These days, the hotel restaurant stigma seems to be waning. With more independent operators and notable chefs in the picture, many operations have become well-known and even disassociated with the adjacent hotels.

This is good news for the increasing number of travelers looking for a decent meal. The Washington, D.C.-based National Restaurant Association's (NRA) “2007 Operator Survey” reports that both domestic and international travel is expected to continue to increase through 2010. This year alone, more than 55 million international visitors are likely to visit the United States, an increase of 3.7 percent from 2007. American travel also is on the rise, growing almost 2 percent from last year.

The NRA report notes that traveler and visitor spending accounts for between 15 percent and 40 percent of overall restaurant sales. The bulk of these sales, or 40 percent, are in fine-dining restaurants, while both casual- and family-dining establishments garner sales of 20 percent. The remaining 15 percent is attributed to quick-service eateries.

Despite the ailing economy, foodservice in the lodging segment continues to post solid growth. Hotel restaurant food and drink sales are projected to total more than $27 billion this year, an increase of more than 5 percent from 2007, according to the NRA report. The association estimates hotel restaurants' compound annual growth rate at 5 percent between 2005 and 2008.

Geoffrey Zakarian, chef/owner of Town Restaurant at the Chambers Hotel and Country Restaurant at the Carlton Hotel, both in New York City, says today's hotel restaurants emphasize food over design. “Hotels are trying to get the food quality up to a first-class level to better service guests,” he says.

With the discouraging success rate of start-up restaurants, many operators are joining forces with hotels to better the chance of survival and the rate of longevity.

Some industry observers say one impetus for this segment's growth is the willingness of many hotels to hand over the reins of their foodservice operations to independent operators, most boasting a successful track record.

Marc Tell, president of The Sam Tell Cos., an equipment supplier based in Maspeth, N.Y., sees this as an overwhelming trend in the industry. “Although the restaurant space is typically built out by the hotel, it is leased to an operator. Most sites have two entrances, with one in the hotel lobby and the other on the street. This helps attract both hotel guests and the general public,” he says.

In many cases, Tell notes, these restaurant operators make it a point not to disclose their affiliation to the adjacent hotel. “Many have their own advertising budget that is separate from the hotel's, so they are able to easily accomplish this,” he says.

Hotel operators, on the other hand, use these sought-out restaurants to entice more guests to stay at their establishments. “In an effort to bring more people to their sites, we've seen hotels move away from emphasizing the room and instead focus their marketing on the amenities, like their well-known restaurants,” Tell explains.

Along these same lines, hotel restaurants have done away with the traditional prix fix menus featuring an appetizer, entrée and dessert format. Instead, the focus is on more extensive offerings that better showcase a high-profile chef's skills. This serves to not only attract hotel guests to stay for dinner, but also draw locals and tourists that may stay at other establishments.

Tell says the goal of these independent chefs and operators is to overcome the hotel restaurant stereotype. “Traditional hotel foodservice revolved around prix fix menus and buffets prepared with bulk cooking, kettles and braisers. Now, this segment is moving more toward à la carte menus,” he says.

Tamas Vago, food and beverage director at the InterContinental Chicago, says many operators began the process of separating their restaurants from adjacent hotels in 2002. “This was due to the bad reputations of many hotel restaurants. People had the opinion that these establishments were geared for hotel guests, that they were pricier than other restaurants and that the menus were not very exciting,” he says.

It was around this time that the InterContinental Chicago's restaurant, Zest, underwent a complete renovation. Along with being relocated to a dedicated space on the side of the hotel, instead of within it, the 120-seat restaurant offered street access to the city's popular Michigan Avenue. There also was no mention of its connection with the hotel on Zest's web site or business cards.

Despite its success in the new location, Zest moved to a former banquet space on the hotel's second floor last year. A Starbucks took over the restaurant's former ground-floor site. Vago attributes this to the current economic climate. “More and more, hotels are finding that retail outlets are less risky and offer better revenue than restaurants,” Vago explains.

The move has resulted in a 20-percent to 25-percent decrease in lunch and dinner covers, since the restaurant no longer has direct street access, Vago says. On a positive note, breakfast revenue has remained consistent, since this typically is derived from hotel guests.

