HotelsMag July-August 2019 | Page 48

F & B
The Westin Mission Hills offers beehive tours for groups led by executive chef Joel Delmond ( l .).

APIARY TOURS

WESTIN MISSION HILLS GOLF RESORT & SPA
CALIFORNIA

This Westin resort in

Mission Hills , California , offers beekeeping tours for up to 25 people , who don protective suits and visit the hives . The tours finish with a small jar of honey ; some tours make their own honey-andsalt scrub .
The apiary is the brainchild of executive chef and beekeeper Joel Delmond . “ I
started to get interested in bees seven years ago , and I had a general manager who was really into bees , so he allowed me to start my own hives here on the property ,” he says .
“ Some of the groups we host do take their families with them , so this allows an educational activity for the spouse and the kids ,” says Edwina
Morales , head of events .
Delmond hosts guests in the kitchen as he prepares food after a tour . “ The connection ( with attendees ) is made because I know them first-hand … and this connection is also made with the servers and the whole culinary team .”
According to Delmond , the hives and equipment required a US $ 350 investment ( along
with zoning approval for the hotel ); suits for the tour cost about US $ 75 apiece .
The Westin not only invested in the initial hive — and now there are anywhere between eight and 10 — but also in landscaping and plantings that help sustain the bees . “ You definitely make up your investment with the honey ,” Delmond says .

LAVA TUBE DINNERS

PRONGHORN RESORT
BEND , OREGON

For the first 12 years that the Pronghorn Resort was open , golfers would sometimes lose their golf balls in the lava tubes on the course , and when they searched for them , they ’ d be wowed by the caves themselves . That led to requests for formal visits and to host events .

“ There was a year of strategic planning to ensure we were offering a safe venue with minimal environmental impact to this natural gem ,” says JoAnna Eisler , group sales manager at the resort . The 640-acre resort can host elaborate dinners for up to 40 people inside the cave and cocktail events for 80 people at the entrance .
“ This really only appeals to our clients who don ’ t have budget restrictions because there ’ s a lot of cost involved for such a remote place ,” Eisler says . “ The clients it appeals to most are the ones who have been everywhere and done everything , and they ’ re hard to impress .
But this is something that they haven ’ t done , and it ’ s unforgettable .”
The hotel outsources everything from generators and portable toilets to heat , light , furniture and décor , passing the costs on to clients . But there is additional expense for staff . “ It takes all hands on deck to it pull off ,” Eisler says . Dinners involve staff from nearly all the departments at the resort , take a minimum of six weeks to plan , a day to set up and hours to clean up afterward ; guests must be transported via golf carts .
“ We are in central Oregon , and we compete against a lot of alpine and Western resorts ,” Eisler says , and the lava tubes “ separate us from our competitors .”
The resort allows bridal parties to take pictures and features the caves in bike tours with picnic lunches . “ It definitely generates repeat business ,” she says . “ And it generates continued buzz that attracts other people .”
46 hotelsmag . com July / August 2019