F&B Service: THE HOTEL & CATERING INDUSTRY

THE HOTEL & CATERING INDUSTRY

A. Introduction to the Hotel Industry

Before World War II, most hotels in India were developed in locations that were frequented by the British and Indian aristocracy. This period saw the development of hotels being undertaken by individual British and Indian entrepreneurs, with only a few companies owning hotels in India, such as The Taj Group--Indian Hotel Company (owned by J. R. D. Tata) and Faletti's Hotel, East India Hotel - Oberoi Group.

The important hotels that were built during India's British period were:

The Rugby, Matheran (1876)

The Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai (1900)

The Grand, Calcutta (1930)

The Cecil Hotels, Shimla and Muree (1935)

The Savoy, Mussoorie (1936)

India gained independence in 1947, and the hotel industry had a period in which no hotel d evelopment took place. Upon his return from the Non-Aligned Movement Conference in 1956, Late Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru, then Prime Minister of India, recognized that tourism could be an engine for the country's economic growth and was inspired to / build quality hotels in India for visiting foreign dignitaries. This led to the first-ever government investment in the hotel industry with the building of the Ashoka Hotel in New Delhi.

The India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) was set up in 1966 as a corporation under the Indian Companies Act of 1956, with the merger of Janpath Hotel India Ltd. and India Tourism Transport Undertaking Ltd. Today, ITDC provides a complete range of tourism services, including accommodation, catering, entertainment and shopping, hotel consultancy, duty free shops, and an in-house travel agency.

The government gave the tourism industry another boost when it created the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation in 1967, separating it from the Ministry of Transport and Shipping, thereby recognizing that tourism was not simply about transporting people from point A to point B but had a much wider role to play in the nation's economy. Concurrently, Rai Bahadur M. S. Oberoi, Chairman of East India Hotels Ltd., was expanding his empire by constructing New Delhi's first modern multi-story hotel, which was franchised to U.S.-based Inter-Continental Hotels. The portfolio of Oberoi hotels consisted of The Cecil, Shimla; The Oberoi Grand, Calcutta; The Oberoi Clarks, Shimla; The Oberoi Palm Beach; and Gopalpur on the Sea.

The Taj Mahal Hotel in Bombay was the next to follow this franchising trend in 1970 when it adopted an Inter-Continental hotel franchise for its new hotel in Bombay. Simultaneously, the Oberoi Tower Hotel under construction in Bombay entered into a franchise and management agreement with Sheraton. Holiday Inn also made its entry into India through franchising its hotel project in Bombay.

This was the beginning of the methodical planning, designing, decorating, and furnishing of hotels in India, along with the installation of systems for operating various departments in a hotel. The training of managerial and other personnel was an important franchise benefit, and the first few batches of managers trained by the Inter-Continental Hotel Company set a new trend of competent professional hotel management for India's hotels that continues to influence and guide India's hotel industry today.

Growth of the Hotel Industry in India

India has the potential to become the number one tourist destination in the world with the demand growing at 10.1 per cent per annum, the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) has predicted.

The WTO (World Travel Organisation) predicts that India will receive 25 million tourists by year 2015.

Major attractions in India are the world's highest mountains, miles of coastline with excellent beaches, tropical forests and wildlife, desert safari, lagoon backwaters, ancient monuments, forts and palaces, adventure tourism and, of course, the Taj Mahal.

India currently has over 200,000 hotel rooms spread across hotel categories and guest-houses and is still facing a shortfall of over 100,000 rooms (source: FHRAI).

The country is witnessing an unprecedented growth in hotel constructions and will be adding almost 114,000 hotel guest rooms to its inventory over the next five years. (Source: HVS)

The earlier setbacks in global tourism have strengthened the Department of Tourism's resolve to promote India's tourism through aggressive marketing strategies through its campaign 'Incredible India'.

The 'marketing mantra' for the Department of Tourism is to position India as a global brand to take advantage of the burgeoning global travel and trade and the vast untapped potential of India as a destination.

B. Role of catering establishment in travel/ tourism industry.

The international foodservice industry provides millions of meals a day in a wide variety of types of operation.

Food can include a wide range of styles and cuisine types. These can be classified by country, for example, traditional British or Italian; by type of cuisine, for example, oriental; or a particular speciality such as fish, vegetarian or health food.

