Elite Chefs. Real Talk. Luxury Hotels Are Bringing Back the Dinner Party

Luxury hotels are using dinner parties to build loyalty among high-spending guests. The ROI looks a little ugly at first, but they're a long-term bet.

Luxury hotels are reviving an old-fashioned strategy to build loyalty among high-spending guests: elaborate communal dinners hosted by elite chefs.

These dinners had largely disappeared as hotels raced to offer flashier or more extravagant amenities, said Oliver Corrin, creative director of strategy and branding for EDG Hospitality Design and Branding.

Now they’re back as travelers seek connection post-pandemic. You don’t just walk away thinking, "That was delicious," Corrin said. “Maybe you walk away with your whole mind opened up to a new perspective.”

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts began its communal dinners in 2014 at Rosewood Mayakoba in Riviera Maya and now hosts these meals at its Hawaii location and in Montecito, California. The dinners cost about $250 per person and feature local cuisine. Guests eat dinner with some of the staff, inc