Posted by Andrea Doyle under Food and DrinkResponses (2)

Sweet, delectable, decadent chocolate was featured in every imaginable form at The Ritz-Carlton New York, Battery Park’s “Carnival of Chocolate.”  A Ferris wheel, roller coaster, and carousel, painted in chocolate, displayed the mouth-watering offerings that ranged from chocolate covered coconut macaroons to chocolate streusel Napoleon. Waffles were made to order, covered in, chocolate of course, and served with banana ice cream. Cotton candy, champagne, and chocolate martinis were also in abundance.

Colorful lights strung throughout the room added to the carnival theme but not to be outdone are the hotel’s breathtaking views of the Statue of Liberty and New York Harbor.  The artist behind this calorie-laden carnival is Pastry Chef Laurent Richard. It is available on Friday and Saturday nights from February 6 to February 28 for $75 per person.

Kate Harth, director of sales and marketing at the hotel, said a similar chocolate bar can be incorporated into a group's welcome reception or dessert function with the promise of adding, “wow." Not to mention a few thousand calories but it is oh so worth it. 

Posted by Will Ng Responses (0)

A Baltimore Examiner report says the city, home of second-tier goodness, is on the up-and-up.

Baltimore Area CVA prez Tom Noonan was quoted that the city has already surpassed 60% of its goal of 475,000 room nights for its current fiscal year. He attributes the robust performance to the new Hilton Baltimore next to the convention center. Most of the groups are medical.

Noonan says in the Examiner report: "Our product has gotten dramatically better... Our goal is to be the best second-tier city, and really, we want to be a one-and-a-half-tier city."

That's not all. We reported (p. 32) that Baltimore is working on a big ambassador program, which intends to send several thousand roving agents throughout downtown to show visitors the way. 

And next year, it's hosting AIBTM—the U.S. version of EIBTM—sure to give Baltimore a jolt in profile among foreign planners and industry pros. Seems B-more is on a big roll, ready to realize its "one-and-a-half" dream.

Posted by Will Ng Responses (0)

It's no secret that 2009 will be a challenging one for hotels trying to fill beds and ballrooms. 

Flipping through the pages of Stereophile magazine, I sense many hotels will be looking forward to hosting audiophile meetings—as well as other types of SMERF groups—if corporate and professional association business does indeed experience a major retrenchment. 

Numerous Stereophile ads are about meets at the local Marriott for one or two days of educational sessions about room acoustics and music playback technologies, listening rooms (think guest rooms with most of their furniture removed and replaced by metal folding chairs), and ballroom aisles filled with the latest stereo equipment and used albums from a time when music was actually recorded decently. 

High-end audio is one hobby that is unlikely to see much, if any, downturn. It is predominantly made up of well-heeled professionals who like to spend some (i.e., a lot) of their discretionary income on boutique (read: expensive) loudspeakers, amplifiers, CD players, and vinyl record players—yes vinyl—in their quest for squeezing out that last milli-ounce of detail out of their cherished or rare recordings. They suffer from a disease called "upgraditis," which is good for the health of the host hotels, since it guarantees that they'll be minimal no-shows. 

Hotels will be looking to these hardcore types to stop by the lobby Starbucks for a latte, grab a sandwich or a steak dinner at the restaurant, and even spend a night. Properties will also be looking for business from other esoteric markets like cat and dog shows (not together, obviously). And it's all good—whatever keeps hotels afloat amid in the sinkhole called the 2009 economy. 

Of course, high-end audio is just a fractional niche of the consumer electronics market, and the grand daddy of consumer electronics shows will kick off tomorrow. 

Even in the brutal economy, the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas is expected to get 130,000 gadgeteers to Sin City. While expectations for CES aren't as lofty this year, with many electronics manufacturers scaling back the pageantry and festivities, electronics industry pundits argue that as more people stay home to spend less money, they will put what they are able to spend towards improving their in-home entertainment. I also understand that netbook computers are a hot item this year, serving as cheaper alternatives to laptop PCs. 

One of MeetingNews' correspondents, Michael Goldstein, will attend and report on CES from the meetings' point of view in an upcoming issue. 

CES has traditionally sped Las Vegas out of the gates at the start of each year; let's hope it does again this year for the meetings mecca, which has been struggling of late. The meetings industry needs a strong and vibrant Las Vegas. 

Posted by Will Ng Responses (0)

Imagine my surprise last night as I watching a hockey game on the Versus network when I saw an ad by the Aruba Tourism Authority. Caught off-guard, I first wondered why Aruba chose to advertise on Versus, a sports network known for covering bull riding, mixed martial arts, and repeats of Jean-Claude Van Damme's Bloodsport, watched at most by a dozen people other than myself (and I only tune in when National Hockey League games are on). As I wondered about this, I decided to pay closer attention... Who's that walking on the beach with that leggy model? Is that...Lewis Black?!

Yes, indeed, it was the stand-up comedian and satirist, who's known for his manic, about-to-blow-a-gasket rants on politics, current events, and religion in his sold-out shows and on Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Out of all the possible celebrities Aruba could've chosen for its series of new ads, Black—who's renowned for going into the blue as much as the Yankees spend money on free agents–is a rather odd choice. Not that I'm offended by Black—I find him hilarious—but the island could've went with a more innocuous choice of comedian, at the risk of offending the other 12 people watching. No, not Kathy Griffin, and no, not Bob Saget, either. 

Well, at least Aruba kept Black PG-rated: Black's episodes