'Tis the most (busiest) time of the Year'

Forsaking William's silver pen this time, Giles has a festive theme for this post.

In hotels and restaurants, colleagues are like family. Actually, many hospitality employees spend more time with their colleagues, and are closer to them, than their own family!

At Christmas time, hospitality is one of the industries where you actually work on Christmas Day.

Shift Leaders: An Appreciation

A person often overlooked in bars, restaurants, cafes and lounges is the long suffering Shift or Team Leader. However, the role they play is vital.

Quite a few paces for various reasons (mainly due to size of establishment and size of workforce) do not have one. However, either officially appointed or unofficially recognised as such, the Shift or Team Leader of real concern to the supervisor or manager.

'Education, education, education'

Increasingly, the young of today are being encouraged and urged to get further education. Many turn to studying hospitality management, travel and tourism, and related courses, as a stepping stone to a career in hospitality.

Giles’ advice is simple: don’t study hospitality, or travel and tourism, or related.

Cooks & Chefs: A Tribute

Giles has learnt the patience and tact, and the ability to conceal his feelings that comes with several years in the hospitality industry. However, there are some things that really annoy him, and which he can be (quite surprisingly) vocal about.

'There AreTwo Types Of Manager...'

Several years ago, a as relatively new food and beverage supervisor, Giles had the opportunity to work under a very unorthodox F&B manager. He was only at that hotel for a few months, but he learned a great deal from Mr. C. He still remembers several management principles and words of wisdom.

'Is service charge included?'

Tipping; the source of many heated discussion in the industry. Tipping (including tronc, service charges, gratuities, auto grats, and all the other forms of tips) varies from establishment to establishment, and from country to country.

Cooking: A Man’s Job?

In a characteristic hot headed and frankly honest manner typical of many top chefs, Tom Kerridge raised more than the temperature of the kitchen with some remarks he made during the Cheltenham Literature Festival in October.

Lunch for Two- with a side order of Security

In hotels, the guest is always king. Whatever their requests, requirements, or demands, they are always complied with, to the best of the staff’s abilities, though. Nothing is too big, or too small. Be it a coffee to be made to exact specifications, or a music mogul’s PA sending over a 30 page memo of her principal’s’ requirements, hotel staff are always happy to oblige even the most strangest of requests.

Such requests can be banal, trivial, complex and complicated, downright bizarre, or just strange. Giles has a whole range of such requests from his years in the industry.

The Economics of Eating Out

Amidst the last few years of economic doom and gloom, politicians and economists of all persuasions have been earnestly trying to convince the British public of the same thing.

In various different forms, be it from Chancellors past and present, CBI executives, Mark Carney and the Bank of England, or other groups or analysts he message had been similar. Economic growth and recovery is happening, but it is slow, and tentative. Act carefully, and be prepared for more austerity whilst the economic recovery really gets into motion; however, the worst is over. Recovery is happening, but painfully and gradually.

There have also been other additions to such familiar statements. Firstly, the housing market is “overheating”, or there is a “housing bubble”. Banking scandals have followed each other with monotonous regularity, resulting in the Financial Conduct Authority under Martin Wheatley reining in financial institutions like a sheriff in the old Wild West.

The other fact noted (with what many sense is a degree of surprise and awe amidst economic and government circles) is the startling success of the services sector.

Hospitality as a Career

Inevitably, our talks turn to hospitality as a career choice. Giles laughs at me; ‘William, you could write a whole blog on that one alone’.

‘Interesting idea that that is, Giles, but for the time being shall we just limit that to a post or so. Say, 500 words?’

'I’ll try.’

45 Years of WSET

This week sees the 45th birthday and anniversary of the Wines & Spirits Education Trust (WSET). For the last 45 years, WSET has been providing world class quality training and education in all aspects of wines and spirits, and has become very well respected in the industry. Top industry professionals either have, or employ those who do have, qualifications from WSET, or training with them.

Pre wedding tension- for the staff, not the guests!

In some hotels, sometimes the boundaries between roles and job descriptions can be very blurred indeed. In smaller hotels, one person can end up doing several roles.

Giles illustrates this with a humorous anecdote from his days at a small national chain of boutique hotels. A wedding been laboriously arranged. Hosted in the hotel itself, as per the package agreed, many of the party were staying ion the hotel itself, with various function rooms given over to the wedding itself, the reception, etc.

The view at the formal end of restaurant service

Giles (not his real name, but he prefers Giles to revealing who he really is) has spent the last five or more years working in upmarket, upscale hospitality. His journey has taken him to both hotels and restaurants, via bar, cafes and the like. He is no stranger to the strange world of luxury hospitality, even stranger guest requests, and the long hours and hard work that goes into formal dining or a great hotel stay.

It is that point of fine dining that has him annoyed as we meet. He (and a great many others in the industry) are formally and classically trained. Experience and in some cases education and training has focused on very traditional, upmarket guest service, and old fashioned restaurant skills. Crumbing down a table, or offering several different types of bread, sliver service come naturally to Giles and others- and indeed they are comfortable with it, and understand it.