Tag Archives: Hotel Restaurants

Hospitality Industry Restaurant Update: “The Main Ingredients for a Successful Hotel Restaurant”

For many hotels, especially in the boutique and lifestyle segments, restaurants are a calling card, Morgan explained.hotel restaurant To help chefs gain notoriety, especially a local following, it’s important to invest in marketing and PR efforts as well. ‘The hard part when you’re underwriting a restaurant is to say how important marketing and PR is, because most people look at that as a money pit,’ Morgan said. ‘But if you do it right, and you’re using the right resources or firms, it can be very successful’…”

Restaurants play a bigger role than ever before in boutique and lifestyle hotels. And with the right concept, owners can make a healthy profit, said a panel of food and beverage experts at the Boutique Hotel Investment Conference in Manhattan last week, presented by the Boutique & Lifestyle Lodging Association.

“Today more than ever, eating is a lifestyle, so people want to go to hotels where they know they have a good restaurant, good chefs, and it’s a full experience,” said Richard Sandoval, chef and owner of Richard Sandoval Restaurants, which has about 30 self-operated restaurants around the world and 10 hotel concept developments.

For more: http://bit.ly/1pB8wUH

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Filed under Hotel Bar, Hotel Industry, Hotel Restaurant, Management And Ownership

Hospitality Industry Cyber Crime Risks: Boston Restaurant Group Was Source Of Major Credit Card Payment System Breach; “Sophisticated, Outside Attack”

“…The (restaurant group) believes that it was a sophisticated, outside attack…Boston Police and the US Secret Service are Hospitality Industry Identity Theftinvestigating…This is the second major breach of the Briar Group’s payment systems. In 2009, malware, or malicious software, was apparently installed on Briar’s computers, allowing thieves to access credit and debit card information. The chain paid a $110,000 to the state to settle allegations that it failed to protect diners’ personal information after that security breach.

A local restaurant chain confirmed Friday that its computer systems were breached, putting the credit-card information of thousands of customers at risk, including visitors who attended two major conventions in Boston.

The Briar Group, which owns 10 restaurants and bars in Boston, including two at the Westin hotel connected to the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, said its computer systems were infiltrated sometime between October and early November. It said customer names, credit-card numbers, expiration dates, and security information were captured from the cards’ magnetic strips.

The company isn’t sure how many customers were affected, but every month thousands visit Briar’s locations, said Diana C. Pisciotta, a spokeswoman for the chain.

The American Public Health Association hosted 13,000 conventioneers in Boston in early November, and the American Society of Human Genetics brought 8,000 attendees to a conference in October. Both reported that hundreds of people reported unauthorized charges on their accounts after visiting Boston.

For more: http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2013/12/27/local-restaurant-chain-source-data-breach-that-compromised-card-info-conventioneers/wPhKKndyN4hshrU47J2rwO/story.html

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Filed under Crime, Guest Issues, Liability, Maintenance, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Theft

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: New Restaurant POS And Video Integration Software “Flags Questionable Transactions, Events And Conditions” To Reduce Employee Theft

“…software that can isolate POS activity not in compliance with performance standards and that is integrated with accompanying video Restaurant Employee Theftprovides training opportunities and also highlights suspicious activity of a particular cashier or manager…top that off with a video catching an employee in the act and it’s icing on the cake…The cloud-based system, which now has a real-time mobile app to alert  managers when suspicious activity occurs,  gives managers hard data on their employees, said Lori Kittle, CIO of Landry’s, the company behind 40 restaurant brands, including Morton’s, Bubba Gump and McCormick & Schmick’s…”

The National Restaurant Association estimates that internal employee theft is responsible for 75 percent of inventory shortages and about 4 percent of restaurant sales. Three-quarters of employees steal from the workplace at least once, while half steal repeatedly.

Another company specializing in detecting and preventing employee theft is EZConnect, which is used in Subway and Dunkin Donuts units. The platform features the ability to integrate digital video with the POS system as well.

“Suspicious cash transactions can be pinpointed and reviewed quickly, avoiding hours of research on standard digital camera systems,” Michael Starer, CEO of Profit Enhancement Technologies Inc., the company behind EZConnect.

For more:  http://www.fastcasual.com/article/219487/Using-technology-to-stop-restaurant-theft

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Filed under Crime, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Technology, Theft

Hospitality Industry Property Risks: Florida Hotel’s Restaurant Deck Collapses Into Water Injuring More Than Twenty People, Two Seriously

“…(the restaurant) lost power when the collapse happened, casting victims and rescuers alike into the dark…bartenders were diving into the water Florida Restaurant Deck Collapseto help rescue patrons. Fire trucks pulled to the water’s edge and extended their ladders to help patrons climb to safety…approximately 100 people were on the deck when it fell into the water. The deck’s official capacity was not immediately known…”

As fans packed Shuckers Waterfront Grill to cheer on the Miami Heat against the San Antonio Spurs Thursday night, the waterfront patio deck gave way, crashing into Biscayne Bay, spilling dozens of terrified patrons into the water. The accident happened at the popular North Bay Village spot, in back of the Best Western Plus on the Bay Inn & Marina, 1819 79th Street Causeway.

As many as two dozen people were injured. By 11:20 p.m., 15 people had been transported to various hospitals, two of them in serious condition, said Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Capt. Eugene Germain Jr. Another fire captain said one person might be missing and that a search was underway as rain fell.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/06/13/3450248/breaking-deck-collapses-at-shuckers.html#storylink=cpy

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Filed under Guest Issues, Injuries, Liability, Management And Ownership

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotel And Restaurant “Integrated Ordering Systems” Feature Online Tablets Located On Tables; Increase In Productivity, Inventory Control And Customer Satisfaction

“…By eliminating the traditional step of taking down orders with pen and paper, the hotel has been able to cut down manpower needs Hotel Restaurant Online Tablet Ordering Systemby one staff member per shift (reducing walking time)…”

  • The new system also removes the extra time taken to check the availability of certain items with the kitchen
  • Customer satisfaction has climbed by five percentage points since the system was implemented
  • The new format of ordering allowed us to provide personalized service to patrons who needed it more
  • Sales of food at the atrium lounge have gone up since the automated ordering system was implemented
  • The system also allows guests to give instant feedback about the service, with comments popping up on the employees’ phones.

An initiative that was implemented last November involved linking the hotel’s atrium lounge to a full integrated ordering system. Unlike other restaurants and cafes, where tablet computers are used as electronic menus or ordering devices, the hotel goes one step further. Information is keyed in by patrons and sent via the tablets to mobile phones which are carried by all service staff.

“Guests can self-order and customise their meals by looking through the menu and browsing through the pictures,” said Mr Wehinger. “With the tablet, they can press a ‘call for service’ button, type out dietary restrictions, give feedback and view the inventory level of items which are selling fast or out of stock.

“Instead of waving their hands in the air to get the attention of a waiter, a pop-up with the corresponding table number will appear on the mobile phones issued to our staff. They will then attend to the guests’ needs.”

The atrium lounge, which is manned by about seven employees during the evening peak period, takes up much of the hotel’s fourth floor and spans an area about as large as two basketball courts, so cutting down walking time is a key improvement.

For more:  http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Relax/Story/A1Story20130515-422603.html

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Filed under Guest Issues, Labor Issues, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Training