers and, as he tells us, customers want more than just a drink these days - they want a story.
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Words: Dominic Roskrow
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be in a whisky distillery on the island of Orkney or the Refectory Bar at Plymouth Gin Distillery. They’re doing so because their customers, faced with so much choice within the drinks industry, are seeking out brands with provenance and heritage. “Getting the visitor experience right is absolutely essential because that experience is part of what any drink brand stands for, and what that brand is. It’s important to keep learning, finding out more, evolving and staying ahead of the game.”
Whisky tourism has been big business for some years now, and the leading producers
are in friendly competition to make their offering bigger and better than their rivals. But Macdonald’s view is that the larger the number of brands, and therefore competitors there are, the better it is for anyone.
“The large number of craft gins benefits the whole category because it means that people are talking about gin rather than vodka, and that presents an opportunity to offer something different and new.
“Whisky tourists are a mix of people, some who want to learn about a complex subject such as whisky, and some who already enjoy whisky, and are searching for something new and exciting. Many are coming to see if they can buy something from the distillery they can’t get elsewhere.
“But the whole community benefits from these visitors. When we reopened the distillery facilities at the Scapa distillery on Orkney the whole community got involved. You’re asking people to go a long way but if the experience of doing so is a great one, everyone benefits.”
Macdonald says that the six distilleries of Chivas Brothers with visitor centres hosted 100,000 people last year - modest when compared to some other companies. It’s worth the effort, though, because nothing matches the first hand experience of tasting a drink in the place it’s from.
“It’s called perceptive expectation, and it refers to the way your brain makes assumptions about how something will taste
from the setting you’re in. But it’s the simple extra experiences you might have from visiting a distillery. At Aberlour, for instance, you can taste the whisky from both a sherry and bourbon cask. But we also have a cask of sherry there too, so that you can draw the link between the sherry and the whisky from a sherry cask.”
Macdonald also argues that social media and the Internet mean that even the non-traveller can benefit from what is a renewed thirst for information and knowledge,
“The experiences of those 100,000 can be shared on the Internet and social media and we want millions of people to find out about the places our spirits come from, to hear their stories and to share the information with their customers and friends.”
Meanwhile Macdonald says it is in the interests of staff in any on trade outlet including hotels to stake the trouble to learn about how the drinks they are serving are made.
“Education is massively important,” he says. “Especially with a drink like whisky, which can be a daunting subject. It can be appear to be very complicated and difficult to understand. Being able to simplify any drink will help the sales of it.”
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Their customers, faced with so much choice within the drinks industry, are seeking out brands with provenance and heritage.
Black Isle Brewery is the UK’s premier organic brewery making world class beer from the fi nest organic malt and hops grown on farms without chemicals, as nature intended! Based near Inverness, the capital of the Highlands of Scotland, it is our beautiful, unspoilt, unpolluted, wild, and not a little bit wet, Highland home - and we love it!
www.blackislebrewery.com
Diplomático Ambassador
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What a difference a decade makes.Ten years ago rum was white and light, the owner of Macallan single malt whisky was arguing that darkness was being banished to the edge of
town, and spirits producers were tripping the light fantastic.Now we’re not quite back in black, but if the world of
spirits had a theme song, it would start with the line ‘hello darkness my old friend.’ And of all spirits categories, the most surprising renaissance of all is that of dark rum.
Rum has been on a slow burn for some years now. Once somewhat frivolously positioned as a party mixing drink, it began its reinvention with the launch of spiced rums in the 1990s. Light rums started to be taken more seriously at the start of the millennium. Now, with the backing of some ardent supporters and spirits experts, it’s on the verge of a remarkable turnaround as drinks enthusiasts seek out fine and individual dark rums from a host of South and Central American countries, as well as the better known islands of The West Indies.
Rum is in a unique position as while other spirits are overwhelmingly dark, light or white, rum can be all three. Throw in category distractions such as spiced rums and you’re looking at one very versatile spirit drink. Trouble
is, though, you can’t please all people all of the time and if one category is catching the public imagination more than another, inevitably there will be a straggler.
For a long time dark rum was it. Where in most cases heritage and history count for a great deal, for a long time the heavy imagery associated with dark rum was a millstone round its neck. The old British naval associations looked at best quaint and outdated, and at worst hinted at something just a little bit unpleasant, with the faint whiff of grog, sweat and brutality.
While trendy party-goers turned to white rums, lighter rums and spiced rums, dark rum just seemed to sit there, festering, and metaphorically dreaming of better days when there would always be an England.
Something has changed though, as Matthieu Delassus of West Indian rum distributor Spiridom explains. “Our view is that the general outlook for rum has never been so good,” he says. “In each of our markets, lights are turning to green, with a surging interest from professionals and individuals, and more especially for premium and super premium aged rums.
“Evidence is easy to find for this developing trend simply with the multiplication of rum festivals all over the world.
A Rum ResurgenceThe rum category is benefiting from some tender loving care. We look at how it’s targeting whisky and brandy as a premium spirit
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Words: Dominic Roskrow
Diplomático Rum ageing cellars
We have recently participated in rum festivals in London, Milan, Madrid, Paris, Copenhagen, Lucerne, Hong Kong, as well as several major cities in the United States such as New York, Boston, Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles and San Francisco. In each of these places, people gather in rum societies to share their knowledge and passion for their favourite brands, just as whisky fans do.”
Certainly the trend towards dark rum seems to have global appeal. Talk to rum producers and suppliers and they will all talk about growth in Germany, France, Italy and some parts of the United States. Some mention Spain and Pernod Ricard, which markets Havana Club, points to the ‘premiumisation’ trend in Asian markets. So why has this happened?
Partially the change is the rehabilitation of dark spirits. Partly it’s because people are seeking out bigger and bolder flavours and, rightly or wrongly, they make a link between taste and colour. Partly it’s because people are drinking less but better, and are seeking out premium drinks with a story to tell. Rum has spotted a market in the premium sector.
Somewhat ironically, history and heritage are major factors in the dark rum renaissance, as drinkers seek to discover the nuanced differences between rums from Antigua, the Dominican Republic, Cuba or Venezuela.
Consumer education has become key. Perhaps belatedly, the rum companies have taken a leaf out of the whisky textbook and engaged the customer more fully. Hence the number of rum shows. It would seem that the category is still playing catch up though.
“I would say it’s happening, and is probably one of the main reasons for its fast development in recent years, although at the moment it can’t really be compared to the level of education of whisky consumers,” says Patrick Rabion, export director at Diplomático Rum. “Premium dark rum brands have invested a lot of time and resources on consumer education and professionals training.”
