How to turn less into more in F&B
I must confess, I have no formal qualification or industrial exposure to the area of Food & Beverage, apart from being a foodie and moderately capable in a kitchen - although my aversion to cutting, chopping, and washing pans would mean that I would probably not make it far in an F&B career either. So, what business do I have giving F&B advice? It’s all based on a recent culinary experience I had at a hotel in Balapitiya, where, my wife and I together with our 4-month-old son, recently took a much-needed holiday.
It was a boutique hotel with just five rooms where meals were set menus as expected. When we checked in before noon, the chef came by and presented the lunchtime selection for us to make our choices, which we did. He also inquired upon our preferred time to dine. This was the way it was done after every meal – he would present us with the choices and inquire of our preferred time to dine too.
As you probably are aware, Sri Lanka is going through an unprecedented economic crisis that, for the first time in history, has even battered the wallets of the top 1%. Skyrocketing prices caused by a runaway exchange rate have coupled with a difficulty in importing a myriad of items to create a situation where hotels have to think really hard about their F&B offerings. Expensive imported cheeses? - not very likely... foreign liquor? That’s also in short supply as I discovered when wishing to partake in an evening drink. No loss, there were plenty of alternatives.
This is where innovation and creativity shines. While the meals were quite simple in description – rice and curry, fish and chips, seafood pasta, etc… it was the execution that made the meals more delightful to the senses than a rampant binge at one of Colombo’s greatest buffets – and I am a buffet fan with ample experience, so take it from me that I was very impressed.
The little things really shone through – like how the fish was supremely fresh, delicately battered in a carefully-prepared batter, and accompanied by French fries that retained their crispiness throughout the meal. The way that even a simple rice and curry was put together, where the chicken curry invoked memories of the past, where each vegetable offered had a diverse taste without overpowering the other, and where the rice, although playing the supporting role, was cooked to perfection.
Innovation ran deep in the salads, where the choice of vegetables used in these was rather limited due to the situation, but differentiation was achieved through variations in dressing and accompaniments. Ditto soups; which appeared to be ordinary textbook classics, such as mushroom and pumpkin, but upon taking the first sip, elevated them firmly into extraordinary.
The only chink in the armour was the desserts which were pretty regular in comparison, but I can forgive them for this, given the situation in the country, as well as the fact that they were possibly short-staffed in the kitchen. Still, they managed to provide some variation on this front, with fresh curd, ice cream and fruit salads.
When times are great and you can import anything, you like, it’s easy to present a guest with a comprehensive array, but it’s in trying times like this that thinking out of the box comes into play. So, have you thought out of the box with your F&B team? Have you conducted a comprehensive audit of your culinary offerings, identified areas of improvement, and formulated strategies to address these?
If you haven’t, it’s time to do so, pronto and If you’re looking for a food and beverage tester, I’m more than happy to volunteer!
Ashraaq Wahab – Technical Director, Hospitality Sri Lanka, Automotive Journalist, Marketer and Writer, enjoys penning his thoughts, insights and ideas on a variety of topics.
|
|
|
|