Beverages include all alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Alcoholic beverages include wines and all other types of alcoholic drink such as cocktails, beers and cider, spirits and liqueurs. Non-alcoholic beverages include bar beverages such as mineral waters, juices, squashes and aerated waters, as well as tea, coffee, chocolate, milk and milk drinks and also proprietary drinks such as Bovril.

Within the foodservice industry there are a number of different industrial sectors and these are categorised according to the type of customer demand being met.

Catering dates back in the 4th millennium BC in China. The culture of grand eating and drinking was also present in old Egypt at that time. Most of the services were provided by slaves. The ancients Greeks are credited with making catering a trade by offering free services at their inns and hostels which continued into the Roman Empire, primarily to serve soldiers. In the Middle Ages catering centered on monasteries and the Christian pilgrimages in Europe. The trade spread during the reign of Charlemagne. By late Middle Ages the new bourgeoisies (people of the city) and a monetary economy helped the popularity of catering to flourish. When the industry drew the attention of German legislators in the 14th and 15th century, food and beer regulations began to take form. But much of the industry was still primarily seen in feasts and celebrations for kings and other noblemen. After the French revolution in the 18th century and the lack of an aristocracy, catering guilds were forced to find new ways to sell their talents and the first French restaurants were started.

The food sector or catering industry is one of the most important elements in the travel and tourism industry. This includes restaurants and take-away outlets, but it can also include catering providers to hotels and airlines.

Catering and food service industry plays an important role in the promotion of local food features and culture of tourism destination through providing catering products and services for tourists.

Many countries have designed and developed catering and food brand with own features and style, such as the Beer Festival of Munich in German, Pickled Cabbage Festival in South Korea, series unique meal of cactus and corn in Mexico, Samba Carnival and characteristic barbecue in Brazil and so on.

As an important part of service industry, catering and food service industry is the important carrier of the brand and culture for a country or region with the characteristics of wide market, extensive influence and more employment opportunities.

In recent years, the development of global catering and food service industry maintains a rapid and healthy momentum of development. A wide variety of catering products and different styles of food culture has been shaped in the background of different regions and cultures.

These food service groups provide a fast catering and food service for the consumers from more than 100 countries and regions all over the world. It can be seen that the convenience has gradually become the trend of the development of catering market with the rapid development of economy and society.

In many countries, tourism is regarded as a means of developing wealth and creating employment, especially when traditional activities are on the decline. It is expected to contribute significantly to increasing GDP but identifying skill needs, especially prospectively, causes major problems due to the absence of any consensual definitions in tourism.

The core activity in tourism is the hotel and catering industry, which includes business and leisure tourism, as well as the everyday business and leisure activities of local inhabitants.

Catering is still perceived as an opportunity available to people of all ages which do not require much capital investment or many qualifications. Anyone can open a restaurant, and in the US, only some of the States require those working in the trade to take a basic training course in hygiene. But, in both countries, the development of hotel and restaurant chains is gradually increasing the amount of wage-earning jobs available, which may come to reduce the prospects of those setting up their own business.

Different sectors of the tourism industry are performing their particular roles in contributing to the success of a destination. Generally, these sectors can be classified into two different groups: (1) ‘Private Sectors’ and (2) ‘Public Sectors’.

Table below shows some common examples of sectors categorized under these two dimensions.

Food and Beverage Similar to accommodation, the food and beverage sector is broad and it covers many different types of national cuisines and styles of services.

The catering industry is comprised of businesses that provide food, beverages and other services to a variety of clients, usually for special events. Catering industry jobs vary from small intimate affairs to large events that involve providing not only food and beverage service but also tableware, linens, service personnel and other aspects of the event. Companies that provide catering services might be as large as a business with several locations or as small as an individual who provides catering services on his or her own. A caterer might be part of a restaurant or have his or her own business. Caterers might make use of independent contractors for some aspects of their catering service.

Today’s travel and tourism industry has grown into a global economic powerhouse whose combined direct and indirect impact on the world economy, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). The travel and tourism sector in India provides significant socio economic benefits.

