Exclusive Interview | Pradip Rangole Head Brewer, Balaso, Gold Rush Brews

A Good Beer Makes everyone happy…

-Head Brewer

Pradeep Rangole

Tell us about your journey. How did it all start? 

In my almost 10 years of experience in the craft brewing industry. I have a master’s in brewing from VSI, Pune. I have worked with various breweries across Bangalore and Pune. I started my career as an assistant brewer in an Irish village brewery, in Pune. 

Which one thing makes you curious about the brewing industry?

 Hmm, there is nothing to be curious about the brewing industry, all breweries make great beer.

What obstacles have you faced so far in your 9 years of journey and how do you deal with it?

Oh yes, how the journey became successful without obstacles. As I say brewing is a science plus an Art, so in all years facing so many obstacles came in brewing like troubleshooting problems, beer making according to the consumer’s palate, and brewing with fruit-based (sour beers). But every day is a new day you will learn something, it's only possible because of teamwork and if you have good mentors.

 What are the attributes you look for while selecting or hiring? If someone wants to work with you, what should they do?

  They should first be from a Science background because brewing is a science plus art, they should know about basic brewing knowledge.   

Which one skill a brewer needs to have in the brewing industry according to you?

 Brewers should be passionate about brewing and creating something new.

 What is the uniqueness of Gold Rush Brewery?

 So here we are making the finest craft brews like German Hefeweizen, American pale ale, Belgian tripel, and Munich Helles lager(Oktoberfest) using imported high-quality raw materials as well as serving delicious food.

 What is the main Idea behind this Cowboy theme in Gold Rush Brews?

 Keeping clientele satisfaction and authenticity as their topmost priorities, as one walks into the premise, they would be truly amazed by the vast greenery in the middle of the city. There are several types of settings to entertain all groups of clientele. When it comes to the food, starting from the appetizers to desserts, everything will satisfy all the human elements like smell, taste, and vision. The goal of the Gold Rush is to correctly capture the mood of those happy times and the delicious meals that went along with it. A place where one can feel confident enough to be oneself and let their guard down.

Two things you would like to change in the industry.

 If you ask me that, I can say the industry is changing so fast because when i started brewing there were few breweries across India and now in small cities also breweries are opening. We just share the proper beer knowledge to the consumers. 

 What advice would you give to a young, aspiring hotelier for their internship?

 If anyone is really interested to learn about brewing you can do it but do it with passion & creativity.

 What is your favourite question for a candidate interview and why?

 Why do you want to become a brewer?  I've always wanted to combine my love of art with science, and my preferred beverage is a fine beer. I started the voyage out of a desire to learn more about brewing. Every batch of beer I produce has my heart and soul in it to the very core. I plan to continue evolving as a brewer. Observing the smile on my guest's face makes me feel satisfied.

Exclusive Interview | Pramod Verma, Restaurant Manager,The World Residence at Sea

“Managing your time wisely is the key to success”

— Pramod Verma

Editor: Tell us about your journey. How did it all start? 

• My first experience in hospitality was working for “Uncle Chips” as a part-time sales staff after my 12th standard exam in 1994. 

• In 1997, I passed out from IHM Mumbai where I did my Training in Oberoi Mumbai and started working for Hotels like Marina Plaza, Mumbai, and Le Royal Meridien, Mumbai.

• My first stint at Cruise Ships was in 2003 with Airtours UK for a contract.

• In 2004 I joined Cunard Cruise lines “The Most Famous Ocean Liners” in the World.

• In 2016 I got an opportunity to work for “The World” The largest private residential ship on the planet, home to only 165 Residences.

Editor: What do you think it takes to succeed in this industry? 

• Attitude 

• Resilience

• Knowledge 

• Great people skills, 

• Exceptional attention to detail,

• leadership 

• Teamwork skills 

Editor: What advice would you give to a young, aspiring hotelier for their internship?

• Meet your coworkers. Introduce yourself to everyone in your department.

• Set goals.

• Watch and learn.

• Be professional.

• Keep busy.

• Stay organized.

• Manage your time wisely. Write everything down.

• Keep track of your projects.

Editor: What are some of the trends you see impacting the hospitality industry?

• Mobile app for easy access.

• Tech Explosion.

• Self-check-in to minimize guests' waiting time.

• Voice-activated virtual assistants for anything, and everything.

• Technology to run hotels and bring bookings.

• Sustainability efforts affecting the environment.

• Increase efforts on health and well-being of a guest.

• Real-time damage control,

• Unique Perks.

• Catering to Millennials.

Editor: Two things you would like to change in the industry.

• Hospitality staff needs to be paid well in India if we need to encourage the new generation to stay in the Industry. 

• A modern approach to Indian cuisine to make a global phenomenon.

Editor: What is your favorite interview question and why?

• Why should we hire you?

•  Because the answer to this question summarizes the whole interview process.

Exclusive Intevriew | Ajay Dwivedi, Food & Beverage Manager The Leela Goa, Mobor, Cavelossim, Go

“There is no shortcut to success. Instead of being good in everything try and be the best in one thing that you are passionate about.”

— Ajay Dwivedi

Editor: Tell us about your journey. How did it all start?

It was not a planned decision it just happened by chance. I had heard about Iconic Hotels which enticed me. I took the opportunity and had started my journey with IHM Srinagar. I am glad that I had chosen this amazing journey

Editor: What do you think it takes to succeed in this industry?

There is no shortcut to success. You need to be smart creative and a quick learner. In comparison to being good in everything try to be the best in one thing, you are passionate about. If you have beverage as passion, try to learn new trends/ mixology/molecular/. Enhance your knowledge and skill then there will be no stop to your success

Editor: What are the attributes you look for while selecting or hiring?  If someone wants to work with you, what should they do?

