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Do deluxe hotels understand dietary restrictions?

Do deluxe hotels understand dietary restrictions?

Old May 4, 2016, 8:48 am
  #31  
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Originally Posted by vuittonsofstyle
India...does understand vegan, thanks to the Jains

Thailand, compared to most, is pretty easy, as long as you don't have a peanut allergy
Originally Posted by vuittonsofstyle
What about people who do not drink alcohol? Have any of you found good alternatives in specific hotels - like high quality mixers, non-alcoholic wines, freshly squeezed juices etc?
fresh juices (/smoothies/shakes/etc) are not unusual?
i thought coconuts fresh off the tree were interesting

re smoothies and alcohol - castle hill inn's guest-only breakfast/tea only presented a bill if ordering alcohol. (saw a guest order bloody mary at breakfast.) for breakfast there is a menu, and during my stay they started with a kind of amuse bouche - style smoothie (very small) that changed daily. without ordering, one of staff brought me a full smoothie one morning. same person had previously offered proactive service when i was in one of the lounge areas.

in another thread >
Originally Posted by MacMyDay
At Amanjiwo they had our stay notes, and never once were we even offered [alcohol] with the head of F&B even making comment on what mocktail we would like.

Last edited by Kagehitokiri; Dec 28, 2017 at 9:30 am
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Old May 4, 2016, 9:19 am
  #32  
 
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Originally Posted by vuittonsofstyle
What about people who do not drink alcohol? Have any of you found good alternatives in specific hotels - like high quality mixers, non-alcoholic wines, freshly squeezed juices etc?
I've never found an issue with any hotel and find them all very accommodating regarding. It's very rare I don't see mocktails and juices on a menu, although I very rarely care for anything new so just ask for the same things. The Connaught buy these in bulk for me and have them available on arrival in my room: http://www.alain-milliat.com/en/the-collection/juice
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Old May 4, 2016, 10:23 am
  #33  
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Best alcohol-free I ever saw was at FS Florence. They do non-alcoholic 'wine' pairings, some from Alain Milliat (MacMyDay), others from Germany, Italy & UK. Very clever and, I thought, very considerate.
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Old May 4, 2016, 12:46 pm
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Originally Posted by vuittonsofstyle
Best alcohol-free I ever saw was at FS Florence. They do non-alcoholic 'wine' pairings, some from Alain Milliat (MacMyDay), others from Germany, Italy & UK. Very clever and, I thought, very considerate.
Interesting you mentioned that

When we were at the FS Florence there was a large group from the Saudi Royal Family who kept the pool staff busy blending non-alcoholic cocktails. We tried a few and they were quite good!
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Old May 4, 2016, 3:08 pm
  #35  
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Originally Posted by Kagehitokiri
who at aman? presumably any aman chef/manager/etc could arrange for recipes/menus to be sent to another aman. (there are posts discussing that kind of thing at aman.) thanks for the detailed post cadogan1!
Originally Posted by damaxer91
Don't think it requires them purchasing new items. All hotels have lots of new dishes/glassware in stock that they use as replacements for broken and lost items. I've never been refused when asking. Many hotels (Amanyara/Dorado Beach) even have dedicated pots and pans to cook for Kosher guests
Originally Posted by FlyerEC
Doubt that that Aman will now purchase new items ..
Noticing some cost cutting happening , perhaps mandate from new owner and / or new non " Aman " grown being parachuted in as GMs / joining senior team . Of course there are exceptions .

Thankfully , Puri is honouring & remembering the dietary bits .

Originally Posted by Kagehitokiri
fresh juices (/smoothies/shakes/etc) are not unusual?
i thought coconuts fresh off the tree were interesting

in another thread >
Am not saying that new items need to be purchased . But that the Aman you were at will not be doing any purchasing if your stay was this year , for sure , as there is " cost cutting " happening ( something which didn't happen during AZ ' s days and GMs were empowered to go " beyond normal service expected " the then Aman way ) .