By the end of 2015, the Travel & Tourism sector will contribute US$7,860 billion, 10% of global GDP, once all direct, indirect and induced impacts are taken into account. The sector will account for 284 million jobs, 9.5% of total employment, or one in eleven of all jobs on the planet.

While many small-scale projects have been developed to combine tourism with poverty reduction, on a large scale this requires the implementation of effective national poverty reduction strategy plans (PRSPs). Economic development, poverty reduction and foreign direct investment (FDI) Hotels and restaurants provide numerous opportunities to reduce poverty in many parts of the world.

Tourism Towards 2030 is UNWTO’s long-term outlook and an assessment of the development of tourism over the two decades from 2010 to 2030. According to Tourism Towards 2030, the number of international tourist arrivals worldwide is expected to increase by an average of 3.3% a year over the period 2010 to 2030. In absolute numbers, international tourist arrivals will increase by some 43 million a year, compared with an average increase of 28 million a year during the period 1995 to 2010.

First, a dramatic shift is underway in the “world order” of travel and tourism fueled by the emergence of a strong global middle class, especially in countries like China, Russia, India and Brazil whose collective pent-up demand to see the world beyond their national borders and to experience other cultures is boundless.

C. Type of F & B operations

Food and beverage (or foodservice) operations include various types of restaurants (bistros, brasseries, coffee shops, first class/fine dining, ethnic, themed), cafés, cafeterias, takeaways, canteens, function rooms, tray service operations, lounge service operations, home delivery operations and room service operations for hotel guests. Examples of the types of operation are given below.

Type of operation Description

Bistro

Often a smaller establishment, with check tablecloths, bentwood chairs, cluttered decor and friendly informal staff. Tends to offer honest, basic and robust cooking

Brasserie

This is generally a fairly large, styled room with a long bar, normally serving one plate items rather than formal meals (though some offer both). Often it is possible just to have a drink, coffee or snack. Service provided by waiters, often in traditional style of long aprons and black waistcoats.

New wave brasserie (gastrodome)

Slick modern interior design, coupled with similar approaches to contemporary cuisine and service. Busy and bustling and often large and multileveled.

Coffee shop

Similar to brasserie-style operations, often themed. May be open all day and serve all meal types from breakfast through to supper.

First class restaurant

Usually formal fine dining restaurants with classical preparation and presentation of food and offering a high level of table (silver, guéridon and/or plated) service. Often associated with classic/haute cuisine.

Restaurant

Term used to cover a wide variety of operations. Price, level and type of service, decor, styles, cuisines and degree of choice varies enormously across the range of types of operation. Service ranges from full table service to assisted service such as carvery-style operations

International restaurant

Indian, Oriental, Asian, Spanish, Greek, Italian, Creole and Cajun are just some of the many types of cuisine available, with establishments tending to reflect specific ethnic origins. Many of the standard dishes are now appearing within a range of other menu types

Themed restaurant

Often international in orientation, for example, Icelandic hot rock with food prepared and cooked at the table, ‘Beni-hana’ oriental theme, again with food prepared and cooked at table. Also includes themes such as jungle, rainforest or music/opera, where waiting staff perform as well as serve

International destination restaurant

Often Michelin-starred fine dining restaurants, offering a distinctive personality, cuisine, ambiance, beverages and service. Usually table service at various levels but mostly personal and highly attentive. Generally considered as the home of gastronomy. Expensive but also value laden

Health food and vegetarian restaurants

Increasing specialisation of operations into vegetarianism and/or health foods (though vegetarian food is not necessarily healthy), to meet lifestyle needs as well as dietary requirements

Cafeteria

Primarily self-service with customer choosing selection from a counter or counters in varying designs and layouts. Originally developed for the industrial feeding market but now seen in a variety of sectors

Popular catering and fast-food outlets

Developed from table service teashops and cafés through to steakhouses, and now incorporating snack bars, kiosks, diners, takeaways and cafeterias, with modern-day burger, chicken and fish concepts, and with ethnic foods also being incorporated. Meeting the needs of all-day meal dining (grazing) and also the need for ‘grab and go’ service, especially for the leisure, industrial and travelling markets

Public houses

Licensed environment primarily for drinking alcoholic beverages. May be simply a serving bar with standing room for customers or may have more plush surroundings incorporating the offer of a variety of foods. These can range from simple plated dishes through to establishments offering full restaurant service (sometimes called gastropubs)

Wine bars

Often a mixture of bar and brasserie-style operation, commonly wine themed, serving a variety of foods

TYPES OF RESTAURANTS

· BISTRO It is a small restaurant that serves simple, moderately priced meals and wine. The menu consists of dishes that are simple and easily prepared in bulk.

