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A table trick to boost F&B orders at Abu Dhabi Park Hyatt

Before the October 2011 opening of Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi Hotel & Villas, on Abu Dhabi’s beautiful Saadiyat Island, General Manager Stuart Deeson knew he had to maximize the resort’s appeal to sun-and-sand vacation travelers. He targeted Germans, who particularly appreciate spending many hours sun-bathing, with a good book.

Room for a book and a beverage at the Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi's poolside lounge table.
Room for a book and a beverage at the Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi’s poolside lounge table.

Part of the opening initiative was to make the pool experience as pleasing as possible. Working with Wilson & Co., designers of the 306-key hotel, Deeson devised easily portable stands to accompany lounge chairs. The two-tiered tables were subsequently supplied by a furniture wholesaler in Dubai, an hour away. Nearly every lounge chair has an accompanying table: In all, there are 300 chairs around the pools and 275 on the beach.

Deeson is now GM for a nearby property, Hyatt Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi, and he is also Hyatt’s area vice president for Abu Dhabi, Egypt and Jordan. As such, he is still minutely involved with Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi – and its lounge-chair tables. “They continue to be a great success. Guests store books and other belongings on the lower shelf. Because of the upper shelf, they are more likely to order food, usually such simple dishes as fruit platters or salads. Colleagues like the tables as they are easy to move, maintain and keep clean. This is, overall, a fun place,” he said.

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