This situation is expected to be remedied in April of 2009, when the restaurant will be licensed to Michael Jordan's Steakhouse. Vago is confident that the recognition of this restaurant brand will draw in customers in addition to hotel guests. “We no longer have the visibility of our previous location, so we realized a good concept and recognizable brand were needed to bring people in,” he says.

To attract clientele apart from overnight guests, many hotel restaurant operators are differentiating their menus with an eye on current food trends.

New York City chef and author Doug Psaltis, a veteran of the hotel foodservice segment, says today's hotels are focusing on restaurant customers. “Even the small hotels are looking to step up their foodservice program by bringing in chefs and incorporating seasonal menus,” he says.

Boutique hotels, in particular, are focusing on adding culture with unique food and upscale restaurants. “For many, it is about the restaurant with rooms offered above and not the other way around,” Psaltis says.

One of the most recent trends in hotel foodservice revolves around small plate dining, which originated from the popular Spanish tapas concept.

Pat Draper, vice president of Romano Gatland, a Lindenhurst, N.Y.- based restaurant design firm with 13 locations throughout the United States and abroad, says the Spanish cooking method is becoming more popular in the hotel foodservice segment. “Equipment is becoming more menu-driven. For example, Spanish-style cooking revolves around a la plancha, which is a flattop surface that uses high heat consistently for cooking small portions,” she says.

Even restaurants that don't offer small plate dining or tapas for entrées are incorporating this concept into the dessert menu. Draper says these mini desserts not only help promote check add-ons, but provide an option for guests to share and sample a variety of items. “People like small plate dining because they can have a variety of food without committing to one item. With dessert, they aren't limited to a big piece of cake, but can share different desserts with the table,” she says.

Another menu trend in this segment incorporates a combination of cuisines, such as South American and Caribbean or Mexican and Asian. This is not yet a widespread development, and largely depends on whether the market supports this concept, Draper notes.

Zest's German chef has incorporated his experience working in various countries by creating a fusion menu that combines food from different regions. Menu selections include baked halibut with lemongrass, shellfish and coconut milk; pan-seared salmon with a green apple crust; and pot-braised short ribs.

Demonstration cooking has long been successful in both casual- and fine-dining restaurants. Consequently, it has become more prevalent in hotel foodservice.

According to Draper, more hotel operators continue to request an open kitchen to allow diners to watch chefs prepare the food. “It is not just about the food, but also takes into account the entertainment factor,” she says. One example of this setup is Michael Mina's Strip Steak restaurant, which is located in Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay Hotel.

Hotel foodservice also has been mirroring another industrywide trend by going green. Operators are helping reduce vehicle emissions by purchasing locally grown produce and bottling their own purified water in recyclable containers to reduce landfill waste.

As part of its green agenda, Zest developed its “100 Mile Menu,” which utilizes only food products obtained within a 100-mile circle of the restaurant. Most items are seasonal and purchased from local farmers' markets. “This allows us to rotate our menus more frequently, since seasonal products are only available for a limited time,” Vago says.

Along with menus, kitchen design has also become more unique and customized in the hotel foodservice segment.

Years ago, hotel chains required kitchen designers to adhere to corporate standards, says Gary Jacobs, The Sam Tell Cos.' director of design. Now, with more independent operators and chefs taking over these sites, the back-of-the-house design centers on the restaurant concept and menu items.

One example of this development is 6 Columbus Hotel's Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill. This New York City restaurant incorporates several customized workstations and a separate lobster station with its own combination oven.

Jacobs says he also sees more emphasis on “à la minute” work, particularly in room service programs. This includes more blast chilling, recirculators and vacuum-pack machines as part of sous vide applications. This method also makes use of high-end microwave convection ovens. “Chefs are using sous vide to prepackage food for reheating in these ovens. This technique allows less experienced staff to prepare quality items quickly,” he says.

Unlike a typical restaurant, a hotel restaurant's equipment package needs to take into account banquet business, which is typically the restaurant's largest revenue source. As a result, efficient use of kitchen space is crucial.