How well-updated are you with new trends and skillsets? How are you updating your knowledge? Everyone wants a TEAM with smart people. If you want to work with us spend time enhancing your skills. Prove that you will be able to bring something new to our table. Your positive attitude will find a way for you in our TEAM.

Editor: What advice would you give to a young, aspiring hotelier for their internship?

This is the most important time of your entire study curriculum. Make the most of it. Observe and observe, ask questions. Make regular notes this practical experience will be the crux of your professional journey.

Don’t waste it make most of it. Nowadays the world is moving at a rapid speed. Guests are well-traveled and looking forward to new trends and new products. So be on top of it and keep on updating yourselves

Editor: What are some of the trends you see impacting the hospitality industry?

Quality of Manpower. After such a great mushrooming of Hospitality colleges, students are not learning what they are supposed to know which is affecting overall Industry

Sustainability: Re-use, recycling is the need of the hour. The scarcity of natural resources is driving Eco-friendly practices, as properties focus on renewable energy resources and water scarcity. Many hotels are installing solar panels and updating systems so that air conditioners and lights automatically switch off when guests leave their rooms.

Editor: Two things you would like to change in the industry.

I wish GST can be aligned with other competitive Asian countries

I will like all industries to follow green practices to bring carbon footprint down. The ECOsystem is everyone’s responsibility

Editor: What is your favorite interview question and why?

“Where do you see yourself five years from now?”

It gives us clarity about the young mind. How well is he/ she is planned about him/herself? How confident about him/herself? How clearly, he/she has created a career path for himself, and how he wishes to attain the same?

Exclusive Interview | Ian Mahajan, Food and Beverage Manager | Raffles Seychelles

“one needs to be humble yet bold, be composed, yet positively aggressive. ”

— Ian Mahajan

Introduction: Ian Mahajan is an alumnus of IHM Bangalore with 16 years of industry experience in Food and Beverage. During this career journey, he worked with many brands like Marriott, Hyatt, Accor to name a few. Currently, he is the Food and beverage manager in Raffles Seychelles

Editor: Tell us about your journey. How did it all start?

I started in 2005 with JW Marriott Juhu after completing my BSc in hospitality from Bangalore, India. Then moved to Dubai and spent a little over a decade there, working with Hyatt and Minor International. To test the waters (not quite literally) I moved to Seychelles, worked with the Four Seasons followed Accor - Raffles which is my current home ground.

Editor: What do you think it takes to succeed in this industry?

Perception management, endurance, dedication, a lot of passion, and even more patience. You need to be humble yet bold, be composed, yet positively aggressive. 

Editor: What are the attributes you look for while selecting or hiring?  If someone wants to work with you, what should they do?

Needs to Have an engaging personality, ambitious and passionate 

Editor: What are some of the trends you see impacting the hospitality industry?

Sustainability, conscious eating, seamless technology, a dynamic approach towards everything, timeless travel gave the current situation   

Editor: Tech is now an enabler for great hospitality. Can you share with us some of the techs that go into creating your guest experience? 

• Strong wifi

• Mobile apps

• Whatsapp communication

• mobile check-ins

Editor: Two things you would like to change in the industry.

• The hiring process

• The concept of the minibar

Exclusive Interview | Tarun Kumar Assistant Food and Beverage Manager,Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah

“Passion, Passion, and Passion only takes you to Success”

— Tarun Kumar

Editor: Tell us about your journey. How did it all start? 

It all started with a short internship during school at one of the iconic luxury hotels in New Delhi the Taj Palace hotel. After this short but very interesting experience, I decided to pursue my hotel management career with IHM – Jodhpur and eventually got an opportunity to head start my career as a management trainee with the Taj group of hotels. 

Editor: What do you think it takes to succeed in this industry?

Passion, Passion, and Passion only. Hospitality demands a multitude of approaches and skills every day. Nonetheless, the basics will always remain the same irrespective of the format. As famous Restaurateur Danny Meyer quoted – Service is monologue but Hospitality is Dialogue.

Editor: What are the attributes you look for while selecting or hiring? If someone wants to work with you, what should they do? 

I always look for a passion for Hospitality first and technical always second. Personality is key as technology could be trained or learned. Like IQ or EQ, I look for the Hospitality Quotient in a successful candidate that I learned myself long back which is: Optimism, Self Awareness, Integrity and Intelligence not just smart but urge to learn consistently. 

Editor: What are some of the trends you see impacting the hospitality industry? 

Definitely, the cloud kitchens would be one the next thing coming out more capturing the market apart from this 

Affordable Luxury in accommodation segment an upper premium but with great value and

Bring Back Chef – Concept where customers would be able to invite their friends and family along with reputed chefs cooking and service team serving ala minute in there own home in a very niche and personalized setting or simply will see some of the very best names and brands in the industry would offer their meals including the branded delivery over user-friendly mobile apps. Kitch-In in Dubai is one exciting example.

Editor: Tech is now an enabler for great hospitality. Can you share with us some of the techs that go into creating your guest experience? 

Well, I always believe that technology is something that if supplemented well with the Human element can elevate the guest experience to a whole new level.

There have been important yet experiential tech abled solutions from Digital check-in to Touchless interactive Menu in restaurants to web-based mobile ordering solutions with payment capability around the pool and beach.

Editor: Two things you would like to change in the industry 

The fair review system - Not just for guests but also for the team. Think of a combination of TripAdvisor and Glassdoor.. isn't it exciting!!