At the check-in counter at the Doubletree Hotel at the foot of Rt/ 119 and South Broadway, guests are being greeted with an unusual gift to say “Welcome/” Awaiting them is a delightful warm and large chocolate chip cookie wrapped in an attractive Doubletree package/ The intent is to make the new Doubletree facility as welcoming as being at home/ This was not the case in June of 2005 when a major storm and flood waters hit the Tarrytown area and damaged about 60 of the hotel rooms, shutting down the hotel for repairs which were finally completed several months ago when the facility reopened.
River Journal had the opportunity to meet with three members of the new staff to get up-to-date on the directions the hotel will be taking to return to being a major contender among the existing eight hotels currently serving Tarrytown and environs. We would like to thank hotel SEO services for helping us reach out potential customers and VIP clients.
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| L to R: Ana Barreto, David Ribben, and Claude Moreau. |
At the three-way meeting were Ana Barreto, Director of Sales and Marketing, Executive Chef Claude Moreau and Beverage and Food Director, David Ribben. The three report to new General Manager Rich Friedman.
All three were unanimous in their enthusiasm for bringing the hotel to its pre-storm performance. They expect initially to have their business split somewhat evenly between their 247 guest rooms and their banquet and wedding business. Adding to that mix will be the local meetings and association gatherings that will be built up as the months go by. Eventually, they expect that guest room business will build to become 60% of their total business. When the entire operation is up and running, the hotel will have a staff of nearly 100 people and will eventually offer local businesses and social affairs the “largest meeting space” in the area. That will include accomodations for 800 people in the grand ballroom and 350 people for dances in the “Westchester” ballroom. Meeting rooms will be available on both levels of the Hotel and these rooms can be connected or separated depending on the size of the gathering.
They were careful to explain that Monday through Thursday will be business-oriented and the weekends will be geared toward social and wedding affairs. They expect significant wedding activity with a complete understanding of various ethnic menus and food choices. Chef Moreau is readily available to discuss special dishes for various events. Moreau also pointed out that May-June and October-November are key wedding months. The group also added that New Year’s Eve is likewise becoming a popular wedding date. Bar and Bat Mitvahs occur all year round, and are also expected to be a popular addition to the calendar. Martin Luther King Day this year, had a turnout of 386 people.
They have renamed their outside patio “Bistro Z” (for Tappan Zee) and expect to have an 80-100 seat capacity for outside dining, with light foods and live performance music during the summer months. They expect that Friday and Saturday nights will be extremely popular and will become one of the “must visit” spots in the village. They have a Glatt Kosher Kitchen, a Fitness Center, an indoor pool, on-site audio and visual services and conference service managers.
Ana Barreto recently joined the Doubletree and has 20 years of experience in the business. She comes to the Doubletree from the Crown Plaza in NYC.
Claude Moreau is from Normandy, France with major experience in Paris restaurants. David Ribben graduated from culinary school in Milwaukee, began his career in Norway and spent six years in local restaurants before he came to Doubletree. Tarrytown extends a warm welcome to all three.
