May 2009
Corinthia Hotels on track with flagship London luxury hotel and residences project
Corinthia Hotels is pleased to announce plans for a flagship London luxury hotel and residences project.
Following the acquisition last year from The Crown Estate of the iconic Metropole building on Northumberland Avenue and the adjoining 10 Whitehall Place, Corinthia Hotels has since secured full funding and commenced works for the refurbishment of both buildings into a luxury hotel and private residences.
Construction on site is proceeding apace and, last week, bank funding was secured by way of a £135 million loan raised from a syndication of banks led and arranged by Barclays. The other members of the syndicate include the Libyan Foreign Bank, the Arab Banking Corporation and the Bank of Valletta of Malta. Given these challenging times, the bank loan in itself represents a major sign of confidence in the developers, the project and the UK luxury hotel market generally. The bank loan matches the £135 million invested as equity by the developers, setting a 50:50 loan to equity gearing on the project.
The Metropole Building and 10 Whitehall Place were acquired from The Crown Estate last year by a consortium owned equally by International Hotel Investments plc of Malta (IHI) and two of its principal shareholders, the Libyan Foreign Investment Company and Nakheel Hotels of Dubai. IHI was set up in 2000 as a publicly listed holding company for the ownership, development and management of Corinthia Hotels and other commercial real estate worldwide.
Relais & Châteaux launches Global 'Grands Chefs' website
The ultimate online guide to the world's leading chefs and their restaurants has been launched by Relais & Châteaux, the exclusive collection of 480 of the finest charming hotels and gourmet restaurants in 56 countries. The website www.grandschefs.com was unveiled at the annual meeting of Grands Chefs, Relais & Châteaux in Beaune- Burgundy. A benchmark guide for gourmets, it showcases 160 of the world's culinary elite from five continents and over 350 Michelin stars. Each chef is profiled along with their signature recipes and restaurants -- with links to book tables at them. The profiles also detail their videos, books and DVDs, with links to their online shops. The legendary chefs are in cities from New York, Geneva and Sydney to Tokyo, London and Paris -- and also in countryside inns and seaside resorts. They include such eponymous names as Patrick Henriroux in Vienne, Michel Bras in Laguiole, Michel Roux Jr. in London, Jean-Georges in New York, Jean-Pierre Vigato in Paris, Annie Féolde in Florence, Emile Jung in Strasbourg, Tetsuya Wakuda in Australia and Kiyomi Mikuni in Japan, Thomas Keller in New York and California.
Michel Roux Jr to launch restaurant with Compass Group
Michelin-starred chef Michel Roux Jr is set to open a restaurant in Parliament Square in Westminster later this year in association with contract caterer Compass Group.
The restaurant, which will feature views of the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey, is part of a ten-year £30m total turnover deal won by Compass to provide catering and hospitality services to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
Roux Jr’s restaurant, which is due to open its doors to the public in September under Compass’s Restaurant Associates banner, will feature menus created by the Le Gavroche chef-patron.
Why do celebrities think they can run restaurants?
Apart from Robert de Niro, whose involvement in upmarket Japanese restaurant group Nobu has mainly been silent, successful celebrity-run restaurants have been far and few between.
Does anyone still remember the Planet Hollywood-inspired and equally ghastly Fashion Café, backed by the likes of Naomi Campbell and Claudia Schiffer? Or Damien Hirst's London restaurant Pharmacy?
You'd think these high profile failures would have taught celebrities aspiring to become restaurateurs a few lessons but no, an increasing number of them seem hell-bent on taking the plunge.
There's Jack Tweed, widower to the late Jade Goody and current jail-bird, who plans to launch a "posh restaurant in Essex" (spot the paradox anyone?) in his late wife's honour.
Then we have Heather Mills, alleged gold digger and ex to Paul McCartney, who recently announced her forthcoming vegan restaurant in Brighton and megalomaniac plans to roll the concept out internationally.