As mentioned , glad that they at Amans are still offering some flexibility menu wise .
Chefs are still given some leeway . Though noticed menus including Kila/ Nusa ' s have been somewhat pared down .
Fresh juices & smoothies are not unusual at Amans . e.g . My breakfast can include fresh coconut water ( presented in the chilled coconut ) along with - smoothie like yesterday's " ABC " . Changed my green apple to red , but left the beetroot & organic carrots as is .
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Old May 27, 2016, 9:05 am
  #36  
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just posted >

Originally Posted by Big_Foot
chef at Chedi called Mandapa personally to ask about our food allergies
another recent post, not specifically re dining >

Originally Posted by MacMyDay
passed on our stay lists and notes...They said that the do not feel your holiday has ended until you're home...sent the Tempur pillows they specifically bought for me
could follow movements of recommended chefs (as forum has done with GMs)

Originally Posted by pauljeff
Saffire Freycinet I'd strongly recommend - they customised the tasting menu for my OH who has tons of dietaries which was above and beyond given most places just take out the offending items (if they're nuts) or swap fish for meat (she does fish but no meat) but here we got contiguous other dishes. It was phenomenal.

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Old Dec 28, 2017, 9:43 am
  #37  
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decent chefs at luxury properties should be able to prepare a certain type of dish on request. yet i dont recall past examples of this here for diet, whereas i recall a very large number of examples here for ethnic cuisines, as in prepare any dish from this country.

can industry here comment on this? like what operational problem is?
do some luxury chains / properties discourage chefs re off menu etc?

aman and FS at least can get recipes from another of their properties

when waiters incapable, part of why some chefs come out regularly

just posted for RC dove mountain >

Originally Posted by Ksw299
F&B manager Raghu who just wanted to chat with us. My wife told him that it was my birthday, so he asked if we had any plans for dinner. We had our plans cancelled by El Charro’s as it was closing early that day. When we mentioned that he took us to Core kitchen (the main restaurant of the resort), introduced to the chef Mani and asked him to take care of us. He took a special note of my wife’s dietary restrictions (she is a strict vegetarian who does not even eat egg) and made a reservation at 6 45 PM.

When we arrived the waiter let us know that the chef was preparing something special for us and that we could only order drinks as both appetizer and the main course were getting ready.

The appetizer was potato cutlet which is a famous delicacy in India and it was exceptional. The main course was rice with vegetable curry which was extremely good, one of the best I have ever tasted. It was almost as good as my mom cooks. The desert consisted of a rose sorbet, vanilla ice-cream and strawberries, which we could not finish as we were so full by that time.

The best part was none of these were on the menu and they prepared this specifically for us. We were blown away as we have never experienced anything close to this. They even took off a couple of drinks of the final bill. The chef even dropped by our table to say Hi and to see how we liked the food.
presumably could have been fully pescetarian (chef not at a hotel currently) >

Originally Posted by trojanman
Dinner, on the other hand, was spectacular. I arranged for a special tasting (not offered on the menu). Chef Jacob was happy to oblige, personally calling me to find out our preferences and restrictions. With a couple small guidelines, we let him have carte blanche, and what a wonderful job he did. Very fish centric, heavily raw/crudo, and a bit of local island beef. $160 per person. Easily 1, possibly 2 michelin star quality in both food and service.
well said in a mixed review of brando F&B >

Originally Posted by luxtrvlwrks
should be fully capable of developing a well-rounded menu with options for multiple dietary preferences (I know, not an easy task), or suggesting one-off dishes that are not vegan, salads, veggie plates, or pasta primavera

Last edited by Kagehitokiri; Dec 28, 2017 at 10:05 am
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Old Dec 28, 2017, 5:41 pm
  #38  
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I think it should be possible with some prior notice. The best places have your dietary preferences on hand and will make changes accordingly without much fuss.
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Old Dec 28, 2017, 11:20 pm
  #39  
 
