TOP NEWS

🍽 Bret Thorn, a senior food & beverage editor for Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality since 1999, is known for his expertise in food trends, French cuisine, and Asian cuisines. He hosts the "In the Kitchen" podcast and contributes to food encyclopedias. Thorn won the 2006 Jesse H. Neal Award and served as IFEC president in 2005. He was inducted into the Disciples d’Escoffier in 2014. Thorn is a Tufts University graduate and a Colorado native residing in Brooklyn, NY.

📱 Guests at participating hotels can now skip traditional check-in, accessing rooms via mobile devices, enhancing efficiency and guest satisfaction. In Belgium's YUST Antwerp, 12% used Digital Key in the first month, with 64% of mobile key recipients utilizing them for room access. This reduces lost key risks and plastic usage. Mews and Salto's partnership supports digitalizing hotel operations, improving both security and user experience.

🏨 Royal River Luxury Hotel, Tenerife, achieved significant performance improvements from January to June 2025. The Global Review Index™ reached 94.8%, a gain of 3.2 points from 2024, surpassing the European 5-star average of 89-90%. The Semantic Analysis Score rose by 5.1 points to 85.4%, and the Management Response Rate improved to 95.4%, exceeding the average of 70%. Zero order errors were reported across five outlets, thanks to data-driven strategies and technology integration.

📚 July/August 2025, HOTELS Magazine highlights: Global hotel rankings in "The List"; BWH Hotels' CEO Larry Cuculic featured; BD Hotels expands to Palm Beach; Hyatt Hotels in New Orleans; focus on brand partnerships; middleware tech's crucial role; "I Do" F&B business; Texan design at Denizen McKinney Hotel; JLL insights on luxury investments. Explore the full issue for comprehensive industry updates.

💻 Chris, speaking at HITEC in Indianapolis, shared his family's deep history in tech and AI, including an aunt knighted for AI work in the Netherlands and a cousin working at Booking.com. Chris, VP of Products at Actabl, focuses on analytics and AI experimentation. He shared his career journey, from early work in a medical practice to AI-driven marketing projects. He emphasized AI's capacity for rapid learning and adaptation, predicting significant advancements beyond today's capabilities.

📆 Summer 2025, Propel Tech's testers evaluated five flight booking platforms for usability. Skyscanner and Google Flights topped with 8/10 for speed and price transparency, booking completed in around one minute. Kayak scored 7/10, hindered by slower desktop speed (30 seconds). Expedia and Opodo got 6/10 due to complex navigation. Testing focused on booking confirmation time, search accuracy, price transparency, and load speed. Iain MacFadyen emphasized the need for speed and accuracy during peak travel season.

💳 Cove Bay Hotel near Aberdeen, Scotland, saw a 40% boost in direct bookings by adopting STAAH's channel management tools. Originally a late 1700s illegal drinking house, the hotel modernized its booking system due to owner Guy Craig's vision. STAAH's innovative tools like WatchMyRate and Get Google enhanced rate competitiveness and market visibility, transforming the hotel's distribution strategy. The partnership provided real-time data and automation, ensuring the hotel remains competitive in a digital world.

📚 Ryan Bukstein discusses mentorship's impact, sharing insights from his experiences as both a mentor and mentee. Explore more about Ryan’s firm, SMPL, and listen to his other episodes for further learning. If you find value in this episode, share it with your team to implement these ideas and enhance both your business and team dynamics. Music for the show is crafted by Clay Bassford from Bespoke Sound.

💻 2025, the hospitality industry is set to transform with cloud-based Property Management Systems (PMS), enhancing hotel operations. Using these tools, hotels can scale, reduce errors, and improve service quality, meeting evolving guest expectations. This transition enables better adaptability and efficiency for hotels globally, according to a guide published on July 11, 2025, by Vanshikha Dhar on the Hotelogix blog.

🍴 Astet Studio's "Smoked Room" at The St. Regis Residences, Palm Jumeirah, Dubai, wins the 2025 Prix Versailles for "Most Beautiful Restaurant in the World." Selected from 16 global finalists, this 14-seat omakase restaurant, led by Spanish chef Dani García, is praised for its bold design and live fire kitchen. The space offers an immersive dining experience with dramatic lighting and metallic accents, highlighting the studio's expertise in blending architectural precision with storytelling.