Canada Starwood opened its first Aloft Hotel, the David Rockwell–designed 136 room Aloft Montreal Airport, in June. Rooms feature modern, loft-inspired design, plush platform beds, oversize walk-in showers, and combination office/entertainment centers with wireless Internet and full connectivity. The hotel has a lobby bar, fitness center, indoor/outdoor pool, and one-stop f&b area offering sweet, savory, and healthful choices to go, 24 hours a day; some snack packs were "curated" by Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Starwood currently has 88 Alofts in development in more than 10 countries; 17 will open before year's end, followed by 50 in 2009. Aloft is a spin-off of the W brand, with rates averaging $150 per night.
After a $5.3 million renovation, the Radisson Hotel Edmonton South opened in April on the site of the former Coast Terrace Inn. Exec chef Chris Short has been at the property for two and a half years. F&B services manager Jeff Anthony joined the hotel from the Sheraton Wall Center (Vancouver).
Chef Michael Howell has reopened his Tempest Restaurant in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, after a devastating fire in October 2006. Seating has been expanded to 70, and the interiors and menus have been redone. Howell also has the 100 seat Port Gastropub, opened last November. Both spots focus on local cuisine and regional dishes.
United Kingdom Raymond Blanc has won a 10 week legal battle against Caribbean-based Internet pirates who registered the domain www.raymondblanc.com and used it to link to ads and Web sites that had nothing to do with him or his restaurants. Blanc, who runs Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons and eight Brasserie Blancs, filed a suit with the World Intellectual Property Organization, in Geneva, which ruled in Blanc's favor against Caribbean Online International. They stopped the Bahamian cybersquatters from using the Frenchman's name and ordered that the domain be transferred to him. WIPO noted that Caribbean Online International has registered approximately 293,000 other domain names.
The four-star Beatles-inspired Hard Days Night Hotel opened in Liverpool in February, with 110 rooms in a building registered as architecturally important by the Listings Branch of Culture, Media, and Sport in the heart of the "Beatles Quarter," a stone's throw from the mythic Cavern Club, where the group began its rise to fame. The exec chef is Richard Moore, former exec chef of The Bistro (Man chester). The hotel has two restaurants, including Blakes, where the gm is Sean Martin (formerly of The Westerley in Surrey), and the Brasserie. As the 2008 European Capital of Culture, Liverpool is hosting numerous cultural events throughout the year.
Germany Capella Hotels and Resorts opened the 95 room Breidenbacher Hof on Künigsallee in Düsseldorf in May. The hotel, which dates to 1812, has undergone several incarnations; its present owners, Pearl of Kuwait Real Estate, began building an entirely new property on the site in '06. Exec chef Michael Reinhardt has been working with Capella's parent, West Paces Hotel Group, at the Parkhotel (Euskirchen, Germany) for about two years. GM Cyrus Heydarian came over from Villa Rothschild in Königstein. Peter Schoch, Capella's vp of f&b, worked closely with Reinhardt and Heydarian on the hotel's food program. Capella's next openings will be on Mexico's Riviera Maya and in Singapore.
Asia The 299 room St. Regis Singapore opened in April, marking the brand's entry into Southeast Asia. Exec chef Frédéric Colin came from the St. Regis Bora Bora, where he opened Lagoon for Jean-Georges Vongerichten. The director of operations, Dorian Rommel, was last at the St. Regis Monarch Beach in Southern California. Colin's replacement is Romuald Feger, while Rommel's replacement is Saurav Biswas (promoted from assistant vp of f&b).
The Park Hyatt Beijing, greater China's first, opened in July with 237 rooms on floors 37 to 49 of the city's tallest skyscraper. The hotel's exec chef is Daniel Patterson, previously at the Grand Hyatt Taipei and the Park Hyatt Goa. The chef at the 66th floor China Grill restaurant is Bradley Borchardt, who came from The Oak Door at the Grand Hyatt Tokyo. The hotel's exec assistant manager of f&b is William Yuen, from the Hyatt Manila Hotel & Casino.
Mark Hellyar is the new chef de cuisine of The Oak Door restaurant in the Grand Hyatt Tokyo. He comes from the Blue Duck Tavern in the Park Hyatt Washington, D.C., where his chef de cuisine position has been filled by Michael Santoro.
France Steve Marie has been named f&b manager at the Hilton Arc de Triomphe (Paris), moving over from Kong (Paris), where he was restaurant manager. He replaces Edouard Galisson, who is now f&b manager at Le Mériden Étoile (Paris).
French Polynesia Frederic Kulczak is new exec chef at Le Meridien Bora Bora. He was previously exec chef at Hotel Sainte Anne Resort & Spa on Victoria Mahé in the Seychelles. He replaces Jean-Christophe Basseau, who went to the Colombo Resort Porto Santos in Portugal, part of the Luxury Collection.
Send your international restaurant and hotel f&b news to Julie Mautner at WhiskNews@aol.com