It seems that with education and the launch of new products at the top end of the market, the profile of the dark rum drinker is shifting. Where once it was polarised between cheaper mixing rums favoured by the party crowd, and those who sipped it over ice at the high end, the category is broadening its appeal in general.
So have dark rums got single malt whisky drinkers in its sights? There are a mixture of views among the producers, but they all accept there is some way to go. But certainly Bacardi thinks there is mileage here. It has
launched two single cane estate rums which are designed to further segment the rum category, accelerate the move to ‘premiumisation’rand which will inevitably be seen as a step towards the single distillery world of malt whisky.
There is one other factor that will undoubtedly affect how the rum category evolves: Cuba. With U.S. President Barack Obama making history by visiting the country and all signs pointing to an economic rehabilitation for the rum-loving island, it’s a case of ‘when’ Cuba starts trading with America again and not ‘if’. So what will that mean for rum?
Benjamin Jones, the United States director for Rhum Clement and Rhum J.M., is optimistic. “When Cuban rum enters the US market, I believe it will have a substantial and positive impact for all premium rum. Initially I think it will take a little market share away from some brands, most notably Bacardi.”
The competition will be welcomed. There will be a wide open door for other premium craft and heritage Cuban rums to enter the US market. Nick Blackness, marketing director at Havana Club International, agrees. “Across the board, consumers are increasingly buying brands that they feel an emotional connection with; brands that have a story to tell and that do it in a compelling way. With our rich Cuban heritage, Havana Club has plentiful stories to tell and we are looking forward to sharing them with Havana Club fans around the world in the months and years to come. If the trade embargo between Cuba and the USA is lifted, there would definitely be a strong opportunity for Havana Club in the USA.” Exciting times for the rum category then.
“The rum category is currently the most under-premiumised spirit category,” continues Blackness. “The opportunities for premiumisation are clear. Rum has all the credentials to step up as the next experience in luxury spirits. Ultimately premium rums have authenticity, heritage and character.”
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History and heritage are major factors in the dark rum renaissance, as drinkers seek to discover the nuanced differences between rums from Antigua, the Dominican Republic, Cuba or Venezuela
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Photography: Le Bristol Paris
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Afine hotel and a fine wine aren’t alike in many ways but they do have something in common when it comes to terroir. It is, after all, important to be representative
of one’s region. Just as a bottle of Bordeaux should taste recognisably like Bordeaux, nobody visiting Burgundy is looking for a Las Vegas-style masterpiece of gambling kitsch: they are hoping for the essence of Burgundy with luxury fittings. But at the same time, you have to stand out from your immediate neighbours, or why stay ‘here’ and drink ‘that’? No wonder a great hotel restaurant is such an asset: it’s a way to celebrate individuality, revelling in the character of the region. As the diner spears a delicious morsel composed of locally grown produce, carefully coaxed into an unfamiliar yet appealing form by the talent in the kitchen, he or she knows exactly why they have chosen to come to this establishment: that delicate balance has been
struck between the familiarity of fine dining and the pleasant shock of this particular dinner.
In wine country, there’s another person who has just as crucial role in striking that balance: the sommelier. Most fine dining restaurants will offer the wines the world considers the greatest available – Bordeaux and Burgundy – and pretty much everyone offers Champagne, proof that even in a world where the finest Cava or Crémant is a better drinking experience than the worst Champagnes, many people don’t consider it a celebration unless the fizz comes from that famous patch of northern France.
In France, this makes the priorities straightforward – “The top three regions requested are Bourgogne, Bordeaux as well as Champagne,” says Bernard Neveu, Chef Sommelier at 3 Michelin-starred restaurant Epicure in Le Bristol hotel. He adds that, “Seeing how we are located in the heart
The Art of Balance
To what degree should regional wines take centre stage and how does a sommelier strike the right chord between championing the surrounding area whilst delivering on guest expectations?
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Words: Nina Caplan
of Paris and Le Bristol sells classic French service, I am open to recommending wines from any region of France; sometimes even other European regions.” And that’s the hierarchy: simple. I have had some astonishingly good wine and food pairings in Epicure but every one I can remember has been French.
Elsewhere in the world, the sommelier’s job is more complicated. In Spain, do you prioritise Rioja and Priorat? In Portugal, should the Douro take precedence? And what about the New World? On the one hand, sommeliers want to demonstrate the greatness of local wines – but a hotel is not a boarding school, and if a guest wishes to spend a week in the Canaries drinking nothing but Bordeaux, then perhaps a hotel should make that possible. As for food and wine matching, the sommelier’s great task, a talented somm can do so much more than ally a dish with a wine made in the same vicinity. But then again, a cuisine that is celebrating local produce may very well be shown to best advantage beside a wine from the same neighbourhood.
At Six Senses Douro Valley, a recently opened hotel and spa set among Portugal’s most famous vineyards, Wine Director Francisca Van Zeller presides over a bold experiment: local wines only, although local is loosely defined (and Champagne is the exception). “We are located in the oldest demarcated wine region in the world. Port has been produced here for centuries and before that the Romans were already producing wine in these parts,” says Van Zeller. “Since the 1990s, DOC Douro has been producing fabulous reds and whites that have gained the wine world’s approbation.” So it seems a shame not to show that off.
Six Senses’ wine list is structured as a journey along the river Douro, including Ribera del Duero in Spain, “because this area shares with us the location on the river Douro.” The region’s 100-plus indigenous grape varieties and terroirs are showcased on a 700-strong wine list on which Champagne is the only departure from the Douro theme.
Other places are less categorical while still making a point of their pride in the home region. “I really like it when diners drink local wines because our country is full of small artisan-family owned wineries,” says Marco Reitano, sommelier at Rome’s only 3-Michelin-starred restaurant, La Pergola atop Hotel Cavalieri. “Italy has over 200,000 wine producers and hundreds of indigenous grape varieties.” And of course, while there are perennial greats, particularly from the most famous regions of Tuscany and
Piedmont, there are new wineries and wines every year – a bewildering choice through which the sommelier must guide his guests. “The challenge is to try to know most of them so I can always offer something new to the customers, especially the regular guests.”
This, more than the geographical selection of wines on their list, was the common refrain among those I spoke to: the customer must be happy, and these sommeliers – a varied bunch, with backgrounds ranging from aeronautics to journalism – believe that showcasing the terroir in which their establishment is rooted is the best way to ensure this. Juan Pablo Jiménez Hincapié, head sommelier at Bohemia Suites & Spa in Gran Canaria, points out that Spain is a country with an immense variety of gastronomic traditions and of vines. “My job is to show visitors our wealth and help to create a complete gastronomic experience.” Depending on the customer, he says, sometimes that means a Spanish wine, often from one of several small wineries he likes to work with. “Sometimes their choice is an international reference and a nice talk about local production.”
