Table talk
Smooth operator with expensive taste
While catching up with a spot of paperwork over a coffee at London's dell' Ugo, a delicious, familiar aroma wafted towards proprietor Antony Worrall Thompson.
Taking a deep breath of the warm, woody smell, he realised what he could smell was the truffle oil a waitress was unknowingly oiling the marble bar with.
A much more sophisticated fragrance than Pledge and a snip at £14 for a half bottle!
A healthy appetite is no yoke
Robin Camidge, general manager of Weston-super-Mare's Grand Atlantic Hotel, likes his food.
At a recent managers' conference held by Forte's White Hart group at the Beaumont Hotel in Bolton, Mr Camidge won an egg-eating challenge in the hotel's D'Arcy's restaurant.
"I enjoy a good challenge and I knew I could beat the record of 18," says Mr Camidge, who, in addition to 24 eggs, chomped his way through a dinner of two pork chops, ice-cream and coffee.
"It became a bit tough at around 18 and 19, but then I got my second wind," Mr Camidge adds.
When is a hotel not a hotel?
The Ascott Mayfair hotel is an imaginative choice for London Hotel of the Year in the 1996 Which? Hotel Guide. It isn't a hotel at all, but serviced apartments.
Baby, look at you now
John Benson-Smith, chef at Manchester's Victoria & Albert Hotel, has collected many accolades in his time. Extracts from some of the more complimentary reviews are included in the brochure for the hotel's Sherlock Holmes restaurant.
But, slotted between the quotes from Egon Ronay's Guide, Ideal Homes magazine and the AA, is a real gem: "He was a horrible little boy and needed smacking every day." This one came from his mother.
Delusions of grandeur
Amberley Castle, the 900-year-old country house hotel in West Sussex, has inspired many who stay there with its enchanting, romantic atmosphere.
So much so, that an American couple who visited last year have named their baby Amberley.
A charming story, except that it seems her middle name is Castle. Trust the Americans to go over the top.
Line up for free weekends away
Ever wanted to be a hotel inspector? Here's a chance to be one and receive a luxury Champagne weekend break for your trouble.
Peter Chubb, the new general manager at Hellaby Hall Hotel, near Rotherham, is looking for "professional" guests to form a mystery guest panel to give candid feedback on aspects of the hotel in their specialist areas.
Those selected will be asked to go to the hotel throughout the year and report on how it is doing. Contact Peter Chubb on 01709 702701.
Beam us up to Oban, Scottie
Clever as it may be, there is nothing new in using popular images and icons as a means of attracting restaurant customers.
But full marks to a restaurant in Oban, Strathclyde, for deciding to boldly go with a Star Trek theme for promoting this year's Christmas menu.
The Starship Christmas menu offers such interplanetary wonders as Warp Factor Pâté, Captain Kirk's Terrine, Scottie's Seafood Selection, O'Houra's Pudding, Galactic coffee and Klingon pies. This is clever marketing, Jim, but not as we know it.
