“For me it’s all about having fun, enjoying yourself, that’s what’s important. How many times have you been to a restaurant where the food’s very nice but actually it’s quite boring, you don’t want to be there and you leave."
"We’re in the business of selling fun, we’re in the business of selling a night out, that’s what it’s all about really and I think the more dimensions you can add to that, the better.”
- Marco Pierre White in a recent interview with HotelierMiddleEast magazine
Marco Pierre White, at the age of 33, became the youngest and the first British chef to be awarded three Michelin stars in England.
Not still looking to the same sources for new ideas, are you? If you are a regular reader of TabletopJournal, I trust you are not. However.....for all others.... Design Quarterly might be a good place to start toexpand your mind. There are others...but DQ is a good starter. So...now you have your homework assignment for the coming weekend. Get it. Read it. Absorb it.
Coming on June 3rd, for the 10th year, Aucklands outstanding hospitality staff will be officially recognized by their peers - at the 2012 Lewisham Foundation Awards. The Awards are named in honour of colourful hospitality entrepreneur Richard Lewisham who helped establish the modern day eating and drinking scene in the City of Sails. At a night of glamour and glitz the current cream of the crop in Aucklands hospitality industry will be honoured for their outstanding commitment to this exciting and vibrant business in this exciting city. For more information, go here: http://www.lewishamawards.co.nz/awards/
Guess we'll file this under the "Thanks For The Help" file......
Had not see this - or at least noticed it - before.
Good idea? Or, not?
Ok....the staff here at TabletopJournal are "officially" scratching our heads today. We got lots of product catalogs from lots of great tabletop companies which we appreciate very much as it help keep us up on all the cool things you're doing. In fact, we are so appreciative that recently we started reviewing these catalogs and giving them ratings of 1 spoon thru 5 spoons. You may have seen some of our initial reviews. Well, today's mail turned a catalog from a manufacturer (who shall remain nameless) that we really love....and the catalog was a 2010 edition! Ok...so either the '11 and '12 editions didn't make the package ...OR... they're trying to get us to lower our expectations so that they get a higher spoon rating when DO receive that 2012 edition? Not sure....but it does have us scratching our heads. (fyi...we still love the company and its products)
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Bone China.....right. Tabletop doesn't always have to be fancy and expensive ( ok, so they spent a little extra on the fry holder).......just well thought out. All-Star Lanes in London. Yes .... a bowling alley.
Coffee is served.
Being different is risky. Risky is often good.
Three Bags Full Cafe. Melbourne.
Well. Done.
Three Bags Full Cafe Corner of Nicholson St and Mollison St, Abbotsford.
Melbourne, AU
Phone: 03 94212732
http://www.threebagsfullcafe.com.au/  Did we mention the VERY cool lighting?
Consumers are slowly returning to restaurants for dinner after more than three years of declining guest visits for an evening meal, according to new findings from market research firm The NPD Group. Since the recession’s beginning in 2007, dinner traffic had been falling, especially at casual-dining restaurants. But NPD said Monday that total visits have turned positive in the past three quarters. According to NPD’s CREST service, which tracks consumer use of all foodservice outlets, dinner visits increased 2 percent in the first three months of 2011, following traffic gains of 2 percent and 1 percent in the third and fourth quarters of 2010, respectively. “The improvement may reflect some easing in unemployment, a modest improvement in consumer confidence, as well as a release of pent-up demand during the periods reported,” said Bonnie Riggs, NPD restaurant industry analyst. “I also believe that rising food costs in-home have narrowed the gap between the price of food at home and a restaurant meal.”
Recovery at quick-service restaurants, which account for 77 percent of total industry traffic, drove the growth of dinner visits, NPD said. Traffic at midscale and casual-dining restaurants remained weak. In the first three months of 2011, dinner visits rose 1 percent at quick-service brands but fell 2 percent at midscale and casual-dining restaurants. Dinner traffic rose 5 percent at fine-dining restaurants, but upscale locations account for just 1 percent of all restaurant visits, NPD noted.
 Interior rendering of one of The Greenbrier Presidential Express' cars From the editors of Hotels Magazine, comes this article on reviving train service to one of America's most beautfiul resorts: WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, WEST VIRGINIA The Greenbrier, perhaps America’s most iconic luxury resort, is launching a signature train service to and from Washington, D.C., beginning next summer.
The Greenbrier Presidential Express will cost US$650 for a roundtrip ticket, which is a five-hour nonstop journey each way. The 15-car train will accommodate up to 240 passengers and will feature a boardroom car, a salon car and an open-air car.
"We want to bring The Greenbrier experience to Washington, D.C., and bring back the glamour of rail travel," says Jim Justice, chairman and owner of The Greenbrier. "Everything from the décor to the food will make you feel as if you are already at the resort."
Renowned decorator and the resort's curator, Carleton Varney, president of Dorothy Draper & Co., with his associate Brinsley Matthews have taken The Greenbrier's signature décor and applied it to the train's interiors and exterior. The cars, originally built in the 1950s, served as the long distance trains for the Union Pacific and Santa Fe railroads; they are currently being refurbished.
This project is being designed, built and operated by a new West Virginia company, The Greenbrier Express Co. Inc., cofounded by Justice, Paul Nichini and Ross Rowland.
Now....let's see if we can find out about what they'll be using on their tabletops?
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