Even in countries that have less of a hallowed wine tradition, the sommelier is likely to make a point of ensuring that at the very least, his guests do not leave in ignorance of the local winemakers, even if they choose not to try their wares. At Château Frontenac in Quebec City, sommelier Zsombor Mezey (who is originally from Romania) acknowledges that Bordeaux and Burgundy are the primary vinous destinations – particularly unsurprising in a Francophone region with close, if sometimes problematic, ties to France – but says that the US, Italy and yes, Canada figure high on guests’ wishlists too. In contrast to Europe, this is where the New World wines come into their own. “They are in very high demand, especially the small, unique, and exclusive wines,” he says, adding that the food and wine match of which he is most proud in his career so far, was a Mollydooker Verdelho from McLaren Vale in South Australia accompanying grilled vegetable salad with fresh tomato and mozzarella. Is there a particular affinity between the produce of those countries that took European traditions and planted them across the oceans, and the wines that are also European transplants? Or maybe it’s just that Americans, Canadians and Australians are more inclined to try something that is, like them, an offshoot from the Old World. Hard to say, and in any case, impossible to generalise. Each great hotel, like the great wines they serve, is unique. And arguably each guest is too, even if many of their requirements overlap. Combining all those different personalities into an appetising blend is no easy feat. “In this job psychology, people skills, likeability, seriousness are all needed,” says Hincapié. But it is the ultimate achievement of a talented somm to do just that.
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Even in countries that have less of a hallowed wine tradition, the sommelier is likely to make a point of ensuring that at the very least, his guests do not leave in ignorance of the local winemakers
Photography: Hotel Cavalieri Rome, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts
Punch on the Road at Candelaria, Paris
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What was the rationale behind taking Punch Room on the road?We love what we do here at Punch Room, but we want to take it to a wider audience and have fun with it. Taking the bar on the road, we’re able to meet a load of new people and learn from what they’re doing. We have a great network of bars in London and our cocktail scene is globally renowned, but it’s great to explore and show the rest of the world what we’re known for.
What is it about the Punch Room specifically that you hope to showcase?The skills of the bartenders, the quality of drinks and our jovial side. Most hotel bars are super formal with regimented service, but we like to challenge the status quo and bend the rules. Having fun is the most important part of running a bar, both for the team and the guests.
The plan includes a myriad of destinations: NYC, New Orleans, Chicago and Berlin, to name a few. How did you decide on the locations and how do the bars and events you’re partnering with represent the best the world has to offer?We’re very lucky in that we’re able to choose who we work with. When we decided on Paris for stop one, Candelaria was an obvious choice because it’s one of our favourite bars in the world. We will always partner with people we like, admire, and can have fun with. In choosing cities, we’ve pinpointed places that have a lot going on at the moment – existing,
emerging or untapped markets. Paris has a burgeoning bar scene, and Miami is becoming a cocktail capital. With Singapore, next year everyone will be talking about it, so we want to be part of that.
Which brands have you got on board for your road trip? Well we’re partnering with brands that we’ve worked with before and have existing relationships with. Punch on The Road is our tour, but we rely on collaborations to make it work. The brands that we have either used or are signed up to be involved in 2016 are Pernod Ricard with Plymouth, Olmeca Altos, Martell, Havana Club and Absolut Elyx; Bacardi with Banks Rum; and Brown Forman with Woodford Reserve.
How will the locations impact on the menus created and how are the region-specific cocktails devised?We completely recognise that whilst we want to showcase our brand, we also want to reflect our surroundings and tailor our offering depending on where we are. For Paris, Davide Segat [London Edition bar manager] used a lot of French products to ‘French up the menu’, so to speak, and for Miami the Clearer Colada was an obvious choice. We want to show that we’ve put thought into it, rather than just rolling something out.
What kind of processes are you using in terms of mixology? We use quite old techniques that are coming
back now, like milk washing, fat washing and some fairly new like clarification, foams & barrel ageing.
The Milk Punch is arguably the Punch Room’s signature cocktail, in which ways does it represent the ethos of the bar and how will this be showcased on tour?It’s definitely our signature punch and although it does represent us, it’s also a great representation of the punch category. It’s a recipe from 1750 so very classic but at the same time very modern. That’s exactly the ethos of Punch Room - apply modern ingredients to a very classic concept. It will be the main drink of the tour and we will adapt the recipe everywhere we go. For example in Paris we did it with all French spirits: cognac, Calvados, Lillet Blanc and absinthe. Yes, absinthe! Our punchbowls will also be travelling with us.
[Punch Room’s punch bowls are a signature of the bar. Sourced from a dealer in London’s Hackney, they are all antique.]
Finally, who from the team gets the lucky task of travelling the world? It will change, but Davide will be a constant. He opened Punch Room and so is well versed in all our practices. No one is better suited to represent us than him.
To keep up to date with Punch on the Road and the
international schedule, visit them on Facebook at:
www.facebook.com/PunchRoomLDN
Punch on the Road
On a tour of the world’s best bars, London Edition’s Punch Room is taking to the road in 2016. From Singapore to Miami, from popups to takeovers, the bar will be showcasing its distinctive approach in global style. Lance Perkins, director of bars at London Edition, explains.
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Diageo World Class: Tanqueray No. TEN
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Blending fine drinking with destination resorts, Diageo Reserve World Class have partnered with One & Only for Destinations Distilled. Across 2016 the project sees six of the world’s best bartenders travelling
to six One & Only resorts, on a mission to create bespoke cocktails that will interpret and capture the essence of each destination though the art of mixology. “This partnership with One & Only will bring to life experiences that will be authentic, sophisticated and entertaining using the finest Diageo Reserve spirit brands,” says Matteo Fantacchiotti, Global Reserve Commercial Vice President.
“It is my view that cocktail making is about putting your inspiration on the bar. It is about the journey that you go through as a creator, and part of that journey is about taking your guest along with you,” says Israel’s Ariel Leizgold, founder of several award winning cocktail bars in his home city of Tel Aviv and one of the bartenders taking part. Listed in 2011 among the world’s 50 most influential people in hospitality, Leizgold will be heading to Emirates One & Only Wolgan Valley, Australia, where he will seek to gain inspiration from his surroundings. “I call my style ‘storytelling through cocktails’. Everyone loves stories, which are the essence of hospitality,” he says. “Taking your guest on a ride of inspiration, giving them a glimpse of how you create, deconstruct flavours, give birth to new presentations using new and old stories - that is how I view my creations.”
