Caught green-handed!
This stunning shakedown -- snapped by Post photographers -- is just one of the hundreds that doormen at swanky hotels demand every day from helpless cabbies, the hacks complain. The Paramount Hotel's concierge, Brian Conboy, was spotted demanding money in exchange for lucrative airport-bound fares -- not only from this driver but about a dozen others during a two-day period last week. Photographers snapped him shaking down three drivers on Friday and Saturday, and reporters observed several others.
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Monday, May 17, 2010
Carluccio's warns of uncertain trading despite a rise in profits
Italian restaurant chain Carluccio’s has posted an 8% rise in pretax profit to £2.7m for the first half of the financial year but warned that trading conditions are likely to remain uncertain.
The company reported strong trading for the six months to 28 March and said that turnover for the period was up 8% to £37.1m compared with last year’s £34.5m.
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The company reported strong trading for the six months to 28 March and said that turnover for the period was up 8% to £37.1m compared with last year’s £34.5m.
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Riviera loses $4.5 million, says bankruptcy possible
Riviera Holdings Corp., owner of casinos in Las Vegas and Colorado, today said it lost $4.5 million as revenue fell in the first quarter.
The loss, amounting to 36 cents per share, compares to a loss in the year-ago quarter of $1 million or 8 cents per share.
Net revenue of $30.8 million was down from $34.7 million in the year-ago quarter.
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The loss, amounting to 36 cents per share, compares to a loss in the year-ago quarter of $1 million or 8 cents per share.
Net revenue of $30.8 million was down from $34.7 million in the year-ago quarter.
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Sunday, May 16, 2010
Starbucks has a new growth strategy — more revenue with lower costs
Starbucks is once again looking to grow, but this time will be different.
The coffee juggernaut is not aiming for seven new stores a day, a clip it reached three years ago after setting a goal of 30,000 stores worldwide. That dream died a year later and just over halfway there with sales and profits sliding before other retailers really felt the recession. The Seattle company has since closed nearly 900 stores and eliminated more than 34,000 jobs.
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The coffee juggernaut is not aiming for seven new stores a day, a clip it reached three years ago after setting a goal of 30,000 stores worldwide. That dream died a year later and just over halfway there with sales and profits sliding before other retailers really felt the recession. The Seattle company has since closed nearly 900 stores and eliminated more than 34,000 jobs.
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Hideout for Hollywood stars on the market
THE St James’s Hotel and Club, whose members have included Sir Michael Caine and Sir Sean Connery, is up for sale for £60m.
The luxury venue, a stone’s throw from the Ritz hotel in central London, has been owned by the Landesberg and Rosenberg families, who are well known property investors, for the past five years.
They bought the site for £20m from Sir Cyril Stein, the former boss of Ladbrokes, and have spent millions refurbishing the property
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The luxury venue, a stone’s throw from the Ritz hotel in central London, has been owned by the Landesberg and Rosenberg families, who are well known property investors, for the past five years.
They bought the site for £20m from Sir Cyril Stein, the former boss of Ladbrokes, and have spent millions refurbishing the property
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Hotel occupancy up 30 pct in Vietnam
Hotel occupancy rose around 30 percent in the first four months of this year on the back of a recovering tourism sector, an industry official said.
Local hotels were 65 percent full on average during the period, compared to the usual 50 percent, Do Thi Hong Xoan, director of the Hotel Department at the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism was quoted by the Vietnam Economic Times as saying.
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Local hotels were 65 percent full on average during the period, compared to the usual 50 percent, Do Thi Hong Xoan, director of the Hotel Department at the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism was quoted by the Vietnam Economic Times as saying.
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Dubai eyes new hotel service charges law
Dubai is considering implementing a new law to regulate the distribution of the ten percent service charge hotels receive from guests, according to a report by Arabian Business.
The new law is being prepared by Dubai's Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, an executive from the tourism authority told Arabian Business.
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The new law is being prepared by Dubai's Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, an executive from the tourism authority told Arabian Business.
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Chicago's Allerton Hotel becomes latest, and largest, foreclosure
After loading up on debt near the top of the market, the owner of the landmark Allerton Hotel is all tapped out at the bottom.
A joint venture led by San Francisco-based Chartres Lodging Group LLC has defaulted on $70 million in loans on the 443-room hotel, according to a foreclosure suit filed at the end of April.
Known for its Tip Top Tap lounge — now a ballroom — the 86-year-old tower at 701 N. Michigan Ave. is now grabbing the attention of vulture investors trying to capitalize on its misfortune, caused by heavy borrowing and a severe slump in the downtown hotel market. The Allerton is the largest and latest downtown hotel to run into loan trouble in the recession, but it won't be the last
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A joint venture led by San Francisco-based Chartres Lodging Group LLC has defaulted on $70 million in loans on the 443-room hotel, according to a foreclosure suit filed at the end of April.
