5 Star Amenities / 1 Star Execution
Posted by Celiac Disease Family
The following summarizes my recent experience at the Waldorf Astoria in Naples, FL. This was our fourth time staying here--and I have to say the facility and overall experience is a great one.
But not for a person with celiac disease.
In fairness to the management staff, they comped the meal, but what I really wanted was a personal response to the last email.
I have yet to be formally acknowledged.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Celiac Disease Family,
Welcome to Waldorf Astoria Naples. It is my pleasure to
serve as your Personal Concierge for your upcoming stay with us.
Please allow me to assist you with transportation, dining,
relaxation, entertainment or any other special requests you may have prior to
your arrival. Some suggested activities for your upcoming stay may include
enjoying the following:
- Indulging in inventive dining prepared especially for you by our world-class chefs.
- Enjoy a comfortable day at the beach including luxury loungers, a kid's sand pit, day beds and water activities.
- Renew your mind, body and spirit at our luxurious spa or enjoy energizing recreation at our exclusive golf course or award-winning tennis center.
We pride ourselves on having an experienced team of people
dedicated to delivering the best possible experience for you. This is what we
call True Waldorf Service.
Please Click Here, to Plan Your Stay or reply to this email
directly to explore all the possibilities and reserve the activities and
services you desire. I look forward to hearing from you soon and welcoming you
in person to our hotel.
At your service,
Leela Kuttemperoor
Your Personal Concierge
Waldorf Astoria Naples
P 239.254.5600
C 239.961.2734
Leela.Kuttemperoor@waldorfastoria.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
While I realize the email I received below is probably a
templated correspondence from corporate, In the event you (or someone on your
staff does) read this, I did want to bring to your attention a special need my
family now has while traveling.
My daughter has been recently diagnosed with celiac
disease. This means she cannot eat
anything with gluten in it. As you might
suspect, this can make eating out very challenging at times. We are planning to
stay at your location for five days, and I'd like to understand, specifically,
your chef's position on maintaining a clean kitchen for Celiacs. I presume your chef will know what this is,
and how important it is for people with celiac disease.
Furthermore, in the spirit of full disclosure, I maintain a
popular blog about experiences while traveling abroad specifically as it
relates to high-end hospitality institutions catering to celiacs.
This will be our fourth stay at your location (but not as a
celiac family) and we have always been impressed with the service, food and
overall experience.
I look forward to response so we can plan accordingly for
our daughter's meals during our stay.
Thank you,
Celiac Disease Family
Please pardon brevity and any typos. This was dictated to
Siri and sent from my iPad in transit. And we're still getting to know each
other. Slowly.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Iris,
Mr. Celiac asked me to send this to you.
And, now that he knows that the entire concierge team gets
this message, the professional courtesy of a reply would be greatly
appreciated.
Thank you,
Shamus
Sent from my iPad
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Mr. Celiac –
Sorry it has taken so many emails to put your concerns to
rest. I am the Restaurant Chef here at the hotel and I can assure you that we
will have no problem handling your daughter’s dietary restrictions. We commonly accommodate gluten-free requests
and many other allergy related restrictions. By simply making your server aware
of your presence with your last name; where ever you choose to dine with us, we
will have options available for all meal periods. I can be very creative as my
experience co-owning a Paleo Diet delivery business here in town, which is
entirely gluten free! I am confident
that my experience and knowledge will allow your family’s vacation to be
worry-free and enjoyable. Please feel
free to contact me with any other concerns.
We look forward to seeing here around the resort!
Best Regards,
Brent Devlin
Aura Restaurant Chef
Waldorf Astoria Naples
239-961-2069
This transmission is not a digital or electronic signature
and cannot be used to form, document, or authenticate a contract. Hilton and
its affiliates accept no liability arising in connection with this
transmission.Copyright 2013 Hilton Worldwide Proprietary and Confidential
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Chef Devlin,
Thanks for your attention to this special request.
And please pardon this next and final question--as I am
4-months new to the specific celiac requirements (compared to the increasingly
popular, different and albeit fad-conscious "gluten-free" diets), but
are you asserting that your team is (or will be) aware of and can adhere to the
importance of cross contamination prevention when preparing a meal for a
celiac?
I presume your previous experience co-owning a related Paleo
business makes it a moot point, but over the last several months, I am
surprised at how many people just don't understand the difference between
gluten-free sensitivities and celiac disease.
We very much look forward to staying with you, again.
And thank you for this extra piece of mind.
Best regards,
Celiac Disease Family
Please pardon brevity and any typos. This was sent from a
mobile device using Siri and we are still getting to know each other. Slowly.
Hi Mr. Celiac,
I can assure you that all of your daughter’s meals will be
prepared wearing latex gloves using separate clean bowls, spoons, pan’s and in
a private kitchen where no one else is cooking. My self and my Sous Chef Jose
Rivera will be the only two people handling your daughter’s food. All of her
meals will be prepared and delivered in the Aura Kitchen where one of us will
be at all times. I have copied our Front Desk manager on this email, which as
you already know she is on vacation and I will forward this email Jared Miners
who is in charge while she is gone. He will let us know you have arrived. I
have also copied our F&B managers, Dawn and Jessica who will make all of
our service staff aware of your special needs. Last but not least from your end
– Please remember to make your food server aware of Your Name and Celiac
Requirements and Jose and I will handle the rest.
Best Regards,
Brent Devlin
Aura Restaurant Chef
Waldorf Astoria Naples
239-961-2069
This transmission is not a digital or electronic signature
and cannot be used to form, document, or authenticate a contract. Hilton and
its affiliates accept no liability arising in connection with this
transmission.Copyright 2013 Hilton Worldwide Proprietary and Confidential
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Chef
Thank you very, very much.
Thank you very, very much.
I sincerely appreciate this.
And most importantly, my daughter will too.
Regards,
Celiac Disease Family
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And on the same day that I spoke with three people, that's when it happened...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Brent,
Feedback for what is it worth at this point....
Please make a future note to inform your bar staff that,
according to Coca Cola, the makers of Minute Maid, the pink fountain generated
lemonade that is served pool side is NOT gluten free.
I take responsibility for not double checking, but after a
direct personal conversation today poolside with Dawn, Chef Jose and our server
Sandra re-memorializing the importance of a gluten free experience for my
daughter here at the Waldorf Astoria Naples, I was assured that you "deal
with this every day and that I was in good hands."
Well today--at least for my family--something slipped
through the cracks.
Candidly, this is disappointing from our
experience--especially since I think I (over)-informed many people here about
my daughters celiac disease to the point at which I was probably viewed as a
pain in the *ss customer.
Perhaps this formal memorandum will benefit other celiac
families in the future when they request /require a gluten free experience at
the Waldorf Astoria Naples.
Respectfully,
Celiac Disease Family
Posts
0 comments: