I can’t think of anything more annoying than breakfast in bed. (Okay. To be honest I can. But let’s face it. Hyperbole is a nifty little tool when you need a dramatic opening.) Cake crumbs between your sheets and jam on your elbows. I realise that sounds like a day in the life of Marie Antoinette – but honestly, if you’re going to eat breakfast in bed, you might as well make it festive.
Breakfast in bed has always been seen as a luxury, reserved for Mother’s Day and hotel stays. In 1930, New York’s Waldorf Astoria introduced room service, and ever since then, it’s been taken for granted by both luxury and mid-level travellers. However, over the years, room service started becoming less profitable, till it reached a point where hotels actually started losing money by offering it.
This is partly because of how expensive it is: after all, it’s tough to justify spending about Rs. 1,000 (on average) for lukewarm toast and tea, when there are so many alternatives, ranging from the buffet downstairs to the cute café next door. Partly because younger travellers don’t really want to eat at their hotels anymore, preferring to explore street food and restaurants outside. And, partly because, in an age when we want everything, and we want it right now, it just takes too long.
In 2013, when the 2000-room New York Hilton announced it was replacing room service with a gourmet “grab-n-go” counter, it generated a flurry of dismayed responses. Their reason: the cost of providing it was higher than the return. With fewer guests opting for room service, it didn’t make sense to keep staff on stand-by all night anymore. According to the Hotel Executive, a website on the industry, this claimed about 55 jobs. It also raised the question: Was this the end of breakfast in bed?
Three years later, there’s still no definite answer. And, as always, the Indian scenario is quite different from global trends. I chat with a range of hoteliers and they assure me that room service is still essential in luxury hotels. Apparently their clientele — a rarefied blend of actors, cricketers, CEOs and occasional passing kings — can’t be seen shovelling down bacon and eggs like the rest of us. But even in much smaller hotels, there’s almost always a “boy” who will come running up to your room with masala chai and parathas.
On the other hand, there’s a definite move away from room service among young professionals and travellers, as evidenced by the new chic, but frill-free range of hotels. Global chain Aloft, for instance, has Re:Fuel, a pantry offering “mix and match meals” in addition to a “make your own cappuccino” station. Many hotels today also offer to just “brown bag” your meal: less fuss, less drama and much cheaper.
Realising that customer demands are changing, hotels are adapting. You’ll now find digital menus on iPads in your room, enabling you to order food without picking up the phone. Additionally, since for many guests, room service is still a luxury, hotels are rethinking the whole process, elevating it from a run-of-the-mill service to a memorable experience.
The Park just launched The Park Picnic at seven of its properties. A concept by Netherlands-based ‘Eating Designer’ Marije Vogelzang, it conjures up childhood picnics, with the chain’s signature twist of kitschy chic, paired with five-star luxury. The version I try features a colourful tiffin-strung cart blasting Katy Perry and rattling with wine glasses. Rajesh Radhakrishnan, General Manager of The Park Chennai, says room service orders in Chennai are an average of 60-70 per day, while the average for the entire group of 11 hotels is about 800 orders per day. While most guests prefer to eat breakfast at the hotel restaurant, in-room dinner remains fairly popular among their business travellers and airline crew.
At the other end of the spectrum, there’s Taj Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad, where a personal butler serves you course-by-course in the room, with aperitifs in between, and then “refreshes” your room with a mogra spray after the meal. At the chain’s business hotels, they focus on glamming up regional food. In Chennai’s Taj Coromandel, for example, there’s a Mudaliar Tiffin on offer, featuring everything from jeeraga rasam to vazhapoo kozhambu.
The fact that Indian hotels are now working so hard on reinventing in-room dining — previously the province of perfunctory sandwiches elevated by shiny cloches — means that the space is more competitive.
A friend recently ordered Domino’s pizza from his fancy hotel room since he had to work all day, but didn’t want to order from the overpriced menu. Options: Always a good thing for customers. Always uncomfortable for the industry.