Already underway, Destinations Distilled’s journey is two
legs down. At the One & Only Ocean Club on Paradise Island in the Bahamas, UK bartender Ali Reynolds – of London’s Hawksmoor – channelled the flavours of the region with a mango, lime, coconut, sugar and Ron Zacapa rum creation, finished with a blue macaw feather. “I was fascinated by the 12th Century Cloisters which were shipped over brick by brick from France to the resort in the 1960s. As such, through the language of mixology, the cocktail speaks to both old world romance and new world exuberance,” says Reynolds. “I like to avoid fuss. A good backstory and something to get the guests interested is my focus.”
Descending on One & Only Palmilla in los Cabos Mexico, Japan’s Michito Kaneko – founder and sole bartender of The Lamp Bar – drew inspiration from the landscapes and scents of the region in a subtle cocktail including Don Julio 1942 tequila paired with the tart freshness of local lime juice, homemade vanilla soda and a dash of rich mineral salt water. Giving up his job as a construction worker to pursue a career in mixology, Kaneko’s understated approach has seen him garner significant acclaim. “I think it is a Japanese speciality of mixology, to make delicate but well-balanced cocktails,” he explains. Precise and exacting he likes to demonstrate, “accurate and stable bartending techniques.”
Still to come, Vítězslav Cirok of the Czech Republic will be travelling to Capetown South Africa where he hopes to be inspired by the, “rich culture, native people, local cuisine and African roots” in his work. Jack Sotti from Australia may not even need his passport as he flies to the country’s
Diageo’s One and Only
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Words: Harry McKinley
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Hayman Island. “I can’t get past the azure blue of the Great Barrier Reef and the fresh maritime scent in the morning on the beach. I think I’ll start there,” he tells us when we ask about how he expects to be stirred by his surroundings. Finally, Greece’s Emmanouil Lykiardopoulos will bring a close to the project, heading to Reethi Rah in the Maldives. “I like using new and unexpected materials to create meaningful cocktails with character that are able to awaken all senses,” he says.
Naturally working with Diageo Reserve gives the bartenders unlimited access to an array of premium spirits, but they each have their own favourites according to style and taste. “I love gin and gin loves me back. Tanqueray no. Ten is without a doubt my favourite spirit for mixing cocktails,” says Leizgold. “It’s diverse and fun. Like me really.” Lykiardopoulos seconds his choice. For Cirok it’s not about what’s in a name, “I would say that I am closest to Ciroc Vodka, but if we dismiss my surname I have to say that I very much enjoy premium whisky from the classic range of malts - namely Talisker. I appreciate its roughness, rich taste, individuality, spiciness and its elegance. A few key words identifying my personality.” Reynolds is particularly fond of Johnnie Walker Blue Label,
while Kaneko invariably reaches for the Don Julio and Johnnie Walker Gold Label Reserve.
Their approaches and tastes may vary, but one thing each bartender agrees on is that appreciation for mixology is growing and projects such as Destinations Distilled are helping to shine a light on the creativity and complexity of their work. “Day by day, the art of mixology is becoming more and more interesting,” says Lykiardopoulos. “Cocktail competitions like World Class can only help but put this on a pedestal for the world to see,” agrees Reynolds. For Leizgold, it’s about developing a respect for the form. “Mr Erik Lorincz [head bartender at the American Bar at the Savoy, London] once told me that he thinks cocktail making is exactly like cooking, only instead of using fire, we use ice. I cannot agree more and, ultimately, the modern guest has become a true connoisseur of all things pleasurable.” “Craft cocktail culture is changing the way we experience fine drinking, positioning bartenders as true craftsmen and women who are celebrated for their work,” says Diageo’s Fantacchiotti.
www.diageo.comwww.oneandonlyresorts.com
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Japan’s Michito Kaneko
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An ode to ultra-premium Cuban run, Havana Club have unveiled a new series of bold limited editions. With only 2,500 bottles of each available, a new limited edition will be unveiled annually at the Cuban Habanos Festival – where cigar a�cionados assemble to indulge in the local wares.
A collection crafted for collectors and connoisseurs, the packaging is designed to maximise shelf appeal and cut through the noise of a premium back-bar. Created by Nude Brand Creation it’s inspired by the variety of Cuban architectural styles and features a healthy dose of blue, the national colour.
The 2016 release is led by a base of rums aged in 80-year old casks. Bright and clear in colour, a balanced but
heady aroma hits the nose, with dried fruits and raisins highlighted with subtle oak notes. The taste is full bodied and lingers.
“Creating the Havana Club Tributo Collection is a fascinating process, as each release will provide a new and unique taste experience, achieved through experimentation with rum bases from our reserves,” says Asbel Morales, Maestro Ronero for Havana Club. As a seal of quality, Morales’ signature and the number of each bottle is displayed on the label.
The collection will be available in 10 global markets, including China, Mexico, the UK and Cuba.
www.havana-club.com
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Tributo Havana Club
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Forest Gin
British boutique gin brand Forest Gin has unveiled its new bottle design, a collaboration with Stoke-on-Trent potter Wade Ceramics. “We have always been very proud of the original bottle, but the chance to change to Sta�ordshire Porcelain was just too good to miss,” says Karl Bond, co-founder of the family-run business and staunch believer in choosing local. “Everyone at Wade has been so helpful with the process, and to see the �nished product is amazing. We truly believe that this is the world’s most beautiful Gin bottle.”
Much of the manufacturing process is completed by hand, down to the application of the Suzy Taylor-designed papercut weasel that adorns the exterior, and each bottle features a hand-written batch number.
Launched in 2015, Forest Gin is made in tiny batches of around 80 bottles and has been awarded medals in the ultra-premium category of the Global Gin Masters as well as two separate double-gold medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. With increasing international acclaim comes greater interest from the on-trade market, with Forest Gin now stocked in the UK at Selfridges’ Forest on the Roof in London and Manchester’s Renaissance Hotel.
www.forestgin.com
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“What is happening off the plate can be as important as what is happening on the plate.” Michael Ellis, International Director of Michelin Guides,speaking at GRIF 16.
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Puccini Group founder Bob Puccini onstage with Supper Editor Harry McKinley
The Global Restaurant Awards at Burj Al Arab
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SIDES
Showcasing the hottest restaurant concepts from around the globe and giving attendees a place of focus to connect with investors, owners, franchisors and senior hospitality professionals, GRIF 2016 - organised by Bench Events - was held at The Address Dubai Mall
in the city’s vibrant Downtown neighbourhood. For 2016 GRIF partnered with Michelin, with Michael Ellis, International
Director for Michelin Guides, delivering several keynote presentations over the course of the three-day event. Delivering insight into the selection process as well as trends in the F&B sector, Ellis spoke on the importance of relaying a ‘food story’ but keeping it succinct. “Guests want to get a sense of provenance but some restaurants have taken that notion a little too far,” he explained. “Ultimately diners aren’t interested in the name of the farmer.” Other movements noted in the sector included the divide between formal fine dining and more casual models. As Ellis explained, “guests still want to dress up for dinner, just not that often.” Speaking on the importance of experience Ellis noted that, “what is happening off the plate can be as important as what is happening on the plate.”