Joining her in Brighton is radio personality and X Factor presenter Dermot O'Leary, who together with two mates will open Fishy Fishy in June. (No prizes for guessing what'll be on the menu.)
Last but not least, Danielle Bux, girlfriend to ex-footballer and potato head, sorry Walkers crisps face, Gary Lineker, wants to open a pub together with her beau. Having just endured Hell's Kitchen, you'd think she'd know better but hey, some people never learn.
Why do celebrities think they can run restaurants? And is it just me or do all of the above sound like recipes for disaster?
Dorchester hotel’s director of food and beverage promoted to operations director
Zoe Jenkins, the director of food and beverage at the Dorchester on London’s Park Lane, has been promoted to operations director at the hotel’s management company the Dorchester Collection.
Jenkins will oversee the recently formed collection’s first new hotel project, Coworth Park hotel in Berkshire, in her new role.
Coworth Park comprises a Georgian manor house, converted stable block and cottages, an eco-luxury spa with 12 treatment rooms and swimming pool. It will also feature two polo fields and an equestrian centre.
The 70-room country house estate and spa is set to open in summer 2010, with Jenkins taking up her new role on 1 May 2009.
Over the next year, Jenkins will be responsible for managing the pre-opening project and launch plans.
She will continue to report to Roland Fasel, general manager of the Dorchester hotel and regional director UK of the Dorchester Collection.
Jenkins said the role change was a “dream come true”. She added: “It has everything going for it - close proximity to London, a Georgian manor house set in absolutely stunning grounds, and beautifully designed rooms and suites. I believe it’s going to set a new standard in terms of luxury country house hotels in the UK.”
Taking over from Jenkins as food & beverage director of the Dorchester is Renaud Gregoire, who joins from Fairmont Towers, Cairo, where he was resident manager.
The Dorchester Collection plans to add two new hotels next year, Coworth Park and also 45 Park Lane in London, with ambitions to have 15 hotels in the collection by 2015.
Heston Blumenthal set to open first London restaurant
Heston Blumenthal is planning to open his first restaurant in London, Caterersearch has learnt.
The chef patron of the three-Michelin-starred Fat Duck restaurant in Bray, Berkshire, is in discussions to launch a restaurant in the capital, and has been linked to London’s Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park.
Renowned New York-based interior designer Adam Tihany, who created the interior for the hotel’s Michelin-starred Foliage restaurant, has also been associated with the project. However, it is unclear when Blumenthal’s restaurant will launch.
A spokeswoman for Mandarin Oriental declined to confirm or deny that the hotel was in discussions with Blumenthal.
“Mandarin Oriental is regularly in discussions with many of the world's most renowned chefs, including Heston Blumenthal, as we develop our brand and create new dining experiences in our hotels under development around the world,” she said.
Hilton directors stole more than 100,000 computer files, says Starwood !
Starwood accuses Hilton directors of stealing more than 100,000 computer files
More details have emerged of Hilton’s alleged theft of trade secrets from Starwood Hotels and Resorts. Starwood’s 91-page writ alleges that two of its former directors “directly and through other Starwood luxury brand employees they recruited to Hilton, stole more than 100,000 electronic files before and after they joined Hilton”. It claims that some of confidential Starwood information procured by Ross Klein and Amar Lalvani (who had been responsible for Starwood’s W brand) was used to develop Hilton’s new boutique brand, Denizen, which was announced just six weeks ago. The writ suggests that Hilton’s choice of name may have been influenced by one of the stolen files, which contained references to a W Hotel concept called ‘zen den’. Starwood describes their actions as “the clearest imaginable case of corporate espionage, theft of trade secrets, unfair competition and computer fraud” and suggests that the “The sheer volume of theft is extraordinary, and may be unprecedented.” Hilton said: “Hilton Hotels Corporation believes this lawsuit is without merit and will vigorously defend itself. We fully intend to move forward on the development of our newest brand, Denizen Hotels.”
|
|
Marco Novella takes over from Luca Virgilio as General Manager of London’s Baglioni. He is a former General Manager of Venice’s Gritti Palace and Rome’s Grand Hotel for Starwood. He also previously worked at Monaco’s Hôtel de Paris and at the Four Seasons Milano. As for Luca Virgilio, he is now the General Manager of the Hotel Métropole in Monte Carlo.
