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02 E G Y P T H O S P I TA L I T Y

November 2012

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From The Editor A bet on Egypt.. A Sure Winner!

Amidst all the debates about the constitution, employee strikes, electricity

and fuel shortages, and upcoming parliamentary elections, to name just a few, Egypt Hospitality Magazine is born. It does not matter if it is a normal birth or a cesarean section, as the new born magazine is now looking forward to a bright future, for both Egypt and the hospitality sector. For Egypt Hospitality to succeed, we are betting on the success of Egypt as a country, and on its ability to pass through the current bottleneck, so that the hospitality sector can revive its days of glory. I believe this will be a winning bet. Needless to say I was warned by many, that this is not the right time to launch any kind of business in Egypt, let alone a business focusing on the hospitality sector. As my risk appetite is quite high, not only did I decide to embark on the project, but I have also decided that I am going to settle back in my home country, Egypt, after eight years of living abroad.

To many people, being outside their comfort zone, and not doing the things they are accustomed to or following their daily routine, is nerve wrecking, but for me the choice was crystal clear; I strongly believe in the vision behind Egypt Hospitality. Being a food lover and extensive traveler, I have always dreamt of having my own restaurant. I am an investment banker by profession and to pursue my life dream of opening my own restaurant, I decided to pursue an internship at a professional kitchen to get a better understanding of the restaurant business. So I took on a 2-months internship at a kitchen of one of the 5-star hotels. An investment banker during the day, and a chef by night, I began to discover the life of a chef and the secrets of the restaurant business. During my two-months long internship I diced onions, cut potato wedges, cleaned chicken and much more! It was a pretty tough job but I loved it, but being in my thirties; the idea of starting a career as a chef/owner restaurateur did not seem ideal, and it was from here, that the idea of Egypt Hospitality was born. I decided that I would fulfill my love for the food and hospitality business in a different way. Despite the huge hospitality industry in Egypt, there were no specialized magazines targeting the sector. Digging further into the matter, research confirmed that no single publication in the Egyptian market covered the hospitality sector. To me this represented a gap in the market which needed to be filled. Egypt Hospitality, will fill this gap and will be the “must read� publication for hospitality professionals in Egypt where they can get cutting edge news, trends and analysis about their industry. Egypt Hospitality will also provide a solution to hospitality advertisers who did not have a sector specific magazine to place their ads in, as well as advertisers outside of this sector, who want to reach hospitality professionals.

I invite you to enjoy the content of the first issue of Egypt Hospitality. The issue features a variety of interesting topics and interviews with top officials and players in the sector. The special file in this issue is about boutique hotels in Egypt which I believe is going to be extremely interesting to readers.

Welcome to Egypt Hospitality...

Adham El-fayoumi Managing Editor adham@egypthospitality.com 2 E G Y P T H O S P I TA L I T Y

November 2012

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Index

28 10 News Digest

A quick look at the region’s latest news and events in the Hospitality Industry.

22 Industry Trends

Hotel Trends – When luxury becomes responsible. When financial and environmental issues have become a realistic worry, overt luxury is not something to boast about anymore.

28 Career Leaders

An Egyptian Legend in Gulf Hospitality. Meet Hani Kafafi, CEO of Al Houda Hotels & Tourism Co. and CEO of the National Arabic Company – who shared with us the secrets of his success and how he made it to the top. He talks about his career journey in the hospitality industry and how the shift from the hotel business to the restaurant business and then back again to the hotel industry had a positive impact on his career.

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32 32 Business Profile

For the past 35-years MIDO Group has been serving the hospitality sector in Egypt until it became the business partner of choice.

November 2012

36 36 Special File

Introducing a New Concept in Egypt… Luxury Boutique Hotels Treasures revealed in Cairo’s affluent suburb of Heliopolis, Old Cairo, the Western desert: Siwa, Dakhla and Farafra…

Experience a new level of luxury with different styles and themes.

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42 42 From the GM

The Face Behind the Stars: An interview with Simon Stamper, a symbol of success in the Hospitality Industry, with an inside look at the highs and lows of hotel life.

46 In Depth

Food Photography Professional photographer Nader Elhareedi shares a few tricks of the trade about the art of food photography.

50 Around The World

Budapest - A European Treasure: Take a journey to one of the most beautiful European capitals and experience the history of a city that has changed on a political level with time.

54 Discover Egypt Cairo… To Recall A quick visit to the City named “The Conqueror”.

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50 58 Men U Talk

Dining at the Ruen Thai Dusit Thani: A harmonious blend of Thai and Egyptian cultures at the Dusit Thani Lake View Cairo

60 Cuisine Guide

Go Oriental!

All about Lebanese, Egyptian and Turkish food specialties.

62 Restaurant Review

Indira – Holiday Inn City Stars Go Indian… the atmosphere, the aroma of strong spices, the rich design of the place – takes you there.

64 Chef Talk

Inside the Mind of a Culinary Professional: An up close and pesonal interview with Khaled Abdel Ghaffar – Executive Chef at the Kempinski Nile Hotel.

November 2012

66 Food Blog

A Culinary Tour of Egypt from the Pharaohs to the 21st Century.

68 Leisure Corner

A day to remember at the Spa

70 Community Buzz

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74 Calendar

November 2012 – Industry Events

76 Careers

The latest industry vacancies and appointments.

78 Supplier Corner

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80 Ask The Expert

Nagi Morkos Managing Partner at HODEMA Consulting Services talks about the challenges of F&B franchising.

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Contributors

The Hospitality Business Magazine of Egypt Publisher Niche Media (S.A.E.) Senior Technical Consultant Globalstars for Publishing Inji Mounib Founder & Managing Editor Adham El Fayoumi Senior Editor Suzan Bronstein Copy Editor Noha Abdel-Rehiem Ayman Mostapha

Nader Elhareedi: Nader Elhareedi is one of the few Egyptian photographers specialized in hospitality photography. With years of experience and a client list that includes some of the most reputable establishments in Egypt such as Fairmont, Marriott, Holiday Inn, Intercontinental, Sofitel, Staybridge, Concorde, Le Meridian, Mercure, Safir, Solymar, and Iberotel, Nader Elhareedi is considered to be most diversified in terms of the scope of his photography that caters to the hospitality industry both locally and internationally.

Editors Maya Bahaa Nada Abbas Sally Alfy Shahira Sharkas General Coordinator Heba Gamal Creative Director Andre Daniel Graphic Designer Lina Wafik Advertising Salima Shawkat PR & Marketing Yasmine El Shazly Photographer Mohamed Sobhy Circulation Executive Inji Ahmed Printing MEKKA Press Distribution Globalstars International Services

Ayman Sami: Head of Egypt Office Jones Lang LaSalle Head of Egypt office in charge of providing development, consulting, property management, in-depth research, retail leasing, agency, capital markets and valuation services in coordination with the team in Dubai ensuring highest level of expertise.

Jones Lang LaSalle currently operates with P&G, Shell, Barclays, Citi, HSBC, ExxonMobil, GSK, Deutsche Bank and Nestle to provide transaction support and advise on the market conditions.

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Nagi Morkos: Managing Partner Hodema Consulting Services Leading provider of consulting and development services for the hospitality, retail and real estate industries within the MENA and GCC regions serving a diversified clientele of developers, hotels operators, range of F&B projects, real estate ventures, SPA, malls, leisure centers as well as property owners, large investment groups, banks, governmental institutions and catering companies.

November 2012

Cairo Office Niche Media 41, Ibrahim Hindy St., Almaza. Heliopolis Tel: +202 2419 5212 Fax: +202 2419 8141 Mobile: +20122 2163884 Email: info@egypthospitality.com Kuwait Office Address: Behbehani Complex, Jaber Al Mubarak st,Sharq District, Kuwait Tel: +965 97706488 Email: info@egypthospitality.com Egypt Hospitality is a monthly magazine Owned by Niche Media (S.A.E.) and distributed In Egypt, Kuwait and leading international industry events (GIBTM, EIBTM, CIBTM, WTM, ITB-Berlin, Arabian Travel Market) Website: www.egypthospitality.com For General Comments: info@egypthospitality.com For editorial: editor@egypthospitality.com For advertising: sales@egypthospitality.com

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InterContinental Hotels & Resorts Partner with National Geographic and UNESCO for Responsible Business Week 2012

For the third year and in partnership with National Geographic, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts embarked on a week-long programme of activities around the world in order to help protect and preserve unique spots and cultural heritage sites as part of their Responsible Business Week. The theme this year was inspired

by National Geographic’s support of UNESCO’s world heritage and sustainable tourism initiative “People Protecting Places”.

During the Responsible Business Week, InterContinental properties were invited to emulate UNESCO’s mission to protect and preserve unique, natural and cultural heritage sites close to their hotels. This year, marks the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention; who place special focus on the links between world heritage and sustainable development, as well as particular the role played by local communities.

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November 2012

Alex Cruisers Promoting Tourism From Hilton Pyramids Golf Hilton Pyramids Golf welcomed for the second time in a row, the Alex Cruisers who rode all the way from Alexandria to Cairo to settle in the Hilton Pyramids Golf Resort; in a journey to discover Egypt and encourage people, promote tourism and highlighting the importance of the tourism industry. They are a group of bikers who adore Egypt and believe in spreading this message through their hobby. Alex Cruisers gave Ahmed Salama the hotel General Manager a cruisers trophy as a sign of their appreciation for the great hospitality the resort offered the Alex Cruisers.

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Wings Celebrates the Re-Launch of Cairo/Aswan Long Cruise

Awards for Novotel Cairo El Borg and Mercure Ismailia

Novotel Cairo El Borg and Mercure Ismailia received the award of excellence from the Ministry of Tourism in recognition for their remarkable efforts to promote tourism in Egypt.

The award was part of World Tourism Day celebration. Wellmerited, the awards are a reminder of the great service and distinct features of hotels, in the portfolio of Accor Group.

Novotel Cairo Al Borg, which lies in the heart of Cairo, offers a panoramic view over the River Nile and the city of Cairo. The hotel is centrally located within walking distance of the Cairo Tower, the Cairo Opera House and the Egyptian museum as well as being located just 18 km from the Pyramids and the Sphinx. The Hotel offers flawless service and plenty of facilities for relaxing or working. The hotel offers 141 rooms and suites, four meeting rooms, a restaurant, a cafe, a fitness centre, a terrace overlooking the Nile and a swimming pool.

Lights, Camera, Action as Conrad Cairo Plays Starring Role in Leading Film Festival

Conrad Cairo was chosen to host a glamorous reception for the launch of the Luxor Egyptian & European Film Festival. The glittering debut event was attended by H.E. Hisham Zaazou, the Minister of Tourism, and H.E. Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim, the Minister of Antiquities as well as Kevin Brett, the General Manager of Conrad Cairo. The reception also attracted a number of renowned local public figures, celebrities and media representatives who were all impressed with the ambiance and quality of the event

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November 2012

Under the auspices of H.E. Hicham Zaazou, the Minister of Tourism, Wings Tours & Nile Cruises hosted a gala dinner to celebrate the re-launch of the first long cruise out of Cairo, with a group of Japanese guests on board. The party, held on the Jasmin Cruiser, followed the Egyptian government’s decision to resume, once again, the sailing of Nile cruises from Cairo to Aswan after a 15-year suspension.

“Egypt has always been known as a preferred destination for Japanese tourists and we are currently witnessing a demand from Japan in the area of cultural tourism,” says Ahmed El Wassief, President of Wings Holding. “Therefore, I foresee a substantial increase in this product, especially with the resumption of the long Nile cruises from Cairo to Luxor and Aswan,” El Wassief added.

Officials seem positive and optimistic. “The ministry has a comprehensive expansion plan within the Japanese market which will be implemented in the coming period,” H.E. Tourism Minister Hicham Zaazou stated. “Furthermore, the national airline carrier will resume flights between Cairo and Osaka along with flights operating between Cairo and Tokyo,” he added.

“The increase in the number of weekly scheduled flights has been designed to absorb the expected increase in traffic from Japan, following the Japanese government’s decision to reduce the degree of the travel ban on Egypt,” explained Zaazou

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Wyndham Hotel Group Announces First Wyndham Hotel in Bahrain

Wyndham Hotel Group, the world’s largest hotel company, with over 7,170 hotels announced plans for the first Wyndham Grand® property in Bahrain, following the signing of an agreement with Cooperation Investment House SPC, to manage its prestigious landmark building in Manama’s Bahrain Bay. Part of Wyndham Worldwide Corporation (NYSE: WYN), the hotel, upon opening, will join the Wyndham Grand® Collection; an ensemble of distinguished hotels within the upscale Wyndham® Hotels and Resorts brand. Currently under development, the five-star Wyndham Grand Manama is expected to open by the end of next year with more than 260 spacious guest rooms ranging from 46 to 120 sqm. Covering 14 floors of a 50-storey mixed use development, it will also offer 500 sqm of meeting space and a 900 sqm ballroom on the building’s top floor. Complemented by indoor and outdoor infinity swimming pools and separate health clubs for men and women, the development will also include five F&B outlets catering to a variety of tastes.

The Melting Pot Signs 12-unit Franchise Deal for the Middle East

The Melting Pot (US) Restaurants, Inc., the world’s premier fondue restaurant franchise, announced plans to bring its unique fondue dining experience to eight countries in the Middle East, through a 12-unit franchise development agreement, with Hospitality Concepts and Solutions (HCS) over the next eight years, with restaurants expected to open in the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Jordan, Lebanon and Egypt. HCS is actively pursuing sites for its first Melting Pot location, expected to open in 2013 in either Dubai or Beirut. The first Melting Pot location in the Middle East, will be in Riyadh, in early 2013, when the Albabteen United Food Company, LLC and Mira Foods opens the restaurant, as part of a five-unit franchise deal for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia signed in late 2011 with Dr. Mazen Almugbel. In addition to franchise development in the Middle East, The Melting Pot is continuing its international expansion into Canada and Mexico, having opened its second location in Canada in Richmond Hill, Ontario, and its third location in Mexico City this year. With 33 international locations open, signed or committed for development in Canada, Mexico, the Middle East and Asia, the company is also looking to Australia, China, India, Brazil and other provinces in Canada for further expansion opportunities

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November 2012

Emaar Hospitality Group strengthens Africa Expansion with “The Address Masai Mara” in Kenya Emaar Hospitality Group, the hospitality and leisure business of global property developer Emaar Properties PJSC, has further strengthened its global footprint, with an a new management contract to operate one uniquely designed resort near the world-famous Masai Mara in Kenya. To be operated under the flagship five star premium hotel brand of Emaar, The Address Hotels and Resorts, the new resort in Kenya marks the second hotel management contract for the company in Africa.

The Address Hotels and Resorts has already signed management contracts to operate The Address Marassi Golf Resort and Spa, an integral part of the Marassi master-planned community developed by Emaar Misr, the wholly owned subsidiary of Emaar Properties in Egypt. The Kenyan resort near the Masai Mara is developed by The African Dream Collection Ltd. To be named Enkereri Mara by The Address Masai Mara, the resort marks a distinctive new addition to the portfolio of The Address Hotels and Resorts.

Mohamed Alabbar, Chairman, Emaar Properties, said, “The new management agreement of The Address Hotels and Resorts builds on the hub status of Dubai, connecting the fast-growing African markets with the rest of the world. With Emirates Airline linking Dubai to Nairobi and other African markets, Emaar’s newest expansion to Kenya will further strengthen business exchange as well as boosting the tourism sector. Our expansion is a perfect fit to our strategy of exploring growth opportunities in key emerging markets globally.”

The Address Masai Mara is scheduled to open in 2013, with work currently in progress. The hotel will focus on integrating environmentally sustainable features in line with its strategic location near the national park.

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Accor to Add 5,000 Rooms on African Continent

During the Africa Hotel Investment Forum, held in Nairobi, Accor reaffirmed its ambitious expansion plan in Africa, with 5,000 new rooms across 30 hotels to be opened by 2016. Since the opening of its first hotel in the Congo in 1975, Accor has developed its network in Africa to become market leader; with 114 hotels offering over 17,000 rooms in 18 countries.

The Group covers all hospitality segments, from luxury to budget, with its Sofitel, Pullman, MGallery, Novotel, Mercure, Ibis, Ibis budget and Formula 1 brands. In the first quarter of 2012 alone, Accor opened more than 1,000 rooms in 9 hotels on the continent. Openings included an Ibis in Bata, Equatorial Guinea, and 2 hotels, Ibis and Novotel, in Constantine in Algeria; a market where the Accor network is experiencing quick growth. Accor re-entered Tunisia with the opening of an Ibis and a Novotel in Tunis. The Group also consolidated its market leadership in Morocco with the opening of the Sofitel Agadir Thalassa Sea & Spa and the Sofitel Casablanca Tour Blanche, additionally, the Ibis budget brand was also launched in the country. In addition, an Ibis has just opened in Dakar and a second one will soon open in Lagos, Nigeria. The Group recently signed a management contract to take over the Sofitel flagship; the Hotel Ivoire in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. All together, almost 2,000 rooms will have opened through the year. With its dynamic expansion plan, the Group should reach a network of more than 22,000 rooms by 2016. Key markets for the Group expansion include Morocco, Algeria, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, Angola, and Kenya. “Our network in Africa is facing a dynamic expansion, with 5,000 rooms to open in the next few years” declared Jean-Jacques Dessors, the Chief Operating Officer in Africa & Middle East. “Indeed, our strong historic presence along with the economic growth experienced on the continent, offers many opportunities for expansion for all our brands, with a special emphasis on Ibis to meet growing domestic and regional demand”.

Burger King Unveils 3 Holiday Desserts

Following the launch of the bacon sundae earlier this year, looks like the fast food chain’s focus on dessert was only getting started. To celebrate the start of the holiday season, Burger King has unveiled three limitedtime treats: a gingerbread cookie sundae, a gingerbread cookie shake and Cinnabon Minibonrolls.The cookie sundae is made with vanilla ice-cream, gingersnap cookie crumbles and a swirl of gingerbread sauce. Its suggested retail price is $2.49. The cookie shake also contains vanilla ice-cream, along with crumbled gingersnaps and gingerbread syrup.