For attendees the event began with a culinary tour hosted by Emaar Hospitality Group. An early start at French bistro and boulangerie La Serre, at hotel Vida Downtown, set the tone for a day of hotel restaurant discovery and canapés, with the likes of Armani Hotel and The Palace showcasing their F&B venues along with appetising samples of their offer.
An opening networking reception at Intersect by Lexus in the DIFC (Dubai International Financial District) offered delegates an opportunity to meet and network in a recently opened space, with the city’s Art Nights event bustling in the surrounding galleries.
Day two saw the speakers take to the stage and included presentations from Marc Blazer, chairman of the board for Noma; Rohit Sachdev, managing director of Soho Hospitality; and Simon Taylor, head of business development restaurants for Condé Nast International Restaurants.
Charles Banks, co-founder of thefoodpeople, discussed the movements driving global F&B, from the popularity of street food to the importance of open kitchens. “Getting up and close and personal with the chefs cooking your food allows for trust, transparency and a story to unfold around the dining experience,” he said.
Supper editor Harry McKinley was joined on stage by Bob Puccini, founder of the Puccini Group where they discussed homegrown F&B concepts, pop-ups and the crucial role design plays in creating successful eating and drinking concepts. “Restaurants are as much about heart as the stomach,” Puccini told the audience.
Inspired and informed, delegates decamped to an exclusive event at OKKU at the H Hotel to discuss the day’s talking points over cocktails and nibbles. Afterwards the more hardy headed up to the 40th floor to continue conversation at the hotel’s rooftop bar 40 Kong, taking in the impressive views before the unseasonal rain brought a dramatic end to the evening’s festivities.
The closing day saw the presentations continue apace, with panel discussions on the art of franchise negotiation, the changing business models of hotel F&B and investor opportunities.
A dynamic finale, Into the GRIF Den saw three food concept founders pitch their ideas to a panel of judges, including Sami Daud, founder and chairman of Gourmet Gulf Co.; Eric Bellquist, partner at Hutton Collins Partners; Ron Pearson, partner at Bowmark Capital; and Noma’s Marc Blazer. As well as gaining advice on their businesses, it was an opportunity for the business founders to seek investment from an audience of influential industry insiders.
The closing evening saw the launch of the Global Restaurant Awards at the iconic Burj Al Arab. Held in the Al Falak Ballroom, an opulently decorated space styled after an 18th century Viennese opera House, guests dined on foie gras and caviar while the winners were announced. Among them, Berner’s Tavern at the London Edition picked up the gong for Design, with the judges describing it as, ‘outrageously brilliant in its design, appearance and character’. GM Pierre Noublanche was there to accept the award, dedicating it to his team.
Bow ties loosened and shirts untucked, guests filtered to celebrate the close of a successful event while winners faced the happy problem of how to squeeze a commanding slab of glass into the next day’s hand luggage.
www.restaurant-invest.com
Global Restaurant Investment Forum14th – 16th March, Dubai
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SIDES
The UK’s largest foodservice and hospitality event, Hotelympia 2016 welcomed 26,000 attendees over four days, a 15% surge in visitor numbers. With almost 1,000 innovative food and drink, technology, catering
equipment, interiors and waste management companies set across the show’s 300,000 ft2, it continued to provide a platform to showcase the latest innovations and products for the hotel F&B industry.
World renowned chef and restaurateur Jason Atherton headlined the Hotelympia Food Service 2020 Conference discussing his growing number of sites in a talk entitled ‘re-imagining global for local’. In it he addressed the inspiring nature of translating ideas for an international audience and discussed his signature venues, including hotel restaurants in Sydney, Dubai and Shanghai.
On the main stage industry experts addressed a variety of topical issues, from crowdfunding to Biophilic design, with interior designer Oliver Heath discussing his passion for creating ‘healthier and happier built
environments.’ Afroditi Krassa presented her perspectives on design and offered insight into her collaborations with the likes of Hilton and Emaar. “I’m only interested in working with clients who want to do something new,” she said. “The market is saturated and if there isn’t the desire to deliver an idea in a way that hasn’t been seen before then it won’t succeed.”
Over the course of the event The Staff Canteen Live – Skillery, delivered demos from some of the industry’s top names, including Tom Kerridge, Clare Smyth, Simon Rogan, Graham Garrett, Claude Bosi, Nathan Outlaw and Angela Hartnett. Elsewhere Anton Mosimann OBE, was inaugurated into the Hotelympia Hall of Fame in front of an approving audience.
Bombay Brasserie took Hotelympia’s Best Restaurant Design Award, leaving Fera at Claridge’s and German Gymnasium as close runners up. Founded in 1982 and part of Taj 51 Buckingham Gate Hotel, it remains one of London’s most enduring Indian restaurants.
www.hotelympia.com
Oliver Heath onstage at Hotelympia 2016
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Opened in November 2015, Olea at Kempinski Mall of the Emirates, Dubai specialises in authentic Levantine cuisine and traditional cooking methods. It is one of �ve F&B venues at the hotel and mixes classic Arabian style with a contemporary sensibility.
Most signature to Olea’s design and operations is the bold central show kitchen developed by Tricon Foodservice Consultants. Tasked with approaching concepts from a practical and comprehensive point of view, Tricon specialises in F&B design that optimises revenue generating potential – be it through space planning of functional areas or ensuring operations that are seamless and considered. The company has applied these services to numerous hotel F&B projects, working with the likes of Mondrian at Sea Containers London, W Doha and the Hyatt Capital Gate Tower in Abu Dhabi.
With Olea, the brief was deceptively simple: create and achieve a showpiece display kitchen as a focal point within the new restaurant concept. Tricon was engaged by the hotel’s architect Aukett Swanke and owners and developers Majid Al Futtaim, one of the region’s foremost holding companies.
The Tricon team, headed up by Robert Plumb,
design director, carried out extensive research into Levantine cuisine and cooking methods, known in Arabic as the Bilad al-Sham or Land of the North, which is the ‘true’ traditional cuisine found in the Levant region. In doing so they gleaned a distinct insight into the working spaces that would be required. Ultimately one of the key challenges was to create a bespoke dining experience within the restaurant, yet be aware that up to 300 hotel guests would require breakfast service in the same environment.
A serving counter that stretches the length of the kitchen was developed as one solution – providing space for mass catering but also creating a barrier between the dining area and the kitchen, whilst leaving it visually unobstructed.
