Besides how flavorful a dish is, one very critical aspect of meal design is whether it fills you up. Meal satiety can significantly influence a person's emotional state of mind which in turn can change a guest's opinion of a restaurant or even a hotel. As the hospitality industry is concerned, sensory-specific satiety describes how various foods react differently with the gastrointestinal tract and how you might better induce satiety by incorporating specific ingredients. This extends to the use of organic foods as well as considering the other four senses and how they work to amplify the overall dining experience. READ MORE

'Consolidated Purchasing Power' with food or any other medium suggestions efficiency, savings and economy of scale. If you are in the business of being a chain restaurant offering a standardized menu throughout your operations with consistent menus, and defined dish specifications then the recipe for success can be efficient, quickly successful and generate enormous savings. But what if you are a national hotel ownership / management company operating multiple hotel brands in different geographical regions with varying property sizes, and still looking to drive economy of scale, reduce unit prices and generate the maximum product rebate potential, while at the same time respecting property menu brand standards, regional culinary fashions and requirements, and ultimately stabilizing a consistent food cost margin for the property type? READ MORE

Wine consumption among Americans has been on the rise for 19 straight years. According to the Wine Market Council, about one-quarter of the U.S. adult population is made up of “core” wine drinkers, meaning they drink wine on a consistent weekly or monthly basis. These core drinkers want and expect choices. Six in 10 consumers order wine once a month, or more often, in on-premises locations, such as bars, restaurants, hotels and lounges, according to Technomic's 2013 BarTAB Report. READ MORE

The LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) market is one segment that several hotel operators have begun to look at for a variety of reasons. Research has shown that the LGBT market has a host of qualities that make it an extremely appealing customer base: Competition is continually growing. But we're not only competing with the new hotel down the street; we're competing on a global scale with properties in destinations that are actively and aggressively trying to capture a larger share of the travel market. Hotel operators need to constantly be looking at opportunities to drive new business and increase the number of room nights sold. Often these opportunities are focused geographically. For example, many local CVBs and DMOs are working with the hotel industry to invest resources and energies into the emerging markets, such as China and Brazil. But new markets are not restricted to geography. We know that segmentation can happen by a variety of demographic and psycho-graphic methods. We need to look outside of the typical market segments to find new ways to grow business. READ MORE

Sure you promise your guests a great experience at your hotel. But do you deliver it? And if not, what's getting in the way? There's no question that most hotel managers want to provide a happy, memorable guest experience, but wanting and doing it are two very different things. To provide outstanding guest experiences you need the right combination of core values, great staff and effective processes to back them up. Here are some thoughts on how to get there. READ MORE