Both the shake and the Minibons, can be ordered as a single serving or in orders of two and four. Burger King announced a partnership with Cinnabon earlier this year. The gingerbread items are a brand new offering for the chain.

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November 2012

Jumeirah Restaurants’ “The Noodle House (UAE)” Awards Turkey Franchise

Jumeirah Restaurants LLC, the dedicated branded restaurant division within the Jumeirah Group, has announced the signing of a new licensing agreement with current franchise partners the BCF Group to take its flagship brand, The Noodle House, to Turkey. The agreement was signed between Phil Broad, the Managing Director of Jumeirah Restaurants LLC, and Ilke Toklu Onal, spokesperson for the BCF Group. It will see three noodle house restaurants opening across the Turkish metropolis and reinforces Jumeirah Restaurants LLC’s ongoing commitment to establishing the successful United Arab Emirates (UAE) brand, across the international dining scene. Offering exceptional street-style South-East Asian cuisine, the noodle house is known for its healthy and lively fresh food that draws inspiration from energetic cities such as Hong Kong, Shanghai, Bangkok and Jakarta.

Served in a friendly communal setting, the noodle house successfully offers a combination of fine dining and affordable fast food, providing the perfect casual dining experience for guests. Phil Broad, the Managing Director of Jumeirah Restaurants LLC, said: “Extending the brand’s global footprint into Turkey marks an exciting milestone for the noodle house. The brand has seen immense growth since it first launched in the UAE, ten years ago, firmly establishing itself within the GCC and beyond. Our expansion into Istanbul is possible due to our strategic collaboration with our outstanding partners, the BCF Group, with whom we are already working, to bring into Turkey, another Jumeirah Restaurant brand, Urbano. The first Urbano will soon open in Aqua Florya Mall in an affluent neighbourhood of Istanbul. We are delighted to continue to work with BCF to develop and operate our brands in Istanbul.” The noodle house first struck a chord with diners in the UAE in 2002 and the brand’s ambition continues to stretch beyond the region, with a presence in eight countries including Cyprus, Pakistan, and the GCC. In the near future, Jumeirah Restaurants LLC is set to branch further afield, with international franchises in Asia, North Africa and across Europe, including Russia and Morocco, and a further 27 new restaurants in the UK, opening soon.

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REPORT: Sharp increase in “FAO Real Food Price Index” The FAO food price index averaged 216 points in September 2012, up 3 points (1.4%) from August. Following two months of stability, the index rose slightly, mostly based on the strengthening of dairy and meat prices and more contained increases for cereals. Prices of sugar and oils fell. The real food price index rose by 1.4% to its highest point in six months and is now 44.2% higher than it was between 2002 and 2004.

The FAO Cereal Price Index averaged 263 points in September, up 3 points (1.0%) from August, as gains in wheat and rice offset a decline in maize. At this level, the FAO Cereal Price Index is 7% higher than in the corresponding period last year, but still 4% below the peak, of 274 points, registered in April 2008. While shrinking maize export availabilities and high maize prices have been leading cereal markets in recent months, tightening wheat supplies have also become a concern. Nonetheless, international wheat prices fell towards the second half of the month, following the announcement by the Russian Federation that it would not impose restrictions on exports.

The FAO Oils/Fats Price Index averaged 225 points in September, down 1 point (or 0.4%) from August. While prices for soy, rapeseed and sunflower oil remained firm during most of September, palm oil quotations dropped for the second consecutive month reflecting seasonally high production, which, combined with weak demand, has led to a marked rise in stocks. The FAO Meat Price Index averaged 175 points in September, up 4 points (2.1%) from August. The grain-intensive pig and poultry sectors recorded particularly strong gains, increasing by 6 percent and 2.0% respectively. Bovine prices made little headway, while sheep meat values were stable.

The FAO Dairy Price Index averaged 188 points in September, up 12 points (7.0%) from August, representing the sharpest monthly increase since January 2011. All the five dairy products monitored saw prices rise, in particular skim milk powder and casein, both of which surged by 12%. World demand for milk products remains firm, which, combined with increasing feed costs, is underpinning world quotations.

The FAO Sugar Price Index averaged 284 points in September, down 13 points (4.2%) from August, and 95 points (25%) from September last year. The decline in sugar quotations reflects improved sugarcane harvests in Brazil, the world’s largest sugar exporter, and improved crop prospects in some key producing regions including India, China, and Thailand.

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November 2012

Mövenpick Media City, a “Base Camp” to Pharaons Rally.

After the success of last year, ‎Mövenpick Hotel & Casino CairoMedia City was chosen by the ‎organizers to be the “base camp” for the Pharaons International Cross Country Rally 2012. The ‎ hotel is a preferred venue for the internationally recognized rally ‎due to its proximity to the starting point of the race and its spacious car parking used for vehicles’ s‎ervice checks and maintenance. After spending the last week in the desert, the “survivors” of the fifteenth edition of the Pharaons Rally finally reached the Giza Pyramids, to receive their rewards for six days of hard work, with a closing ceremony at the Nile Ballroom, one of the largest meeting rooms in Egypt. The ceremony witnessed an elite gathering of automobile community members including top representatives from the Automobile & Touring Club of Egypt and the Classic and Historic Car Chamber, in addition to ambassadors representing the various participating countries.

Accor Opens First “Ibis Styles” Hotel in Egypt

Located in magnificent Southern Sinai, and just one hour from Sharm El Sheikh International Airport, the Ibis Styles Hotel, is a gateway to the desert, just three kilometres from the town centre, it nestles in a green setting, and overlooks the Red Sea, with the pink mountains of the Sinai Peninsula setting the background for the hotel. Ibis Styles Dahab Lagoon has 139 rooms (80 twin rooms, 56 double rooms and 3 suites) and is surrounded by beautiful gardens which create a relaxing atmosphere. Rooms are divided into Deluxe Sea View; Standard Sea View and Garden View. The Deluxe Sea rooms are designed for families; with a feature child shower, as well as an adult shower and a wash basin which is easily accessible to children. For guest’s comfort, all rooms have individually controlled air conditioning, mini bar, satellite TV channels, safety deposit box, hair dryer, private telephone, internet connection and smoke detectors. The hotel has functional child facilities and offers a variety of oriental and international restaurants, serving dishes from all over the world, with a mixture of different cuisines and Egyptian specialties.

Pizza Rustica (US) Signs Franchise Agreement for the Middle East

Miami Beach based Pizza Rustica, serving fresh, top quality pizza, along with healthy salads and panini sandwiches, has signed an agreement with Kuwait International Franchise Company “KIFCO” to open Pizza Rustica units in the Middle East. “We are very pleased to work with such a fine company as KIFCO and bring the Pizza Rustica experience to the Middle East.” says Pino Piroso founder of Pizza Rustica.

“We are confident our delicious, high quality pizza will be very well received in this new international market.” This is not Pizza Rustica’s first international expansion. In 2008, Rustica opened the first of four outlets in Paris, France and last year opened a unit in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Pizza Rustica looks forward to its growth and global expansion. It was founded in the famous international travel destination of South Beach and has been serving countless customers from all over the world since 1996. Pizza Rustica is best known for serving authentic “pizza a taglia” (by the slice) like those offered on the streets of Rome. Known for its iconic pizza display consisting of large pans of delicious rectangular pizzas with fresh, exceptional toppings and its hip atmosphere. It is this distinctive brand, look and feel of Roman-style gourmet pizza by the slice that Rustica will bring to the Middle East. To meet global demand, Pizza Rustica has plans for additional international expansion in the coming year. Pizza Rustica and KIFCO expect to open the first two units in Kuwait and Bahrain in the upcoming months.

Richard Prince, AriZona Beverages Team Up For Lemon Fizz Concoction

Yes, Richard Prince now has a brand of fizzy beverage, which was described as “lemonade with a slight carbonation” during a phone call with an AriZona representative. While you may know Prince as the guy who took a naked picture of Brooke Shields at only ten years old, you probably didn’t know that he is also a guy with a serious soft spot for soda. According to the AriZona rep, Prince approached the company looking to collaborate on a beverage of his own and eventually discovered his soda soul mate in lemon fizz. The cans of the citrusy refreshment were designed by Prince himself, and the can-art basically serves as a curriculum vitae for Prince. The objets d’art are adorned with representations of his nurse paintings and joke paintings, as well as a larger black-andwhite glam shot of Prince looking like a pissed-off rock star who needs his damn AriZona lemon fizz already! (Also, there is a Playboy bunny skull, which is very classy.)

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Restaurants Use Instagram To Tap Into Food Porn Obsession If you’re on Instagram, then you know there are plenty of people addicted to pulling out their cell phones to take snapshots of the greasy burgers, frothy mochas and picturesque cupcakes they eat while out on the town. Isn’t it about time a restaurant took advantage of all this food porn?

Now Comodo, a Latin American restaurant in New York’s SoHo neighborhood, is, by creating an “Instagram menu.” It works like this: Patrons are asked to snap pictures of their meals and upload them to Instagram, with the hashtag #comodomenu. Thus, a virtual “menu” of pictures is created, and customers are able to easily search the app for a quick glance of the restaurant’s offerings. As of publication, #comodomenu had 50 foodie photos (and a few non-related images as well). Restaurant owner Felipe Donnelly says the “idea of using the hashtag actually felt very organic.” He told the Huffington Post in an interview that two friends of his helped come up with the idea of an Instagram menu after observing how many people pulled our their mobile phones once plates hit the table. “You just see people snapping pictures of whatever they’re eating,” he states. “And with Instagram, the pictures are really good. It’s one thing if people are taking pictures with their cell phones and a terrible camera. But Instagram helps tweak the picture and give it a nice feel.”

Al Houda Hotels & Tourism Company Makes its Franchise Development Debut in the Middle East

Al Houda Hotels & Tourism Company (Al Houda), part of Bukhamseen’s holding group and the parent company of Shabestan, Sakura, Al Noukhaza, Ayam Zaman and Al Noukhaza restaurants announced the launch of franchise development program of the above brands in the Middle East. The program marks Bukhamseen’s second endeavor in franchising arena after its successful development of Ruby Tuesday and Peppes Pizza as its international franchise brands within the Gulf Region.

Al Houda owns and operates more than five hotels and fifty restaurants across the Middle East. Its hotel portfolio consists of Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Rotana, Sofitel and Staybridge brands. Hani Kafafi, CEO of Al Houda, says, “Our home-grown restaurant brands have excellent recognition and appeal among the local market in Kuwait and we are delighted to welcome it to the Middle East with our prime and strategic franchise development program. We look forward to expanding across the region and work in partnership with potential multi-unit developers and entrepreneurs with confident “people culture” , to introduce our popular cuisines among a growing number of customers who appreciate the great quality that our restaurants offer.“ “This marks a major milestone in Al Houda’s franchise development strategy and we are delighted to make available the development opportunity for such successful proven oriental home-grown concepts across the Middle East.” says Mahmoud Mousavi, Al Houda’s Director of Business Development. Together with our franchise partners, we plan to expand Shabestan, Sakura, Al Noukhaza, Ayam Zaman and Al Noukhaza restaurants to a new territory and provide our distinctive signature menu to an entirely new set of guests and their families.”

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November 2012

Coca-Cola to launch ‘Beauty Drinks’ In France

NEW YORK -- The Coca-Cola Co. and Sanofi are partnering to launch a line of “beauty drinks” in France.

The drinks will be positioned under the Oenobiol Beautific brand, but Coca-Cola declined to provide further details.

The Coca-Cola business unit in France said in a statement that the drinks will be sold in a “small scale pilot” limited to a number of pharmacies in the country.

Coca-Cola, the world’s largest beverage maker, declined to comment beyond the statement. But as concerns about sugary drinks grow at home and abroad, the Atlanta-based company has moved to diversify its options. Earlier this year, Coca-Cola in France introduced Sprite with stevia, a natural sweetener that has no calories. The launch followed its introduction of Fanta with stevia in 2010.

Sanofi, a drug maker based in Paris, bought Laboratoire Oenobiol in 2009; the company makes nutritional supplements for skin and hair care.

The partnership to make the drinks was reported earlier Tuesday in the Wall Street Journal.

Citing a presentation of the drinks made to the Sanofi works council, the Journal said the four Oenobiol drinks will be made of mineral water, fruit juice and nutrition additives. The drinks will come with claims that they “help strengthen hair and nails, embellish skin, lose weight and improve vitality,” the paper said.

In 2009, more than two dozen states settled a case with Coca-Cola and Nestle over the green tea drink Enviga, and claims that drink would burn more calories than it contained.

Coca-Cola and Nestle agreed to add disclosures to Enviga and any similarly formulated product to disclaim any weight loss benefits and note that weight loss is only possible through diet and exercise.

The news of the beauty drinks in France comes as CocaCola struggles to grow its sales volume in Europe, with sales volume up just 1 percent in the third quarter

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Hotel Trends:

When luxury becomes responsible Written by: Nagi Morkos Managing Partner Hodema Consulting Services

In a world where financial and environmental issues have become a realistic worry, overt luxury is not something to boast about anymore. The modern consumer is more responsible, critical and demanding. But for those not ready to let go of their high standards, there is now a way to stay chic and become responsible at the same time. The tourism industry saw the opportunity for a new trend: «eco-chic» hotels. But the concept was not that obvious in the first place. The idea of luxury often comes with the assumption that guests paying top dollar are entitled to expect more services and thus consume more than the average customer. And as for the green movement, it revolves mostly around the principle that energy and consumption should be reduced as much as possible. Their positions have then remained at opposite ends of the spectrum until the emergence of the «eco-chic» concept introduced the idea that luxury can become environmentally friendly. Integrity, as much as authenticity, are presented as the core values of luxury, with the ethics behind the concept and the products within it put forward.

A win-win formula The eco-chic hospitality business has its own Tables of the Law. It needs to be financially viable, provide financial benefits to the local community, respect and highlight the culture and

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November 2012

traditions of the area where it has established itself, minimize the negative environmental impacts while trying to contribute positively to the conservation of natural heritage.

Everybody benefits from this trend – the consumer, the environment, the local community, the investor and the hotelier.

This winning scenario is set to grow exponentially over the next decade, especially in the tourism sector, which has considerable influence over the future sustainability and wellbeing of communities all over the world.

A new clientele

The baby boomer generation, which contributed to the

development of branded hotels, represents today the main luxury travelers. But as they are getting older, younger individuals more conscious about sustainability and environment take over and drive changes in the industry.

Recycling and saving energy are the new mantras

For green hotel managers, the new hobby-horses are energy,

waste and water-saving measures. Some resorts limit the use of water with low-flow showerheads and electricity thanks to solar panels and wind generators. Natural ventilation replaces air-conditioning and new systems of ionized water in swimming pools reduce the use of chemicals. Some resorts even installed recycling bins inside the rooms. Another initiative is carbon-

offsetting, since spending several hours on the plane is far from being green friendly. The new challenge for many professionals is now to become carbon neutral.

A global trend From Kenya to Bangkok, uber-green hotels emerge every day. Europe insists on eco-friendly architecture and furbishing such as Hi Hotel and Le Morgane in France.

But they have a harder time with energy saving than tropical regions. Africa leads the way in eco-chic travel, becoming the epitome of barefoot luxury. Tour operator professionals sell it well claiming it is more about the luxury of the experience than the experience of the luxury. Asia is the most crowded region, with a large number of eco-chic resorts. The Maldives are the flagship destination, followed by Thailand and Cambodia. On the South American side, Mexico and Brazil lead the way. City hotels were the last to realize the importance of sustainability, with some of the luxury brands only joining the trend in recent months such as the New York Palace of the Dorchester Collection.

Green resorts are being developed in the region, even if it still lags behind the rest of the world. The clientele is mostly composed of Westerners looking for an Arabian experience. The Six Senses Zighy Bay in Oman is a good example on how a luxurious hotel tries to blend in with its natural surroundings. Guests can take an Arabic culinary workshop, go fishing or paragliding. Another project Evason Ma’In Hot Springs, managed by Six Senses, was opened near Madaba in Jordan. Direct competition is Starwood’s brand Element, which can be found in Oman and Abu Dhabi. Dubai has publicly spoken out

for the green trend. In 2008, it launched an eco initiative to encourage hotels to cut their CO2 emissions by 20% by the end of 2011. Outside the city center, Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa promotes traditional life in the desert. Its Bedouin tent settlement offers private suites furnished with regional artwork and antiques.

Egypt jumps on the bandwagon: the Green Star Hotel Label The Adrère Amellal Desert Eco Lodge is also one of the eco-chic pioneers in Egypt. The lodges are made of local karshif (a mix of stone, salt water and clay), the furniture is carved from clay, the natural ventilation uses the winds and an underwater stream feeds the pool. And there is no electricity. The German group Iberotel is also trying to respect the green trend through its 14 branches all over the country. Novotel in Cairo follows the lead as well.

In Egypt, more and more professionals now understand the opportunity of the green trend, both for the environment and their business. In July, the Ministries of Tourism and Environment signed a cooperation protocol with CEDAR Tree Foundation for Eco Labels. And last February a project started in partnership with the «European Neighborhood Policy Initiative» that will help over the next two years 30 hotels in Alexandria and another 25 in Marsa Matrouh to become eligible to receive an eco-label from the European Union, an international set of environmental specifications. It will be overseen by the «Center for Environment and Development for the Arab Region and Europe» in cooperation with the Environment Ministry, the Tourism Ministry and the governorates of Alexandria and Marsa Matrouh.

The project aims at implementing a rationing system for water consumption, while also introducing clean energy sources

such as solar and wind energy as well as the recycling of waste. Holding an ecolabel will be a boost for these hotels and the touristic activity in the area more generally, attracting a new clientele and increasing their competitiveness.