· Brasserie It is formal restaurant, which serves, single dishes, and other meals. One can just a drink or coffee. It extends professional service on printed menus.

· Coffee Shop It is a restaurant that mainly serves snacks and beverages 24 hours a day; however it may serve all the three major meals of the day. The service offered is American (pre-plated) and ambience of the coffee shop is informal.

· Specialty Restaurant It serves dishes which are its strength and contribute to the brand image. It operates during luncheon and dinner hours. The ambience and theme of the restaurant reflects the theme of the specialty restaurants.

· Fine dining restaurant This kind of restaurant primarily caters to the requirement of the affluent market segment which wants to experience fine dining. The ambience and décor of the restaurant will be elegant and rich. The glassware is of finest crystal, and the cutlery will be either silver or electro plated nickel silver (EPNS). The service offers is only silver service.

· Fat food joint It is characterized by the speed of service and the affordable price of the menu items.

· Rotisserie It is specialized in grilled or roast poultry and fish which are prepared behind live counters in front of the guests.

· Barbeque restaurant The marinated pieces of Vegetarian and non-vegetarian delicacies are inserted on skewers and cooked over live charcoal or electric griller.

· Night club It operates during the night and offers dinners, dance, and live entertainment.

· Discotheque It operates during night hours and provides a dance floor for guests. Special sound and lighting effect is created for an appropriate ambience. Drinks specially beer and snacks are made available during the operation.

· Ice cream parlour It serves different types of ice creams such as sundae, cassatas etc.

· Café This is a restaurant of French origin, mainly serving coffee and snacks.

· Cafeteria It consists of a straight line system of counters containing a variety of hot and cold dishes. The customer start at the end of a line, pick up a tray, and move along the length of a counter as they select they dishes they want to have.

· Food court It refers to number of independent food stalls, each serving different items of food. The customer’s order the food items they want to have and consume at a common dining area.

· Kiosk A small permanent or temporary structure on a sidewalk from which items such as tea, coffee, pastries, savories may be sold.

· Drive in Customers drive in, park their vehicles at parking lot, and the items bought may either be taken away or consumed.

· Oyster bar It is a restaurant that specializes in the serving of fresh oysters. Fresh oysters are served on the bed of crushed ice with oyster cruet, brown bread, and butter.

· Pub It mainly serves various kinds of beer, especially draught beer, and snacks.

· Bar It offers all kinds of alcohol beverages. Hotel & restaurants have separate licensed area to sell these alcoholic drinks.

· Carvery It is a restaurant serving roast meat and poultry, which are carved at the carving counter by a carver in the presence of guests.

D. Classification of Commercial, Residential/ Non Residential

The catering industry could be referred to as a hospitality industry which makes provision of food, drinks and in some cases accommodation for people in school, hospital, industry etc.

There are two types of catering establishments: commercial and non-commercial

Commercial Catering

Commercial catering may be defined as the operations in which profitability is the primary concern. Such outlets exists only the publicly owned sector of the economy. Also, it is worth noting that in commercial sector, catering may be a secondary and additional service to customers for example, catering at departmental stores. Examples of commercial catering include: hotels and restaurants, wine bars, fast foods, takeaway, licensed house (Pub) catering, motel and travel lodges, guest houses, youth hostels, transport catering, outside catering, and franchising etc.

Non-Commercial Catering or Welfare Catering

Subsidized or welfare catering may be defines as those operations in which the profitability of the catering facility is not the outlets primary concern. Since the operations are either completely or partially subsidized by a parent body.

Such establishment’s primary obligation is the well being and care of their customers or parents. Unlike customers frequenting commercial sector operations, the customers often do not have choice of catering facilities. The non-commercial catering facilities are usually sub divided by government bodies which dictates allowance per heads, or by parent companies who may have a similar arrangement. Examples of such establishments include: institutional catering, hospital catering, industrial catering, and prison.

