Season’s eatings

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Seasonal spices for mulled wine help the region’s hotel outlets to go all out to make the season festive for guests.

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Many hotel outlets will be featuring gingerbread houses this year.

The festive season is the busiest time of the year for hospitality, and it is no different in the Middle East, especially this year, when Christmas and Eid al-Adha fall very close together. For hotel outlets, this is also an important time of year in terms of revenue.

Throughout the region, most hotel outlets are focusing on Christmas rather than on Eid, but one exception is at the Mövenpick Hotel & Resort Al Bida'a in Kuwait, where the focus will be on celebrating Eid. Although the hotel is decorating the lobby area with a tree and gingerbread house, Eid specials include holiday packages, an Eid brunch and musical entertainment. There will also be Eid decorations in all of the restaurant areas.

The Mövenpick Tower & Suites Doha is also promoting separate events this year.

"We believe that our target group is different for these three major events [Eid, Christmas and New Year's] especially in Qatar where people are very religious and quite conservative. As a general rule, those that celebrate Eid don't celebrate Christmas so we have created three different celebrations to cater to these individual requirements," said Lamya Sebti, public relations & communications manager.

In contrast, most hotels in the UAE are focusing on Christmas. The Fujairah Rotana Resort & Spa is offering no special Eid offers, while the Fairmont Dubai is taking a more comprehensive approach, with 29 separate promotions, from pre-cooked take-home holiday feasts of turkey and yams to hampers and special spa offers. However, there are no Eid-specific offers.

At most hotels, the malls, lobbies and food venues will be decorated with as much Christmas-themed red and gold ribbons, bows, trees, Santas and inflatable snow domes as can be mustered. Choirs, giant gingerbread houses and stockings will also be in abundance. At the Fujairah Rotana, Santa will be arriving by camel on Christmas Day; while the Hilton Deira Creek is hosting a school choir and life-size gingerbread houses.

However, for the back of house staff, Christmas is a time for round the clock work. Le Thai My Huyen began work as the Mövenpick Dur Dubai's new head pastry chef in November-and has been working non-stop to create Christmas pastries almost since the day she started.

"This is the busiest time of year," said Huyen, "We have been working 24 hours a day to prepare." Huyen and her team will hand-make and decorate thousands of gingerbread Santas and snowmen, along with chocolates and cookies. "We are having a new drive to get everyone involved and give their opinions on new [pastry] products. We have tastings and people give their opinions."

In addition to making yule logs with chestnut filling and cookies, Huyen will also be teaching chocolate cooking classes throughout December.

Kirsten Lange, public relations manager, Mövenpick Hotel & Resort Al Bida'a, agrees that Christmas is hardest on the pastry team. "Definitely the creativity of the pastry chef is tested during the festive season as he has to create so many sweet items such as mince piece, Christmas cake, Stollen and chocolate log. Eid sweets are even more elaborate with a wide selection of fruit and nut filled pastries and deserts."

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