But the most significant move is the Green Star Hotel label, which aims to stimulate the hotel industry towards environmentally sustainable development. The awards scheme is the first of its kind to be designed specifically for hotels in Egypt. A pilot destination was chosen in 2008 to test the concept.

El Gouna, a resort located on the Red Sea, was selected for its traditional architecture and internal recycling and water treatment plants. Today more than 16 of the hotels are holding the Green Star Certification. And new resorts are now on the map, such as Taba, Makadi and Sharm al-Sheikh. The goal is to reduce their water, energy and chemical consumption up to 30%, use renewable energy up to 25%, assure proper waste handling and reduce the waste accumulation up to 20%. To receive the Green Star hotel certification, hotels need to fulfill 10 environmental mandatory key criteria. They can achieve three, four or five star ratings depending on the initiatives put in place. To help them, the Green Star Hotel Initiative provides a Practical Toolkit to support the hotels. It consists of a guidelines manual, graphic marketing and training tools.

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Cairo Hotel Market Overview Demand • The tourism sector suffered a significant decline in 2011 as a result of the Egyptian revolution. The market now shows signs of stabilizing with 8.3 million tourists visiting Egypt in the year to September, a 20% increase over the same period in 2011.

Hotel Supply & Demand

Supply • There were no new hotel rooms introduced into the market in Q3 2012 with the existing supply of quality rooms in Cairo remaining unchanged at 27,000 rooms in 159 properties.

• According to the Egyptian Hotel Association, there are a further 29 hotels offering 7,995 rooms currently under construction in Cairo. This data only includes projects with approved construction licenses.

• The Ministry of Tourism remains optimistic that their target of 12 million visitors during 2012 will be achieved. Initiatives to attract more tourists include the reintroduction of Nile Cruises from Cairo to Luxor (following a break of 15 years), an International Women Tennis Tournament in Sharm El Sheikh and a Pharaohs Rally starting from the Pyramids panoramic site to Abu Minqar.

• The increase in tourist arrivals has continued into August and September with arrivals in August and September have increased by 14% and 11% respectively compared to the same period of 2011.

• The chart below shows the number of nights and number of tourists in the year to August 2012 compared to same period in previous years.

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November 2012

Major Existing & Future Hotels in Greater Cairo

Hotel Performance

• With increased tourist arrivals (up by 20% in the year to September 2012, compared to the same period of 2011), the Cairo hotel market is starting to recover but the performance remains well below the levels seen in 2010 prior to the revolution.

• Occupancy rates have started to recover, and currently stand at 53% (YT August), a significant improvement on the 44% recorded during the same period of 2011.

• Hotels in central Cairo are adopting a number of strategies to increase occupancy levels, including discounting room rates.

Despite improving occupancies, the average daily rates in the year to August 2012 have declined by 4% compared to the same period in 2011, falling from USD 53 to USD 49.

• The decline in ADR’s has tempered the impact of improving occupancies. RevPAR levels have therefore only increased marginally, to USD 26. In the year to August (up from just USD 23 last year).

Hotel Market Summary

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Egypt.. On the way back there needs to be a joint effort between the government and private sectors, further stability in the Sinai Peninsula would also be beneficial. We need to get a better understanding of destinations that compete with Egypt and understand why they have managed to attract more tourists than us. This will come from a deep understanding of the tourists’ needs, habits, attraction requirements and providing the most appropriate landscape to lure in more tourists.

True, a number of new premises are supposed to start operation within the coming year 2013. The trend of increasing stability is evident and more hotels will be required to meet the potential future demand, however, it is also important to understand the type of demand and where it will be coming from in order to have the right product to meet that demand.

Ayman Sami Country Head - Egypt Jones Lang LaSalle Jones Lang Lasalle just released its Q3-2012 report titled “Cairo Real Estate Market Overview” which includes a section on “Cairo Hotel Market”. We sat with Ayman Sami, country head of JLL-Egypt who commented on the report and shared his views on the sector.

The slight increase in tourism in 2012 is mainly due to the recent improved political stability. Going gradually back to normality created a certain confidence in the sector. I see it as improving providing that Egypt is driven towards further stability.

Therefore, I also expect more improvement in the last quarter of the current year, which should be even better than the previous quarter as holiday season approaches.

I tend to share the optimism of the ministry of tourism to achieve the planned figures for 2012. Currently, We are very close to achieving those numbers with September YTD figures exceeding 8 million tourists, so it looks like it is achievable, since we are also expecting a surge in numbers as holiday season approaches. When it comes to promoting the country, I think

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The industry witnessed a decline in the average daily room rates which could impact negatively the whole industry at a later stage.

Decline in room rates is used to attract more tourists. Egypt has been positioned as a cheap holiday destination, especially on and around the Red Sea. The problem with this is that once the positioning is there, it usually takes a long time to reposition a destination or there has to be an alternative marketing strategy to create a destination that will attract different markets, which is not an easy task. The report also mentioned several times the recovery of the tourism business. Historically tourism has been one of the sectors that recovered quickly. It all depends on maintaining stability going forward and if this is the case, I believe there is a good chance that we are on the right track for solid growth.

Last but not least the growth of the new cities on the outskirts of Cairo, is creating new business, retail and residential hubs will eventually need to be catered to by the addition of new hotels for the purpose of convenience as traffic in the downtown areas does not allow for that. The downtown area in any city is always an important component and cannot be ignored. Various Corporates moving out of the downtown area and the future plans for the relocation of the museum may have an impact on the downtown hotels with regards to the types of visitors, however, the history, vibrancy and Nile View will be hard to replicate anywhere else in the near future. The problem with the downtown area was that during demonstrations the proximity of those hotels to the events had a negative impact on the occupancy levels, but as all this subsides the demand should go back to normal.

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Hani Kafafi CEO of Al Houda Hotels and Tourism Co. and CEO of National Arabic Company

An Egyptian Legend in Gulf Hospitality 28 E G Y P T H O S P I TA L I T Y

November 2012

As a legendary name in the hospitality business in the Arabian Gulf region and Kuwait in particular, we sat down with Mr. Hani Kafafi the CEO of Al Houda Hotels and Tourism Co. and CEO of National Arabic Company for Restaurant Management who shared with us the secrets of his success in the hospitality business and how he made it to the top What made you decide to start a career in hospitality?

I was looking for a summer internship whilst studying at university and got an opportunity to intern at the Nile Hilton. At the time, the Nile Hilton was considered one of the best hotels in the city. I loved the internship, and in fact I continued to intern at the hotel, for three consecutive summers. When I finished my studies I entered Hilton’s management training program and after two years, was assigned my first position with the Hilton; working as part of the opening team, for the Al-Fujairah Hilton. By the time I finished college I had already made up my mind that the hotel industry was definitely the sector I wanted to work in.

After the successful opening of the Hilton hotel in Fujairah, I returned to Egypt and joined the Holiday Inn, helping to launch their Pyramids and Sphinx hotel, in 1979. Originally, I worked in the finance division, but felt l couldn’t really get my hands dirty working there. I wanted to get to the driving seat so I moved up the ladder until I was offered my first general management opportunity at the Holiday Inn Sphinx, in 1985. Later I moved on, holding several management positions in hotels across the Middle East, including in Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait.

Tell us about your current role as the CEO of Al Houda Hotels & Tourism and National Arab Co.?

My work focuses on four major dimensions; asset management, restaurant portfolio management, decision making and business development. I managed the assets of the hotels owned by the group, including, the Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn hotels in Kuwait, our hotels in Cairo, Syria and UAE, the assets of hotel projects under construction, including the extension of Crowne Plaza in Kuwait, in addition to a couple of hotels in Iraq. I am also responsible for the management of the group’s portfolio of restaurants, including the Japanese restaurant

“Sakura”, the seafood restaurant “Al Noukhaza”, the Lebanese restaurant “Ayam Zaman”, the Iranian restaurant “Shabestan” and the “Rib Eye” Steak House.

We are currently developing a platform to franchise these restaurant brands throughout Kuwait and the region. The Bukhamseen Group Holding Company actually owns the National Arabic Company for Restaurant Management (NAC). NAC owns the master franchise agreement for both Ruby Tuesday and Peppes Pizza. In a nutshell, today, Ruby Tuesday currently has 12 outlets, of which 6 are owned by the group, and 6 (Kuwait, Cairo, Jeddah) are franchised. The plan is to have 25 outlets up and running, within the next 3 years. Finally, one of my responsibilities is the development of a new hotel management company. We are finalizing an agreement with one of the largest hotel companies in the world and once completed, this new company will manage our new hotels in Iraq.

“ I would allow people to make mistakes and would, in fact, encourage them to make more mistakes, because this is the best way to learn “ Why did you move from the restaurant business to the hotel business? How have your experiences in the restaurant business helped you in succeeding in the hotels business?

After working as a General Manager for Holiday Inn hotel in Cairo and holding a number of general management positions in Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait, I decided it was time for a change. I had been working in this field for 20 years, and realized if I continued to work in this position, I could become obsolete.

At the time I was still young and felt that a change in career was appropriate.

I was offered an opportunity with the Americana Group to bring in “TGI Friday’s” to the region and I felt it was a good opportunity to introduce the first casual dining chain to the region. So I took off my suit and tie and joined the casual dining sector and before I knew it, I had become Mr. Friday’s in the Middle East! We opened simultaneously in Dubai, Cairo, Kuwait and Beirut. It was a fabulous opportunity and I soon started to love the restaurant

business. It made me realize, that if I were to start my own private business, it would definitely have to be something related to restaurants and this industry. When I finished setting up TGI Friday’s in the region, I was offered several opportunities and chose to go back to IHG. At this point, I have a different mind-set; I believe there should be a restaurant in every corner of the hotel. I love opening restaurants and I love developing new concepts, I love food and I love watching the people within my team, grow. It makes me feel extremely proud to see my team grow, and watch them being promoted to new positions, with greater responsibilities. For me, I believe I was offered an opportunity to enter the restaurant sector for two reasons. Firstly, I am “a people person” and have great connections with well known figures across the region. These connections are crucial if you are to run a successful restaurant business.

Secondly, is my strong knowledge of numbers and finance. The reality is, that hotel popularity is based in a large part, on the food and restaurants they have to offer. For example, the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Kuwait was transformed, by the introduction of a wide variety of new high quality foods and this had a significant impact on increasing the popularity of the hotel. I have also learned to run high volume restaurants that turn seats 3 to 5 times daily.

Who have you met or worked with, who has left the biggest mark on your career, and why?

There are quite a few people, who positively impacted my life. The first is John Bamsey, my last boss, who was the CEO of IHG group in Middle East and Africa.

John taught me how to look at business from the top, down and how to succeed in climbing the career ladder. John was a great leader and coach. He taught me what it means to be a leader and how to remove yourself from high pressure situations, so that you can successfully manage the business from the top like holding the strings in a Puppet Show and seeing the big picture. The second was Chris Moloney, also one of my bosses at IHG. He taught me a very important lesson, which is, to always choose your battles and not to fight every single battle in your life, because this consumes all of your time and energy. There is no point of losing your energy in a battle you are not ready for. Only fight the battles which you

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think you can win. Lastly, another one of my bosses at IHG was Raymond Khalife.

Raymond was extremely passionate about the business, a passion which he shared with all the people he worked with. He was also a great people’s person, he’d keep good relations with everyone and this is crucial in the hotel business, because it really is a people’s business.

What was the turning point in your career?

The first major turning point in my career was when I was chosen by Holiday Inn to teach the model Management training course, in the 1980s. I was teaching a course for all the management teams in hotels called “Models for Management”, I was doing this course 3 times a year for all the Holiday Inn Hotel’s management teams, in the Middle East. This was a big learning experience for me, as I dealt with very senior persons in the business.

I continued the teaching interest within IHG and I was a Career Development Assessor for the General Managers Community. The second turning point in my career, came, when I decided to leave the hotel business and venture into the restaurant business. The transition was an eye-opener, it was a great experience and I met a lot of great people in this industry.

Being successful was just an added bonus!

The third was when I decided to return to the hotels business. With the experience and knowledge I had gained from my time in the restaurant business, I think I was able to offer great added value to both the hotel sector and the restaurants that they hosted. The last turning point to date, took place last year, when I had my first grand-daughter “ Jude ”she means the world to me.

“ I am inspired by giving people opportunities to excel and to reach greatness in their life “ Who do you consider to be a legend in the global hospitality sector and why?

Kemmons Wilson is the founder of the Holiday Inn hotels. He was travelling and got disappointed with the quality of hotels that he stayed in, so he then decided to build a hotel, and in early 1950, created the Holiday Inn brand. In a span of 20 years, he was able to establish more than 1,000 hotels. Also, Sandy Beall is the Founder, Chairman & CEO of Ruby Tuesday, Inc. .He created the brand in

the 1970s and today has more than 900 units. He’s one of the people I admire most, because he has so much passion.

I remember the time when Sandy would walk into a restaurant, fold his sleeves and teach the team how to make a great burger. Sandy also loves to help people and this help is always genuine and comes from the heart.

What’s your advice to a professional who is in senior management in the hotel industry? How can they advance to the position of hotel GM? You know the hotels business is not an easy one; it is a business where you spend a lot of long hours working. You can finish your day at 7:00pm, but then you have an event, a dinner or a conference, so you need to commit to spending more long hours at the hotel. You also need to love the business, otherwise you will not make it. I personally, have a number of criteria, based on which I select a hotel GM. First he has to be a people’s person.

A hotel is like a big ship and you might have more than a 1,000 people working under you, so you really do have to know people. Secondly, you need to know your numbers well; you need to be able to forecast and plan properly. Thirdly, you need to have drive, this is the only way you will achieve successful results.

Fourthly, you need to have a business vision and the ability to turn this vision into action, and finally, you need to know the business well and know the market and your competition, too.

Having worked in the Arabian Gulf for a long time, are the success factors different from those in Egypt? Do you consider international and/or regional experience a must for a hotelier?

One of the success factors of the hotel business is knowledge of different markets. A hotelier cannot constrain himself to one market. You will be handicapped. You need to move from one country to another. You need to prove that you’re adaptable and can pack your bag and go to another country and succeed there, too. This adaptation will be great fun as you will develop a lot of new relationships; your family will be exposed to different environment and situations.

For example if you are a hotelier in Egypt, you need to have experience in Egypt and Saudi or Egypt and Dubai and so on.

What inspires you in your job?

I am inspired by possibilities; the

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possibility of helping you to have a successful magazine, the possibility of helping my colleagues to have successful lives, the possibility of helping my son to be successful in his life. I am inspired by giving advice; coaching, and helping people to grow. I am inspired by being able to give people opportunities to excel and achieve the best they can, in their greatness in life. I would be very proud to see the people working with me, become better than me. In my team today there are around 10 hotel GMs, who used to be Department Heads and I feel that I was instrumental in helping them to move in the right direction.

How do you inspire your team?

I offer my team a lot of opportunities. I am known for giving a people a lot of room to do their own thing and I allow people to make mistakes and in fact encourage them to make mistakes. I would bring in examples of people who have made big mistakes and actually became successful. I would encourage them and coach them what to do next time, to learn from their mistake. I inspire people by guiding them in what they need to do to grow in their career, I would listen to them to understand and try to make them buy into the next step of their life, giving them space and freedom, then coaching is my way to inspire people to excel.

What is the most rewarding thing in a hospitality career?

I think for a hotelier, a pre-opening experience means the world.

When you go to a hotel that is under construction and hire people and train them and then head to the hotel’s opening day and then stay on for one year afterwards; there‘s a great sense of achievement and I don’t think there is anything like it. Your name will be synonymous with that particular hotel and nobody will forget that you were the GM of the hotel at the pre-opening stage. If you’re lucky, your name will be engraved in the hotel!

You create a legacy for yourself and that feels great.

Now that you have made it to the top, what is your next challenge?

Well this will be my last challenge but I would like to create a lasting legacy for myself in this industry. I have successfully created and established all the restaurant brands in the Crowne Plaza in Kuwait and I believe I will have created a legacy for myself if I am able to franchise these brands. My next move is to leave the organization with the full infrastructure; legal, operational, training, manuals, etc. and try to see the opening of those restaurants outside Kuwait.

My next challenge is to create the hotel management company that I mentioned earlier. We are using our business model and will leverage off this successful model, to create our own franchise management model.

Tell us in a nutshell what is your advice to professionals in the hospitality sector who want to advance in their careers?

The hotels business is very different today, than it was in my time. Approaches to business are different now. We used to invent the wheel and do our own restaurants, but now you have franchise brands with track records of success. The whole process of managing guest satisfaction is all online now, so social media is vital for the whole industry and technology is taking the industry by storm. I advise them to be on top of their business. I advise them to invest heavily in this area, to get maximum exposure. I advise them to know their people, their

clients, their numbers and to love the business. I would advise them not to say no to an opportunity; people who excel in the business are those who are hungry for success.

Share with us your group’s future expansion plans? And is Egypt on your radar?

The Group’s expansion plan in hospitality includes Kuwait and Iraq; we have a number of hotels under construction. We will go to Iraq and manage our hotels there. We will continue our plans to have a luxury hotel in downtown Kuwait. We have three locations for Ruby Tuesday in Egypt and our plan is to double this number by 2014.

What is your favourite vacation destination? Being a hotelier yourself, what do you look for in a hotel/ resort when you travel?

I love swimming so I am actually a beach holiday person. My favorite beach holiday destination in Egypt is Sidi Abdel Rahman where I have been going, since the mid-seventies. Another beach resort I adore is Cannes which mixes quality shopping with a beach holiday. The Maldives is also another favourite spot for me, as well as Las Vegas, which is such a creative and artistic city and where I have been with my family several times. I prefer to stay in branded hotels because there is always a minimum expected standard. My basic requirements for any hotel I stay at, is that it should have a comfortable bed, a nice shower, a nice large screen, TV and uninterrupted free internet. This is the ABC and a minimum standard that I would not compromise on.

