Boston Common - Niche Media - A side of Boston that's anything but common.
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/61746
on the town Kang considers whether this chocolate sculpture is a suitable offering for VIP guests. karambir kang REVEALS HIS WORK BEHIND THE SCENES. by suzanne mcgee photography by mike diskin K FROM SAMPLING BATH PRODUCTS TO OVERSEEING US OPERATIONS, THE TAJ'S NEW GM arambir Singh Kang runs his forefinger along the top of a framed print hanging on the wall of one of the 273 guest rooms at the Taj and nods approvingly. He arrived in Boston last December from India, where he had reigned as vice president of the Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces' Mumbai properties and general manager of its landmark, The Taj Mahal Palace, to take the GM post at the newly rebranded Taj Boston (the former Ritz-Carlton). Although he is charged with making the Taj Boston the five-star hotel of choice in the city, he also has overall responsibility for the Taj chain's US properties, which include The Pierre in New York and the Taj Campton Place in San Francisco. But for now, most of Kang's days begin in Boston, where he'll sit in the hotel's lobby shortly after 8 am, watch- ing as guests check in or out. 9:10 am I n a conference room on the mezzanine level, the hotel's operations heads assemble for their daily meeting. The front-office staff reels off the latest statistics: three no-shows the night before, 76 arrivals expected today. Kang grimaces when he is told that front desk staffers offered only 37.2 percent of those who arrived the previous day an escort to their room. "That needs to be 100 percent," he says. A honeymoon couple are arriving—Kang signs off on a chocolate cake and bottle of prosecco to be delivered to their room— and then he makes sure that a wine connoisseur checking in later will have a bottle of "something special" waiting in his room. The daily operations meeting 9:55 am K ang heads downstairs to The Café, where executive chef Michael Mandato has laid out some new place settings for him to consider. The linen tablecloths have been replaced with placemats "for a cleaner look," the chef explains. Kang holds a glass up to the light, nods in approval, then heads off to meet with the full catering team. 10:15 am " If you want to bring about change, food is a great way to do it," says Kang. "Some traditional dishes, like chicken potpie, you can't touch, but there's no reason why you can't make other changes." Kang and Mandato are discussing continued on page 58 56 bostoncommon-magazine.com