In Room Dining @ DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Bangalore
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Aditya George
F&B Manager
DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Bangalore
What metrics do you track for IRD today?
In-Room Dining has further become a key aspect of hotel F&B operations after the onset of the pandemic. With the closure of restaurants & other dine-in facilities at the hotel, IRD has become the only source from which resident guests could order food. Due to this reason, tracking IRD orders is even more important as compared to pre-pandemic. We use the following metrics to gauge our IRD guest satisfaction:-
- Quality of food –guest rate or give feedback on the food they ordered
- Quality of service –guest rate or give feedback on the experience they had while interacting with the order taker and delivery attendant
- Speed of Delivery – the time taken to deliver the order into the guest room.
With all the new tech, tell us anything that you use for your IRD?
There have been many new technologies that have come into existence during the past year or so. While these options did exist in the past, the need to adopt them became essential only during the pandemic. We have explored the options of going completely digital via-
QR Code:- Where our IRD menu is accessed through a QR Code and the menu is then available to the guest on a mobile device to browse through. From here, they could either call and place the order or even continue with the same on the QR Code. The latter option is good but we mostly end up getting orders through direct calls. This is a slightly expensive proposition to undertake but if completely installed, it works seamlessly.
Whatsapp Business:- Another more cost-effective alternative to the digitalization of IRD is through utilizing WhatsApp Business Account. Here again, a QR Code can be generated which once scanned directly leads you to a chat with an IRD order taker from where you can further place your order without having to physically scan a menu or call and order. WhatsApp also allows you to have catalogue’s on your Business Account where you can pre-load menus and other information you may want to communicate to your guests.
What is so special about your IRD?
Flexibility - Our IRD is very flexible with the offerings we have for our guests. We have a large percentage of guests who stay for extended periods (5 nights +) hence, sometimes it gets a little monotonous for someone to keep ordering from the menu. When we know of long-staying guests, our IRD team along with our chefs connect with our guests to ensure all their preferences and dietary requirements are taken care of.
Special Menus – Again keeping in mind our guest profile, we have special menus on offer. On noticing when we have guests staying on single occupancy, regular portions for food would lead to food wastage. Keeping this in mind, we have designed offerings such as Thalis, Pizza Slice Menu, Half Portion Menu.
Grocery Lists – Another unique point for our hotel is the kitchenette set up in our hotel rooms. We have different packages where guests can pre-order their groceries before they check-in and reorder their supplies during their stay. These do become popular when we have families staying with us who are in the process of relocation and find this option very convenient for them.
What do you think IRD will look like in the coming years? (drone service, auto-delivery, food printing?)
I personally believe the digitization and automation will be restricted up to the order taking stage. From there on, guests would prefer human interaction for the preparation of their food and delivery of their order, where a chef will showcase his skills or the delivery attendant will set up the room or tray to replicate a restaurant in the room. This is especially true in a hotel setup where many guests come to experience service along with good quality food. The human connection will be able to give that personalised experience to our guests, which may not be possible through automation.