In addition to all of this, I like hotels where people are willing to go the extra mile to help; where the people serve from the heart. This is the essence of hospitality. I expect in a hotel to see perfection, people with smiles and people who want to help and truly make you feel it.

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Mohamed Fakhry Business Development & Marketing DirectorMido Group

Business Partners of Choice 32 E G Y P T H O S P I TA L I T Y

November 2012

For the past 35-years MIDO Group has been supplying the hospitality sector in Egypt with premium international brands such as Evian, illy, Haagen Dazs and many more; the group established itself as a partner of choice for its clients in Egypt. Mohamed Fakhry, MIDO’s Business Development and Marketing Director shares with us the group’s success story.

Tell us about the early days of MIDO Group and how you started your business?

MIDO was founded in 1977 by Mr. Fakhry Abdel Wahab and Mr. Sherif Hussien. They are real self-made men; they started as traders; buying products from importers and distributing them to supermarkets. In 1982 they started to import their own products and they also started to approach hotels and to fulfill their growing need for imported food and beverage items ranging from groceries to Veal and US Beef. MIDO was the first company in Egypt to import US BEEF and many other items that are standard now in almost all hotels.

What are the key business lines of MIDO Group?

MIDO now operates through different divisions: food, pastry, bakery, beverage, equipment and University of Coffee –UDC. Each division has a range of products which compliment each other so we can create a full synergy with our services to any hotel, restaurant or café or even in the retail market.

How did MIDO Group evolve from the 1970s to the 2012? How did you innovate the business?

The evolution of MIDO over the last 35 years is very interesting as it sensed the market changes and took fast and flexible decisions to meet the market needs without going off track from our core business. For example, from 1984 till 1988 there were a lot of openings of new hotels and almost all of them demanded high quality smoked salmon. MIDO saw the opportunity and went into a joint venture with a British company in 1985 to produce smoked salmon in Egypt and this was a bold move to import such a sensitive product, Fresh Salmon, and to produce it in Egypt using Egyptian labor and then finally to get accepted by foreign Chefs was a challenge. But we did it and the MIDO brand name became very famous and I can comfortably say that MIDO was

the main reason behind developing this category in Egypt. Another example was in 1990 when MIDO saw an opportunity in Sharm El Sheikh, when there were only two hotels in this area, the company decided to build a fully operational branch with dry and frozen stores to serve the future of this area and it paid off. Now MIDO is the only company in Egypt that distributes F&B products with those kinds of stores and services in Sharm El Sheikh.

What are MIDO’s key target market sectors?

MIDO serves a wide sector; Hospitality with all its subdivisions such as hotels, restaurants, café, QSRs, catering companies, airlines in addition to the retail market, modern and traditional as well as non traditional.

What is unique about MIDO’s business model? What sets you apart from your competitors?

Passion! We believe in our dreams and we enjoy importing a new brand and developing it in the market until it becomes a market leader. We have done it with illy café, Evian, Haagen-Dazs, smoked salmon and many other brands.

And of course our strategy of a wide variety of brands and services; we do not consider ourselves as suppliers we are business partners to all our clients. We develop them as much as they develop us. We offer them a full set of brands and after sales services that strengthen our ties with all our clients.

Tell us about the smoked salmon factory?

Why did you decide to build a factory for salmon in particular?

As mentioned earlier we saw a market need in the mid 80s of high quality smoked salmon for the food service

channel. We partnered with a British company and we offered the market a very high quality of smoked salmon that until this day MIDO’s smoked salmon is considered to be the most premium.

As a matter of fact MIDO has received a certificate from Marriott International that grants MIDO the Preferred Smoked Salmon brand for their hotels in North Africa and the Middle East. Our Smoked Salmon is now being served in Egypt Air thus being supplied to all Star Alliance airlines which cater from Egypt. We have HACCP and ISO certification hence we are a safe bet for any management.

Tell us about the University of Coffee?

This Coffee University is something very rare to find and we did it because we love the illy brand that made us love the espresso category. The first university was a small one to test the market in 2004 and we found great feedback from everybody. In 2007 we opened our stateof-art University of Coffee that teaches anyone how to make espresso and cappuccino and it is also designed to train professional baristas. The University is licensed from the UDC Italy which means that we are regularly audited from them and we also receive all the courses and new information from very highly appreciated professors from the Italian UDC. The main aim of the UDC is to spread the knowledge of coffee and thus increase the entire category. We are not looking under our feet; we like to enlarge any category that we serve. Almost every famous chain & hotel in Egypt has staff who were trained to prepare espresso in the UDC; On The Run, Cilantro, Beano’s, Marriott Bakery, Four Seasons, Intercontinental Hotels, Starwood Hotels, Accor Hotels…

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What factors do you consider when you select a new international brand and become a distributor for it?

Its reputation, local market need and market size.

How do you know if a product will be a success or failure in the Egyptian market?

You never know! Egypt is very funny. All you need to do is to create a well-built market study and to try to close all the gaps as much as possible. But sometimes we imported products that we thought will not succeed and it did very well and the other way around.

Tell us about the star of MIDO’s products? Why? Illy, Evian & Haagen-Dazs! When we started with illy in 2000 we took the right approach. We educated the market first for years and we spent a lot of time and effort to enlarge the espresso category in Egypt. Now and despite fierce competition, illy is considered to be the number one espresso brand in Egypt and MIDO won the Best International Distributor in the World in 2009 from illy. Evian had a different story. There was an agent for Evian in Egypt before we started but it seems that they

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didn’t do well. They actually damaged the brand because of the consistent unavailability in the market. When we took over in 2006, we more than doubled the distribution three years in a raw and we created a best practice scenario for EVIAN international.

Haagen-Dazs is a great brand and has a great potential in the Egyptian market and it is a star on the rise.

Among the many products you represent which one is your personal favorite? Which one faced the most challenges when you brought to Egypt?

Evian and BADOIT, because both must be registered at the ministry of health and it took us a long time to register them.

Share with us the success factors of MIDO Group? What does it take to succeed in the distribution business in Egypt?

Commitment! We are committed to our clients, to our suppliers, to the brands equity that we serve and to our employees.

Despite the ups and downs we face in the business journey but because we are committed and we believe in our dreams we don’t give up easily.

What’s your advice to aspiring entrepreneurs in Egypt?

Believe in your dreams. The future has a place only for the people who believe in themselves and their dreams.

What’s the strategy to survive in these tough economic situation in Egypt? How has the slowdown in hospitality sector affected your business?

Always look for the good side of any situation; good or bad. We are looking at this tough time as an opportunity to restructure and strengthen ourselves from inside out. We are trying to be very flexible with the market. We will slim down if it requires, because we know that we can grow faster than the market when it picks up. There is no issue at all to take a couple of steps backward to prepare your-self for a run. The slowdown in Hospitality segment affected everybody in Egypt directly or indirectly. But the Segment that supported us a lot during the last couple of years is the retail market. Egypt has a big retail market and it will grow but the point is that you need to create an extra disposable income for the households to be able to spend more and really feel the size of the Egyptian market.

implementing a strong ERP system. We are trying to move to the corporate level with all its regulations. Off course the time line of implementation fluctuates with the fluctuations of the country’s economy, but we know where we want to be.

Share with us your future plans for MIDO Group?

We have big plans, some are intended to take place in the short term and other are long term. Now we are concentrating on the internal structure of the company and we are completing our corporate governance implementations. We believe that to build a skyscraper one must invest in the foundations. We are also planning to move to our new headquarters in El Obour Industrial zone where our dry and frozen stores as well as our smoked salmon facility are located. Building a 3,000 tons frozen store capacity is currently under serious study. This was a project on hold for quite some time but now it is under serious study.

We have a lot of plans, but we must prioritize first..

Do you consider MIDO Group to be a one-man show or a corporate business?

Used to be, but now no! It’s been more than two years now that the company has a strong board of directors. We implemented the corporate governance rules and regulations. We are

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Introducing a New Concept in Egypt‌ Luxury Boutique Hotels 36 E G Y P T H O S P I TA L I T Y

November 2012

Abdul Baaghil Managing Director & Co-founder of Original Birth Ltd. The Gabriel…

Boutique Hotels began appearing in the 1980s in major cities like London, New York and San Francisco. Typically boutique hotels are furnished in a themed, stylish manner and are often individual; focused on offering their services in a comfortable, intimate, and welcoming setting. They are therefore extremely unlikely to be found amongst the homogeneity of a large hotel - each one offers an experience and taste that is uniquely part of its identity.

The Gabriel, one of the first of its kind in Egypt, is located in one of the affluent suburbs of Cairo; Heliopolis. “The idea came to life on the hands of four visionaries; the owners Dino and Nuaman Sufraki and the company that specializes in the management of luxury boutique hotels and urban restaurants – Original Birth Ltd. – owned by Farouk Tatanaki and myself.” explains Abdul Baaghil. “We are targeting guests looking for “an experience”people who will become emotionally attached to The Gabriel, and therefore will return to the hotel frequently. That is what makes a boutique hotel in fact…” continues Baaghil. “We chose Egypt as it is a country we all love, and believe that it has amazing potential – I am very optimistic that Cairo is soon to become one of the prime destinations to feature intimate lifestyle hotels.”

The contemporary design of the establishment was the result of the ingenuity of Nuaman Soufraki, who transports you to a

grandeur setting, in calming subdued colors in velvet, bold wood inserts and classical chandeliers that are all inspired from the timeless classic era.

Three-storey buildings with twenty-five luxury guestrooms cater to your every need, with a personalised butler service that will make you feel right at home. As for the facilities, The Gabriel also welcomes you to experience fine dining at the restaurant – Salt; a delectable choice of Mediterranean with a hint of Asian in it, run by a celebrated chef. The swimming pool with an adjacent lounge is carefully located on the rooftop, to maintain privacy, and to offer a spellbinding view.

Bringing this concept of hotels to Egypt is a breath of fresh air in the industry, but nevertheless remains quite a challenge. “When we started our hiring process, we were looking for attitude and spirit more than technical skills. Our team was then trained on the hands of the best in the business, to fully grasp the concept of a boutique hotel, and understand the difference of what we offer versus traditional accommodations with worldwide chains.” Explains Baaghil, “We offer an atmosphere and not a location where you will experience an exceptional level of service that is designed to pamper you to the extent you will feel right at home.”

Welcome to The Gabriel… And Timeless Classics.

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SIWA… An Oasis with a History Siwa, located 70km east of the Libyan border on the edge of the Qattara Depression is famous for being the home of the great Oracle of Amun, whom Alexander the Great consulted before continuing his conquest of Persia – Siwa stands today much as it always has, boasting glorious rock formations, lush groves and amazing salt lakes throughout the oasis. A unique natural environment with exceptional geological features provides the setting for one of the oldest oases in time. The people of Siwa, are descendants of the Berbers also known as the Amazigh, one of the many tribes of Africa – who have their own traditions, form of dress, silver jewellery, tools and language. Due to their relative isolation, the Siwan community has been able to maintain their own identity and traditions. Even though they are able to speak Arabic, they have also maintained their own language – Siwi – in its spoken form.

A dominating site to visit in Siwa is the magnificent ruins of the Shali Fortress - dating back to 1203. The fortress was built to protect the local community from the raiding Bedouin tribes. In 1926, unusually heavy rains destroyed most of the edifice, and the remains today stand as a testimony to Siwan ingenuity and offer visitors a spectacular view of the old city.

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Shali Lodge… A True Oasis Experience.

Shali Lodge – also known as “Kunooz” by the Siwans, is a charming boutique hotel located in the middle of an olive and palm grove. Established in 1999, by the local craftsmen and builders it was part of an initiative to revialize the fading traditions of Siwan architecture and building.

The twenty rooms sport different styles and are of different sizes; all built using traditional Siwan methods. Eight of the rooms are in the main building with the restaurant on the roof, and the other twelve, are in the new extension built with its own lounge corner and garden area.

Shali Lodge is the destination for travellers of choice, for those who regardless of cost want to spend time in the center of activity.

Albabenshal Heritage Lodge… A Journey Back in Time.

A fourteen room lodge operating since 2006, located on the edge of the historic 13th century Shali fortress – is in itself a piece of history.

Located in downtown Siwa, the establishment was created out of the once inhabited houses that were destroyed by the migration of the Siwans and the unusual heavy rains. Restoration was done using the same ancient technique using kershef, a mixture of saltrock and mud; remodelled after the original structures that once filled the fortress.

Photographed by: Nina Wessel

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Badawiya Group… A Local Taste of Desert Life in the Western Desert Oases Badawiya Group owns two boutique hotels; one in the oasis of Farafra and another in the oasis of Dakhla in addition to Badawiya Expedition Travel. A family business owned and run by Awlad Ali – Ali’s sons – the group is dedicated to an exceptional level of service to its travellers, offering authentic destinations while maintatining tradition with modern amenities for your comfort.

The concept was born as a result of an apparent need for the tourists passing through from the neighboring oasis of Bahariya, in addition to the desert campers when they returned from their tours, as they were in need of a place to clean up and rest, before they continued their tour of the area.

“Atef, the oldest in our family is based in Dakhla and runs the Badawiya Dakhla Hotel. Hamdi (who used to be a teacher in Farafra) was always very active… When not running the Badawiya in Farafra or supervising the desert trips, he is most likely to be found under the jeeps, fixing the cars... Personally, I took a different angle; I spent time in Europe studying music in Austria and Germany. Soon, I realised that the family business was where I should be – music became a hobby and I started an organic farm on the oases in addition to the establishment of Badawiya Expedtion Travel. “ Explains Saad Ali, one of the brothers running the business. “Dealing with tourists, especially the guests at our boutique hotels required us to train our staff to understand the philosophy behind it, ” continues Ali, “ we provide them with attention and care they can only find in small establishments like ours.” The brothers took this training a step further; “We established Al Hayah – an independant NGO in July 2004 to teach all the sons of the oases working in Tourism, how to deal with tourists, how to be attentive to their needs and so on... Starting from the drivers of the Bedouin Tours until the front office staff at the hotels.” concludes Ali. The design of the hotels is very traditional, using mud in the construction and domes for ventilation and provision of wide space – always maintaining the local taste but still keeping in touch with modern day necessities -with television, ACs, and modern toilets….

It has become a popular destination among foreigners, especially those seeking a “far from the city” experience to relax and unwind.

Welcome to a very special experience with Badawiya…

Badawiya Dakhla Hotel A 4-star boutique hotel located in the oasis of Dakhla, established in 2008 – with 50 rooms all sharing a beautiful view.

The swimming pool area boasts a breathtaking view, the best in the hotel in fact – and is sure to be the perfect place to enjoy the sunset…

The food is all-organic, from vegetabels grown in their gardens – cooked in the restaurant; sometimes offering a la carte and a full open buffet at other times. Vegetarians will have a ball here!

Badawiya Farafra Hotel A 3-star boutique hotel located in the oasis of Farafra establshed in 1996. It started out with 12 standard rooms and then expanded the property and built an additional 18 suites in 2002.

The swimming pool is the perfect place to relax after a day on a desert safari, and the restaurant is the place to experience traditional Bedouin food in addition to the rich Egyptian cuisine.

Visit the Badawiya and Experience Tranquility at Its Best.

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November 2012

Le Riad de Charme Located in the heart of Medieval Cairo a mere 5 minutes walk away from the famous souq of Khan El Khalili is a hidden treasure – Le Riad. Another featured boutique hotel in the heart of Cairo, with 17 suites – each uniquely designed – to reflect old Egyptian architecture with domes, arches, warm colors and refined decoration details mixing antique art and silver jewellery.

“We deliberately chose one of the oldest streets in Cairo, El Moez Li Din Allah, in the heart of the old city surrounded with history. At a walking distance is Bab El Nasr, Prince Bashtak’s Castle, Ahmed Ibn Touloun’s Mosque to name a few…” recalls Nihal Maghraby, General Manager of Le Riad. “It took us two years to finish and the main challenge we faced was having such an expensive hotel located in a relatively poor area.”

The Arabian design and Arabesque inlaid work are pieces of art, that complement the different styles of interior design throughout the hotel from all over the region - Syrian, Bedouin, Pharaonic and modern Arabian. The suites are dedicated to famous artists, writers and kings like: Albert Cossery, Golo, Naguib Mahfouz, King Farouk and Um Kulthoum.

“The concept of boutique hotels is very well known abroad, with the owners being foreigners themselves; a Syrian-French man and French lady, they felt confident that Le Riad would become a destination of choice. Most of our guests are foreigners, and the Egyptians that do come to us enjoy our lounge on the roof,” continues Maghraby.

The suites are offered on a Bed & Breakfast basis – breakfast is a Continental breakfast; and they also serve thee types of snacks, in addition to recommending several restaurants in Khan El Khalili. Each suite is offered with a private salon, dressing room, desk corner and large marble bathroom decorated to take you back in time…

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Simon Stamper

Area General Manager Intercontinental Hotels Group

The Face behind the Stars: Creating Hotel Success 42 E G Y P T H O S P I TA L I T Y

November 2012

This issue, we sat down with hospitality expert and Area General Manager for the InterContinental Citystars, Simon Stamper, to get the inside scoop on running an outstanding hotel establishment. He provides an inside look at the highs and lows of hotel life and shares his tips on making it in the hotel business, as well as his insights on the future of the hospitality industry.

maintain our business on the same scale.

What helped us, was the special character of the complex. Being at the heart of Heliopolis far away from down town and being close to the mall enabled us to keep our business going. Additionally, the different styles of the three premises gave us an advantage, as we were able to cater to the needs of a diverse and specific customer base.

Can you elaborate on the portfolio of hotels you are responsible for?

