Australian Service Excellence Awards – Hospitality

The Observatory resort hotel Port Macquarie has been placed second overall, highly commended, in Australia-wide awards for hospitality excellence, pipped for the top honour only by a prominent Sydney restaurant.

This is a terrific accolade for a regional business employing a small staff in comparison to some of the national giants, such as Virgin Blue, who were acknowledged.

It also fits with PMHC's Economic Development division's strategy to make Port a notable centre of customer service best practice.

The Observatory's directors Chris Denny, who is also president of Greater Port Macquarie Tourism, Trish Denny and Margaret Chant attended the awards presentation in Melbourne. "Excellence in customer service is an aspect the Port Macquarie tourism and hospitality industry is bent on developing and highlighting as a point of difference in comparison with other destinations," Chris Denny said today. "We are honoured by this award particularly because when local operators are acknowledged for best practice it helps boost the reputation of our region for offering visitors a quality experience when they choose to travel, conference and holiday in the Hastings."

EASTCOAST Bar & Café @ The Observatory has come in for recent attention thanks to the skills of Michelin-star chef Charlie Rushton, who owns and operates the restaurant with his wife Lucia. Charlie was executive chef of Marco Pierre White's Mirabelle, in London's centre of dining excellence, Mayfair, when he earned his rare title.

The restaurant features in the Sydney Morning Herald's best-selling annual foodies' bible, the Good Food Guide. Something as seemingly simple, yet difficult to execute perfectly every time, as Charlie's "melt-in-the-mouth creamy" scrambled eggs from the breakfast-brunch menu have won high praise - contrasting with EASTCOAST's fine dining emphasis in the evenings, featuring the freshest local seafood.

Issued: October 28 2008