Simply Abu Dhabi VIII

3 0 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I “I am delighted to join such an iconic property in the capital of the UAE,” said Mr Shrestha when he joined. He added: “Both Traders Hotel and Shangri-La Hotel are well established in the market and I look forward to continuing the excellent performance record of this unique destination within a destination.” In keeping with his impressive background, Mr Shrestha has a huge amount of responsibility. He oversees the entire Qaryat Al Beri complex – which comprises both the Shangri-La Hotel (with 214 rooms and suites) and Traders Hotel (with 301 rooms and suites). He also looks after Shangri-La Residences with its 161 units of studios, 1-, 2-, 3- and 4-bedroom apartments. And of course, he’s also stewarding the Shangri-La Villas to ever greater heights of luxury, plusmaking sure that the nine restaurants and bars and extensive recreational facilities and spa (see our account below) continue to provide the superlative level of service that his establishment has become so well-known for. The Shangri-LaHotel in AbuDhabi is part of theHong Kong-based Shangri-LaHotels and Resorts network. The group currently owns or manages 74 hotels under the Shangri-La, Kerry and Traders brands. That means that they have an astonishing inventory of over 30,000 superb rooms! Shangri-La Hotels are renowned for being five-star deluxe properties that feature a rich array of luxury facilities and services. Shangri-LaHotels are located in some of the world’s most beautiful and exotic locations, including Australia, Canada, China, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan,Malaysia, theMaldives, and the Philippines. We’re delighted and hugely proud that theUAE also belongs to that prestigious roll call. The group, of course, is not standing still and has exciting plans to develop newprojects in countries includingChina, India, Mongolia, the Philippines, Qatar, Sri Lanka, and the United Kingdom. Wow. Having looked around the hotel and found out more about the driving force behind its opulence, we felt we understood better how such astounding levels of luxury are maintained here. We were truly impressed, and often humbled, by what we saw and heard. And we were also ready to sample some of the delicious food that the Shangri-La Hotel has to offer. For dinner on our first night, we headed to the superb Pearls and Caviar restaurant, and the next evening we dined on superb Vietnamese cuisine at the sumptuous Hoi An. Our meals at both venues were simply out of this world: see the Simply Food section of this magazine for our detailed reviews. These two restaurants alone would be enough to create a towering culinary global reputation for Shangri-La. But the good news is that there are three others to sample. Sofra bld serves meals throughout the day, with the buffet focusing on both local and international cuisine. Bord Eau Restaurant serves modern French cuisine, while Shang Palace specialises in traditional Cantonese delicacies.