A staycation in Makati

By Zsarlene B. Chua

CITY GARDEN GRAND — a barely year-old four-star hotel which stands across its three-star counterpart — boasts of 311 rooms featuring native materials such as narra and two chandeliers made of capiz shells (windowpane oysters), all in order to identify as a Filipino brand. “We would like to be known as a Filipino brand and that’s the reason we actually made it a point that for every effort and everything that we do… we celebrate Filipino talent and resources as well,” Laurence P. Peña, general manager, told ����ý on Aug. 29 during an overnight stay.

The furniture in the hotel, he pointed out, was sourced from Filipino furniture maker, Padua.

“That is true for all Garden hotels to start with, but we have put more effort in making it more obvious in this property,” he said of this emphasis on a Filipino identity.

The hotel, which soft-opened in July, is located in Makati Ave. in Makati City and is the fourth property in the company’s portfolio after Lotus Garden Hotel and City Garden Suites (both on Mabini St., Manila) and City Garden Hotel in Makati.

“Makati is Makati. The market is here, this is where the business community is — the majority of it. It’s easier for us to do work because the market is already familiar for the owning company (Jane Hotel),” Mr. Peña said, explaining the decision to build across an existing property.

Eighty percent of its clients are business people, a healthy mix of locals and foreigners — many from the Middle East, though Mr. Peña said they are also targeting the Chinese community because of their reputation as being “big spenders.”

Currently, the hotel an occupancy rate between 65% to 70%, though the general manager said that a 5% increase would lead it right to his ideal rate.

Mr. Peña said that what they offer is “a four-star hotel giving five-star service” and though he did not divulge if other properties are in the pipeline he said, “we would like to increase the presence of the brand.”

City Garden Grand’s “zen-minimalist” rooms (according to the Web site) are spread over 32 floors which also house function rooms and a ballroom on the 31st floor which can support a few hundred guests.

Two restaurants are within the premises: one is the “fusion and international” Spice at the seventh floor which serves breakfast and lunch, and the View Deck on the 32nd floor (the pool is also located here) which functions as a bar and grill restaurant serving dinner. The View Deck might seem unassuming in daylight but has a stunning city view at night. The food in Spice — though quite limited — has all the fixtures of a Filipino breakfast including beef tapa (cured beef) and tocino (cured pork) alongside international dishes such as Cajun rice and beef bulgogi.

This writer was billeted in a junior suite at the 30th floor (the same floor as the presidential suite). The room was spacious enough, though one might take exception to the fact that the room is not entirely sound-proof as the sound from the ballroom upstairs bleeds somewhat uncomfortably into the room.

Mr. Peña has said that they have been compared to several chains such as Holiday Inn and Suites in Makati and Ayala-owned local chain Seda — comparisons which he does not mind in the least, especially with Seda as he deems it a good thing for local brands to make themselves known in the Philippine market.

He added that he plans for the hotel to be a “key player in this location” in the near future.

City Garden Grand Hotel is located at 8008 Makati Ave. cor Kalayaan Ave., Makati City. For inquiries, call (632) 888-8181 and (63) 999 888-8181 or visit grand.citygardenhotels.com.