In creating a standalone dining destination, in a space previously reserved for all day dining, Tricon also developed a bar and beverage serving area that functions as a self-service space during breakfast and a waiter station during lunch and dinner.
ww.tricon.co.uk
Olea Kempinski Mall of the Emirates, DubaiTricon Foodservice Consultants
139
Breakfast at ThonCraster
With hotels across Norway, Belgium and the Netherlands, the Oslo-headquartered Thon Hotels identi�ed a need to improve, refresh and elevate their breakfast concept – seeking to add new ideas to a hotel staple.
They called upon fellow Norwegians 2080.no - a unique supplier of kitchen and serving equipment – who in turn enlisted two key industry inuencers; esteemed Norwegian Chef Odd Ivar Solvold and Craster, a London based provider of luxury products for hotels and restaurants globally.
Chef Solvold, a restaurateur and author of several cookbooks, was the recipient of the Bocuse d’Or bronze medal in 1997 and has since gone on to mentor many of the subsequent winners.
2080.no, Chef Solvold and Craster came together to brainstorm designs for an innovative selection of new display concepts that could be rolled out across the Thon brand. The solution was the dynamic FLOW range which, based on a completely modular system, enables chefs to create a unique layout at di�erent times throughout the day – providing complete exibility in any all day dining concept. The collection a�orded Thon the ability to serve delicious breakfasts, beautifully presented, expertly served and stored in the back of house seamlessly.
www.2080.nowww.craster.com
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Sourdough Crispbread Peter’s Yard
A Swedish staple, crispbread, or ‘knäckebröd’, has been baked since 500AD and is now a favourite throughout the Nordic countries.
Peter’s Yard provide a selection of traditional varieties, from sourdough – made with milk, spelt and rye �ours, sourdough, honey and linseed – to options featuring �g, whole spices and healthy seeds.
A limited edition serving stand is available, featuring an oak board, stainless steel handle and treated with food oil.
www.petersyard.com
DunePonti
Made with ultra-light aluminium, the Dune collection is designed by Hong Kong-based Italian designer Andrea Ponti. With a durable anodised �nish, it draws its name from the sweeping silhouette of the cutlery, the transition from straight to curve re�ecting undulating sands.
A ‘personal �atware set’, it features freestanding packaging that serves either as a storage device or for display, drawing the connection between food and design.
www.andreaponti.com
GrainBonna
Turkish label Bonna continues its mission to provide ‘warmth and elegance’ to the HORECA industry with a contemporary range of hand-painted tableware.
With translucent bodies and brilliant glazes, pieces from the Grain collection embody a rustic, artisanal feel and combine the traditions of porcelain with practicality and durability.
From serving bowls to a diverse tea service, the collection features the same edge-chip warranty and strength as the ivory white series.
www.hotel.bonna.com.tr
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Red or WhiteNude
Created by renowned industrial designer Ron Arad, Nude’s Red or White collection reflects the brand’s ethos that ‘simple is beautiful’. Believing that design is not about embellishment or style but about purity of idea and shape, Red or White features understated forms.
It is the culmination of three years of development and features a handmade crystal decanter, carafes and glasses for red, white or sparkling varieties.
In the UK and Ireland the collection is available exclusively via Utopia Tableware.
www.nudeglass.com
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Professional Glassware SelectionVilleroy & Boch
In the fast-paced hotel and gastronomy industries, where e�ciency matters most, complex assortments and di�cult to comprehend concepts have no place. That’s why Villeroy & Boch have launched an easy to understand drinking glass concept that consists of four collections designed to encompass a variety of requirements and uses.
With the intention of making Villeroy & Boch’s glassware oer simple to understand for the on-trade market, the Professional Glassware Selection is broken down into clear price categories and market segments, from premium to simple pieces for high-volume use.
La Divina is described as the ‘character glass’, ideal for wines and sparkling varieties, whilst Maxima features generous goblets in a classic design. Purismo consists of glasses in four modules for the most frequent drinks – from water to beer – and Entrée features accentuated but unfussy glasses ideal for banqueting.
www.villeroy-boch.com/hotel
PETITS FOURS
IKON_SupperAdvert_CUEmarketing.indd 1 06/04/2016 18:31
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Table Mat Circle LIND DNA
Founded by sisters Mie and Bine Lind, Danish brand LIND DNA is local in craftsmanship and materials but international in appeal.
Showcasing modern Scandinavian design, LIND DNA’s table mats are made from durable and water-repellent recycled leather and feature an understated aesthetic.
Available in an assortment of sizes, shapes and colours, the unobtrusive design of the mats is envisioned as a canvas for more expressive tableware, a�ording versatility in an evolving restaurant environment.
www.linddna.com
PartumHepp
Featuring long, thin stems, Partum from Hepp is designed to provide a striking counterpoint to larger porcelain tableware.
With gently curving handles and distinctive proportions, the collection ‘charms the hand’ and is fashioned with comfort and ease-of-use in mind.
Subtle faceting along the centreline combines with a polished �nish to re�ect light and add drama to a professional tabletop.
The collection is available in easy to care for 18/10 stainless steel or with a silver-plated �nish.
www.hepp.de
TAC PalazzoRosenthal
With a vivid, geometric cut, the linear drinking glass series TAC 2016 nods to the traditions of cut crystal but reimagines the technique in contemporary pieces. The clear glass is embellished with a precise wedge cut and re�ects the structure of the new TAC design Palazzo RORO with its tapered, crisscrossing lines. The collection includes white and red wine glasses as well as champagne, water and whisky glasses.
www.rosenthal.de
Studio PrintsChurchill
Inspired by Churchill’s archive Homespun collection, Studio Prints features an underglaze printed design with a hand-applied edge band.
The series is available in two colourways, charcoal black and stone grey, and features a motif reminiscent of home-crafted pottery.
Despite its traditional origins, Studio Prints is intended to re�ect the latest food trends and provide a canvas to showcase ingredients – the circular patterning drawing the eye to the plates’ contents.
www.churchillchina.com
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Urban CollectionChef Works
Inspired by the dynamism and energy of the street food scene, Chef Works’ Urban Collection provides an opportunity for hotel sta� to look current whilst working comfortably throughout the kitchen, bar, dining room and beyond.
From street-inspired stripes to new twists on denim, the collection’s design is based on robust textures, fabrics and colours that are modern yet subtle enough to complement a variety of professional F&B environments.
“The design of a restaurant interior, the atware and the uniforms are almost as important as the food served,” says Chef Works’, Emma Cohen.
www.chefworks.co.uk
At Ian Macleod Distillers, we take pride in what we do. To us, that’s just part and parcel of being an independent family-owned business, committed to excellence for over 80 years. The result? An award-winning range of premium spirits, produced here in Scotland and enjoyed by drinkers across the UK and beyond. Be part of that global success story today.
