FOUR SEASONS

30 March 2005 by
FOUR SEASONS

BOXTEXT: Meet the chef
Executive chef Jamie Jones oversees all the food operations at the hotel. He started at the Four Seasons Park Lane 10 years ago as a sous chef, and has spent stints abroad at properties including the Four Seasons Maldives and Four Seasons Cairo.
He spent most of last year recruiting his team, which includes executive sous chef Warren Geraghty, previously at London's Great Eastern hotel. "Some are from Four Seasons but I didn't want everyone to be from the group," explains Jones. "The one thing I wanted was real foodies."
Now back in the UK, he aims to source as much of the menus as locally as possible. "I went to the farmers market in Winchester, and I felt really excited about all the local produce there," he says. "That freshness has driven the whole concept of the menu."
From June, organic beef will be supplied from the next-door farm, and organic chickens are raised locally. Waterloo and Ashmore cheeses come from down the road. Jones plans to change menus seasonally, and
the de jour menu will be his training ground for any new dishes.
Jones has developed three children's menus, a move inspired by staying in hotels with his own children. "It was always a real pain to get food for the kids, especially for babies," he says.
An infant menu, complimentary for every parent, has items such as soups, purŽes, mashed vegetables, pasta and oatmeal with fruit. Children's all-day and gourmet menus are also available, presented in the same cover as those for the adults. "The food isn't totally different, just a bit more accessible," Jones says. "We've also tried to think about the way dishes are presented and served. For example, we use big bowls so food cools quickly and spoons don't fall out so easily."
For Jones and his 20-strong brigade, the next few months will be spent concentrating on the existing menu. "There's a massive enthusiasm here," Jones says. "Now, our main priority is to do what we say we do. Getting it out on time, at the right temperature, while keeping the wow factor."

BOXTEXT: commitment to employees
It's been 35 years since London's Four Seasons Park Lane hotel opened its doors, making it the longest-serving hotel in the group. Park Lane's loyal and long-standing staff have been a key ingredient in its success. Turnover is low, at about 20%, and a third of its employees have worked with Four Seasons for 10 years or more. "Recruitment is mainly done via word of mouth," says the hotel's director of human resources, Emma Corlett. "Last year, 21 manager positions were filled internally, and we have five people who've been here for 30 years."
What inspires such loyalty? According to Corlett, Four Seasons prides itself on building relationships with every employee. "There's a real family atmosphere in the hotel," she says. All new staff are given a tailored induction package, and every new employee, regardless of position, is asked to stay the night as a guest. "We ask them to check in, eat breakfast, have a meal in one of the restaurants - in fact, behave just as a normal guest would," says Corlett. "It's useful for us to have a fresh pair of eyes," she adds.
An in-house trainer delivers courses on everything from customer service to management coaching. Thanks to an e-learning initiative, busy staff can now learn at their desks.
Benefits have across-the-board appeal. After six months of service, all staff are entitled to three nights' free accommodation at any Four Seasons hotel worldwide, and the number of nights increases with each year. Every fortnight, an osteopath and a chiropodist run a clinic at the hotel, and there is an occupational health adviser on site. All staff can take part in the profit-share programme.
Corlett's own career path reflects the group's commitment to its employees. After completing her CIPD training, she worked at the Savoy and Brown's hotel before becoming assistant HR director at the Four Seasons Park Lane. Eight months later, when her boss moved on, she was encouraged to apply for her current job as director. That was two years ago, and Corlett still can't believe her luck. "I didn't have enough experience, but I was really motivated and they saw that potential," she says. "That's very much the ethos at Four Seasons - we give the support, training and development to bring out the best in people."

CAPTION: Above: The hotel uses two "tapestry" colour themes of yellow and blue, or yellow and green in the bedrooms
Below: Bar 1086 has a clubby feel with low-slung sofas and individual chairs in cream, green and black

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