Revenue Management

🍴 Bret Thorn, Senior Food & Beverage Editor for Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality since 1999, also writes a monthly column and hosts the "In the Kitchen with Bret Thorn" podcast. He authored food columns for The New York Sun (2005-2008), Manager magazine, and Asia Times while living in Thailand for about five years starting in 1995. A magna cum laude graduate from Tufts University, Thorn studied French cooking at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris and Chinese language and culture at Nanjing and Beijing Universities. His work earned the Jesse H. Neal National Business Journalism Award in 2006, and he was inducted into the Disciples d'Escoffier in 2014. Thorn is a Colorado native, currently based in Brooklyn, N.Y. Contact: [email protected] Social: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram (@foodwriterdiary).

🍽 Tableside service, a long-standing dining concept, has expanded its offerings in recent years. Chicago's Nisos Prime features a prosciutto cart, while Claudie in Miami, opened February, serves tableside gazpacho. Charleston's Costa restaurant offers caviar with gin, and New York City's The Grill presents pasta à la presse with a 19th-century press. Marigold Club in Houston provides a bespoke sundae cart, and Urban Hill in Salt Lake City offers DIY s'mores. These services enhance the experience, sparking curiosity and driving sales.

🍝 Restaurateur Gurami Oniani's Guliani Group, with over 30 restaurants in Tbilisi and Moscow, opened its first U.S. restaurant, Laliko, in New York City's West Village last month. The 42-seat venue features Georgian culinary traditions with a menu including khachapuri, khinkali, and Georgian wines, designed by Surgula Studio with cultural elements. Executive chef Manuchar Tsikolia leads the kitchen. Oniani aims to expand Georgian cuisine's footprint in the U.S. and is considering future Manhattan locations.

🏨 Adrian de Gortari joined Remington Hospitality as Senior Vice President of Revenue Management in October 2024, having 15+ years of experience, previously at a private equity firm and roles at Magna Hospitality Group and Marriott International. He taught e-commerce and revenue management strategies at New York University and holds a Bachelor of Science from Purdue University. Algorithmic tools have improved forecasting precision and occupancy optimization, hence enhancing profitability. Despite the growth of automation, teams interpret data and make strategic decisions. Real-time insights from machine learning enable quick adaptation to market shifts, detecting early demand changes. Simplification via technology automates real-time pricing and targets customer segments effectively. Future trends suggest integration of revenue management with digital marketing and sales, leveraging online sales lead optimization tools for targeted strategies. De Gortari emphasizes operational resilience, cross-departmental collaboration, continuous learning, and a humble approach to leadership.

🍴 Starting Wednesday 7th May, Little Bat bar—sister bar of Callooh Callay—introduces a new restaurant menu by chef consultant James Cochran and a refreshed drink list. Celebrating global flavors, the menu features British produce, with items like warm toasted sourdough with whipped butters, buttermilk fried chicken with jerk spiced hot honey glaze, and jerk spiced Mangalitza pork. Cocktails include innovative options like Tokyo Drift and Loosen Mai Tai, in addition to wines, beers, and non-alcoholic drinks. Bookings now open for the launch.

🍴 Sygnature Dish, a new steak and seafood restaurant, will open at Forge Island in late spring, in time for summer holidays. It will serve lunches, dinners, cocktails, and beers alongside a menu featuring T-bone, sirloin, rib-eye steaks, beef ribs, burgers, salmon, prawns, and a fish of the day, as well as chicken, pasta, vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options. Diners can also create their own platters. Owned by siblings Dalu and Sibbs Sikhosana with over 30 years of combined experience, the restaurant joins Arc Cinema and Travelodge. The Sikhosanas aspire to establish more Sygnature Dish locations nationwide. Vetro Lounge, also at Forge Island, will open on April 30.

📈 Over 15 years ago, hotel revenue management was challenging for small hotel owners due to scarce, expensive solutions designed for larger hotels. Options were limited to hiring full-time revenue managers or outsourcing. Today, fewer than 30% of hotels globally use dedicated revenue management solutions, often relying on intuition and manual processes. Advanced AI-driven solutions now provide real-time data analysis, actionable recommendations, and allow hotel teams to focus on marketing, optimizing distribution, and creating promotions to differentiate their offerings and attract guests.

🍴 NIJŪ, a Japanese restaurant in Mayfair, London, celebrates its first anniversary on April 26 with a special menu by Executive Chef Chris Golding and Culinary Director Endo Kazutoshi. Known for seasonality and craftsmanship, NIJŪ offers modern Japanese cuisine, Katei Ryōri style dishes, and premier Wagyu and Kobe beef cooked on a Konro grill. A six-course menu, including sushi, sashimi, and matcha white chocolate fondant, is priced at £110 per head, plus £70 for wine pairings.

📖 Bret Thorn, Senior Food & Beverage Editor for Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality, joined in 1999. Host of "In the Kitchen with Bret Thorn" podcast. Wrote "Kitchen Dish" column for The New York Sun (2005-2008). Lived in Thailand (circa 1994-1999), writing for Manager magazine and Asia Times. Graduated magna cum laude from Tufts University (1990), Phi Beta Kappa member, studied traditional French cooking at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. Worked for ABC News during Tiananmen Square protests (1989). Won 2006 Jesse H. Neal Award, inducted into Disciples d’Escoffier (2014), author in the Oxford Encyclopedia (2012) and Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets (2015). Lives in Brooklyn, NY.

💸 Independent hotels and boutique properties often miss revenue opportunities, such as underpricing rooms by $20 during events or failing to upsell. These oversights can lead to thousands or tens of thousands of dollars in annual losses. RevOptimum specializes in revenue performance optimization, helping hotels reclaim lost income through strategies like daily pricing optimization, OTA strategy management, and intelligent forecasting. They work with PMS systems like Cloudbeds and Mews to maximize hotel performance.