Too many cooks in the kitchen is a problem Hyatt Place may never have. “It’s a small space, and it’s designed for one person to prepare everything,” says John Vogelmeier, director of F&B operations, Hyatt Select Hotels Group.

That small space is about 900 square feet, or the size of one hotel room, according to Vogelmeier. Inside that kitchen, Hyatt has implemented a six-point brand strategy to maximize its foodservice goals:

1. Limit labor.
2. Minimize the kitchen footprint.
3. Streamline the food delivery method to enable 24/7 service.
4. Lock in a higher level of food safety through sous vide and less handling by cooks.
5. Conserve energy through technologically advanced equipment.
6. Limit waste of raw materials.

Hyatt Place Facts

• By the end of 2008, there will be 140 properties converted from the former AmeriSuites brand.
• By the end of 2008, 9 new-build Hyatt Place hotels are slated to open.
• In 2009, 72 new-build Hyatt Place hotels will be open.

Michael Koffler, VP of corporate operations at Hyatt, says each Hyatt Place has a substantial number of business travelers checking in and out at all hours in each 120-plus-room property. Because of this, having a large kitchen staff operating in a full-service environment wouldn’t make sense.

“It all adds up to balancing high-end results with low upfront costs and continuing expenses,” says Koffler. “So far, guest feedback has been phenomenal. We’re exceeding our wildest expectations on the number of returning customers.”

A closer look inside the kitchen reveals something similar to a galley kitchen on a battleship, producing meals quickly in a limited space.

FILLING THE FOOTPRINT
“It was a good six months of going to different vendors and kitchen equipment manufacturers to make sure we were picking the right items that could hold our concept over time with the brand,” Koffler says.

The Hyatt Place kitchen uses three core pieces of equipment to prepare hot meals: A Merrychef 402S accelerated cooking oven, a Pitco CRTE rethermalizer (a circulating hot water bath that can heat up sous vide pouches of food), and a Lincoln Impinger conveyor oven.

Vogelmeier says a large portion of the food being prepared is sous vide products from companies such as Cuisine Solutions and Stir Foods, which cook in a matter of minutes and are plated by a single cook.

“We’re able to construct a meal that seems like we have a culinary team back there, and we’ve put it together so each of our associates is able to do what a chef would do, not necessarily in cooking meals, but in plating them,” Vogelmeier says.

Across from the ovens is a work table with a bin of condiments for assembling sandwiches and other cold food items. A few feet to the left is a Victory reach-in cooler and freezer, and in the back of the kitchen is a dishwashing area.

Although there’s a lot of equipment in a small area, Vogelmeier says there’s not much employee training required to accompany it. In fact, little to no prior culinary experience is needed to work in the Hyatt Place kitchen.

LEVERAGING LABOR
“We refer to our kitchen as an assembly kitchen, not a prep kitchen,” says Vogelmeier. “If someone spends 25 minutes with me, they’re ready to work. We’ve put together step-by-step recipes with photos in a binder on the wall that can easily be referenced by our staff.”

Because no formal culinary background is necessary to operate the Hyatt Place kitchen, Vogelmeier says the brand has “cross-trained the entire staff, so during peak periods, anybody can lend a hand preparing food.” He also says food safety is heightened due to fewer people handling raw materials. Much of the work has been done off-property at sous vide preparation facilities under controlled conditions.

At its busiest times, Hyatt Place has five associates working: one in the kitchen, one in the customer foodservice area, one at the front desk, a “floater” who helps where needed, and a manager. All of them can cook and plate food if necessary.

Vogelmeier also says guests have been trained by other brands like McDonald’s and Starbucks to bus their own tables, which takes additional labor out of the equation.

FOOD FLEXIBILITY
Because the foodservice is based around a low-labor, high-technology, sous vide-focused model, Koffler says many companies beyond Cuisine Solutions and Stir Foods have offered to customize entrées for Hyatt Place, giving the brand more flexibility to regionalize menus in the future.

“In just the last year, more manufacturers have taken advantage of the cooking technology, which opens up the next generation of food products for a kitchen model like this one,” Koffler says.

Hyatt Place has expanded the flexibility of their kitchen concept to allow an additional Merrychef to be used in the lobby kitchen area for off-hours production. And a larger meetings menu was created for small groups staying at the hotel, which helps keep additional revenue in the hotel and out of the hands of off-site caterers.

“We can actually do meetings for 30 to 60 people and deliver a banquet-style lunch buffet. It’s accounting for almost a third of the food and beverage revenue coming into the hotels,” Koffler says.

BRAND STANDARD
Hyatt Place was created to replace the AmeriSuites brand, with more than 130 conversions taking place in North America. Even though the argument could be made that the Hyatt Place kitchen is more a concept for utilizing space in an existing property, Vogelmeier says the model has been so successful that all new-build Hyatt Place hotels will keep the same back-of-the-house footprint that the converted AmeriSuites have.

“Ten years ago, I don’t think we could have done this consistently across so many properties. The kitchen equipment technology and sous vide distribution were not as advanced as they are now. It’s really been an evolution.”

Michael Costa is industry relations editor for HOTEL F&B.