As the Area General Manager of InterContinental Cairo Citystars, Holiday Inn Cairo Citystars and Staybridge Suites Cairo Citystars, I have been lucky enough to work with the InterContinental chain for over 10 years now, and first joined the group in 1990 when I was appointed as the Assistant Food & Beverages Manager in InterContinental Abu Dhabi. I first came to Egypt in 1995, when I spent three years working in the hotel business here before moving back to Europe to work for the Athenaeum InterContinental in Athens and later, back to my hometown, England, where I worked at the Holiday Inn London, Heathrow M4J4.

“ Normality is returning slowly to the country.

Egypt is a place for every one with many different ways to promote “

How would you describe business since the Jan 25th, 2011 revolution? Did the InterContinental consider downsizing its operations in Egypt during this period?

To be honest despite talk that the tourism and hospitality sectors are failing, I have seen substantial progress in the hotel industry. I think it’s great to be able to say that there has been progress since the revolution, since the first couple of year fter any substantial political change, are always difficult. After the presidential elections, there was a certain amount of stability and it’s been really good to be able to see things slowly return to normality. When I came to Egypt last September, the main problem seemed to be the amount of uncertainty everyone felt about almost everything. Things were moving quite quickly, making it hard to predict, plan, or even just organize things, but the situation seems to have calmed down now. It is true that we have faced hard times over the last two years, just as everyone in the sector did, and perhaps we felt it even more, because of the style and size of the complex and because we had three struggling brands rather than just one, to think of. However, although we had less business, we didn’t consider downsizing, and struggled very hard to

Do you see hidden internal competition between the InterContinental Citystars brands? Are Holiday Inn and Staybridge Suites more in competition with one another, or do the two properties complement each other, And how?

Absolutely, and I think that the company encourages competitive spirit, but honestly speaking, I think the three brands really complement each other, as each property, really caters to a specific type of customer. Our upscale hotel, InterContinental Citystars, attracts business travelers in general, offering Resident Suites designed to provide comfort and luxury for extended stay, whilst Holiday Inn Citystars, is a mid-scale five star hotel, which is more suitable for corporate and leisure travelers. Staybridge Suites Citystars is also designed to accommodate guests playing on extended stays, but offers fewer services than InterContinental and designed more to create a home like atmosphere for residents. Although Staybridge and InterContinental Residential Suites both targeting guests planning extended stays, the look and feel of each property is very different, because each property caters to a very specific type of customer, within this category. In InterContinental, you have access to a full range of 24 hour a day services, including housekeeping, laundry, room service and a dedicated team operating 24/7, whereas in Staybridge Suites services are more limited. It is more of a house where you are free to shop for your food, do your own thing, and enjoy maximum privacy for a stay that could last anywhere, from a week to a year.

Do you feel there is a lot of competition within your neighborhood and beyond?

We are all in competition and I have to say, there are a lot of very good hotels out there, each with its own competitive edges and management strategy. For me I see the future of Cairo hospitality, being in New Cairo; which is now one of the fastest developing areas of Cairo. That’s in fact one advantage that I personally see, our complex has. Being at Citystars, we are perfectly positioned in a central location that offers easy access to New Cairo as well as downtown. Although Fairmont is one of our major competitors, people are more familiar with the InterContinental, which has been around for a lot longer; first opening in Egypt in 1997. The InterContinental is a big chain that is already well established within the market. With the Citystars complex we have the added benefit of having the mall as part of the complex, which is a big advantage for our clients, who have access to everything they need at the mall.

Has your customer profile changed, and if so, how far have you been able to adapt to this change? What are your target markets, and what share of your business comes from domestic tourism?

In general, any radical changes have a direct impact on all industries. Just like everyone else within the hospitality business, our customers are no longer the same. The real challenge that we faced post revolution was changing our business profile. Business coming in is no longer the same, creating an immediate need for a quick response.

Today, we have less international groups and a minimal number of international conventions and conferences compared with the pre-revolution period. However, we are still seeing a lot of visitors from the Middle East coming in. The real challenge lies in finding new opportunities and identifying new markets. Being located at the heart of a crowded residential area, we also look around and focus on our surroundings, as well. If we take all of this in to consideration, we will have an opportunity to open up new business channels. In particular, we have now become savvy social media users, and have achieved a lot of success in reaching out to our customers, through this medium. We have managed to generate more than 90,000 likes for our InterContinental and Holiday Inn Fan

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Pages. After the revolution, we had even more people using the internet in both Egypt and the Middle East, so it was even more important that we offered our fans regular updates on our activities and latest news.

How do you see 2013 for the industry in general, and for your properties in specific? Are you optimistic?

I am optimistic and confident about the future of the industry as a whole, and I’m even more optimistic about our premises.

I believe 2013 will be even better than 2012. With things slowly returning to normal already, we expect the flow of business to start growing again. One thing has not changed. Egypt is a destination that has a lot to offer and we just need to start promoting that again. In Egypt, you have a lot to see and do and package holiday offers that might not even exist in other countries. Business opportunities will never stop, it just depends on the way you see them and the strategies and tactics you use to attract new segments and create new channels. In the end, we have to be positive and look confidently at the world around us. For us, it’s not how much you spend but how you spend it.

Will your hotel be expanding its budget in 2013, and are you having hard time negotiating budgets with headquarters?

Our expansions plans never stopped.

Recently, we launched the “Club Floors” which is comprised of four floors, two of which were renovated last year and another two which were renovated this

year. They include, all in all, 109 rooms and luxurious suites and should be finalized by the end of the year, when they will be ready to welcome new comers, adding yet another unique element to our properties. All the work is in progress, and changes in the country have not changed our strategic plans. Instead any challenges we have faced have driven us to be even more persistent in our desire to succeed. Compared with 2011, this year despite still being difficult, has been much better and I’m pleased with where we are now. When it comes to budgets and financial issues, our management is well aware of the current situation and has fully supported our decisions, because they understand that our plans are designed to ensure we maintain our current business scale and work on increasing it, as well. It is great to be able to work with a team that believes in you,

“ Egypt is a destination that has a lot to offer and we just need to start promoting that again “ and that allows you to operate freely.

Are occupancy rates and revenue per room showing improvements?

Of course, compared with the last year, we have seen great improvements and are now seeing concrete steady growth taking place. As I mentioned earlier, our business profile has changed. Different customers are coming in and more

business should flow with our capability to adapt to the fast changes taking place around us.

What is the revenue mix of your hotel?

Which areas do you see growth coming from?

Due to the character of the complex having 833 rooms and suites in InterContinental, 311 in Holiday Inn and 140 in Staybridge, the room revenue remains the mainstream of our revenue mix. This is followed by banquet revenue and F&B revenue as well, which comes in mainly from the domestic market.

How do you promote Egypt as a destination? In your view, how can Egypt compete with other destinations?

As I previously mentioned, Egypt has a lot to offer and government officials are investing a lot of time and effort in stressing on the competitive advantages and unique treasures, that the country has to offer. For us personally, we have a central sales team that work to promote the complex as a unique business and travel destination. We offer a variety of options that meet the different needs, tastes and requirements of our unique and diverse customer base. Our proximity to the mall gives a great competitive edge over other properties, because of the large variety of shopping, entertainment and leisure activities the mall has to offer.

What is your favorite holiday spot in Egypt, and what in your opinion, is one of Egypt’s hidden gems, that has yet to be discovered?

My two best holidays in Egypt were both on the Nile. This is my second stay in Egypt; the first one was in the mid-1990s when I was working at the Semiramis InterContinental. My first unforgettable holiday in Egypt was a Nile Cruise with Abercrombie & Kent, and funnily enough my second unforgettable holiday was a Nile Cruise as well! For me, the Nile is one of the best gems in Egypt. The Nile tells the great story of Egypt and its history and allows tourists to explore vast areas of Egypt. Really it’s the only venue which can be used to promote the whole country!

The Nile is a unique gift, and going on a cruise along it, is definitely an experience that you will not find elsewhere.

Tell us one thing that your hotel team does not know about you?

If I told you that my whole team would know!

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F ood Photography

Writing and photography by professional photographer Nader Elhareedi. nader@link.net When the Editor asked me to write an article on a specialized topic of interest to the hospitality industry, the first thing that jumped to my mind is what the critic Rosalind Coward wrote, in her 1984 book Female Desire, and I quote: “Cooking food and presenting it beautifully is an act of servitude.

It is a way of expressing affection through a gift... That we should aspire to produce perfectly finished and presented food is a symbol of a willing and enjoyable participation in servicing others.� Reflecting on her words, I decided that food photography would be the perfect topic for this article.

Promoting the hospitality industry mainly, if not solely, depends on print and online media. Hospitality promoters rarely go above-the-line and promote their brands via television commercials, making photography one of the most important promotional tools at the disposal of the hospitality industry.

Photography not only speaks for the client but also creates the image of quality and style that hospitality experts wish to emulate. Food photography might be one of the most intricate challenges that a photographer faces, particularly if it is to be executed successfully. There are many reasons why this line of photography poses a challenge, sometimes it is because the photographer is not properly briefed and sometimes it is because there are too many different parties involved in the shoot itself, but even if these two issues do not occur, food photography is probably one of the most technically difficult types of photography out there. In my article I hope to share my insights on what I believe makes for a successful food photography shoots, in the hope that some of these tips will help hotel executives who are typically responsible for this type of photography. Food photography is a still life specialization of commercial photography, aimed at producing attractive

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photographs of food for use in advertisements, packaging, menus or cookbooks. Professional food photography is a collaborative effort, usually involving an Art Director, a Photographer, a Food Stylist, a Prop Stylist and their assistants.

Preparing for the shoot If you want to have a good shoot, giving a proper and through brief before the shoot starts is essential. The brief should not constrain the creativity of the photographer but at the same time should clearly set the boundaries of the images you envision. A written brief should be given to the photographer with the number of platters to be shot, the variants required for each platter and most importantly where the shots will be used. Shooting food for a room service menu is completely different from shooting food for an image building or advertising campaign, and the photos must reflect this. As the executive responsible for the shoot, you should always make sure to check out your photographer’s previous work in food photography. True, I have known clients in the gourmet restaurant business who contracted photographers based on their indisputable reputation as fast food photographers, and the results were very disappointing, simply because this is a completely

different style of photography. If you don’t want to have to redo your shoot, make sure you do your homework ahead of time!

Another important point to consider is the lighting. Whether the whole photo shoot uses high-key (on the brighter side) or low-key (on the darker side) lighting is something you should make sure to clearly communicate to the photographer. What’s worth noting here is that post production is just as important as preparation, so I advise clients to look at the work of their photographer before and after editing to make sure that they are getting the editing style they desire.

Changing trend One of the main things that the clients need to have a good idea about before preparing the shoot brief is the changing trends in food photography. For a long time, food photographs tended to be shot and composed the way people were used to encountering their food; laid out on a table and shot from an overhead perspective, basically photos were taken from the perspective of the eater. Accordingly, stylists arranged food to appear good from above, with the items placed flat on the plate and clearly separated from each other.Later, romantic lighting, shallower angles and more props came en vogue.

Most recently, the prevailing trend in Western commercial food photography is to present the food as simply, cleanly and naturally as possible and a minimal number of props. In this style a variety of shooting effects may be used, such as selective focus, tilted plates, and extreme close-ups. This complements trends in professional cooking to make the food more visually interesting. For instance, the height of dishes tends to increase and their elements are often layered, which lends itself well to narrow-angled shots. Keeping up with the changing trends of food photography and asking the photographer to abide by them will help in creating an up-to-date image, a very important point to take into consideration, as no client wants to be seen outdated.

Food stylist The role of the food stylist is to make the food look attractive in the finished photograph. The main difference between how a home cook or chef presents food and what a stylist does is the time and effort a stylist takes to artfully arrange the food. Stylists are specifically trained; with the visual know how to translate the perception of taste, aroma and appeal of the dish, into a two-dimensional photograph. Food stylists have culinary training; some are professional chefs or have a background in home economics. In addition to knowledge of nutrition and cooking techniques, food stylists must also be resourceful shoppers. As creative professionals, they envision the finished photograph and style the food accordingly. Even though I am against the idea of shooting food without having a food stylist on board, where for budget reasons a food stylist is not an option, the photographer must meet the chef(s) who will be responsible for food presentations during the shoot. It is not enough for the chef to be excellent at his job, he must also be aware of food styling techniques. Chefs are masters of presentation, from the manner in which meats are tied or sewn, to the type of cut used in chopping and slicing meats or vegetables, to the style of mold used in a poured dish. Yet, whilst this makes a great dish to serve guests; this might not be reflected in the photography if the standards of food styling are not there.

Setup The process of food photography begins with the purchase of the food and ingredients. Since only the most visually perfect foodstuffs are acceptable and multiple backup or test items are usually needed, this is a very time-consuming process. The bestlooking of the purchased items is selected and marked as the “hero” item, which will be featured in the photograph. During the setup and for test shoots, it is represented by a cardboard stand-in. The actual photography can take place in a studio under controlled lighting conditions, or under natural light. The light, background and setting are carefully prepared so that the food is presented in the most attractive way possible, without distracting from it. The color and texture of the background is selected to specifically complement the food and assist with its lighting. Styled food is usually marked as inedible and discarded after the shoot, because it may have been handled or treated in ways that make it unsafe for consumption.

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Tips for chefs: Styling techniques In addition to choosing, preparing and composing plated food, food stylists use numerous techniques to make the food appear as attractive as possible. These may include: • Creating steam with cool air nebulizers or a combination of chemicals that give off smoke, creating the appearance of steam.

• Spraying food with water or mixtures of water, corn syrup, and or other liquids to keep food looking fresh.

• Making a mixture of solid shortening, corn syrup, and powdered sugar (essentially a very stiff frosting) that can be scooped to simulate real ice cream.

• Using a variety of browning agents (usually mixtures used to brown gravies or sometimes heat activated liquids used in commercial bakeries) to enhance the color/brownness of cooked meats and poultry.

• Using heavy cream instead of milk in bowls of cereal to prevent flakes from becoming soggy too quickly. The use of white glue is generally discouraged, and is not usually encountered. (As most cereal companies prohibit this practice).

• Blanching green vegetables to bring up their bright color, rather than cooking them completely. Other vegetables and foods may be cooked just to color, so they do not brown or become wrinkled if they must stand under the camera for a while.

• Adding water to beverages so light will filter through better and add sparkle to the drink.

Shooting Cold beverages To create the effect of a thin layer of condensation forming on the outside of glasses containing cold liquid, dulling spray may be applied, with paper or masking tape protecting the non”frosted” areas. More pronounced condensation and dew drops are imitated by spraying the glass with corn syrup or glycerin.

Ice cubes used in shoots are made of acrylic, so they won’t move, melt or float. Fresh-looking bubbles on the surface of drinks are created by applying a mixture of the drink and detergent to the surface with an eyedropper. White glue may be used in lieu of milk, and a mixture of brewed coffee and water instead of tea.

Shooting Salads Salads in food photography are composed with a view to creating appealing textures, shapes and colors. To improve support and aid in composition, salad in a bowl is built around a smaller bowl placed upside down in the outer bowl. Salad greens are kept fresh and crisp by misting them with cold water prior to composition. Salad dressing is not normally used, as it makes the salad slippery and difficult to style, but the appearance of dressing may be created by sprinkling herbs and spices over the wet salad, or mixing them in oil and applying it with a brush.

Fruit salads are particularly challenging to shoot because of the short time the fruit pieces, which are cut immediately prior to final photography, retain their appearance. As only the outer layer of the salad is of interest, the concealed interior of the salad bowl may be filled by mashed potatoes or another mixture.

Thick or heavy dressings don’t photograph well; they are usually thinned and applied with a brush.

Shooting Hamburgers and Sandwiches Hamburger photography is challenging because the buns dent easily, meaning an assembled burger can be quick to lose its visual appeal. When assembling the burger, the ingredients are held in place with toothpicks and the meaty interior of tomato slices is removed, to avoid juice discoloring the ingredients.

The meat patties are superficially cooked, the edges browned with a torch and the meat made to look more appetizing with a colorant. The edges of melted cheese slices may be brushed with household cleaner to make them look freshly melted, for longer.

Condiments such as mayonnaise are applied to the edges with an applicator bottle.Sandwiches are assembled using similar techniques. Wet paper towels are used to prevent the bread from drying out. If a half sandwich is to be photographed, the bread and other components are individually sliced with scissors and then assembled on the plate.

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Budapest

A European Treasure Writing & Photography By: Nader Elhareedi

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November November 2012 2012

The minute I started walking down the streets of Budapest, my

favorite book “The Pillars of the Earth” - written by Ken Follet and later made into an amazing 8-hour movie, came rushing back to me. I immediately felt as if I had been thrown hundreds of years back in time. When the movie producer was looking for a shooting location for the story, that takes place in medieval England, the forests around Budapest were chosen to build the scene for the story, which were mainly a cathedral and a medieval village. I totally understood why; the beauty cobblestone streets, the spotless clean narrow alleys, the perfectly aligned hundredyear old houses, and the architectural magnificence of the renaissance-era Budapest are indescribable. The breathtaking palaces and castles which were once lived in by kings and emperors now make unparalleled tourist visits.

The name “Budapest” is the composition of the city names “Buda” and “Pest”, which united to become a single city in 1873.

One of the first occurrences of the combined name “Buda-Pest” was in 1831 in the book “Világ” (“World” / “Light”), written by Count István Széchenyi.[36] The origins of the words “Buda” and “Pest” are obscure. According to chronicles from the Middle Ages, the name “Buda” comes from the name of its founder, Bleda (Buda), the brother of the Hunnic ruler, Attila. The theory that “Buda” was named after a person is also supported by modern scholars. An alternative explanation suggests that “Buda” derives from the Slavic word “вода, voda” (“water”), a translation of the Latin name “Aquincum”, which was the main Roman settlement in the region.

