Spasso
Where the Grand Hyatt Erawan stands today was the original government owned Erawan Hotel that opened in 1956. That hotel was demolished in 1987 for the new hotel to be built and the Hyatt Group moved from Ladprao to manage this hotel in 1991.
"The concept for Spasso 16 years ago was to be an Italian Restaurant and Entertainment centre", says Therdsak Pawitpanich, Restaurant Manager of Spasso when it opened and now Assistant Director of Food & Beverage. "This was one of the first Italian restaurants in Bangkok. The d?cor has not changed since it opened with the exception of updating the televisions to flat screen and a few speakers. The Romanic Michael Angelo style stenciling in the ceiling are our originals".
There has always been an Italian chef in the kitchen, changing every two to three years. This is one of the first restaurants to have a wood fired pizza oven plus innovated serving steamed then roasted half bulb of garlic as an alternative to butter, an idea that originated in Hawaii.
With just 20 guests it does not look empty; equally with 200 it does not look packed. They have worked hard to focus on what they are doing and not to modify. With the introduction of the smoking ban they considered building a smoking room, however, decided against it to maintain the integrity of the venue.
Chef Frederick is currently in charge of the kitchen at Spasso. He passionately believes in structuring a strong working relationship with his suppliers. A year ago when he went home to Italy on holiday he brought a few packets of tomato seeds and gave some to 10 of our suppliers to see if they could grow organic Italian style tomatoes. He went to the farms to assist with the planting and cultivation of the tomatoes, now he is working with two whose land has the right soil to produce the vegetables he is looking for. Currently, there is no formal branding of this organic produce but rather the hotel regards them as "their farms". This is a personal relationship between the chef and his suppliers, along with an opportunity for the hotel to give back to the local community.
"This is like three restaurants in one", adds Miguel Melo. "At lunchtime we have an antipasti buffet, in the evening is an a la carte Italian dining until 10pm, when the restaurant transforms to an entertainment venue. It is hard to find the right staff that can amend roles from formal for dinner to funky for cocktails at the stroke of 10pm. However, those who work at Spasso do not want to work elsewhere in the hotel".
Everyone wishing to come into Spasso is treated equally without discrimination. They are selective in making sure that all guests comply with their dress code. If necessary they do have jackets and trousers for guests arriving unacceptably dressed in singlets and shorts.
The bands rotate every three months and most are from a pool that is playing in Southeast Asia. They have been here before and know what music the crowd like; the first set is more lounge style music for a smooth transition as some dinner guests are still finishing their meal.
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