For more information on purchasing or stocking brands from our range: Call +44 1506 852205
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5 Decades, 5 MaterialsLSA
Celebrating ve decades of creativity and craftsmanship, LSA pays homage to the ve key materials that have informed the brand’s aesthetic. Utilising glass, porcelain, wood, leather and enamelled steel, the collection draws from the archives while introducing new innovations.
Simple, utilitarian forms in mixed materials o�er a variety of purpose, from food containers that also function as decorative ower holders, to vases designed to be stacked in a combination of ways.
Typical of LSA, bold colour is combined with white and neutrals. Orange, navy and deep green provide distinctive tabletop accents, while the Celebrate & Host series features uplifting elements of gold and silver on champagne glasses and serving bowls featuring the LSA anniversary logo.
www.lsa-international.com
PETITS FOURS
150
TriompheWMF
A 20-piece collection, Triomphe infuses modern spirit into WMF’s traditional Augsburger Faden pattern. The reinterpreted design keeps the forms of the classical period, but dispenses with the older, more super�uous elements.
The collection is available in a classic hollow-shank version, with specialists from hotel and catering also able to opt for a monobloc alternative.
All pieces are offered in either high-gloss polished 18/10 stainless steel or with a silver-plate nish.
www.wmf.com
PETITS FOURS
Bu�et DispensersTiger Hotel
Made with 18/10 stainless steel, Tiger Hotel’s dispensers are a re ned addition to bu�et arrangements. Providing adaptable, multipurpose solutions to both large and small scale catering, the low-key design combines easily with existing setups or with further pieces from Tiger Hotel’s collection.
With a focus on visual appeal as well practicality, versatility and durability, Tiger Hotel has been exporting internationally since 1996 and collaborates with Italian designers to create its pieces.
www.tigerhotel.kr
ReefZieher
Reef from Zieher features a distinctive underwater inspiration with twisting metal strands evocatively bending to form serving baskets and decorative arrangements. Many individual parts are assembled by hand, with external textures varying across the series, some smoothly rounded while others are roughly structured with dark, patinated hollows.
Despite the eye-catching design, the collection is designed to work across multiple hotel spaces, from carrying fruit in a guestroom to bread at a breakfast bu�et.
www.zieher.com
Sensory Textured SpoonsStudio William
Believing that shape and texture can a�ect the way in which diner’s enjoy food, Studio William has devised a series of spoons to stimulate the palate.
Featuring a selection of inbuilt textures, the spoons are best showcased with ne dining and tasting menus, providing another dimension to an elevated food experience.
Since launch, the range has been the recipient of several international awards including a German Design Award.
www.studiowilliam.com
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PETITS FOURS
Wild Strawberry Afternoon TeaWedgwood and Heritage Collection
Wedgwood have teamed up with Heritage to produce an afternoon tea collection, using the classic Wild Strawberry design in conjunction with Helix silverware from Heritage.
One of Wedgwood’s most popular designs, Wild Strawberry conveys a whimsical aesthetic, drawing inspiration from English country gardens and the quaint rolling countryside.
Continuing a longstanding relationship, Heritage lends its skill with silverware to the afternoon tea collection. The silver-plated Helix pieces – including the tea stand and teapot – are polished to a mirror �nish.
Both Wedgwood and Heritage work extensively with the premium hotel market, providing tea services to the likes of The Ritz London and The Dorchester.
www.wedgwood.co.ukwww.heritagesilverware.com
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Dinner Platemud australia
Handmade in the company’s Sydney factory, each mud australia piece is fashioned from porcelain sourced in Limoges, combining craftsmanship with functionality and an artisan �nish.
Designed by Australian ceramicist Shelley Simpson, the brand’s minimalist aesthetic and contemporary attitude have seen it garner international popularity, present at Hotel Hotel in Canberra and Crosby Street Hotel in New York.
Evolving seasonally with the addition of new shapes and colours, the range now includes a tea service and ovenproof, dishwasher safe cookware.
www.mudaustralia.com
PETITS FOURS
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Arita X NobuArita Plus
Marking the 400th anniversary of Japanese Arita porcelain, Arita Plus – a group of craftsmen from the region - have collaborated with celebrated chef Nobu Matsuhisa on a collection of nine distinctive pieces.
Drawing inspiration from the Japanese �ag, the collection features signature red circles, evoking the rising sun for which the nation is nicknamed.
Including plates, sushi roll holder, sake set and a matcha bowl, the collection is designed to demonstrate the versatility of Arita and the capabilities of Arita Plus to work on bespoke lines with F&B professionals, such as Matsuhisa, co-owner of the Nobu international chain of restaurants, a mainstay of hotel F&B from Four Seasons Doha to InterContinental Hong Kong.
www.arita-plus.com
PETITS FOURS
G E R M A N Y
N O V E LT I E S
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The VISION:No distinction is made between red wine or white wine glasses in theVISION collection by Zieher: the glasses are simply theme-based or characterbased.
The names of the glasses clearly explain what they are used for: You intuitively reach for the glass which presents the flavours of the wine that you particularly wish to emphasise in the best way.
V I S I O N
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PETITS FOURS
159
Serving SetMagisso
The Good Design-awarded Magisso serving set consists of three uid tableware pieces: a pie server, cheese knife and cheese slicer.
From young Finnish designer Maria Kivijärvi, the series is made from stainless steel and designed to stand sideways, thus avoiding tarnished tablecloths and serving boards.
Magisso specialises in providing simple, creative solutions to common tableware issues and is available in the UK through Continental Chef Supplies.
www.magisso.com
SublimeLuigi Bormioli
Made with Luigi Bormioli’s SON.hyx formula, the Sublime collection features a break-resistant, ultra-clear glass that will remain perfectly transparent even after 4,000 dishwashing cycles.
With a subtle design mixing angular straight lines with understated curves, the collection is made in Italy and intended to be casual enough for everyday use but bold enough for more daring table arrangements.
Luigi Bormioli rivals �ne crystal in appearance and elegance but is lead free.
www.luigibormioli.com
Ayam Riedel
A signature piece for the company’s 260th year, the Ayam decanter is named after - and gains it’s distinctive silhouette from - the world’s most exclusive breed of hen.
With the ability to ‘double decante’, the Ayam can aerate wine twice as quickly as a traditional decanter and is designed with the potential to hang from the table as a practical space saving option, and also as a bold ourish to table dressing.
www.riedel.com
Cobra Georg Jensen
Designed by famed German designer Constantin Wortmann, Cobra features organic shapes and a re�ned sculptural elegance. The folds and waves of the plates create movement on the table and now, with the addition of multifunctional bowls and dishes, a full look can be created with these complementary forms.
