e-Books at Bedtime
Jurys Inn has launched the first e-reader loan service for guests staying at Jurys Inn hotels in city centres across the UK. The trial service e-Books at Bedtime will offer all hotel guests the loan of an e-reader pre-loaded with a selection of short stories. Guests will also have the opportunity to download novels which they have started but neglected to bring in their luggage. Guests wanting to use the service will be requested to make a small donation to the National Literacy Trust. Initially e-readers will be made available in five trial hotels across the group including Newcastle, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Derby.
Gastronomic evening
South Sands Boutique Hotel & Beachside Restaurant will be holding a gastronomic evening on Thursday 13 October. Celebrated local restaurateur and food writer Mitch Tonks will be hosting the event which gives diners the chance to experience culinary delights from a five-course menu. Wines will be expertly selected to accompany each course by local master of wine Liam Steevenson who, along with Tonks, will be mingling with guests sharing their expertise and introducing each course and wine accompaniment. The event is taking place to celebrate South Sands’ new winter menu and to prepare for The South Sands Cookery Schools in early 2012.
Game week
Freemasons at Wiswell gastropub in Lancashire is holding its third annual game week beginning on 25 October in celebration of game cuisine. Andrew Pern, a finalist in the recent BBC2 series Great British Menu, will be creating a five-course dinner featuring mallard, partridge, pheasant, woodpigeon and deer. With the log fires roaring at Freemasons in October, game week is an effective way of meeting the high standards of its customers in a home-from-home environment. Pern’s special tasting menu will cost £75 per head plus an optional wine package. Chef-patron Steven Smith will be serving his own game taster menu during the rest of the celebration.
Designer windows
In celebration of London Fashion Week taking place this month, the May Fair Hotel in London has unveiled its own designer windows, with its façade completely transformed to depict vibrant, stylish scenes from the catwalk. In an exclusive collaboration with top fashion graphic designer Spiros Halaris, the 406-room West End hotel has been decorated with window displays inspired by some of the world’s leading fashion houses. The Hotel is also offering guests a unique Fashionista’s Paradise Shopping Package. In addition, the May Fair Bar is offering a specially-created cocktail called The Pout and guests can have a Catwalk Wrap at the spa.