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I have been rather ill multiple times this year as a result of developing some food allergies that I never had, with the main one being shellfish. I never really liked most shellfish (except oysters), so no real loss, but I did have to take issue with Helene Darroze's 295 per person menu on Christmas Day that, to quote, was "Black truffle: Jerusalem artichoke, native blue lobster, Parmeggiano Reggiano", where they simply removed the lobster for me. Next up, your beef course, with just a single carrot on it? We complained and they brought us both another dish, which makes me think I should hang around other people with severe food allergies so I can pick up more free food along the way.
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Old Dec 29, 2017, 9:17 am
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The biggest problem with dietary restrictions is at gourmet restaurants, where the chef has spent a lifetime perfecting each dish and is therefore reluctant to change anything. This was certainly true of Robuchon when he was at FS NY, but Eric Frechon at le Bristol has always been very accommodating, and so has Christian le Squer etc at FS George V. I hate it when a kitchen simply removes the offending item/s, leaving you with barely anything to eat, but charging the same price!
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Old Dec 29, 2017, 10:15 am
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To me, the best way to create a regular menu that works for most is to have the base item and then charge extra for each protein - chicken, lobster, tofu, etc. It wouldn't work for every dish, but especially for pasta and salads it is nice to have a choice and to pay for exactly what I receive. However, after 25+ years I have given up on getting upset about paying more for less food.

My hunch is that chefs have a hard time because although they can create a delicious recipe without meat, for example, they are not as adept at creating nutritious well-rounded meals. Yes, you can cut up vegetables into tiny bits with sauces and pearls of things and it looks beautiful and tastes great, but it is not completely sustainable as a diet nor desirable for someone to eat regularly over multiple days.

Certain regions are better at certain dietary restrictions, in addition to the talents of individual chefs or F&B programs.
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Old Dec 29, 2017, 10:30 am
  #42  
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considering the different communication styles here, im guessing thats a factor. the problem is, a chef should come up with something first, then see if the guest wants to provide instructions. process oriented may not help, like if MO for example can be dependent on it but also do not train enough on it.

perhaps property owner is a huge factor here as well. and or F&B accounting, if they frown on certain things.

has anyone asked for menu(s) to be put together and been told no?

Last edited by Kagehitokiri; Dec 29, 2017 at 5:04 pm
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Old Dec 29, 2017, 5:05 pm
  #43  
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Originally Posted by vuittonsofstyle
I hate it when a kitchen simply removes the offending item/s, leaving you with barely anything to eat, but charging the same price!
Indeed, in this case they simply dont earn their stars.
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Old Dec 29, 2017, 6:22 pm
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Originally Posted by purplestraw
My American friend is a vegan and when she came to visit me in Singapore and we travelled throughout Asia, I was surprised at how limited her choices were. There seemed to be difficulty in understanding vegan requests. Especially with a lot of cuisines that have Chinese influence, it seemed that to them as long as meat was not the star of the dish, it was "meat free" to them. But a lot of times the food uses a meat base broth or sauce (fish sauce! shrimp paste!).
So true! In Japan, everything has dashi (katsuo no dashi - fish broth). In China/HK etc, there's oyster sauce, chicken/meat broth, fish sauce, shrimp paste, lard. In Thailand and other SE Asia countries, there's fish sauce, shrimp paste, etc. And then there's gelatin in a lot of western dessert (to hold the shape of the cake longer or to glaze the tart, etc, especially for buffet and display cases). Chinese bakeries use lard in and on many baked goods. Fried veggies or tofu could have been fried in oil that had been used for frying meat/seafood.

In Asia, I've found Taiwan to be a vegetarian/vegan paradise. Due to Buddhism influence, there have traditionally been a lot of veggie/vegan restaurants over the years on the island nation, and nowadays, it's gotten better and better, with really interesting and international cuisine and buffet on offer.
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Old Dec 29, 2017, 7:24 pm
  #45  
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Pure Korean Buddhist temple food will also be vegan friendly. A lot of the other stuff uses anchovy broth, dried shrimps, etc. I think FS and PH would be willing to work with you on dietary restrictions but the Korean hotels unlikely.
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