Known for its Tip Top Tap lounge — now a ballroom — the 86-year-old tower at 701 N. Michigan Ave. is now grabbing the attention of vulture investors trying to capitalize on its misfortune, caused by heavy borrowing and a severe slump in the downtown hotel market. The Allerton is the largest and latest downtown hotel to run into loan trouble in the recession, but it won't be the last
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Opryland Hotel tax break proposal approved
NASHVILLE - Even in a time of state budget problems, legislators have ideas for tax breaks for those suffering damage from natural disasters, be they big corporations or individual families.
The Senate Finance Committee approved Thursday a proposal that could give Nashville's posh Opryland Hotel a state tax break as it repairs damage from recent flooding.
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The Senate Finance Committee approved Thursday a proposal that could give Nashville's posh Opryland Hotel a state tax break as it repairs damage from recent flooding.
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Unhappy Stock Owners Say Denny's Is No Grand Slam
After canvassing a number of large and small institutional shareholders both supportive and critical of CEO Nelson Marchioli, Barron's concludes the dissidents are supported by stockholders of as much as 35% of Denny's shares outstanding, which would give them at least one of the three board seats sought in the May 19 vote. How many are won will depend on a few very large institutional holders, which together own about 75% of Denny's stock.
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Saturday, May 15, 2010
Jack in the Box Misses
Jack in the Box Inc. (JACK - Snapshot Report) posted fiscal 2010 second-quarter earnings of 32 cents per share recently. The company’s earnings came in behind both the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 40 cents per share as well as the year-ago result of 52 cents. The worse-than-expected result was primarily caused by sluggish sales and higher overheads.
San Diego-based Jack in the Box is a restaurant company that operates and franchises more than 2,200 Jack in the Box quick-service restaurants across 18 states. The company, through a wholly owned subsidiary, also operates and franchises Qdoba Mexican Grill fast-casual dining chain, with more than 500 restaurants in 43 states and the District of Columbia.
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San Diego-based Jack in the Box is a restaurant company that operates and franchises more than 2,200 Jack in the Box quick-service restaurants across 18 states. The company, through a wholly owned subsidiary, also operates and franchises Qdoba Mexican Grill fast-casual dining chain, with more than 500 restaurants in 43 states and the District of Columbia.
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Hooters Hotel loses $3.9 million, says bankruptcy still possible
The privately held Hooters hotel-casino in Las Vegas lost $3.9 million in the first quarter as revenue fell.
The loss was about even with the $4 million lost in the first quarter of 2009.
Net operating revenue of $11.3 million in the 2010 first quarter was down from $13.3 million in the year-ago quarter.
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The loss was about even with the $4 million lost in the first quarter of 2009.
Net operating revenue of $11.3 million in the 2010 first quarter was down from $13.3 million in the year-ago quarter.
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S. Fla. hotel occupancy continues to climb
Despite growing worry about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico impacting statewide tourism, occupancy at South Florida hotels rose again last week, according to Smith Travel Research.
For the week ended May 7, occupancy in Palm Beach County rose 13.7 percent, year-over-year. Occupancy in Broward County rose 7.8 percent. Occupancy in Miami-Dade rose 5.2 percent. Occupancy across the U.S. rose 6.4 percent.
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For the week ended May 7, occupancy in Palm Beach County rose 13.7 percent, year-over-year. Occupancy in Broward County rose 7.8 percent. Occupancy in Miami-Dade rose 5.2 percent. Occupancy across the U.S. rose 6.4 percent.
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Sonesta International Hotels Corp. Reports Operating Results
Business levels at the Company s owned and leased hotels improved during the first quarter of 2010 compared to the same quarter in 2009. Operating losses at Royal Sonesta Hotel Boston decreased from $1,513,000 in the first quarter of 2009 to $1,405,000 in the 2010 first quarter, a decrease of $108,000. Royal Sonesta New Orleans recorded operating income of $1,137,000 in the 2010 first quarter compared to $199,000 last year, representing an increase of $938,000. This increase was the result of a 12% revenue increase, and lower rent expense. Operating losses from management activities decreased by $270,000 to $883,000 in the 2010 first quarter, due to increased management income from the Company s hotels and ships in Egypt as well as increased franchise income. Interest expense decreased following the refinancing of the mortgage loan secured by Royal Sonesta Hotel Boston in February 2010. A detailed analysis of the revenues and income by location follows.
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