No, Justin Bieber is not dead. Honestly, I don’t care one way or the other. I just needed something more attention-getting than “Hotel Restaurant News,” because that is not a sexy headline. No siree. Dead Bieber? Sexy headline. You’re with me on this, right? The truth is, I think hotel restaurant news IS exciting and I hope you do, too. Here’s the latest buzz I’m hearing:

 

NEW MENU AT EL ENCANTO

At the recently rebranded Belmond El Encanto in Santa Barbara, CA, (the only Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star resort in town) new executive chef Leo Andres Ayala is breaking out a summer menu that highlights California Coastal cuisine with local produce like wild mushroom risotto, roasted beet salad with burrata, and fresh oysters from the Central Coast. You can also get in on the hotel’s Bellini Brunch on Sundays with bottomless Bellinis and food for $75 a person.

 

BRAND NEW VILLA OPENS IN SPAIN

El Refugio is a boutique 3-bedroom villa in Andalucia that overlooks almond groves, vineyards, and mountaintops all the way down to the Mediterranean. The coolest thing about it is the attention to culinary detail with paella classes by the pool, tapas tours in Andalucia, and a weeklong celebration of Iberico pork with a butchery class and tips on how to cook the famed meat. The villa doesn’t come cheap at $3,641 – $7,282 per week for up to 6 guests, but come on — it’s a villa in Spain. Split the cost and have the best week of your year.

 

NATURAL EPICUREAN OPENS AT THE BROADMOOR

Colorado Springs has been home to The Broadmoor for almost a century and starting on June 18th, the five star, five diamond resort will also be home to Natural Epicurean, a new restaurant focusing on healthy, wholesome, natural, and organic food. The 120-seat restaurant and patio is open for three squares a day and the menu sounds healthy/delicious. Here’s what you can expect, as per the press release:

Starters and Snacks include Marinated Red Beets with chipotle pico de gallo, cilantro, and quinoa and Chilled Green Asparagus with avocado, grapefruit, coriander, and chilies, while fresh salads like Thai Shrimp with green papaya, chilies, cilantro, butter lettuce, and avocado or Organic Baby Arugula with toasted cashews, apples, raisins, parmesan cheese, and lemon make for flavorful lunch or light dinner.

Entrée selections feature a wide variety of vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free options, as well as sustainably raised meat and fish dishes such as Steamed Steelhead Salmon with turmeric root, roasted tomato, lentils, ginger, and garlic and Indonesian Stir Fry with tempeh, spinach, green beans, eggplant, ginger, and toasted peanut with a chili and tamarind sauce.

Desserts at Natural Epicurean continue the restaurant’s philosophy, featuring whole-grain and healthful ingredients such as nut flours, quinoa, goji berries, and sunflower seeds. Enjoy a Baked Apricot Tart with steel cut oatmeal streusel, whole meal almond frangipane, and maple walnut ice cream; Compressed Melon Salad with jasmine tea syrup, quinoa sesame tuile, and coconut yogurt sherbet; and both egg-free and butter-free cookies like Olive Oile Goji Berry Shortbread, and Oatmeal, Sunflower Seed, and Cranberry.

The beverage program at Natural Epicurean features a vibrant selection of cold-pressed juices, organic spirits, organic and biodynamic wines, and locally brewed beers. Seasonal fruits drive the cocktail program, with drinks like Apple – Cucumber Cobbler and Beet Bloody Mary.

A wide selection of pressed-to-order juices are always available from The Big Red with mango, blood orange, and spearmint, to the Mind & Body with organic carrot, beet, apple, and ginger. Natural Epicurean creates both still and carbonated bottled water in-house, using the Vivreau water purification unit, eliminating plastic bottle waste.

 

I SCREAM, YOU SCREAM, WE ALL SCREAM FOR ICE CREAM AT THE SHORE HOTEL

Starting this Saturday, June 14th, the Shore Hotel in Santa Monica is launching a summer Cool Down series with a bunch of local ice cream and popsicle makers holding pop-up shops during the weekend. It’s a rotating group of awesome treatmakers like Sprinkles Ice Cream, Popshop, Peddler’s Creamery, Coolhaus, and Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream scoop truck serving up their frozen goodness for beachgoers from 11am – 3pm all summer long. Here’s the schedule:

Saturday, June 14 and Sunday, June 15, 2014 – Sprinkles Ice Cream Cart

Friday, July 4 and Saturday, July 5, 2014 – Popshop Ice Pops Cart

Saturday, August 9 and Sunday, August 10, 2014 – Peddler’s Creamery Ice Cream Cart

Saturday, July 26, 2014 – Coolhaus Truck

Saturday, August 23 and Sunday, August 24, 2014 – Peddler’s Creamery Ice Cream Cart

Sunday, August 31 and Monday, Sept. 1, 2014 – Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream Truck