To accommodate the high-volume production needs, Vago says hotel restaurant operators are turning to combination ovens. “This helps avoid banquet hot lines when serving large numbers of people,” he says. “Not only does this method decrease cooking time, but it helps reduce both labor and food costs.” In fact, Vago adds that a small combination oven can help reduce labor for hotels offering 24-hour room service.

This segment also has reaped benefits from chefs who are working in conjunction with manufacturers to develop more productive, user-friendly equipment. “Updated equipment is vital, because the right equipment affects productivity and labor,” Vago says.

Although the equipment requirements for hotel foodservice vary, Vago says these restaurants need to have at least six stove burners with a convection oven underneath. In addition, a grill with storage helps increase speed and efficiency. “Combining hot and cold equipment works well in this environment. With refrigerated storage underneath the burners, meat can be easily accessed for cooking,” he says.

In this fast-paced, high-volume setting, a high-end fryer, which allows oil to be recycled and drained each night, works best, Vago says.

Bain maries and working tables with coolers underneath also provide a higher level of efficiency, according to Vago. “We use infrared heat lamps for food, providing just enough heat so products are not overcooked but still remain at optimal temperatures. Salamanders are utilized to finish up products,” he says.

Equipment and design challenges mount when hotel restaurants are located within century-old buildings that have outdated infrastructures.

Zakarian says this was the case with Country Restaurant, which opened in 2005 within a 100-year-old building. This site included two kitchens that would service a fine-dining restaurant, a 120-seat café and a champagne lounge, while also providing room service for 315 guest quarters.

Equipment difficulties were evident in the beginning of the project, when the large island cooking suites had to be delivered through the windows. “The HVAC and electrical systems weren't near what we needed for today's equipment. It was a big challenge dovetailing the old with the new. It is easier to build a restaurant from scratch,” Zakarian says.

Consequently, the gut renovation required mainly custom-built equipment that included combination ovens and the large cooking suites built by a French manufacturer.

While the first-floor kitchen includes a basic line to produce steak frites and veal blood sausage, the show kitchen on the second level incorporates a rotisserie, wood-burning grill and incandescent lighting to showcase preparations of bison with black pepper béarnaise and risotto escargot with watercress.

Zakarian agrees that today's hotel foodservice equipment is production-driven to accommodate unique menus without the need for additional labor. “The trends in this segment are toward using less and higher-quality ingredients for simple production. This is due to astounding labor costs,” he says.

Labor challenges aren't the only issues hotel restaurants face. It is difficult for many operators to transition into offering breakfast along with lunch and dinner for the hotel guests.

Vago has seen seasoned foodservice operators take over hotel restaurants and fail due to the breakfast challenges. “It doesn't matter if it is the best restaurant in the city for lunch and dinner, if a hotel restaurant can't successfully handle between 500 and 600 breakfast covers from 9:30 a.m. till noon, failure is imminent,” he says.

Hotel restaurants also are at a disadvantage when it comes to competing with other foodservice establishments. In this segment, a single kitchen is not just handling dining room service, but is simultaneously taking care of the bar, banquets and room service.

The InterContinental Chicago's kitchen services the hotel's 792 rooms, in addition to dining room customers. “Consequently, our restaurant menu has similar ingredients and a lot of the same items as the room service menu,” Vago says.

If the restaurant menu changes, it affects the room service menu. “We need to be careful how menus are designed, because it is costly to reprint almost 800 room service menus,” Vago explains.

Despite the additional challenges and additional services, there are more similarities than differences when comparing traditional and hotel foodservice, Psaltis says.

With the country in the midst of an economic downturn, hotel restaurants enjoyan added level of security. “It is a great time for chefs and operators to partner with hotels and feed off of each other,” Psaltis says.

The dining room at New York City's Country Restaurant provides an ornate and upscale atmosphere for hotel guests and patrons. Photo by Margaret Zakarian, Country Restaurant

The majority of Country Restaurant's equipment is custom-built to fit into the 100-plus-year-old kitchen.

(Below) Because hotel restaurant equipment packages, like Country Restaurant's, need to accommodate banquet business, efficient use of kitchen space is crucial.