L' Hotel, Bahrain

Thanks to technological advancement, hotels are now able to record their guest’s preferences and enable them to offer personalised services. L’Hotel, the first boutique hotel in Bahrain, has embraced technology (Opera Software) to offer personalised services to its guests.

The hotel is a fairly recent entrant with joint partnership between Sheikh Ebrahim Bin Khalid Al Khalifa and Lebanese hotelier, Joseph Yazbeck (Grand Hotel - Washington DC, Voltaire Palace - Geneva, Plaza Hotel - Beirut and more) at a time when potential and demand for 5 Star destination hotels in the Kingdom of Bahrain is accelerating to a vividly conscious necessity. Capitalising on its location, L’Hotel attracts its key visitors from across the Saudi Causeway and the surrounding Seef District and Financial Hub. In the advent of the recent financial crisis, the hotel industry, as a whole, has seen a dip in expenditure and allowances. This has placed stress upon hotels to be more competitive by being unique and flexible in their offerings to a more demanding and careful customer. L’Hotel has risen to the occasion with a much-needed offering at the right time.

Ralph Yazbek, General Manager of L’Hotel is immediately inviting and engaging, in testament to his premier success-indicator, a personalised approach to each and every L’Hotel guest. The staff at L’Hotel follow suit, knowing each guest by name and the details of their habitual preferences. That is why L’Hotel attracts the more attentive customer, VIPs, corporates and a growing fan base of cultural event goers who seek an attentive orientation to their preferences and to some who are acutely aware of their own particular tastes.

Fully aware of the regional demand for absolute comfort and indulgence, L’Hotel is built to supercede the standardized definition of boutique and 5 Star hotels. Yazbek elaborates with delight about the humane touch and personalised approach that is L’Hotel’s signature and has guests offering unstinted patronage. “Our designs and room amenities are unique,” he says while listing examples of the e-Butler system in every room, control blinds, triple glazed windows to keep out any obtrusive noises, direct and indirect lighting, class A mattresses of 7 cm feathers, 1 cm thick protector and 360 counts for the linen bed spread. The furniture is Natuzzi, custom-made and every room is self equipped with its own highgrade espresso machine. There is no doubt that attention to details is paramount here.

L’Hotel has introduced the bold concept of Son Entrecote from Le Relais de Venise in Franceone dish served impeccably and repeatedly to a growing base of loyal customers, Green Salad, the American Angus beef steak with its secret sauce and French Fries served with a fork and knife. Of course Yazbek is cautious of introducing similar endeavours in future. “One must be careful of the product introduced, since the market in Bahrain is small”, he adds.

Nevertheless, L’Hotel has managed to establish its name through a combination of innovative ideas. In a bid to promote itself as a business and cultural venue (Day and Night concept), L’Hotel organises high profile events in conjunction with Bougi - a PR & management consultancy which conducts savvy PR and networking opportunity at L’Hotel (www.bougilife.blogspot.com).

Everything is faced with a stoic perseverance to push the benchmark of personalized services and ensure that the approach is towards good taste and quality. “We are not afraid to discover markets or segments that were not in our initial business plan.” And he sums up, “The best is yet to come. We are here to serve the customer and cater to all their needs.”