There are also several theories about the origin of the name “Pest”. One of the theories claims that the word “Pest” comes from the Roman times, and was derived from a fortress “ContraAquincum” in this region, which was referred to as “Pession” by Ptolemaios. According to another theory, “Pest” originates from the Slavic word for cave “пещера, peshtera” or from the word for oven “пещ, pesht”, in reference to a cave where fires burned or to a local limekiln.

The history of Budapest began with Aquincum, originally a Celtic settlement that became the Roman capital of Lower Pannonia. Hungarians arrived in the territory in the 9th century.

Their first settlement was pillaged by the Mongols in 124142. The re-established town became one of the centers of Renaissance humanist culture in the 15th century. Following the Battle of Mohács and nearly 150 years of Ottoman rule, development of the region entered a new age of prosperity

in the 18th and 19th centuries, with Budapest became a global city after the 1873 unification. It also became the second capital of Austria-Hungary, a great power that was dissolved in 1918. After the Treaty of Trianon in 1920, when Hungary lost 72% of its former territory, culturally and economically the country became wholly Budapest dominated. The capital dominates the country in terms of the size of its population, which dwarfs those of Hungary’s other cities. Budapest was the focal point of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, the Hungarian Soviet Republic of 1919, Operation Panzerfaust in 1944, the Battle of Budapest of 1945, and the Revolution of 1956.

Cited as one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, its extensive World Heritage Sites include the banks of the Danube, the Buda Castle Quarter, Andrássy Avenue, Heroes’ Square and the Millennium Underground Railway; the second oldest railway in the world. Other highlights include a total of 80 geothermal springs, the world’s largest thermal water cave system, the world’s second largest synagogue, and the world’s third largest parliament building. The city attracts about 2.7 million tourists a year, making it the 37th most popular city in the world, according to Euromonitor.

Considered a financial hub in Central Europe, the city ranked 3rd (out of 65 cities) on Mastercard’s Emerging Markets Index, as well as ranking amongst the most livable Central/Eastern European city, on EIU’s quality of life index. It is also ranked as “Europe’s 7th most idyllic place to live” by Forbes, and as the 9th most beautiful city in the world by UCityGuides. It is the highest ranked Central/Eastern European city on Innovation Cities’ Top 100 index.

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Main Attractions St. Stephen’s Basilica St. Stephen’s Basilica is a Roman Catholic basilica in Budapest,

Hungary. It is named in honor of Stephen, the first King of Hungary (c 975–1038), whose right hand is housed in the reliquary. It was the sixth largest church building in Hungary before 1920. Today, it is the third largest church building in present-day Hungary.

The Hungarian Parliament Building The Hungarian Parliament Building is the seat of the National

Assembly of Hungary, one of Europe’s oldest legislative buildings, a notable landmark of Hungary and a popular tourist destination in Budapest. Located in the Lajos Kossuth Square, on the bank of the Danube, in Budapest, it is currently the largest building in Hungary.

Seven years after Budapest was united a new representative Parliament Building was established, expressing the sovereignty of the nation. An international competition was held, and Imre Steindl emerged as the victor; the plans of two other competitors were later also realized in the form of the Ethnographical Museum and the Hungarian Ministry of Agriculture, both of which face the Parliament Building.

Construction from the winning plan was started in 1885 and the building was inaugurated on the 1000th anniversary of the country in 1896, and completed in 1904.About one thousand people were involved in the construction of the building, during which 40 million bricks, half a million precious stones and 40 kilograms (88 lb) of gold were used. After World War II, the diet became single-chambered and today the government uses only a small portion of the building. During the communist regime, a red star perched on the top of the dome, but was later removed in 1990. Mátyás Szűrös declared the Hungarian Republic from the balcony facing Lajos Kossuth Square on 23rd October in 1989.

Fisherman’s Bastion The Halászbástya or Fisherman’s Bastion is a terrace in neoGothic and neo-Romanesque style, situated on the Buda bank of the Danube, on the Castle hill in Budapest and surrounded by the Matthias Church. It was designed and built between 1895

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and 1902, based on the plans of Frigyes Schulek. Between 1947 to 1948, the son of Frigyes Schulek, János Schulek, conducted a restoration project on the bastion, after its near destruction during World War II. The Bastion takes its name from the guild of fishermen who were responsible for defending this stretch of the city walls in the Middle Ages. It is a viewing terrace, with many stairs and walking paths, and features seven towers representative of the seven Magyar tribes that settled in the Carpathian Basin in 896.

The towers and terrace offer a breathtaking panoramic view

of Danube, Margaret Island, Pest to the east and the Gellért Hill.

A bronze statue of Stephen I of Hungary mounted on a horse, was erected in 1906 and can be seen located between the Bastion and the Matthias Church. The pedestal was made by Alajos Stróbl, based on the plans of Frigyes Schulek, in Neo-Romanesque style, with episodes illustrating the king’s life.

Buda Castle The first royal residence on the Castle Hill was built

by King Béla IV of Hungary between 1247 and 1265.

It is unclear whether it was situated on the southern tip of the hill or on the northern elevation near the Kammerhof.

After the Battle of Mohács, the medieval Kingdom of Hungary collapsed. The Ottoman Turks occupied the evacuated town on 11 September 1526. Although Buda was ransacked and burned, the Royal Palace was not damaged. Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent carried away all the bronze statues (the Hunyadis, Pallas Athene, and Hercules) with him to Constantinople.

The statues were destroyed there in a rebellion a few years later. The Sultan also took many volumes from the Corvina library.

In 1529 the Ottoman army besieged and occupied Buda again, and the palace was badly damaged. On 29 August 1541 Buda was occupied again by the Ottomans, without any resistance. Buda became part of Ottoman Empire and the seat of the Eyalet of Budin.

Although Turkish travel writers wrote enthusiastically about the beauty of the palace of the Hungarian kings, the new Ottoman government let the palace decay.

It was partially used as barracks, a storage place, and stables, but otherwise, stood empty.

House of Terror One cannot help but feel the trail of communism and

fascism that once ruled this part of the world. I had this dark notion that Hungarians have deliberately kept a trace of what once was a monster for them, never to forget such monstrosity. One of these reminders that was kept was the House of Terror.

The House of Terror, is a museum that contains exhibits related to the fascist and communist dictatorial regimes in 20th century Hungary and is also a memorial to the victims of these regimes, including those detained, interrogated, tortured or killed in the building.

With regard to communism and fascism, the exhibition contains material on the nation’s relationships to Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. It also contains exhibits related to Hungarian organizations such as the fascist Arrow Cross Party and the communist ÁVH (which was similar to the Soviet Union’s KGB secret police). Part of the exhibition takes visitors to the basement, where they can see examples of the cells, used by ÁVH, to break the will of their prisoners.

Critics have also bemoaned the fact that far more space is given to the terror of the communist regime than the fascist one.

When one sets foot into the house of terror, one will undoubtedly get a chill, highlighting the cruel and inhuman acts that once took place here. The house is a multistory building, with the

ground floor filled with pictures of victims of fascism and communism printed in black and white on the inner walls of the building next to a Nazi tank. Other floors display movies, documents, and documentaries about the era in a glorified atmosphere that puts dread in one’s heart.

The most horrific floor of all is undoubtedly the basement floor.

On this floor, visitors are first received by offices with desks, officers’ uniforms, and communication equipment, from the era and then bit by bit the rest starts to unfold. Torture equipment, strapped jackets and cells with pictures of victims that were tortured to death in them, hang on the wall. What leaves one speechless is that one of the cells is so small and tight, that when its door is closed, it can only accommodate one standing person, when facing the door with their back to the wall. The wall had spikes protruding out of it. Picture that!!!

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Writing & Photography By: Nader Elhareedi

CAIRO.. to recall Over the ages, and as far back as four thousand

years, Egypt stood as the land where many civilizations have met. The Pharaohs together with the Greeks, Babylonians and the Romans have left their imprints here. Muslims from the Arabian Peninsula led by Amr ibn al-A’as introduced Islam to Egypt. Khedive Mohammad Ali, with his Albanian family roots, put Egypt on the road to modernity. The cultural mixture in this country is only natural, considering its heritage. Egypt can be likened to an open museum with monuments from different historical periods on display everywhere.

Cairo (‎Al-Qāhira, literally meaning “The Vanquisher” or “The Conqueror”), is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa. With a metropolitan area that is the 16th largest in the world, Cairo is located near the Nile Delta and was first founded in 969 AD. Nicknamed “The City of a Thousand Minarets” for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a regional centre for politics and culture. Founded by the Fatimid dynasty in the 10th century AD, the land composing the present-day city was once the site of national capitals, whose remnants, today remain visible in parts of Old Cairo. Cairo is also associated with Ancient Egypt due to its proximity to the ancient cities of Memphis, Giza and Fustat which are near to the Great Sphinx and the pyramids of Giza.

With a population of 6.76 million spread over 453 square kilometers (175 sq miles), Cairo is by far the largest city in Egypt. With an additional ten million inhabitants just outside the city, Cairo resides at the centre of the largest metropolitan area in Africa and the Arab World as well as the tenth-largest urban area in the world. Cairo also ranks among the fifteen busiest megacities in the world, with over 1,000 million annual passenger rides. The economy of Cairo was ranked first in the Middle East and 43rd globally by Foreign Policy’s 2010 Global Cities.

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Sights and Scenes Tahrir Square Tahrir Square was founded during the mid 19th century, when modern downtown Cairo was established. It was originally named Ismailia Square, after the 19th-century ruler Khedive Ismail, who commissioned the new downtown district’s ‘Paris on the Nile’ design. After the Egyptian Revolution of 1919 the square became widely known as Tahrir (Liberation) Square. Despite being widely known as Tahrir Square, after the 1919 revolution, it was not until the 1952 revolution led by Nasser, that the square was officially renamed. Located in the heart of Cairo, the square has witnessed several major protests over the years the most notable of which, was the 2011 Egyptian Revolution, which led to the resignation of former president Mohamed Hosni Mubarak.

The Egyptian Museum

The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities,

known commonly as the Egyptian Museum, is home to an extensive collection of ancient Egyptian antiquities.

Established by the Egyptian government in 1835, it was originally located in the Ezbekeyah Garden; the museum soon became too small to house all the artifacts and moved to Boulaq, in 1858.

In 1878 the museum suffered irreparable damage caused by a Nile River flood, and the antiquities were relocated to another museum in Giza. It was only in 1902, that the antiquities moved to their final destination in Tahrir Square, the museum these artifacts are currently located in.

Home to some 120,000 items, with a representative amount on display and the remainder in storerooms, the Egyptian Museum offers 107 halls of antiquities dating as far back as the prehistoric era, right through to the Roman period, with the majority of the collection focused on the Pharaonic era. Housing over 5,000 years of Egyptian history, the museum boasts the world’s largest collection of Pharaonic antiquities, and many of King Tutankhamen’s treasures.

Khan el-Khalili

Khan el-Khalili is a major souk (open

market) located in the Islamic district of Cairo. The bazaar district is one of Cairo’s main attractions for both tourists and Egyptians alike.

The souk dates back to 1382, when Emir Djaharks el-Khalili built a large roadside

inn, (khan in Arabic), to help support the city in its recovery after it had suffered heavy financial losses as a result of the Black Death, thus giving today’s market the name, Khan el-Khalili Widely known as the Turkish bazaar during the Ottoman Empire, Khan elKhalili was built on the site of a much older and historically significant Za’afran Tomb, the burial place of the Fatimid Caliphs and founders of the City of Cairo.

Today, in addition to shops, there are several coffeehouses, restaurants, and street food vendors distributed throughout the market. The coffee shops are generally small and quite traditional, serving Arabic coffee and an assortment of oriental drinks. Another historical focal point of Khan Khalili is Al-Hussein Mosque, which was originally built in 1154 AD, although later restored, and considered by Muslims to be one of the holiest mosques in the country. Just a walking distance from the souk, visitors can find Al Azhar University; one of the region’s most respected academic institutions.

Old Cairo

Old Cairo is a part of Cairo that contains

the remnants of those cities which were once the country’s capitals before Cairo, such as Fustat. Encompassing Coptic Cairo, with its many old churches, as well as the ruins of Roman fortifications, Old Cairo is a haven for modern tourists, who visit locations such as the Coptic Museum, the Babylon Fortress, the Hanging Church, the Ben Ezra Synagogue and the Mosque of ‘Amr ibn al-’As.

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Some Cultural Scenes Tanoura Cairo offers a rich local culture; bringing together diverse cultural influences which is reflected in the colorful entertainment and nightlife the city has to offer. One of the main tourist attractions is the “Tanoura” show. Held in one of the old palaces in downtown old Cairo, the colorful show offers Egypt’s spin on the famous Turkish Whirling Dervishes. The Egyptian Sufi music sets the rhythm for the Tanoura dancer, who immerses himself in the music, spinning and swirling, to ultimately reach the sought after nirvana that marks the end of the show.

Zaar Zaar refers to malevolent spirits. It is an exorcism ritual which dates back to the 18th century. Originating in central Ethiopia, the ritual involved expelling evil spirits out of a possessed person through group music, chanting, and dancing. A featured musical instrument in the Zār ritual is the tanbura, a six-string lyre, which, like the Zār practice itself, exists in various forms in an area stretching from East Africa to the Arabian Peninsula.

Other instruments include the mangour, a leather belt sewn with many goat hooves, and various percussion instruments.

Mental illness is often attributed to zār possession.

Nowadays, it has become a major attraction for tourists not only to attend a Zaar ritual at Makan, downtown Cairo, but also to be a part of it and get a firsthand experience.

The Cairo Tower A free-standing concrete tower located in the city’s capital, the Cairo Tower stands at 187 m (614 ft), earning it the title of the tallest structure in Egypt and North Africa for the last 50 years. It was the tallest structure in Africa for 10 years, until 1971 when it was surpassed by Hillbrow Tower in South Africa.

Designed by the Egyptian architect Naoum Chebib, its partially open lattice-work design is intended to evoke images of the pharaonic lotus plant, an iconic symbol of Ancient Egypt. The tower is crowned by a circular observation deck and a rotating restaurant with a view over greater Cairo. One rotation takes approximately 70 minutes.

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In Cairo: We Recommend For Leisure Intercontinental City Stars

For Business Fairmont Heliopolis

Part of Egypt’s largest retail and entertainment complex, InterContinental Cairo City Stars gives you direct access to over 640 stores and is ideally located 7min from Cairo International Airport, 10min from Cairo International Conference Centre and 30min from downtown.

Located just a few minutes away from Cairo International Airport, Fairmont enables its guests to easily reach Cairo International Conference Center, the palace of the modern Heliopolis founder, Baron Empain, the Virgin Mary’s Tree, and many more of the legendary suburb of Cairo attractions.

For City Escape Movenpick Pyramids

For Resort hotel Hilton Dreamland

Designed as a village of bungalows, Mövenpick Resort Cairo Pyramids is set in tropical gardens at the Giza plateau, close to the magic of the great Pyramids and the mysterious Sphinx, it is the perfect starting point for excursions of all kinds.

Located in 6th of October City, Hilton Pyramids Golf Resort offers proximity to the Smart Village Business Park whereas you can still go for a round of golf or indulge at the Spa with a massage treatment and enjoy the indoor hydrothermal pools.

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Dining "a la Thai" Style in Dusit Thani When you go there, you will just feel the difference,

such a harmonious blend of Thai and Egyptian culture surrounding the whole place. In fact, Thai cuisine becomes more popular and widely expanded. At the Dusit Thani LakeView Cairo, Ruen Thai, the hotel’s outstanding Thai restaurant also joins the trend and offers an exclusive experience for Thai fans. we went there to explore the place and get more into the Thai culture and cuisine, getting en vogue. The chefs, waitresses and manager are all Far Easterns providing faultless service to complement a memorable cuisine, created by Head Chef Panya Thosaunch. Live cooking stations add to the thrill of creativity that brings culinary excitement bubbling to the surface at the Ruen Thai restaurant.

glide between diners without squeezing between chairs while guests can enjoy private conversation. Dark teak colours contrast with vibrant rich fabrics, while soft golden lighting and tableheight candles enhance a relaxing and intimate atmosphere.

Our talk was full of secrets and it was only when Chef Panya Thosaunch opens up that we got to dig more into the exotic world of Thai food and cuisine. Last, his specialities sound for us exotic and mysterious But they were all sublimely delicious.

Head Chef Panya’s pledge to serve “True Thai cuisine in an elegant environment” is supported by the stylish elegance of the setting. The tables are spaciously arranged, allowing staff to

Many ways to proceed

Known for its variety of cooking methods, Thai food is the most

popular in the Far East as well as the easiest to cook. There are many cooking methods yet all of them are healthy and delicious, we start off by the grilling method. Known for its abundance of natural wood supply essential for setting fire and cooking food, Thai people normally grill meats and fresh seafood and eat them with dips (locally called as “Nam Phrik”) which has sweet-andsour flavors to become tastier. Another popular Thai cooking method is “Yam”, basically a kind of salad. Yet, Thai-style salad is different from the western because the Thai dressing has no fat in its ingredients, unlike mayonnaise and different types of Ranch, high in calories and fats. In cooking a dish of Thai salad, simply add a portion of salty seasoning such as fish sauce of salt, lemon juice, chili, and sometimes, garlic and shallot, and mix them together. Then, you can make several dishes of Thai salad as shrimp salad, pork salad, papaya salad, beef salad and so on depending on your creative ideas. Therefore, some can find a dish of “yam” very delightful while its herb and spice ingredients are good for health as well.

Boiling is another typical way of thai food preparation. Prior to the age of modern cookery, Thai people used clay pots to boil food, cook rice and make variety of soups. The famous “Tom Yam Goong” also originated from boiling technique. Curries also developed in the old days as well. Today, curries are much different because ancient Thais did not use coconut milk in those spicy soups. the Chinese deep-fry noodle and create savory sauces to mix, Thais apply it in many characteristically Thai styles. Thai noodles taste sweet, sour and sometimes spicy.

