I’ve Seen The Future Of Hotel Foodservice

I’ve seen the future of hotel foodservice, and it is Panera Bread Company.

More on that later. First, I must dispel the myth perpetrated by the media (Hotel News Now included) that the Hilton New York Midtown has eliminated roomservice. It’s not true; well, sort of not true.

As I found when I visited the hotel last week, guests at the Hilton can still pick up the phone and have food delivered to their rooms. The hours of delivery, the style of service and the types of food are different than what everyone is accustomed to—but it’s still kind-of-like roomservice.

The Hilton recently opened a new dining concept that might become the prototype for foodservice at other properties in the chain and might ultimately change the definition of what is a full-service hotel. That’s where the Panera analog comes in.

Herb N’ Kitchen is the new concept to replace the hotel’s previous three-meal restaurant. It’s basically a grab-and-go on steroids that offers customers most anything they want—from coffee and a pastry in the morning to soups, salads and sandwiches at lunch to a few hot items at night—in a format that’s quick, clean and efficient. That’s the way most hotel guests—and business travelers in particular—want it. (At breakfast, the outlet also offers a full-scale breakfast buffet for those who want something heartier.)

The outlet has separate zones pegged to its varied offerings: a coffee bar; a cold case for salads, sandwiches, desserts and drinks; a marketplace for fruits, snacks and sundries; and a hot food station with a view of the prep area.

What separates Herb N’ Kitchen from other to-go operations are several large seating areas that, like Panera, Starbucks and other so-called “third place” retail outlets, enable—no, encourage—customers to either eat quietly by themselves, meet in small groups with colleagues or strangers, or bring a laptop and stay all day.

At the risk of romanticizing what’s essentially the solution to a business problem, one can say this new concept transports Hilton back to the origins of innkeeping; that is, a hotel as a meeting place, a social center, a living room, as well as a renter of rooms for the night.

The final component of the concept is delivery. Each guestroom has a copy of the Herb N’ Kitchen menu. Guests call, place their orders (hours are limited to the morning and evenings until 10:30 p.m.) and someone from the outlet, not a traditional roomservice department, gathers the items, places them in a paper bag and delivers to the guestroom. Again, fast and efficient. My delivery order got to me within 15 minutes of the call.

Of course, Hilton didn’t develop this concept to connect itself to the ancient tradition of innkeeping. Rather, it’s part of a strategy hatched several years ago to update and create efficiencies in foodservice at three of Hilton’s full-service brands (Embassy Suites and DoubleTree are the others).

Beth Scott, architect of the strategy and VP of global product development, food and beverage for Hilton Worldwide, said the idea sprung from conversations with guests and from outside research showing Americans like fast casual dining, and 85% of them visit places such as Panera at least once a month.

While the Hilton New York will serve as a prototype for other properties, Herb N’ Kitchen offerings in other hotels will differ in size and offerings. Calling it a “kit of parts,” Scott said the idea can be adapted to all kinds of Hiltons (resorts, for example) and even in locations away from the lobby (a pool environment is one example she gave).

This particular F&B outlet is not necessarily the big idea. What is important is the notion that hotel foodservice, and indeed the whole concept of full-service hotels, is changing and will continue to do so. Brands, owners and operators need to continue to challenge industry norms and their own biases.

There are better ways to do everything in the hotel business. Hilton might have found one of them.