Angelini
Opened in 1995, the restaurant is named after Giovanni Angelini, CEO of Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts. This venue has been consistently winning awards for the excellence of its food, wine and service plus has been regarded as one of the top Italian restaurants in Bangkok. It has become the concept for the group's Italian restaurant brand, with the second opening at Kowloon Shangri-La Hong Kong.
It closed in the spring of 2007 for a seven month make over renovation, reopening on 22nd December 2007. The design concept was created by the same designers, Baldauf Catton Von Eckartsberg, Architects from California, to maintain the essential spirit of Angelini; the new look is its next generation. More casual, hip, accessible yet still rich warm and sophisticated using the concept of contrast.
The main entrance has been moved to the lower level, making it more accessible for casual visitors. Access from the lobby has been maintained but played down with an Enoteca Bar situated between the lobby and restaurant.
The restaurant has essentially been inverted from the original form. The main dining area with an enlarged open kitchen is now situated on the second floor. Moreover, the lifestyle lounge on the lower level with two distinct bars serves a more casual energy menu. The new element is the al fresco terrace overlooking the poolside.
The food style remains unquestionably Italian, however, what is new is the innovation of Mediterranean cuisine into the menu. This fits in the midst of current dining trends for lighter, healthier food using the freshest ingredients in the market.
"Initially we did have some difficult ties with regular customers accepting the new concept. Our previous patrons felt it was too informal while international customers were very comfortable with it. Once our service team explained the novel evolving concept to them, they did understand. The new menu that we are introducing this month (April) is different as our first as I now realize was possibly too progressive. Therefore, we are reverting to more classic, easily identifiable dishes by means of cooking through the use of new techniques such as sous-vide, low temperature cooking to preserve flavours and natural sugars. My job as a chef is to deliver what the customer wants; we need to offer dishes that the market can focus on".
"Today Angelini is a lifestyle restaurant", explains Chef Paolo Vitaletti. "The designer has cleverly played with light; the feel is very fresh and bright in the day then it slowly transforms with the progression from sunset to night".
"Only 10-15% of the pre-renovation crew is still in the restaurant", explains Restaurant Manager Mirko Cattini, "the rest were hand picked for their attitude and vibrant energy. It's essential for them to deliver a fresh, casual and professionally elegant service. To achieve this we have adopted a liberal approach to uniforms with regards to the way our service staff presents themselves".
"The crew needs to be able to read the table and be able to make constructive suggestions; none of them are just order takers".
"We have 200 labels in our wine cellar", he says, "35% Italian the rest New World driven by customer demand. We have reasonable margins on our wines as we want our customers to feel comfortable when ordering".
"The continued award winning success of Angelini is the heritage of the restaurant, quality of the products, price strategy and service delivery".
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