THE BULLETIN
TWO FOR THE ROAD
EDITORIAL David Eisen Editor In Chief
Each year , as summer gives way to fall , I find myself in a place that seems perpetually hot , Phoenix . No complaints : The Lodging Conference is one of the “ must-be ” stops on the hotel industry conference circuit . And while I always soak in the sun and knowledge , this year , the two biggest things I learned came outside the confines of the JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge .
Introvert or extrovert is not always a binary choice . One can occupy that liminal space between “ hi , let ’ s talk !” and “ where ’ s the nearest escape route ?” This is a tale of the two .
Upon arriving at Phoenix Sky Harbor , after a five-hour , middle-seat flight , I did what many do : tapped the Lyft app . But at the arrivals curb , people seemed more interested in something other than their ride . Waymo , the Alphabet-owned robotaxis , are ubiquitous in cities including Phoenix , L . A . and San Francisco and just closed a $ 5.6-billion funding round to expand beyond . For the uninitiated , these are driverless cars , like a player piano , if you will . It must take a modicum of moxie to climb into the backseat of one of these , but for the intrepid , the idea of a ride without idle chit-chat may just outweigh the risk ! Here ’ s the catch : sometimes having a human around isn ’ t all that bad . In this instance , the gentleman who booked the Waymo was having trouble accessing the car . It turns out , the trunk — despite him slamming it repeatedly — wasn ’ t closing properly , which meant the doors would not open . Finally , after repeated attempts against ogling bystander eyes , the robot was satisfied and the doors opened . Off he went , but I couldn ’ t help think : A human driver would have just saved him 10 minutes of time and consternation .
Meanwhile , a reminder than humans ( in hospitality ) still matter . There ’ s a restaurant called Culinary Dropout , which , despite the name , has good food and drink . Close to where I stayed , I dropped in one evening for a bite and beverage . Of the latter , I take pride in being a refined tequila drinker , not a rah-rah Jose Cuervo guzzler . On occasion , asking the waiter or bartender for a list or recommendation of an additivefree tequila is met with bewilderment and a response of : “ We have Casamigos ,” which , apologies to George Clooney , is swill , at best . Imagine , then , my astonishment when at the bar I not only was given a rundown of all their tequilas , but also the ones that were additive free . After she ticked them all off , I said : “ Wow , most can ’ t do that .” Her response : “ I ’ m the bar manager ; I better be able to .”
The person who might not care what tequila he or she drinks could be Waymo ’ s target market ; the person who prefers a taxi or Uber , he or she might be a Culinary Dropout customer . Reductive , certainly , but pushes my point : In the realm of hospitality , there is room for “ human touch ” and there is space for “ do-it-yourself .” In our business , the hotels that can cater to both seamlessly will be the ones that ingratiate a loyal , happy customer . I ’ ll drink to that .
David Eisen
Editor In Chief
Kathakali Nandi Editorial Writer
Tatiana Valenzuela Editorial Coordinator
Juan Cruz del Val Designer
Contributing Writers Harvey Chipkin , Derek Herscovici and Stefani C . O ’ Connor
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