Employee of the Year at the Talbot Hotel Wexford

Employee of the Year at the Talbot Hotel Wexford

Congratulations  to Colm Bennett who has been awarded the employee of the year 2009 in recognition of his outstanding customer service, loyalty and valuable contribution to the Talbot Hotel Wexford.

Stillorgan Park Hotel Awarded Optimus Service Excellence

The Stillorgan Park Hotel has recently been awarded of the Optimus Service Excellence Award. Developed by Fáilte Ireland, Optimus is a multi-tiered programme to support tourism businesses in becoming more efficient and more competitive. The industry is challenged by rising costs and consumers are comparing what Ireland can offer with increasing international alternatives. For many in the industry, Optimus is welcomed as a lever to regain competitive ground. “The hotel has been rigorously tested and judged to exceed the expectations of its guests and to make the best use of its resources,” said Tony Lenehan, Head of Industry Standards and Quality, Fáilte Ireland. “Increasingly consumers will choose Irish hotels that have the Optimus standard and that must be good news for hotels like this.”

The hotel achieved the Optimus award following a deep-rooted review of service and guest satisfaction. “It’s probably one of the most rewarding journeys a business can make,” says Daragh O’Neill, General Manager of the Stillorgan Park Hotel. “For nearly a year we questioned everything we did and tested it against what is known to be excellent service in other countries, quite systematically and always with the customer as the starting point. Standard of Procedures were put in place for all sectors of the business and constant training and re-training of our team has been implemented to accurately measure how we were performing against the best in the field. The effect on guests and staff has been considerable and the Optimus award will flag this achievement to the market.”

For global travellers, hotels displaying the Optimus symbol will offer an assurance that superior service and value for money expectations can be met. For individual hotels, like the Stillorgan Park Hotel, achieving the new standard will have significant marketing and profit advantages. At the heart of Optimus is the customer - and an ongoing tracking system which measures customer satisfaction and identifies areas of improvement. A similar system monitors the commitment of employees to the company’s goals and identifies ways in which to increase morale.

Pictured (Left to Right): Aidan Pender, Fáilte Ireland; Magda Fras, Optimus Coordinator Stillorgan Park Hotel; Redmond O’Donoghue, Chairman Fáilte Ireland; and Daragh O’Neill, General Manager Stillorgan Park Hotel.

Talbot Wexford shares their secret recipes

Paella

Cooking Instructions



INGREDIENTS:

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 green pepper, finely chopped

½ red pepper, boiled until soft and then cut into long thin strips

2 medium-sized tomatoes, skinned and finely chopped

2 carrots, finely chopped

100g peas, cooked

200g prawns (if using cooked prawns substitute fish stock for the water)

200g small clams

200g squid

12 mussels

350g rice (traditionally short grain rice is used but I prefer to use long grain)

2 cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped

a pinch of saffron strands (if you can’t get saffron, use yellow food colouring instead and add it once you have added the liquid)

a sprig of parsley, finely chopped

olive oil

about 800ml water

PREPARATION:

MUSSELS: Wash the mussels, removing the beards. Throw away any that don’t shut on contact with water.

FRESH SQUID: Rub off the outer dark skin. Pull out the insides (including the transparent back bone) and pinch the eye away from the tentacles. Save the tentacles. Cut the squid into rings.

CLAMS: Wash in water and then put in a bowl with some salt so that the grit comes out. Throw away any that are open.

PRAWNS: Whether you peel them or not is up to you. If you decide to peel them, save the shells and boil in water for about ten minutes. Save the liquid and add later instead of water.

GARLIC: In a pestle and mortar, grind the garlic, saffron (if using), parsley and a pinch of salt.

RECIPE:

Heat some olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the onion, green pepper and carrot and fry gently for about five minutes. Add the chopped tomato and squid (with the tentacles) and fry on a low heat for another ten minutes.

Add the rice and stir well to make sure that it is thoroughly coated. Add water (or the water from boiling the prawn shells or fish stock if using frozen fish), clams and the garlic/saffron/parsley mixture and bring to the boil. Season with salt. Put a lid on it, turn the heat right down and cook very slowly for about ten minutes. Add the prawns and peas and give it a stir. Arrange the mussels and strips of red pepper artistically on top, put the lid back on and leave for another ten minutes - checking that it has enough water. If you think it is getting too dry, add more water, but shake the handle of the pan rather than stir so as not to upset the pattern. Once the rice is cooked and the mussels have opened, it is ready to eat.

Talbot Wexford

On the Quay

Wexford

053 912256

http://www.talbotwexford.ie/