Successful Meetings - June 2008 - (Page 22)

Food & Beverage > Executive Chef Frank Tujague Westin New York The Zen of Menu Planning Feng shui, the ancient Chinese art of creating harmony and balance in an environment through the careful arrangement of objects, has been quietly making its way into the meeting room. First, it entered the boardroom, as companies such as Accordingly, Tujague’s feng shui-inspired menu creates well-balanced meals out of foods and drinks of different colors, textures, and flavors. The meeting menu comprises buffets for one breakfast and two breaks. He starts with a bowl of Feng Shui Menu Cost: starts at $150 per person (includes cost of meeting room) Maximum group size: 300 Dow Jones, Virgin Airways, and Microsoft began to incorporate the doctrine into the design of their offices. Next, hotels began to offer feng shui consultants to assist in the layout of meeting room furniture. And now, the Westin New York at Times Square is offering a feng shui-inspired menu for groups who hold meetings there. “Part of the Westin brand, and what we’re all about as a company, is inspiration and rejuvenation, and those things that keep you well balanced,” says Executive Chef Frank Tujague, who joined the property last year. “I was looking to create a menu to embody all of those things, and one of the ways that’s done is through feng shui.” So Tujague applied the guiding principle of feng shui—balance—to the composition of the menu. “Creating a culinary work of art is all about balance between the sweet and the savory, the spicy and the salty, and between the different textures. That is in addition to elements that encourage the appetite: having food that is vibrant, abundant, and that gives the body what it needs.” colorful, whole, ripe fruit and moves on to a variety of sliced fruits along with “super food”-inspired smoothies in shot glasses, for additional color and texture. The menu continues with sustainable foods, including organic nuts and yogurts, flaxseed muffins, and other healthy and natural offerings. The buffets are then carefully arranged on a multi-level display. (The feng shui experience can be further enhanced by feng shui candles and scents, if desired.) Tujague admits that this specialized menu offering may not be right for all groups. “A lot of groups already know exactly how they want the meeting to go, and they don’t want any distractions or unusual scents [or foods],” he says. “For this, it’s about finding the right group to fit the menu, rather than the other way around.” If the recent attention paid to feng shui by Corporate America is any indication, finding that right fit will only get easier. By Suzie Amer JUNE 2008 SUCCESSFUL MEETINGS 22 mimegasite.com http://mimegasite.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - June 2008

Successful Meetings - June 2008 Contents Editor's Note Industry Trends Events Suppliers Associations Planner Spotlight: Kelly Broz Technology Talk Food & Beverage Websites of the Month Pre-Event: Tech Pre-Event: Bartering Tools of the Trade Dialing for Dollars The All-in-One Resort Bottom-Line Speakers Places & Spaces Florida’s West Coast Mississippi Atlanta Wisconsin Chicago Gurus Enjoy California Hawaii Handbook Las Vegas Night & Day

Successful Meetings - June 2008

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