A distinctive dish is Mee Krob, or crispy noodle. Coconut milk

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was used only in desserts and some dishes. Yet, it is an important ingredient as palm sugar and rice flour, shallots, ginger, lime leaves, lemon grass, roasted peanuts and red phrik khi nu chilies, fish sauce, sugar and fresh chilies.

Eating habits differ from one place to another. In the North, Galangal is popular, Khao Soy (curry noodles), Kaeng Hang Le (pork curry), Sai Ua (spicy pork sausage), Khantoke dinner (a traditional form of meal during which diners sit around a small low table), and steamed glutinous rice. In the Northeast, Thais eat Som Tam (green papaya salad), Lap (spicy minced meat salad), Kai Yang (grilled chicken), and steamed glutinous rice.

In the Center: Kaeng Khiao Wan (green curry), Tom Yum (hot & sour soup), Tom Kha (creamy hot & sour soup), Yum (spicy salad), noodle dishes, and steamed rice. Whereas in the South, they prefer Kaeng Tai Pla (spicy fish maw curry), Kaeng Leuang (yellow curry), Kaeng Mussaman (mild curry), Khao Yam Nam Budu (rice salad), Satay (skewered barbequed meat with spicy peanut sauce), and steamed rice.

Goong Yang Nam Jim Prik Sab “Grilled Jumbo Prawns” Ingredients: 1.

300g Jumbo prawn w/shell size 11/15 2.

20ml Oyster sauce 3.

15ml Soy bean formula1 4.

38 ml Fish sauce {28 ml for dressing} 5.

20g Garlic chopped 6.

10g Coriander root chopped 7.

3g White pepper powder 8.

30ml Corn oil 9.

23g Palm sugar 10.

32ml Lime juice 11.

3g Thai red chili chopped 12.

2g Thai green chili chopped 13.

30g Cucumber julianne 14.

30g Onion jualianne 15.

30g Tomato jualianne 16.

3g Celery Jualianne 17.

3g Red pepper roni jualianne

Outlet (Ruen Thai Restaurant )

Sago Ingredients:30gm Sago 200gm Coconut 50gm White Sugar 10gm Sweet Melon, diced

Bring no. 1 back cut shell and tail on,Marinate with no. 2, 3, 4 ( for 10ml ) and 5 ( for 10ml ).

No. 6,7 bring to grilled with no. 8 to make the dressing, put in a salad bowl put 28ml of no.4 and 20gm of no. 5 and no.9 to 12 then mix all the ingredients well.

Put 30ml of dressing in sauce bowl separate on the side then put 28ml of dessing mixed with no. 13 to 16, then garnish with no. 17

Preparation:Put water in cooking bowl till boiled then add sago to boil till cook well. Remove the saucepan from the heat.

Add the sweet melon and the white sugar to the sago.

Mix well to combine the ingredients

Deep fried wrapped shrimps

Ingredients:1.

300ml Oil Sunflower For deep fry 2.

200g Shrimp medium size 21/25 3.

2g Garlic chopped

4.

5g Coriander chopped ((3g leaves for garnish)) 5.

4ml Soy bean sauce formula1 6.

8ml Oyster Sauce 7.

5ml Fish sauce 8.

2g White pepper powder 9.

1pc Egg yolk 10.

32g Spring Roll Sheets 11.

20g Glass Noodle fried 12.

3g Red pepper roni julianne (for garnish) 13.

30g Sweet chili sauce Preparation:Heat no.1 in deep flying pan to 160c’ Bring no.2 peeled tail on back opened Marinated with no. 3, 4, 5,6,7,8 Place no.10 on a plate then put no.2 On a spring roll sheet and wrap it Finger touch no.9 to stick the end together Then bring it to deep fry until cooked and golden brown Place no.11 on a plate then put shrimps wrapped on the top of that, garnish with no. 4,12 serve with no. 13

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Go Oriental En Vogue Again Each country has its own culture and lifestyle; consequently, it also got its own cuisine. Food is a genuine expression for living, habits and daily routine. Frequent travelers appreciate food and they are more used to different cuisines with preparation styles which differ from a place to another as culture affects the way food is done. When the talk involves oriental cuisine, it is always Lebanese or Egyptian but also Turkish, getting powerfully in.

Egypt has always a lot to say. Traditional Egyptian dishes are mainly Ful Medames (mashed Fava beans), Koshari (mixture of rice, lentils and macaroni), Molokheya and Fetir Meshaltet. Fava bean is also used to make Falafel (known as Tameyya), originating in Egypt and spread around other Middle Eastern countries. Egyptian desserts are not so different from other Eastern Mediterranean ones; Basbousa, a popular dish soaked in a sugar syrup, usually topped with almonds and cut vertically into pieces. Baklava is another sweet dish made from an assortment of nuts, and soaked in a sweet syrup, Kahk, a shortbread biscuit covered with powder sugar is a traditional sweet dish served popular during feast and Katayef, Ramadan’s most popular sweet. Tea is a common practice, mostly black and sweet, usually served without milk in a glass and known as “Koshary Tea” where one steeps black tea in boiled water and leaves it for few minutes. It is mostly sweetened with cane sugar and flavored with fresh mint leaves. Adding milk is also common.

A rich mixture of various products and ingredients coming from

all around Lebanon where olive oil, herbs, spices, fresh fruits and vegetables are widely used, as well as dairy products, cereals, fishes and meat. A full course is waiting for you. Choose to start between the salads and hot and cold appetizers, known as mezza.

Tabboule and Fattouch salads are the most common along with the caviars. Hommos and Moutabal, Sambousseks and the stuffed grape leaves are inevitable there. Sweets are much at your request from pastries as Baklawas ,ma’amoul to the delicious ice cream rich in toppings and flavors.The Lebanese cuisine is extremely rich in flavors and colors and yet offers easy recipes, convenient for diets and combining health and pleasure.

It varies across the country. The cooking of Istanbul, Bursa, Izmir, and rest of the Aegean region inherits many elements of Ottoman Cuisine, with a lighter use of spices, a preference for rice and a special appetite for seafood. Yet, Turkish cuisine is also famous for its kebab, borek, rich in spices. A common Turkish breakfast specialty is called menemen, prepared with tomatoes, green peppers, onion, olive oil and eggs. Turkish tea is always served at breakfast. Ottoman desserts come in three sweets; milked custards, fruit desserts and baklava

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Written by: Maya Bahaa

Osmanly Review I went with a friend of mine to a Turkish restaurant Osmanly; which is inside the Kempensiki Hotel. Within the first few seconds of entering the restaurant, I had made a judgment that this was just like any typical hotel restaurant, based on its interior decor and the music playing. However, once the host had chosen a table for us and I really started to get a chance to look at the place, I was able to start enjoying the restaurant’s unique artwork.

There were a multiple of hand drawn portraits; including the Tanoura Show and one of the Sultan’s Ladies. The soft wall lighting and candle-lit tables created a warm and inviting ambiance which made me feel like we were eating at a very unique restaurant. When the waiter brought us the menu, I started to imagine going back in time, and it was almost as if I was dining with the Ottomans themselves! Inside the menu there was a simple biography on Sultan Mahmut ll; the thirtieth Sultan of the Ottoman Empire; reigning from 1808 until his death in 1839.After going through the menu, the waiter brought a very large brass carafe with jasmine water, for us to wash our hands with, as tradition, just as Sultan Mahmut ll did before eating, centuries ago.We were then offered complementary Sherbet in small Turkish glasses. The atmosphere and the way in which we were served truly made me feel we could have been sitting with the Sultan himself! Sharbat was followed by a selection of starters

including a plate of hot bread with red sauce, cream cheese & black olive, all of which were delicious.Grape leaves were the appetizer of the day and of course they were made the Turkish way; covered with white butter and red sauce, a particularly enjoyable delight for us!

For mains, I chose “Deniz urunleri guvec” which is an oven baked seafood dish, which includes sea bass, prawns, calamari, octopus, mushroom and potato cooked in a beautiful and rich lemonbutter sauce. My friend’s choice was “Karisik izgara” a mix grilled platter, that included spicy lamb kofta , skewered chicken and beef kebab served with burghul pilaf and yoghurt .

Since I couldn’t bring myself to leave without sampling some of the restaurant’s desserts, we decided to try the “Kunefe” which is khadaifi baked with unsalted cheese, clotted cream and pistachios. The Kunefe was so delicate and offered such a rich base of flavors, it was like nothing I had eaten before! Based on the waiter’s recommendations we also tried Baklava. A rich sweet pastry made of layers of filo pastry filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with honey, the Sultan used to present trays of baklava to the Janissaries on the 15th day of Ramadan each year, in a ceremonial procession called the Baklava Allayi.

It was the best food experience I had experienced in a long time.

It’s definitely a place I will be going back to soon.

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INDIRA

GO INDIAN 62 E G Y P T H O S P I TA L I T Y

November 2012

Chef Vikram’s signature lobster curry, check the price first!

We shared a sampling starter dish of Indira’s mixed Tandoori of prawns, chicken, the tender lamb ‘popsicles’ and vegetable samosa with raita and tamarind dips. Alongside sat a basket of glazed naan bread, that glistened irresistibly under the lights.

Many more trips will be required to enjoy the Machi Pakoras (marinated shrimps, spices and herbs), Murgh Malai (chicken breast in creamy cheese sauce with spices) or the Kachumber of fresh tomatoes, onions, cucumber, herbs and lemon juice.

FROM that first sip of your lassie until you linger over the final spoonful of home-made kulfi ice cream, a meal at Indira is a wonderful and satisfying exploration of fine Indian dining.

Happily, no great sense of exploration is necessary to find Indira, which is located at Holiday Inn Cairo Citystars … or you could follow the fragrant aroma of spices through the Citystars Mall to its location handily placed near Gate 7 on Level 0.

This route has an added attraction now that Chef Vikram Ghorpade, born near Bombay and the guardian of Indira’s cuisine, has added a ‘quick lunch’ menu to tempt shoppers and Citystars Mall staffers into escaping for a meal high in taste and value.

Indira’s atmosphere is unquestionably Indian, but with a subtle and understated Asian influence to create a chic and contemporary feel. There is none of the overblown ‘Bollywood’ style of décor that can lay a heavy hand on Indian restaurants.

The main menu is packed with ‘stars’ … the classic lamb Rogan Josh, Goscht Vindaloo (some like it hot!), a mixed seafood curry, Dal Makhani and Dal Tadka veggie curries, jumbo prawns in the Jhinga Masala, the gorgeously creamy Chicken Korma. The beauty of Chef Vikram’s cuisine, to which he adds his special gravies and sauces, lies in the distinct and delectable flavours he brings to his dishes.

Compared with the intricacies of spices and their subtle nuances of aroma and taste, preparing rice may seem deceptively simple, but we have all endured rice that cloys and refuses to separate.

My Jhinga Biryani was perfect, as each grain seemed to tumble individually around the succulent prawns.

My colleague’s Kashmiri Pulao was a work of art: Basmati rice slow-cooked with saffron, almonds, golden raisins and cashews.

“But what is this fragrance?” my colleague asked Vikram. “Rose water,” he smiled in reply. A wonderful touch, but typical of the care and delight he devotes to preparing the delicious Indian cuisine at Indira.

The richness of dark wood and deep burgundy, ornamental elephants and tapestries are offset by unfussy furniture and crisply set tables, producing a modern and upbeat atmosphere that buzzes with chat, laughter and pure enjoyment of the occasion and the food.

Aaah! The food. We visited early afternoon, perfect timing to sample the ‘quick lunch’ created by Chef Vikram precisely with shoppers and ‘lunch-breakers’ in mind: a salad or soup, a choice of chicken or lamb Biryani, plus dessert for just 80LE++, available between 1pm and 5pm Sunday through Thursday. Ideal … but, an admission: although we visited Indira at lunchtime we had no need to rush.

So while enjoying the complimentary lassie – a yoghurt and mango drink – and sampling the spicy chutneys with poppadoms it was our eyes that first devoured the menu. And a word about ‘spicy-ness’. Chef Vikram, who keeps a keen eye on events from the open ‘prep’ kitchen alongside the tables, is always ready to ‘adjust the heat’ to suit Egyptian and European taste. As Vikram and his staff prepare all the spices in-house, and update the menu monthly according to ‘availability’, quality and freshness is assured and is never compromised by the very reasonable prices. Although if you do decide to splash out on

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Inside the Mind of a Culinary Pro Khaled Abdel Ghaffar Executive Chef Kempinski Nile Hotel

The world of cuisine has a lot of secrets, untold stories, and hidden scrolls of recipes. It is an exclusive, discoverable world for professionals only. We were bold enough to knock the door, trying to explore what cuisine is all about, how a professional Chef thinks and invents cherished cuisines that promote various cultures and indulge your senses into eternal joy and perfect taste. This issue, we get the inside scoop from Kempinski’s Executive Chef, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, on whipping up a storm in the kitchen, and his recipe for success in the hospitality sector. He shares with us his insights, in making it as a Chef in the hotel industry and offers us a sneak peek into the glamorous and challenging life of an award winning five star hotel cook.

About Myself I graduated from the faculty of Tourism & Hotels in 1994 and started my career as trainee in Meridien hotel in cairo before moving to Hurghada for two years at the Intercontinental. I, then, travelled to the Gulf to join one of the biggest restaurant

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chains in US called Wolf Gang and spent three years there.

Later on, I came back to Egypt and worked in the Baron hotel in Sharm El Sheikh and Sofitel in Sinai. I joined Four Seasons since 2002 during the opening of the three hotels in Sharm El Sheikh, Alex and Nile Plaza and worked in Four Seasons

in Alex for four years. Finally, I joined Kempinski Nile hotel since June 2010 and got promoted a couple of times till I became the Executive Chef of the hotel.

One of the new ideas which I successfully introduced in the hotel is the “Healthy Corner” in the roof bar which includes low fat and low Calorie food that’s healthy, light and very tasty. In fact, I love the concept as it satisfies the need of our health concious guests. I use different ingredients such as low calories flour which is imported from France. Also, we have two machines to make home-made pasta with lower calorie. Our guests appreciate this service for which we received thank you letters.

How did you get into cooking?

I grew up and spent most of my childhood in the pyramids area, known for its old hotels and tourist spots. Over the years, I saw my friends and some family members joining that career and working in these hotels, Since then, I fell in love with cooking as a profession and future career and decided to study in depth and enhance the hobby with a strong academic background.

What do you think about women in this Career?

In Egypt, we consider it “not common for women” to be a Chef in restaurants or hotels. However, in Europe almost 50% of the chefs are women. I think this is only due to the cultural difference. For me, I, constantly, encourage women to join this career and I have three of them within my team at Kempinski.

What dish you are famous for?

Pigeons, and I also once received a thank you letter for that dish in one of our events. Generally speaking, for me being a chef is not just a job. I see it more of a talent and a hobby. I like to cook healthy food as most of Egyptians suffer from over weight due to wrong food habits and lack of basic nuitrition knowledge.

What ingredients can you not work without?

Herbs such as rosemary, basil, oregano and any other herbs that give good smell and taste to the dish according to the item I cook.

What’s your favorite Egyptian Dish?

Again, Pigeons because it shows the real talent of the chef also Lamb feta and dolmah are among my favorites.

What’s your favorite cuisine?

Mediterranean and Italian cuisine. They are light, tasty and very healthy.

What’s your favorite dessert?

Cinnamon rolls and chocolate cake as well as cheese cake.

If you have to choose between main course and desserts, which will you choose and why?

I will, definitely, go for the main course.

I don’t like to make desserts because of the relatively high calories they include, consequently, the negative effect they do have on health and weight in particular.

What characteristics set apart a star Chef from a regular one?

The talent is what sets them apart, two chefs can have the same ingredients to cook the same dish, yet, each one has his own style in cooking. At the end, the taste of the two dishes is different.

It also depends on the passion and how much the chef loves his job. He should spend time to learn more about cooking, read about different cultures and always update himself, try new things and come up with different innovative ideas. I have to mention that my experience abroad in France, Germany and England gave me a good chance to know and practice more, which was a crucial in my career enhancement.

Do you watch fatafeat channel?

Yes, and sometimes it even inspires me with new ideas and practices. However, I noticed that what we lack most is the good presentation for our food.

We really do good food but we can improve to excellence our way of presentation as a final setting Who’s your favorite Chef?

My favorite Chef is Gordan Ramzy and on the international scale, I just admire Michelle Rock, and Alain Ducasse.

How many outlets in the hotel are you responsible for?

Six outlets as i am the Executive Chef of the whole premises.

How do you manage your team?

My team includes an overall of 48 employees. At first, I train them and improve their weak points whereas I also capitalize on their special skills and individual talents. The objective is to reach the professional standards that we all look for.

What do you love most about being a chef? And what do you hate most?

I love to see our guests satisfied, it pleases me when I feel that they enjoy their food, and I consider this to be my main role and my ultimate success. I hate to mess up, this is a waste of my effort.

How do you feel about being a chef?

I am really proud to be able to reach such

a position within the field but specially in a chain like Kempinski where I can also manage and control the food quality in a way that exceeds the satisfaction of the guests. I always check the guest card to know their comments and identify our weaknesses so we can work on and improve them and try to do the best we can to have our guests always satisfied.

If you weren’t a chef, what would you be?

I would have been an engineer, because it is a technical job and I love challenge, even in my field, I am always after the latest techniques and fine details.

Do you cook at home for your family?

Actually, I spend most of the time at work, so I only cook at home on my days off or when I invite people, and it’s my pleasure when they ask me about a recipe because I like to give advice and basic knowledge in cooking, this makes me feel proud of myself as well as my job.

How many kids do you have? Is any of them interested in this field?

I have four kids, and actually I don’t push them to know much about cooking, however I noticed my youngest daughter sometimes likes to cook and she manages to do a couple of things on her own.

And, of course, when she grows up and feels she loves to go into this career, I will definitely help her and support her all the way.

