European
hospitality
Each year around
the time of my birthday Wendy, Steve and I set sail for somewhere interesting in Europe. This year though we are
without our dear friend Lin whom we have toasted several times and who I am
consequently blaming for my hangover today. In the last 10 years we've
experienced some real wonders from the ruins of Pompei to the grand bazaar in
Marrakech. This year we are in Northern Spain and have just finished two
days in Santiago de Compostela, an ancient town on the pilgrimage route and
with a wonderful old city still full of mystery and charm.
A warm welcome...
It's amazing how
even in just two days you can be made to feel like a local, or certainly a
regular. Even a girl who was sitting on the train with us and tried in
vain to ask us a question in Spanish remembered us when we met again in a tapas
bar in the Old Town. She greeted us as if we were old friends. It just
goes to show, it's the people who make the difference. The
most fantastic food can be made to taste rancid, if accompanied by indifferent
service. The lightest cappuccino can taste flat with poverty of interest from
barista and any hotel can feel cold when greeted by teams who simply don't
care.
Forget trips to the USA to experience customer service get
yourself over to Santiago! For a place to stay head for Hotel Altair
where the teams offer fantastic service and the rooms are contemporary, stylish
and comfortable but still ooze old building charm with their exposed stone
walls and wooden furniture.
Tapas
For authentic
tapas you need to go to Gato Negro in the old town. Don't be fooled by
the shear underwhelming nature of the small bar as you walk in. The functional
marble counters and barrels of local wine all served in ceramic beakers, hide a
wealth of great food. The melt in the mouth liver and onions, the clams
in tomato sauce and local cheese were outstanding.
My final
recommendation is for a tapas bar on a Michelin level but without the price
tag. Located in little alley and almost looking as if it's closed is the
'O Curro da Parra' bar. From the minute I walked through the door they
made the first move and greeted me. Even the chef behind the grill called over
to welcome me back. Informal and relaxed, the service was borderline
flirtatious but made me feel special and important. It's no wonder we went
back a second time in two days, something we wouldn't have done, if the service had
not been outstanding. The croquettes coated in breadcrumbs and grated hard
cheese were perfection and the house speciality, medium cooked burgers, topped
with Foi Gras and a truffle cream, were the finest quality I've ever tasted.
Great people make all the difference
In a world where profit margins are cut to the bone and we have to
get smarter about keeping our tills 'ka-chinging' through these recessional times,
Santiago (Saint James) provides the answer as he has for pilgrims for the last
thousand years. His message for our times; great people with generosity of
hospitality will make the difference people want.
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