Hotel Directors Need Special Skills to Ensure Guests' Happiness by Deanna Murshed It takes a special kind of person to be a star at a historic Washington, D.C., hotel. You need to be the kind of person who is equipped to handle just about anybody, from presidents to both recognized and the less recognizable international celebrities, to just plain Joe Smith and his family "living it up" on their first tour of the nationís capital. You just never know what youíre going to get. Languages may be called upon, unusual questions or requests might be fired without notice, and knowledge of culture-specific protocols or recipes might be demanded in the middle of the night. Unfortunately for the less savvy, hotel guests do not come with instruction manuals or interpreters. It is the job of hotel personnel to act as their guestsí agents and provide a comfortable and seamless experience from the moment a guestís car pulls up to the entrance until their final departure. A successful experience is one where guests feel as though theyíre at a home away from homeóbut so much better. This is the hospitality challenge, and to really succeed it requires a special set of skills. A pleasant demeanor, poise under pressure and understated sophistication are among the basic requirements. However, before all else, there must be an initial weeding mechanism: "If you donít love people, this is not for you," said Hotel Washingtonís Abel Anane, director of food and beverage. The Hotel Washington is a perfect example of the best the industry has to offer, particularly because the hotel boasts one of the more diverse guest lists in the city as well as one of the most coveted locationsójust blocks away from the White House. The Willard InterContinental Washington is another, more lavish option, just right around the corner. And because they say the way to a manísóor hotel guestís, in this caseóheart is through his stomach, we decided to take a look at two hotel maestros who delight in interacting with guests around mealtime. Each director incorporates his own unique flair to the job, but both have in common an international background, incredible resourcefulness, adaptability and charm. Sense of Loyalty "Itís not how you do it. Itís how you see it," said Anane, 35, who grew up in Morocco and Southern France and among his languages counts English, French and Arabic. Dressed to the nines in a classic black pinstriped suit, crisp white shirt, and tightly knotted black silk tie, he smoothly presides over his outdoor Sky Terrace restaurant on the roof of the Hotel Washington, his own eagleís nest that offers a unique and spectacular view of the city. Pointing to the edge of the veranda, he said, "That is where Matthew McConaughey took his coat off and put it on Jodie Fosterís shoulders when she was cold," referring to the 1997 filming of the movie "Contact," scenes of which were filmed at the hotel. As for recent politicians, former Treasury Department Secretary Paul H. OíNeill lived at the hotel for an entire year during his run in the administration, taking advantage of the hotelís almost college dorm-like accessibility to his office right across the street in the Treasury Department. "He was really nice and easygoing," Anane recalled. Anane, who has been with the hotel for 11 years, beams with a pride about this historic perch and exhibits a loyalty that has resulted from his long tenure on a staff that he says is like one big family. Hotel Washington, which was established in 1917, is family-owned and has a reputation for retaining its staff for the long haul, with some members having given more than 50 years of service or returning even after retirement out of a sense of "homesickness." As a resident director, Anane credits his love of the business, and people in general, for keeping him on his toes and his life interesting. "Every day there is a new experience Ö [and] for every problem, there is a solution." He recalled one time, preceding a march on the mall, when he was presented with the challenge of preparing 3,000 tuna sandwiches in one evening and had to dart to the local Costco in his truck for crates of tuna cans. On another occasion, when legendary performer Gladys Knight was staying the night before a visit to the White House, "she asked for a special vegetarian soup at 3 a.m. and wanted her sisterís recipe to be usedÖ. I did it." Whatever the guest asks for, Anane is sure to find a way to accommodate. It probably wouldnít surprise his guests if he wound up the owner and manager of his own more modest 40-room hotel named "Casablanca" or "The Flamingo." After all, it wouldnít be the first time Anane made something of his castle in the sky. Down-to-Earth Sophistication Francisco Nieto, director of the Willard Room at the Willard InterContinental Washington for the past nine years, comes from a classic line of maitre dísóa line that seems almost under the threat of extinction. He was tutored under the "old school" British system of service artsóthe kind that says "monsieur" and "madam" and wears white gloves and serves high tea to royalty. And he has been perfecting this type of service for 27 years now. Such perfection of trade is indeed rare and never goes out of style. But Nieto, 60, does not walk around with his nose up in the air and elbow jutting out, draped with cloth napkin. His motto is: "Make guests feel comfortable without being pretentious." He is warm and down to earth, eyes dancing above a full mustache as he tells you about his latest expedition to Machu Picchu in his Spanish accent. "It is amazing. You should go." It is obvious that Nieto is a man of the world. Born in Barcelona, he speaks English, French, Spanish, Catalan, Italian and Portuguese. Heís traveled almost everywhere, except for the South Pacific. "Bora Boraóthatís my next place," he said. His appetite for the new seems almost insatiable. Nietoís youth reveals the seeds of that same enlivened spirit. He dabbled in the experimental leftist theater of his native Spain, combining visual effects and mime, and he was acknowledged for his stage directing skills at the fresh age of 20. But the world soon became very small for Nieto and he left Spain in search of something bigger, moving first to England to learn the language and getting his initial jobs in the restaurant business. Over the course of several decades, Nieto has blended his skills and experience to make the dining arena his new stage. He can read people and feel what they need, and finds creative and personable ways to make them comfortable. And his resume is quite impressive. Queen Elizabeth II once shocked him by calling out his name (remembering him from a prior engagement) at a Vancouver event where he served; he has made "sweet" comments to former Attorney General Janet Reno while offering her some Sweet and Low; and he has even used his graces to coax former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into sipping his signature "hot toddy" drinkóa mix of honey, lemon and rumóto relieve him of his worries. But what gives Nieto the most satisfaction, he said, is waiting on ordinary people who save up to go out as a rare and special treat. He finds pleasure in defying peopleís expectations that to be in a spectacular environment, they must be approached with airs. Nieto is not above singing a happy birthday or helping a nervous suitor by placing his engagement ring atop his fiancÈeís soufflÈ before an intimate proposal. He makes it a point to be nothing less than excellent at what he does and expects perfection of every detail, but keeping it real all the same. When asked to conjure up his latest ideal dinner menu, he listed this lineup: Colorado rack of lamb, Nantucket scallops, California fig-tart with cappuccino and an aperitif of Grand Marnier, highlighting the idea that American cuisine should not be underrated. Nieto plays, but he does not play around with his taste for the best. Deanna Murshed is a freelance writer in Washington, D.C.