The bowls and plates can be used for multiple purposes as the two designs �t seamlessly together, the serving dish functioning as a lid for the small bowl.
www.georgjensen.com
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161
Radford CutleryRobert Welch
With a modern, classic aesthetic designed to complement
a range of table settings, Radford (satin or bright)
features an extensive array of specialist pieces including
sauce spoons, fruit knives, oyster forks, pastry forks and
lobster picks.
Made from high quality 18/10 stainless steel, the series
features specially hardened stainless steel knives for
maintaining an excellent cutting edge and for assured
resilience over repeated use.
Fully dishwasher safe and durable in the hospitality
environment, Radford exemplies Robert Welch’s ethos of
producing design-led, timeless collections that combine
function with form.
www.robertwelch.com
PETITS FOURS
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PETITS FOURS
163
OscillateRoyal Crown Derby
Taking inspiration from architectural detail, mechanics and the atomic attractions that bind materials together, Royal Crown Derby has produced a pattern that delights with its texture and suggestion of movement.
The collection features a tactile surface mesh design and is hand �nished in 22-carat gold.
Offered in Ochre Yellow and Onyx Black, the geometric motif complements the modern coupe shape of the tableware it adorns, allowing for precise matching or a playful mix of the two colourways.
www.royalcrownderby.co.uk
ByzanceRaynaud
Opulent and ornate, the Byzance plate re ects Raynaud’s extravagant style and blends gold patterning with deep navy and a crisp white serving space.
The history of Raynaud can be traced back to the 19th century, when coloured and gilded designs were applied to delicate Limoges porcelain – which remains a hallmark of the company to this day.
With pieces handmade in France, Raynaud is the only remaining of the original Limoges houses.
www.raynaud.fr
Mad MenWaterford
Neither subtle or inconspicuous, the Mad Men collection from Waterford is, as the name suggests, a celebration of the popular period television show.
Bands of rich gold and platinum are as wide as Don Draper’s lapels and the deep cutting and heft of each piece of crystal conveys a complexity worthy of the now complete drama series.
As well as tumblers, the collection features gold patterned highball glasses, crystal decanter and mixology pitcher.
www.waterford.co.uk
CelebrateLSA
Part of LSA’s 50th anniversary celebrations, the aptly titled Celebrate collection embodies the party spirit with champagne glasses, cocktail glasses and champagne buckets.
Each piece is packaged with LSA’s signature 5 Zero cocktail recipe, developed exclusively for the brand’s birthday.
With tall hand-drawn stems and luxurious metal accents or with hand-painted mother of pearl �nishes, the glasses match the limited-quantity Host series of bowls for a complete celebration tabletop.
www.lsa-international.com
165
Smoked SalmonHansen & Lydersen
From Chiltern Firehouse and Le Meurice Paris, to Roux at the Landau and Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester, Hansen & Lydersen has established itself as a premium supplier of smoked salmon to leading hotel F&B destinations.
Sourced from a sustainable farm in the ‘extreme wilderness’ between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic, each salmon is prepared less than 48 hours from when it is �shed and is subsequently hand-�lleted and hand-salted according to a family recipe, devised by Norwegian �shmonger Lyder-Nilsen Lydersen in 1923.
Firmly a family business, the company is currently headed by Ole Hansen, great-grandson of Lydersen - who developed the juniper and beech wood smoking recipe still used today. It’s this commitment to Nordic tradition that sees the company proclaim ‘we do not believe in paper thin slicing’, instead cutting the �sh vertically in thick slices as is the Norwegian style.
‘Made to order’ from a smokehouse in North London, the salmon is never frozen, vacuum-packed or wrapped in plastic. While these techniques may arti�cially prolong the shelf life of salmon, once opened it expires rapidly. But by avoiding these practices Hansen & Lydersen’s salmon can last for around 10 days simply refrigerated and wrapped in paper.
www.hansen-lydersen.com
PETITS FOURS
166
41 Madison 135
Armand De Brignac 012 & 013
Avenista 158
Bimber Distillery 107
Black Isle Brewing Company 115
Bodegas Marques de Caceres 069
Bonna 063
Boodles Gin 010 & 011
Burleighs Gin 105
Chef Works 091
Cocktail Kingdom 167
Continental Chef Supplies 099
Cosentino 160
Courvoisier 016 & 017
Disaronno 054
Elektra Coffee Machines 138
EquipHotel 152
Frobishers 103
HEPP 025
Hildon 018 & 019
HX 111
Ian Macleod Distillers 147
Ikon Furniture 143
Ingrid Lesage Creations 095
Jim Beam 137
ADVERTISING INDEX
Martell Cognac 006 & 007
Martini Riserva Speciale 077
Mumm 014 & 015
Oneida 045
Orangina 155
Robert Welch 004
Rombouts Coffee 162
Ron Barcelo 145
Simon Jersey 020
Sipsmith 022
Speyside Glenlivet 073
St Hugo KV 008 & 009
The Menu Shop 164
Tiger Company 061
To The Table Asia 141
To The Table MEA 148
VEEN Waters 029
Villeroy & Boch 057
Volga Linen 026
Warner Edwards Gin 169
Wedgwood 172
Wemyss Malts 151
WMF 059
Zieher 157
168
THE WASHING UP
Issue 2 of Supper has seen us capitalise on our pool of international contributors to bring an increasingly global perspective on the projects and concepts driving the industry. For this issue that also led us to Amsterdam, where our centrefold was shot.
As well a literal take on the F&B offering at Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, Studio Appétit adopted a conceptual approach with images intended to invoke the Dutch inspiration that pervades the hotel’s restaurant and bar spaces.
Featuring classic regional novelties, such as models of windmills, clogs and bicycles, the concept images fuse items from the hotel’s menu with a bold aesthetic element intended to inspire.
Ido Garini, owner and creative director of Studio Appétit, produced a series of custom confections specifi cally for the spread, taking traditional culinary elements associated with Amsterdam and reimagining them as novel, theatrical delicacies. The tableware on display is a mix of pieces from the hotel’s collection and more avant-garde items, including diamond presentation plates from Studio Appétit and presentation dishes developed as a collaboration between the studio and product designer Hilla Shamia.
Creative collaboration is central to the hotel F&B industry and at Supper we will continue to seek opportunities to work with other disciplines to bring new projects to life.
I’d like to thank all of those involved in our second issue and, as always, we appreciate your feedback. Should you have any questions or suggestions feel free to drop me an email at [email protected]. Until our next Supper.
Harry McKinley | Editor
WARNER EDWARDS DISTILLERYFalls Farm, Harrington, Northamptonshire, NN6 9NU
t: +44 (0)1536 710623 e: [email protected] w: www.warneredwards.com
T h e h O S P I T A L I T Y C O L L e C T I O n
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