Whisk Around the World

Posted: May 5, 2009

CANADA
Boutique Hotels & Resorts of British Columbia opened Black Rock Oceanfront Resort in January, on the west coast of Vancouver Island. The hotel, on a promontory jutting out onto the Pacific, consists of a main lodge (with 71 suites) plus 62 additional beach suites. All have spa-inspired bathrooms and state-of-the-art kitchens. Three hot pools overlook the ocean and natural black rock cliffs. Exec chef Andrew Springett came over from the Wickaninnish Inn (Vancouver Island). F&B director Rhonda Frazee was previously at The Fairmont Lake Louise (Alberta). Boutique Hotels has five other properties, all in British Columbia, with a sixth, the Watermark Beach Resort in Osoyoos, set to open in summer.

MEXICO
John Kendall, owner of the nine room Mezzanine and the 14 cabana La Zebra in Tulum, has opened a tiny six room boutique hotel called Pez Ocean Palace in a secluded cove overlooking a private lagoon, a short walk from Tulum village on Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. "Ocean chic" rooms are equipped with modern amenities such as WiFi and rain showers, along with "hot water and 24-hour electricity." The property is rich with bird life and, in summer, giant sea turtles dig nests in front of the hotel and lay hundreds of eggs, which hatch in November. Pez's funky all-day restaurant features fresh grilled fish and Asian items such as homemade dumplings and noodle dishes. Exec chef/f&b director is Lina Avila, the former owner of Aktun Dive Center, a Tulum adventure tour company.

THE CARIBBEAN
Following the success of the flagship Hotel Gansevoort (NYC) and the opening of Gansevoort South Hotel, Spa and Residences in South Beach, the Gansevoort Hotel Group has expanded its brand with a management venture, Gansevoort Turks & Caicos, a Wymara Resort. The hotel debuted last month and will be followed by Gansevoort Toronto and Gansevoort Chicago, both in 2011. The new hotel is a 91 room luxury property on the western section of Grace Bay Beach on Providenciales (the main island in a 40 island chain). Its gourmet restaurant is Bagatelle Bistrot, operated by The ONE Group, which has a variety of restaurants and lounges in New York City, Los Angeles, and Miami. Chef Antoine Harding was last at Napo Farm to Table Italian Cuisine in Ottawa. At press time, no f&b director had been named. GHG is led by William and Michael Achenbaum and their partner Arik Kislin.

LONDON
In February, The Commander opened in London's Notting Hill neighborhood, with an oyster bar, a 60 seat bistro (specializing in fresh sustainable seafood and grilled meats) headed up by South African-born exec head chef Robert Staegemann (formerly of Vivat Bacchus in London's Farringdon), a deli, three private dining rooms, and a courtyard market where suppliers sell fresh meat, fish, and flowers. The team at The Commander, management says, has been "scrupulously trained to the high standards characteristic of North American restaurant service, to revive professional, unobtrusive 'service with a smile.'" The Commander was conceived by Michael Parker, who serves as operations director.

The folks behind All Star Lanes—Mark von Westenholz and Adam
Breeden—have opened their third London venue, this one on Brick Lane in the Old Truman Brewery in the East End. All Star Lanes is an American-style high-end "boutique" bowling alley, with nine lanes, a 20-foot-long copper bar offering a variety of beertails, and a restaurant called Luncheonette serving such dishes as salt brisket and horseradish dumplings, Bourbon-glazed baby back ribs, and classic eight-ounce burgers. Chef Steve Collins was previously head chef at Quaglino's (London.) In tune with the thanks for Yanks scheme, Luncheonette's counter invites "American counter style eating."

ITALY
The 85 room Romeo Hotel opened in Naples in January, calling itself the city's first "design-oriented, high-end boutique hotel." It's the first phase in a development that will turn the area nestled by Piazza Municipio and the cruise ship terminals into an elegant promenade. The hotel has panoramic views of Mt. Vesuvius and Capri, a collection of fine art and photography, a fitness center overlooking the Bay of Naples, a 7,500-square-foot spa, a terrace-top, outdoor pool, and a rooftop gourmet restaurant called Il Comandante. The chef is Andrea Aprea, who came most recently from Ristorante Signori in Sirmione on Lake Garda but also worked at two Michelin three-stars, The Fat Duck and The Waterside Inn, both in Bray, England. At press time, an f&b director had not yet been hired, and gm Hans Steurer (who came from Los Jameos Playa in the Canary Islands) was filling in.

SOUTH AFRICA
Sun International Hotels & Resorts has named Georgio Meletiou as group sommelier, advising all Sun's top properties plus overseeing training and purchasing. Meletiou came from The Palace of the Lost City at Sun City, South Africa.

AUSTRALIA
Masahiko Yomoda is the new exec chef at The Observatory Hotel (an Orient-Express property in Sydney) and its Galileo Restaurant. He replaces Harunobu Inukai. Yomoda comes, most recently, from Restaurant Arbace in Tokyo, where he earned a Michelin star and also worked at Taillevent Robuchon (Tokyo), for Alain Chapel, and at Ampersand (Sydney).