Back from Hong Kong

Alexandre still has stars in his eyes when he speaks about the six days he spent in Hong Kong with Ricard, a fellow classmate, and Pascal Lamoussière, head of pedagogy for the Culinary Arts and Restaurant Management program.

“The trip unfolded in two stages. The first was devoted to a seminar with 600 students from ITE* in Singapore and VTC in Hong Kong.”
Every two years, the two universities organize a seminar bringing together more than 500 students who work on a specific theme – this year, it was sustainable development.
Alexandre and Ricard were very impressed by the quality of the welcome that they received as well as by the organization of the event.
Ricard even decided to participate in the presentations and joined a work group. The best results were then presented before a jury that included the Minister of the environment, numerous professors and PhDs as well as Pascal Lamoussière.
This experience reinforced their desire to make even more effort in favor of sustainable development in the hospitality industry in line with the strong desire already present at the Institut. Pascal’s explanation of the principle: recycle – reuse – reduce, which is both simple and efficient, met with a lot of interest.

Pascal, Alexandre and Ricard, accompanied by the site directors also had the pleasure of visiting executive chefs and head chefs of some of the most beautiful palaces in Hong Kong: for example, the Shangri-La, where Jean Marc Dizerens (director of corporate F & B – Operations) and Selina Da Silva (project manager – F & B quality assurance), were very open to the Institut’s programs. They also appreciated the exceptional design of the Miramar and the Peninsula with its 12 Rolls Royce Limousines available for its clients!

“In addition to all the impressive luxury, it was of course fantastic to understand the incredible organization of the kitchens. At the Peninsula, for example, there are 7 restaurants, plus room service, meaning 170 full-time staff members. And I have never seen a place where hygiene was better respected. You could see yourself perfectly in all the stainless steel ceilings”, recalls Alexandre.
They also enjoyed meeting with Christian Mongendre, a graduate from 2009 and already Assistant Manager at a luxury brasserie called “BLT Steak” (BLT for Bistro Laurent Tourondel, general manager and owner of the establishment).

All three of them have come back enthusiastic about their trip and discoveries: the fish market, the small traditional shops, Hong Kong’s Victoria Peak…

* ITE is a partner of the Institut. Reade more...