The grass is greener

Food and beverage operations in the Middle East may be battling with issues like staffing shortages and employee retention but the problems here are not universal, as I discovered on a recent visit to the Park Hyatt Goa Resort & Spa.

"India is booming now, but from a culinary perspective we're having no issues with staffing and so far the impact of the rising food costs worldwide has been minor," boasts executive chef Asif Mehrudeen.

For those feeling frazzled with Dubai's fast pace of life and stressed out over work-related woes, it seems Goa can offer a complete change of pace - the secluded location has afforded the properties there a relatively hassle-free existence to date.

"In one of the big cities like Mumbai or Delhi there might be other issues facing Indian chefs. Being in Goa, however, we're a bit cut off," Mehrudeen explained.

It might be wise to hold off on submitting those transfer applications for now, however - this could just be the calm before the storm.

With a wealth of hotel developments set to open across India in the next couple of years, Mehrudeen believes India's F&B market could soon find itself facing similar issues to those that are currently plaguing the Middle East.

"Right now, I think we're pretty safe but I think 2010 is a scary year for India. Maybe in years to come the playing field might change."

Sarah Gain is the editor of Caterer Middle East.

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