Well, Boris has spoken again. Which means the hospitality industry has received another blow. Maximum numbers have been slashed again, and unluckily for us and our couples, we were looking forward to 4 lovely Weddings within the next month 😢
Masks are now mandatory throughout the hotel 😷 and table service is the only way to eat or drink.
Will we adapt? YES. Will we make the best of this situation? YES. Will guest and staff safety come first? YES. Will guests still have a great experience? YES. Will this be the biggest test the hospitality industry have faced to date? ABSOLUTELY YES.
We thought you may like to see a sneaky peek inside some of the departments to see how life has changed...
Housekeeping Full PPE at the ready - our housekeeping team take no prisoners in their efforts to keep our Hotel Covid-Secure. Naturally, the intensity of cleaning has dramatically increased, and extra time spent on 'hot spots' such as TV remote controls/door handles etc. Each room now takes double time to clean, meaning we have reduced our hotel accommodation capacity and changed our check in time to an hour later to ensure the team can be as thorough as absolutely possible. Gone are the days of waiting for a guest to vacate one of the public areas before the cleaning can start - the cleaning is now constant!
Bar & Restaurant The most frequent phrase from our team in the bar and restaurant at the moment is 'social distancing'. We have removed lots of tables to ensure the level of service we provide is still inkeeping with our reputation for customer service, and to observe Social Distancing. New curfew of 10pm means last orders at 9:40pm. Now that table service is mandatory, the staff are trying to get the balance right between constant cleaning and constant serving - I think a cloning machine may help 😁
Kitchen Aside from the pristine cleanliness within our Kitchen, you'd be forgiven for thinking it is a little haven away from life in Covid times. The music is on, the chefs are chopping, sizzling, stirring and life is lovely and 'normal'. Look a little closer, and you'll notice the chefs all have a 2m distance from each other in their zones. They are yearning for a 100 person Wedding to put them to the test, or 4 back to back buffets all going out at the same time. But these are distant memories at the moment, so all their creativity and passion for cooking is going into the everyday dishes on the menu. You may notice an extra flair with your evening meal, in the form of a chef desperate to use his skills 😋
Events The latest restrictions were a big blow to us. We have a lot of Weddings from now until next March, and I can only imagine the disappointment yesterdays reduction in numbers to 15 caused. Could you halve your Wedding numbers painlessly to leave just 13 guests??? Another upsetting u-turn has been the reduction in numbers for wakes, and the total cancellation unless it is a sole group of 6 for any other event, including Birthdays/anniversaries etc. Christmas will be interesting, as we wait with baited breath to hear if the restrictions will continue throughout. Conferences for up to 30 can continue with restrictions in place, and we have the lovely addition of 2 new baby/toddler groups who are exempt from the restrictions, bringing some much needed laughter and susnhine to us!
Reception Now officially to be known as the fountain of all knowledge! These ladies are trawling through the guidelines and answering as many questions as humanly possible! There is much more information to feed to the guest, so we need to ensure our system used is working to its max capability. Our reception team now to have to wear an array of different hats, to make sure they are giving the guest the correct info, whether that be in person or over the phone.
I think I speak for the entire Hospitality Industry, when I say I wish I hadn't took for granted some of the problems that we used to face in a typical working day. Too many tables to clear, the rushing around setting up for a Wedding, a computer issue with a big conference, even helping Great Uncle Keith out of the bar after one too many brandies at his nieces wedding! We are all too aware of the balance we now have to strike. Guest and staff safety trumps everything, but we still want people to have a great experience. Its really really hard at the moment, but we go to bed each night content in the knowledge we have worked our hardest to keep everybody safe, and done it with a smile on our face. And right now, thats as much as we can do 😊
What a great round up. Really informative & great to see you’re still smiling. You’re doing a great job well done
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