Across many developed societies, customer value is increasingly created through immaterial aspects of consumption; beyond delivering quality products and services, progressive brands are expanding their focus toward experiential value creation that translates into compelling and memorable customer experiences. This is particular crucial in the luxury hospitality industry, where guest loyalty is more likely to stem from the enjoyment of tangible and intangible service propositions, and the emotional connection guests’ encounter with the host before, during, and after their stay experience.
Experiential dining – The Ritz-Carlton Sanya Yalong Bay experience
A brand that recognizes the experiential value dimensions when engaging with their guests, is The Ritz-Carlton Group of Hotels. Established in 1983 – the Ritz-Carlton trademark dates back to the early 1900’s when legendary Caesar Ritz defined the standard of luxury hospitality, and who developed and operated two of the world’s best hotels in Paris (The Ritz) and London (the Carlton Hotel).
Executive Chef Andrés Jiménez – Experiential dining – The Ritz-Carlton Sanya Yalong Bay experience
With a global portfolio of 89 hotels in 29 countries – part of The Ritz-Carlton mystique is the ‘Fulfillment of Unexpressed Wishes and Needs’. “At The Ritz-Carlton in Sanya Yalong Bay [Hainan Island], we understand the importance of emotionally engaging our guests through quality and story-telling experiences”, explains Executive Chef Andrés Jiménez. Addressing the culinary wishes and needs of our guest, for example, Chef Jiménez and his team pride themselves in delivering upmost quality across a diverse range of dining venue options. Aside from a relentless focus on the meal itself, the culinary team is equally enthusiastic about the context and meaning guests apply to the place, the type of service, the environment, its unique attributes – the ambience all round.
Experiential dining – The Ritz-Carlton Sanya Yalong Bay experience
“To ensure we maximize the experiential content of our product delivery, we begin by learning where our ‘ladies and gentlemen’ [the Ritz-Carlton way of referring to their guests a swell as their staff] are coming from, and what interests they have to explore and experience new cuisines. We then consider important attributes that can enhance the meal as well as the overall dining experience, explains Chef Jiménez. As the creative lead over the resorts’ 7 culinary outlets, Chef Jiménez and his team are mindful of guest expectations more akin to being in vacation surrounds.
Experiential dining – The Ritz-Carlton Sanya Yalong Bay experience
To offer a truly unique dining experience, his culinary team is trained to observe evolving consumer tastes, thus experimenting with meal varieties and menu compositions. “For instance, we observed guests coming from evolving cities like Shanghai and Beijing are increasingly open to experience new cuisines – as long as there are some familiar references to their respective customary fare. We are now starting to introduce foods from various origins [like India, Australia and France], and blend these with flavors and complimentary ingredients more familiar to our guests from the aforementioned city regions”, says Chef Jiménez.
The Ritz-Carlton Sanya – celebrate at the Sand Restaurant
Trained at the renowned Le Cordon Blue, Chef Jiménez adds: “while quality and value remain primary considerations across all of our menu items, we focus more increasingly on the holistic dining experience. In our all-day dining restaurant “Fresh 8”, for example, guests can create and experience Hainan Noodle dishes in over 250 variations – meeting the experiential tastes of our guests no matter their origin. Soon, we will introduce our new seasonal menu in “Sands” – an al fresco dining restaurant overlooking the magnificent Yalong Bay Beach. Guests will be able to compare and experience some of the great dishes from different corners of the world. However, Chef Jiménez is quick to add – that staying in tune with culinary trends is as important as understanding cultural customs and the food traditions of our guests.
Indeed, luxury hospitality brands – like The Ritz-Carlton increasingly place much greater focus on the customer experience paradigm, designing experiential value through product selections, ambiance and unique service encounters, thus engaging guests in co-creating compelling experiences as memorable events.
Property Address: The Ritz-Carlton Sanya, Hainan 572000, China