Sandro Bohrmann has joined Le Méridien London as General Manager. He had previously held various positions at the Westin Warsaw and London's Park Lane.
After six years as General Manager of the Imperial in Delhi, Pierre Jochem becomes Regional Vice President, Operations, for Raffles Asia Pacific, as well as General Manager of Raffles Singapore.
The Minor Hotel Group has promoted Dillip Rajakarier to Chief Operating Officer of the hospitality and leisure division. He was previously the Chief Finance and Investment Officer for the company. He takes over from Michael Sagild who left the company to head the Stein Group.
Vincent Hoogewijs has transferred as General Manager to the Four Seasons Mumbai. He was most recently the General Manager at the Four Seasons Mexico City. He joined the company as Hotel Manager at the Four Seasons Bangkok in 2004.
The Manava Suite Resort Tahiti has appointed Jean-Pierre Challeau General Manager. He was most recently with the Moorea Pearl Resort & Spa as General Manager. Alain Druet steps in to take over as General Manager at the Moorea Pearl Resort & Spa.
Stéphane Delamotte has been named General Manager of the St. Regis Bora Bora. He was most recently the General Manager of the Sunset Beach Resort in Saudi Arabia. He had previously held the positions of Resident Manager at the Belle Mare Plage and Beau Rivage in Mauritius and Director of Food and Beverage at the Shangri-La Mactan Island Resort & Spa in the Philippines.
Frank Grassmann has been named General Manager of the Evason Phuket & Six Senses Spa . He was most recently the Hotel Manager at the Dusit Thani Manila. He had previously managed the Dusit Thani, Bangkok and served as Executive Assistant Manager in charge of Food and Beverage at the Sheraton Maria Isabel in Mexico City.
Stephen Fewell is the new General Manager of the Swissôtel Kunshan. He was most recently at the Sofitel Suzhou as General Manager. He had previously served as General Manager at the Hotel Enterprize Melbourne, the Rendezvous International Hotel in Adelaide and at the Argyle International Hotel, in Shanghai.
Jérome Auvity is the new General Manager at the Colombo Hilton in Sri Lanka. He was most recently in the same role for the Sydney Hilton.
Stefan Tornau has relocated to Beijing as Resident Manager for the Grand Millennium. He was most recently the Executive Assistant Manager for the Mandarin Oriental in Singapore. Tornau had previously served as Regional Director, Food and Beverage, North Asia, for InterContinental Hotels Group and Director of Food and Beverage at the InterContinental Dubai.
David Laval has moved to the Conrad Maldives as Executive Chef. He was most recently the Executive Chef at the Mayfair London.
Franck Sibille has been appointed General Manager of the soon to open Mandarin Oriental Jnan Rahma in Marrakech. He was previously the General Manager of the Park Hyatt Villa Magna in Madrid.
Pascal Gadet has been named General Manager of the Hotel Missoni Kuwait, scheduled to open late spring 2009. He was most recently the General Manager of the Radisson SAS Resort in El Quseir
Taking over for Stern is Christophe Le Chatton who has transferred to the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess as Hotel Manager. He was most recently the Director of Operations at the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac. He had previously overseen food and beverage for the Fairmont Royal York, the Waldorf=Astoria and the Four Seasons Palm Beach.
Jacques Lavergne has been appointed Director of Sales and Marketing for the Fairmont Winnipeg, taking over from Jim McEachern who moved to the Fairmont Heliopolis and Fairmont Towers Heliopolis in Cairo. For the past two years, Lavergne was at the Fairmont Palliser in Calgary as Director of Group Sales
Andrew Carmellini has joined Robert De Niro’s Ago in the Greenwich Hotel. He was most recently the Executive Chef at A Voce in New York. He had previously served as Executive Chef at Café Boulud.
