Dining Q&A: Elie Houbeich, Food and Beverage Director, Westin Beijing Financial Street
As the director of food and beverage at the Westin Beijing Financial Street, Elie Houbeich has a unique opportunity to reach a relatively untapped local business class clientele, compared to his counterparts in Beijing’s more central, hotel-rife locales. But that fresh territory comes with new challenges that keep him and his staff on their toes. “Our customers won’t have time to wait if their coffee doesn’t come quickly ... our speed of service is crucial, as most of our guests are running under a very tight schedule.”
But success in that domain can cause strain in others. Houbeich knows he can’t let speed come at the expense of quality. This is especially true of late, when the public is more health conscious than ever, leaving Houbeich to provide a product that is not only prompt, but also nutritious. While some might complain and call those conflicting circumstances a Catch-22, Houbeich has decided to turn his lemons in to lemonade. Or, more aptly, he’s juicing the situation in every sense of the word.
“The ‘Westin Fresh by The Juicery’ menu will include nourishing juices and smoothies that blend nutrition-rich ingredients like beetroot, pomegranate, spinach, coconut water, and blueberries,” Houbeich says of the fresh option that he and his staff are readying for a January unveiling. “Sipping fruit and vegetable juices can be very rewarding, as the ingredients with the brightest and deepest colors provide lots of nutrients, and give our guests a boost for their work day or their travels,” he added.
Houbeich’s balancing act continues as he and his staff decide on the ingredients for not only The Juicery, but also the rest of their menu. “It’s important to buy local and organic whenever you can. If you can get your tomatoes and carrots here, then why not do that?” he says, before adding that such an eco-friendly ethos must also accommodate a hotel menu’s rigorous standards. “There are many ingredients that we have to import, to satisfy our customers’ expectations – especially our pasta, one of our very most popular choices, which is all sourced from Italy.”
Houbeich must also attain equilibrium between healthy options and indulgences. While he aims to satisfy many local Financial Street businesspeople with prompt, nutritious lunches, he also wants to compel that clientele to return for a more leisurely Sunday champagne brunch with their families. Those who partake in the latter can choose from a wide ranging buffet that includes sushi, prime cuts of beef, fruit cocktails for the grownups, and several racks of mouth-watering desserts for the kids.
Rather than letting all those varying elements conflict, Houbeich says they must each be carefully tended to, because guests always have nuanced needs. “All that I have mentioned is crucial to be a successful director of F&B. It is like a necklace, it’s all connected together. If one area is neglected all the other areas will be seriously affected,” he says, adding: “It’s all about taking care of people.”
Photo: Uni