FOOD AND BEVERAGE SECTORS

Commercial sectors (profit motive) Welfare sectors (service motive)

General market Restricted market Restricted market

· Hotels, motels, resorts Transport catering Institutional catering

· Restaurants Clubs Schools

· Takeaway outlets Industrial catering Colleges

· Fast food outlets Institutional catering Universities

· Pubs, wine bars Hospitals\

· Food courts Old-age homes

· Functions catering Military

Prisons

There are many types of F&B operations. They may vary in size, style, location, and the market they are catering to. From a way side tea stall to an exclusive fine dining restaurant of a deluxe hotel, and from mid say service meal service for school children to meals for industrial workers etc.

E. Welfare catering-Industrial/Institutional/ Transport such as air, road, rail , sea, etc

It is a food service operation with an institution such as hospital and schools. Traditionally, non-commercial food service operations have focused on nutrition and other non economic factors.

WELFARE CATERING

The basic purpose of welfare catering is to fulfill social needs at no price/nominal price/subsidized rates. The caterer does not know the target market and their background for instance, in gurudwara catering and catering in temple, etc.

INSTITUTIONAL CATERING

It includes schools, universities, colleges, etc. in certain cases, customers do not have to pay for the for the provision of food & beverage services, because they are completely or partially subsidized by central/state government funds.

INDUSTRIAL CATERING

The facility of food & beverage offered to employees at their working place, in industries and factories at a nominal, highly subsidized price is called as industrial catering.

DEFENCE CATERING

It is also called as “Armed service or catering”. In this type of catering the provision of food & beverage are offered to the defence personnel’s in barracks, in the mess and in the field.

HOSPITAL CATERING

The hospital catering is classified as welfare catering, the object being to assist the nursing staff to get the patient well as soon as possible. The food service is offered in compartment trays.

F. Structure of the Catering Industry – a brief description of each.

FOOD & BEVERAGE SECTORS

Non-captive market Captive market Semi-captive market

Non-captive market

The customers have a choice where to eat.

· Reason for dining

· Time available to eat

· Food preference of customers

· Money available to spend on food

· Time of the day

· Distance

· Ambience desired

· Personal experience

Captive market

The customers do not have a choice where to eat and have to avail services provided by a particular catering outlet. For example, residential schools, college students staying at hostels, hospital patients.

Semi-captive market

The customers have a limited choice where to eat. In such a market, the customers have a choice before selecting the food & beverages.

· Passengers travelling by train may take food prepared in the pantry car, from where food outlets at railway stations, or wait till the destination is reached.

KEY TERMS

· American Service Method of serving in a restaurant food, in which portions of food are placed on plates in the kitchen by the chef and served to each guest by a waiter. It is also known as pre-plated service.

· Bain-Marie A large open dish particularly filled with hot water, in which hot food containers are placed to keep the food hot.

· Catering One of the aspects of hospitality service is catering. It means professionally organizing the supply of food & beverage and managing social events.

· Cover It is a place set at a table in a restaurant.

· Cyclic Menu Series of fixed menus for a set period, which are repeated for a particular period. Such menus are followed in hospitals, hostels, and industrial catering.

· Food & Beverage It refers to any service rendered to gratify basic human needs of hunger and the joy of eating and drinking for physiological and psychological satisfaction.

· Gueridon It consists of a trolley that is well equipped to prepare, cook, and serve food to the guests.

· Hospitality The friendly and generous reception of guest or stranger. So far the industry stands for is all aspects related to the above meaning i.e. knowledge, skill and attitude to fulfill the said goals.

· Gueridon service It is a form of food service provided by restaurant to their guests, which involves preparing food in direct view of the guests, using a gueridon.

· Oyster Cruet It is one of the accompaniments for oysters. It contains cayenne pepper, pepper mill, chilli vinegar, and tobasco sauce.

· Silver Service It is a method of serving food. Food is served with service spoon and fork from the left-hand side of the guest.

CLASSIFICATION OF FOOD AND BEVERAGE OUTLETS

Commercial Industrial Welfare

Hotels Cafeteria Old homes

Restaurants Canteens Prisons

Pubs Packed food outlets Orphange

Kiosk Institutional catering Religious Congregations

Drive inns Armed forces Disasters