The 23rd floor club lounge of the Ritz-Carlton Doha, Qatar, has been a success since the 374-room hotel opened in 2001. In August 2017 the hotel finished a 2.5-year renovation, which included a complete re-think on the lounge. Design and construction was by the in-house team at owner Katara Holding, whose chief operating officer is long-time Four Seasons executive Andrew Humphreys.
“We wanted it to be a residential journey,” explained Turkey-born Erden Kendigeni, the hotel’s general manager. “One room is arrival and welcome, one is sitting room, one is dining room, with more formal seating, and there is the kitchen, hub of the whole concept.”
The kitchen area actually is two rooms, one a stylish version of a traditional buffet, with a coffee machine and a five-bottle wine dispenser. The other room is dominated by a 6-foot-long induction range where a chef is on duty, and cooking on demand, from 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. This requires three additional culinary hires but, Kedigeni said, it is more than worth it as they cook to customer request.
Fifty-six of the bedrooms and suites have club access (the surcharge is US$90, rising to US$110 at weekends, and no one else can pay to use the lounge). Whereas average stay in other rooms is two nights, for a club room or suite it is four nights, and customer satisfaction is noticeably higher than in other rooms.
“I think we have got it right. I know even luxury guests may want a quick grab-and-go and they can grab a bite, or have a full meal cooked to order. In six months, indeed, this is now the most highly rated club lounge in the entire Ritz-Carlton system, globally,” the GM said with justifiable pride.