The Tyranny Of The Breakfast Buffet In Caribbean Hotels

Visitors wait in line at a breakfast buffet in Barbados.

By David Jessop

News Americas, LONDON, England, Fri. May 6, 2016:  In North America and Europe, there is a growing focus on health, and in particular on significantly reducing consumers’ sugar intake and a more thoughtful approach to diet and exercise.

This is because of the spiraling health care costs associated with obesity and the growing global prevalence of diabetes, a condition that unfortunately is particularly common in the Caribbean.

It is therefore surprising that in so many hotels in the Caribbean region, in comparison to those in the countries from which most of the region’s visitors arrive, it is very difficult to find genuinely healthy, low fat, low sugar alternatives on hotels’ menus, particularly when it comes to the now ubiquitous breakfast, lunch and dinner buffet.

I recently had the opportunity to explore this issue at first hand while travelling in the US and the Caribbean and trying to lose weight by eating healthier.

What I found was that in Caribbean properties appealing to a mid-market demographic, their interest in maximizing revenue and reducing costs appears to be leading to a situation where the range of healthy eating choice is declining.

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Particularly striking in this regard was a Jamaican North Coast Hotel where I was speaking at a conference, and a Barbados beach hotel of the same brand that doubles as a business hotel. In both cases it proved surprisingly difficult – short of placing a special off-menu order – to find what I wanted. For example, it was far from clear why it was impossible to obtain natural yogurt on the stays in question, or even a good selection of fruit.

In contrast, the US hotels I stayed in, including one from the same chain, all took their client’s health and well-being seriously. They offered on their menus and buffets’, a wide choice of options, and seemed aware that in particular millennials and many senior travelers – the higher spending demographics that most Caribbean destinations are now trying to attract – have become very particular about what they eat.

This is not to be critical of the quality of what was available in the Caribbean, which met the requirements of many vacationers and especially those with children, but to observe that tastes are changing and diet and health consciousness are also coming to define the type of target traveler the region is seeking, who the marketers say want from a Caribbean vacation the authentic, the genuine experience, the natural, and a sense of well-being.

The issue seems to be particularly problematic when it comes to buffets, which as the industry knows, but few guests recognize, offer a near scientific way to control costs, while seemingly offering something extravagant.

Buffets are particularly popular with chain hotels as they offer lower labor costs as fewer kitchen and waiting staff are required and tables turn over more rapidly. More specifically they encourage guests to select low cost foodstuffs over more expensive proteins by the way dishes are placed, through the relative sizes of the serving cutlery, and for example by providing chefs with the option to use cold cuts from earlier roasts.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: David Jessop is a consultant to the Caribbean Council and can be contacted at david.jessop@caribbean-council.org. Previous columns can be found at www.caribbean-council.org.