Kristof Mares will be putting an end to his short hiatus from Mandarin Oriental, and return to take over from Liam Lambert as Director of Operations for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He had left his position of General Manager at the Mandarin Oriental London eight months ago to become the Chief Operating Officer of Address Hotels for Emaar.
Olivier Servat has been named Hotel Manager at Le Méridien Etoile Paris, following three years as Executive Assistant Manager at Le Méridien Montparnasse Paris. He is also a former General Manager of Le Méridien Abuja in Nigeria.
Jean-Luc Cousty comes back to the Lutétia in Paris, as General Manager. He comes from Le Méridien Etoile where he was the Hotel Manager, after being the Executive Assistant Manager in charge of Food and Beverage at the Lutétia, where he originally started as Director of Finance and Administration in 1990.
Long-time Méridien Executive Emmanuel Caux takes over from Pascal Brun as Regional General Manager for Groupe Barrière in Cannes, specifically responsible for the Hotel Majestic and the Hotel Gray d’Albion. Brun recently left to become the Vice President Operations for Naiades Hotels in Mauritius. In his twenty six years with Méridien, Caux held General Manager positions in Saudi Arabia, the Seychelles and England. He was most recently the Area General Manager - Northern France for Starwood.
Richard Brekelmans will be the opening General Manager of the W Barcelona. He previously served as General Manager of Le Méridien Barcelona and Le Méridien Apollo in Amsterdam
Gilles Fouilleroux has taken over from Franck Farneti as General Manager of the Mas de Pierre in St. Paul de Vence. Fouilleroux comes from nearby Relais & Chateau Le St. Paul where he was the General Manager for the past two years, following three years as Director of Sales and Marketing at the Grand Hotel du Cap Ferrat.
Joseph Kirtley, a fourteen-year veteran of the Morgans Hotel Group, has been appointed General Manager of the Sanderson London. He was most recently the General Manager of the Royalton and previously served as Hotel Manager of the Paramount.
Laurent Branover has joined the Hôtel Métropole Monte-Carlo as Assistant General Manager. Since June 2008, he had been with the Shangri-La Singapore as Executive Assistant Manager Food and Beverage. He had previously served as Director of Food and Beverage for the Sofitel Wentworth in Sydney and the Sofitel Jin Jiang Oriental in Shanghai.
Thibault Ruffat has joined Dolce International in Paris as Vice President Sales and Marketing - Europe. For the past four years, he had been the Director of Sales and Marketing for Warwick International Hotels.
Jean-Pierre Hupin has been appointed Executive Chef at the Casino Barrière in Lille (France) due to open in November. He comes from the recently shuttered Hilton Rabat, in Morocco, where he spent three years as Executive Chef. Hupin was also the Executive Chef at the Hilton Nassau, Bahamas, the Hilton Adana in Turkey and the Hilton Madagascar.
Liam Lambert has been named President of Oberoi Hotels. This follows a long tenure with Mandarin Oriental in both Asia and Europe, culminating with the position of Operations Director, Europe.
Philippe Frugère is the new General Manager for the Coco Palm Resort & Spa Dhuni Kolhu in the Maldives. He was most recently serving as Executive Assistant Manager at the One&Only Sugar Beach Resort.
Kjell Rognoy has been named General Manager of the Radisson Plaza Hotel Tianjin, which is scheduled to open by mid 2009. He previously spent a year as General Manager of sister hotel, the Regent Shanghai.
Chris Koehler has returned as General Manager and Area Vice President of the Grand Hyatt Shanghai. He had previously served as General Manager of the hotel before taking on his most recent position of General Manager for the Grand Hyatt Beijing as well as Area Vice President of North China for Hyatt. |
|