What’s your favorite travel destination in Egypt and internationally?

In Egypt, Marsa Matrouh and North Coast are my favorites and abroad, I love Germany and France.

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A Culinary Tour of Egypt from the Pharaohs to the 21st Century

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It all started when I went to the USA in 1969, with little to no-experience in cooking. I was determined to keep up the tradition of producing authentic Egyptian cuisine. I collected as much recipes as I could, that I had adopted from classical Egyptian and Middle Eastern cookbooks, as well as family members and friends living in both the US and Egypt. It became apparent to me that writing a book about Egyptian cuisine would involve more than just a collection of recipes; but also required an understanding of customary habits and eating traditions.

I wrote my first book about Egyptian cuisine in 1980 and it received excellent reviews from the international media. During the 12-years which I lived in the US, I taught courses on Egyptian and Middle Eastern food, at the Washington Culinary School in Washington, D.C. My second venture which was released last month “Feasts for a Pharaoh” involved more research, cooking, kitchen experiments, and travel. I worked on perfecting familiar dishes, adapting some to become more creative and others, simpler, and worked to devise new techniques to reduce the time spent in the kitchen, whilst still producing the tastes and flavors of my grandmother’s cooking. The result was a new cookbook with more than 500 recipes and a culinary journey through time, with a timeline and menus, perfect for every occasion.

During the Pharaonic period, feasts in the Old and New Kingdoms took place at harvest time or during religious celebrations. Before the feast, people bathed in ointments, wove sweet-smelling blossoms into their hair, and sometimes donned necklaces or garlands of lotus flowers. A favorite dish at these Egyptian feasts was a stew made with chicken, calves’ feet, and eggs in their shells. It would then be thickened with grain or possibly freek (green wheat). During ceremonial royal banquets in Nile Valley, the dining hall would be decorated with wreaths and garland of flowers. The menu featured roast goose, small calf legs, gazelles garnished with lamb tail fat, grilled wild duck, and quail. Fish was served both raw and grilled, with sides of bread in various shapes and numerous vegetables. For dessert there were fruits, cakes with honey, and at times even melons.

Both before and after the meal, a servant would bring a jug of scented water and a bowl for guests to wash their hands in.

Music, singing and dancing were also important as professional dancers primarily women, entertained guests accompanied by musicians playing harps, lutes, drums, and tambourines.

Feasts for a Pharaoh, explains all you need to know about Egyptian cooking. The book is not about adhering to strict rules, but more about skillful variations on a few cooking methods passed down from generation to generation. During family gatherings, feasts, and special occasions, Egyptian cooks vie with one another to produce their unique take on old favorites, or to show their expertise in their mothers’ and grandmothers’ specialties. But as times have changed, so has the Egyptian diet, moving, like much of the rest of the world toward lighter, healthier foods, that still captures the essence of their traditional cooking. I have also included distinctive regional dishes from different parts of Egypt that give the reader a deeper understanding of authentic Egyptian food; which is distinct and different from the wider Middle Eastern culinary traditions, as well giving the reader a very broad sense of Egyptian cooking, and of a country that has had an unbroken civilization.

The book is available at: - American University Press www.aucpress.com - Diwan www.Diwanbookstore.com - Alef www.alefbookstores.com

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MOROCCAN INDULGENCE AT N I L E P L A Z A

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A Day to Remember...

The Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza now offers brides and Spa enthusiasts an exciting new experience to discover a phenomenal ‘Moroccan Indulgence’ at its Spa and Wellness Center.

Your Moroccan Spa journey begins in the private steam room for a brief steam to open up your pores and loosen the impurities to be removed from your skin. This involves a generous application of fragrant Moroccan black soap which is massaged into your skin while it soaks in, you will be treated to a soothing mini facial to relax the muscles in your face.

Next will be a shower to wash off the soap, followed by the highlight of the treatment, an invigorating scrub to remove the dead layers of skin and expose the vibrant new layer underneath.

A complete wrap with the Moroccan mud will follow providing a double dose of exfoliation, leaving the skin exceedingly soft and then you will receive a gentle body massage of your choice to conclude. By this time you will feel as light as a feather and as smooth as a polished stone.

The intuitive Four Seasons approach to well-being and comfort is stylishly maintained in the dedicated men’s and ladies lounges within the Spa with super towels and premium toiletries available for your exclusive use. Each section also features a whirlpool, sauna and steam room and tranquil chilled cucumber water or fresh ginger tea with honey.

Whether you are a bride, or want to look radiant in preparation for your big day, or a group of women wanting to indulge in a day of intense pampering, or a couple seeking to experience oriental spa culture at its best, prepare to be taken on an exotic journey to total body bliss.

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Nile Kempinski Chocolate Lounge Art Gallery turns to a global one The modern Chocolate Lounge in Nile Kempinski Hotel, where paints for artists are monthly displayed in coordination with Zamalek Art Gallery, hosted the eighth exhibition “Mirror” including works of Artist Abdul Wahab Abdul Mohsen. A large crowd for Cairo elite was there to taste the art along with the best types of chocolate and cocktails signed by excellence and style. This exhibition was different from previous exhibitions hosted by the hotel Dr. A shra since the guests were greeted by Kempinski Hotels & f Red a, Mo Resorts Board of Directors, Duncan O’Rourke-Chief na H abib , Arti Operating Officer, Xavier Dastepat, Vice President, st. Fa rouk Ulrich Eckhart, President for Africa and the Middle East and Hosn y and Ashley Ballesfar, Regional Director of Public Relations. Thus ,Kempinski Ema n Yas gallery turns to be a real global one. ky

Farouk Hosny, Abdel Wahab A. Mohsen and Hany Yassin

Omar El Fayoumy, H. E. Marc Franco and Dr. Farid Fadel

Painmter/Ahmed Karally and Noura

Lashy, Hadir Ibrahim, Eman Yasky and Inji Mounib

Eman Yasky, Laila Shoukry, Naglaa Al Halouagy and Alexander

Mohamed Talaat, Abdel Wahab Abdel Mohsen, Omar El Fayoumy, Moataz El Emam and Nagy Farid

Noura El-Zoghby and Ghada El-Saraf

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Eman Yasky and Lashy

Pool Cocktail at Sofitel Maadi In Sofitel Maadi Hotel, it is time to celebrate. This year was a great one, full of work and lots of rennovations, taking place all around the premises. Corporate members, key accounts, top notch social figures, media representatives and a large crowd of businessmen were all to meet in the glamorous Corporate Pool Cocktail held by Sofitel Maadi. Accor Egypt Hotels Eard managers and regional office representatives also Lum burs hets attended the ceremony and shared both clients , Phi llip T and in house guests the exclusive atmosphere and the rump and special moments.Guests were greeted by Sofitel Maadi managers Sher istoff and senior staff as well regional office senior representatives.

Carl

ier

Thomas, Samy Nasser, Saed Galal and Michael Clakest

Anna Tarabosly, Hassan Bohnam and Manuella

Talal Hamdy and Lama

Sherif El-Behiery, Hashim Abul Fadl, Nabil Kahil and Ezzat Fahmy

Sabine Ribond, Manuella, Anna Tarabolsy and Louis

Rakik Khairallah, Nahed Roushdy, Bahaa Arafa and Thomas Ganser

Mr. & Mrs. Hany Gerguis

Mai, Eman, Dana and Islam

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Holiday Inn turns 60 Holiday Inn turns 60 this month, and Cairo is invited to join in the worldwide celebration of the diamond anniversary for this iconic brand at Holiday Inn Cairo Citystars. Six decades after the first Holiday Inn hotel opened in Memphis Tennessee in the US, Holiday Inn Cairo Citystars is one of 3,375 Holiday Inn brand family hotels around the world. What began as a roadside inn has become a household name across the globe, and a pioneer of many firsts for the hotel industry such as being the first to invite children under twelve to stay and eat free whenever staying at Holiday Inn, anywhere in the world. To celebrate Holiday Inn’s diamond anniversary, Holiday Inn Cairo Citystars management team threw a cocktail party for the hotel’s guests and top clients whereby all guests enjoyed a special memorable night at Star cafe.

Holid

ay In n

Cut C a

ke

Sandra Turk, Mervat Fahmi, Ossama Mohamed and Sara Makram

Khaled Shafik, Mohamed Ibrahim, Shereen Nakhla and Simon Stamper

Khaled Shafik and Simon Stamper

Mai Ragheb, Ahmed El-Wassimi, Khaled El-Sharkawi and Noura Said

Alaa Abu Zeid, Amira Fayed, Ehab Farouk, Sally El Mallah and Rasha Magdy

Sabestian, Heilit, Hiever, Frank, Claudia and Paulo

General Manager Mohamed Ibrahim

Sally El Mallah and Rasha Magdy

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New Renovations at le Passage Cairo Hotel Le Passage Cairo Hotel & Casino held a pool party to celebrate the opening of its newly renovated rooms. The party was attended by a large number of leading figures in the field of tourism, aviation, corporate sector, press and media representatives.

The entertainment program included Salalem Band and all the guests were content by the party’s ambiance and the new rooms while admiring their modern designs and vibrant colors.

Ahm e

d Re

faat, M and ohamed Mr. & M Mrs. okhtar, N Nabi l Tah adia Hay er aty

Ashraf Abadir, Ignish Ovich, Mohie Sadek and Wagih Sedky

Inji Mounib, Ossama Mounir, Nadia Hayaty, Robert Amir and Hany El Hadidy

Fatma Nagi, Mona Abdel Kader and Manal Emara

Sherine Riad and Mervat Asaad

Le Passage Team Members

Nayera Lamey and Marwan Ghali

Azza Samir and Inji Mounib

Ahmed Refaat and Mohamed Ibrahim

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November 2012 Industry Events

5-8 World Travel Marke t 2012 (WTM) ExCeL Conference & Exhibition Centre London, United King dom www.wtmlondon.co m/

17-19 The Hotel & Hosp itality Show Saud i Arabia Jeddah Centre for Fo rums & Events Jeddah , Saudi Arab ia www.thehotelshows audiarabia.com

18-20 THE-ICE 6th Intern ational Panel of Experts Forum Emirates Academy Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Other Events

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27 - 29 EIBTM 2012 The Global Meetings & Incentive Exhibitio n Fira Gran Via Barcelona, Spain www.eibtm.com

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For Job Seekers Receive E-newsletter & job alerts with the industry’s latest Job openings in Egypt and the region by registering your email at www.egypthospitality.com/careers

For Employers Advertise your vacancies at www.egypthospitality.com/ careers and reach experienced hospitality professionals Featured Employers in this issue

Appointment of Chef Remo Berdux as Director of Kitchens, InterContinental Cairo Citystars, Holiday Inn Cairo Citystars and Staybridge Suites Cairo Citystars Simon W. Stamper, Area General

Manager InterContinental Cairo Citystars, Holiday Inn Cairo Citystars and Staybridge Suites Cairo Citystars, announced the appointment of Chef Remo W. Berdux in the position of Director of Kitchens for the three hotels. With over 30 years of hospitality experience in food and beverages at luxury hotels in Europe, Australia and Asia, Chef Berdux has mastered his flair in international cuisine and has cooked for several heads of states, Kings and queens and other dignitaries.

Chef Berdux was part of the Hyatt Family for more than 10 years before joining the Ritz Carlton, Seoul, Korea, as Executive Chef.

He, then, moved to JW Marriott Hong Kong in 2006 and, later, joined the LSG Sky Chefs Korea, as responsible for caterings and menu engineering for some of the world’s top airlines. In his new fucntion, Chef Berdux will be responsible for the entire culinary operation in the whole complex.

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Adrian Messerli Appointed Director of Food and Beverage at Four Seasons Resort Sharm El Sheikh.

Sebastien Carre, General Manager of Four Seasons resort Sharm El Sheikh announced the recent appointment of Adrian Messerli as Director of Food and Beverage. Adrian grew his passion for the hospitality industry in his family’s hotel in the Swiss Alps. After completing a culinary apprenticeship Adrian followed his roots entering the hotel industry and graduated from the Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne.

Following graduation, he joined the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts and became a citizen of the world, working his way up the Food and Beverage Division management ladder, at the Four Seasons in Chicago (USA), Great Exuma (Bahamas) and Carmelo (Uruguay).

More recently, before joining Four Seasons Resort Sharm El Sheikh, Adrian worked as the Food and Beverage Director of Hotel Ritz, as well as at the Four Seasons Hotel, in Lisbon (Portugal). Adrian’s passion for fine culinary experiences and wines is not only limited to his work environment, he is also an active member of the Chaine des Rotisseurs, as well as a big supporter and founding member of a culinary school in Evora, which works to grow culinary and service talent amongst young adults in need.Commenting on Messerli’s appointment, Mr.Carre says said “Adrian’s passion for hospitality, established international experience in the food and beverage sector and with the Four Seasons, will undoubtedly strengthen our resort’s talented team. Beyond his fluency in 5 languages, Adrian’s exposure to numerous culinary cultures in Europe as well as North & South America, will contribute to further diversifying Four Seasons Resort Sharm El Sheikh leisure resort experience.”

Heba Issa, new Director of Sales and Marketing at Cairo Marriott Hotel

Richard Zeolla, General Manager of the Marriott Hotel Cairo announced the promotion of Heba Issa to the position of Director of Sales and Marketing.

Issa joined Cairo Marriott in 1985 and has held, since then, several positions.

Being the Group Reservations Manager until 1989, she was, then, promoted to Groups & Convention Manager. In 2004, she was the Director of Event Booking Center and from 2006 to 2008, she was the Director of Sales. Being a good example of positive leadership, Issa contributed greatly to the success of hotel occupancy and average room rate. In 2008, she was promoted to the position of Assistant Director of Sales and Marketing, where she proved efficiency in dealing with the challenges on both local and international scales, hence, achieving the highest results for the hotel.

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AQUACLEAN

A treated fabic that needs nothing but water to get rid of the toughest stains, using a new technology “Aquaclean” – for advanced upholstery protection. This revolutionary treated fabric allows you to get rid of stains with nothing more than a little water; making maintenance both quick and easy. Whether its chocolate, coffee, food or any other stubborn stain - all you need is water. The fabric also incorporates a shield that prevents dust, fungi and bacteria.

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The Tricky Business of F&B Franchising a franchisor; it is a complex process that requires to bring together the franchisor and franchisee points of views, as well as an accurate preparation and full time dedication from both parties.

The lack of experience

On paper, franchising whether local or

Nagi Morkos Managing Partner HODEMA Consulting Services

Franchising has in the last few years

become a natural sequel for developers willing to expand their brand. It saves them the hassle of having to manage the place themselves, but still preserves the standards and reputation of their business abroad. On the other side, franchisees see it as an easy way to capitalize on a concept that has already been successfully developed in other countries rather than create a new one; second, they benefit from its good reputation in terms of concept, cuisine and service. International names, mostly fast food and casual dining, have managed to take over the Middle East in the last few years. But now regional brands are also entering the franchise business, most of the concepts being created in Lebanon or Dubai. And these local brands are increasingly attractive for investors: some see Lebanese brands as part of a diversification strategy and an investment haven due to the fact that some Lebanese franchises can be more profitable than western brands, with upfront lower entrance fees. And the interest is mutual for both the investors and the Lebanese F&B players who see in the franchise business an opportunity to expand their ambitions and beat the small size of the Lebanese restaurant market. As for the Gulf, the boom in real estate has also reinforced the franchising trend for the past years, hence the several upcoming restaurants’ openings in an already very dynamic market. Yet, creating a franchise does not simply mean signing a franchise agreement with

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international brands seems like a winning strategy. But the reality is slightly different.

Considered as the ultimate business move by some professionals, it can actually be a deceiving experience. Some even had to terminate their franchise agreements and closed down. The franchisor has to make sure he follows the right steps before making his dreams of expansion a reality. Most people will just go for the highest bidder, which does not guarantee his success not only in managing the franchise and honoring the contract terms but also in respecting the brand’s standards which are key criteria. Both the franchisor and franchisee have to insure the implementation of and follow up on the right processes. Hindered by their lack of experience in the field, local restaurant owners struggle to resolve problems inherent to franchises. They find out that exporting know-how is not as easy as assigning an already trained chef. An eatery’s popularity and reputation can be based on the talent of a chef, but not a chain’s, which needs to design recipes that are duplicable in aspect, taste and cost, and to systemize the kitchen and service procedures. Hence the major role of the set of operating manuals which helps the franchisee understand the product and manage the outlets, and allows the employees to abide by the brand’s rules and regulations. One of the most popular start-up mistakes made by restaurant owners today is also to fail to register their brand in their target countries as soon as they have started their activity. Moreover, if for some professional franchising is part of the initial strategy, for most it is a second stage of development, sometimes even a rescue strategy when the local market slows down. This sudden reorientation

November 2012

can be harmful, and even kill the brand if the strategy is not thought through carefully. Success lies in a strong internal organizational structure, in detailed franchise and operating manuals, and in the recruitment of full time franchise specialized staff.

Franchisors plan ahead How does one avoid falling into the traps when starting a franchise? Most problems must be detected in the early implementation stages. A good eye for human resources, carefulness in the choice and quality of the products and good internal organization are essential.

No room must be left for improvisation and all aspects should be looked into, from suppliers and brand management to cooking and taste standards and graphic identity, among others. The last two points can sometimes be incompatible with local habits, which must be taken into account. Last, human resources play an important role in the development of an outlet. Hiring, training and keeping the right people at the right place are keys to success. Stay clear of any misunderstanding, sometimes franchisees are expecting the franchisor to operate.

Adapt to a new environment

When it comes to marketing and

advertising, the franchisee can choose between two systems. While he can leave the marketing and communication management to the parent company which unifies the strategy and emphasizes the brand identity, the franchisee can also develop the marketing strategy and adapt it to the specifics of the local market while respecting the brand identity. The franchisor must be aware of the legal aspects to protect the brand in the countries of implementation.

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