Food & beverage His next stop was Hawaii – first the Halekulani
Hotel, and then The Ritz Carlton. Convinced this island paradise was about as good as it got, he wasn’t initially interested when tapped up to go to Singapore. Then he heard he’d be reopening the Raffles Hotel following its $160m renovation. “The mandate was just to be able to make it
completely great again – and that’s exactly what we did,” he says. “Every three star Michelin restaurant in France came in and cooked there, along with the greatest winemakers of the world.”
Further stints followed at Rosewood Hotels, The Fullerton Hotel Singapore, Peninsula Hotels and Setai South Beach. In 2008, he set up Nira Hotels and Resorts, and oversaw the genesis of four hotels, before divesting his stake in 2017. “I wanted to go back to food and beverage again
Above: The restaurant at The Nira Alpina Hotel offers guests an elite dining experience.
Opening page: MPS Puri (pictured) shares his expertise having spent more than 50 years working in the hospitality industry.
Dining out with a difference At a time when so many restaurants feel purely functional – just a place to grab a bite, or the backdrop to a night with friends – there is a real romanticism to this picture. It’s a glamour Puri sensed, and hankered for, as a teenager in northern India, when he first caught wind of what hospitality might be. “My family did mega-construction projects
and were involved with building the Oberoi Hotel in New Delhi,” he says. “I thought, this seems glamorous – it certainly looks more glamorous than construction – so it might be a career I want to pursue. Plus, I always wanted to travel. If you’re in hospitality, the world’s your oyster.”
“You need to have very robust cultures around food, around wine, around cocktails and mixology, around ambience, around entertainment. And then it’s how the staff look, the service culture and being able to create wonderful moments for your guests.”
This was no exaggeration. The young Puri signed $160m
The value of the renovation at Raffles Hotel in Singapore. Global Design News
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up for a management training programme with Hilton, which took him to Germany. After some time at the Dusseldorf Hilton, he moved to the United States to work for the Hyatt in Chicago. Aged just 25, he got his first ‘big break’, to become a director of food and beverage in Washington DC. “That led me on to La Mansion Hotels in Texas,
and then the Fairmont Hotel Company,” he recalls. “Back then the Fairmont Hotel Company was a family-owned company with supper clubs in each of the hotels. Our supper club was called the Moulin Rouge, and it was modeled after Toulouse Lautrec. You would have performances every night from Ella Fitzgerald, Tony Bennett, Lou Rawls.”
full time, because that’s really my passion, that’s my heart,” he says. “I’m now involved with the Dorchester Collection, the Raffles and Fairmont brands, as well as Aman, as an advisor and consultant for food and beverage. I can only express gratitude for all these wonderful opportunities that have allowed me to continue to have fun.”
Thin on the ground Although conceding that F&B can be a demanding gig – it does require you to wave goodbye to the 9–5 – he believes there is no line of work more glorious. Part of this is the lustre of the guest list. Puri’s restaurants have attracted A-listers, aristocracy and heads of state. But another part is the simple and equalising fact of bringing joy through food.
“I dare say everything in every society revolves
around food,” he opines. “Our fondest memories, from our grandmother’s cooking to the wonderful ice cream truck, to every birthday, every anniversary, every wedding, whatever the occasion is – everything involves food and drink. In F&B, we can share people’s most precious moments.” While the golden days of hotel supper clubs may be behind us, Puri doesn’t think the underlying drivers have gone anywhere. Particularly with the younger generations, who classically are seen to value ‘experiences over things’, the idea of spending a lot of money on a big night out is very much intact.
“The millennials and Gen Z, they want to go out
three times a week, they want to have fun, and they’re not so much obsessed with owning things,” he says. “They’re more obsessed with rituals and collecting experiences. The oldest millennials are now in their 40s, and there’s been a huge transfer of wealth from the baby boomers, so they’re flush with cash too.”
Hotel Management International /
www.hmi-online.com
Donja Pitsch
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