It's the Experience that Counts

Hi folks,

I just got back from a six-day trip to Hawai'i. More specifically, I spent all my time on the island of O'ahu, shuffling from beach to beach and going on amazing hikes. Over the holiday, I picked up a book by Jonathan Tisch, CEO of Loews Hotels, called Chocolates On The Pillow Aren't Enough. In short, he basically says that it's not enough for companies to offer a unique product or service, especially in this economy. What keeps customers coming back is the experience.

I'd like to tell you about all the times that made my trip to Hawai'i memorable.

I've always been averse to flying any American airline, mostly because I'm so spoilt by the comfort and efficiency of Cathay Pacific. However, I flew Northwest to Honolulu this time around. The flight left on time, give or take five minutes, which was better than I expected. The seat was comfortable and I was asleep in no time after takeoff. What clinched the deal for me was the service, the flight attendants were extremely attentive and responded quickly to all my requests for water. Even after they had served me a cup of orange juice already, the attendant noticed I was twiddling my cup and quickly asked me if I wanted more. Perhaps I won't be so biased in the future, for this flight was one of the best domestic ones I've taken in the US.

In Hawai'i, the next memorable moment occured at the Waikiki Marina Resort. We had arrived at the hotel and were looking for the reception. One very attentive bellhop called us by name and pointed us in the direction of the hotel front desk. Turns out the Resort was part of a much larger complex, and the hotel check-in was on the second floor. My friends commented that the bellhop was so cheerful and willing to help that they all remembered his name: Calvin.

On O'ahu, there is a chain of convenience stores called ABC Stores. I often drop in on these locations to buy water for the day. There were two times when I didn't have enough coins, and both times, in true demonstrations of Hawaiian hospitality, the cashiers were willing to chip in a few cents to round up the purchase. Simple task, but a memorable one nonetheless.

During our trip, we also hit up a couple of beaches. One of them was called Sandy Beach, on the south shore of O'ahu. The beach is popular with the locals, but also has one of the highest rates of neck breaking due to the shorebreak and rip tide. I don't know if our group appeared to be foreign, even though we had a couple of locals with us, but one of the lifeguards jumped off his post to come to talk to us about the dangers in the water. He certainly could've stayed up there and continued looking suave in his red lifeguard shorts, but he took the time to warn us. I really appreciated that.

It doesn't take much for a trip to be memorable, just a combination of little things that make the experience all the more enjoyable.

Thanks for checking in, and I hope to see you again soon.

What Gen Y Wants to Eat

Hi folks,

Looks like my postings have become more and more sporadic. I do apologize. So, anyways... last night I had special dinner with my fraternity. You ask, it's just dinner, what is so special? Simply put, a "special dinner" is prepared by a chef solely devoted to your group's event, which makes for good quality control, and typically, better food than the dining hall, but many steps below the food you might find at Bouchon.

Let's run through some of the food we had. For hors d'oeuvres, we had a wonderful concoction of spinach + goat cheese on a filo pastry, some baked bread with roasted garlic, plus your typical fruits and nuts. Our salad was made up of sliced mozzarella, sliced tomatoes, and a piece of fresh basil. A boring dish, to say the least. I was eagerly anticipating the New York strip steaks and the grilled salmon with mango salsa, only to find out that the former was way too overcooked. Which chef doesn't know that in order to be able to properly appreciate the flavor in the meat, it has to be done medium, even medium rare? A well-done steak is too dry and tastes like cardboard. As for the salmon, I'd give it 6/10 points because I love fish, but seriously, it was like it'd been taken out into the burning sun and dried to a crisp. Still, the food was admittedly better than what we get in the dining halls usually. The high point of the night was the chocolate dipped strawberries plus a vanilla ice cream pastry. Sue me having a sweet tooth.

NY strip steak, grilled salmon w/ mango salsa, mixed vegetables and red potatoes

Chocolate dipped strawberries w/ vanilla ice cream

On a related note, I was reading a brief released by Sodexho, a foodservice provider to over 600 campuses in the United States and Canada, which talked about college students' taste buds. Apparently, we're all well-traveled (cough), celebrity-chef exposed (Rachael Ray, really?), and green-minded (definitely) students.

Sodexho thinks that 20 years ago, people our age liked to eat chicken nuggets, chicken chop suey, Spanish beef and rice, and Algerian lamb stew, to name a few of their observations. In 2009, we like locally-grown vegetables, crispy garlic-ginger chicken wings, Vietnamese Pho, and Mac 'n Cheese, in addition to other comfort foods. How insightful.

Read the brief and let me know what you think. Thanks for checking in and I hope to see you again soon.