WERE YOU BORN IN A TENT

Saturday 16 August 2014

TAKALI TERRACE RESTAURANT

Shangri La Fijian Resort & Spa, Fiji

Visited: 5th August 2014

I'm back and what a week it was. Eight days in paradise sampling some amazing food and getting to test out some tropical doors. Let's just say there were some interesting doors this time round, from high-end refined right down to a family business just trying to get by without their window being smashed.

Design: Let's begin with the Takali Terrace located at the lovely Shangri La Resort where I had the pleasure of spending a week. Once again, the tropics and its beautiful climate made it hard to find actual doors to review. When you have amazing weather all year round who needs doors or walls. In the end it becomes more about the entrance than the door itself.

Supported by four solid natural timber tree trunks, the roof of the entrance sits rigidly on its foundations. I found the trunks projected a tribal strength, an almost raw heroic welcome similar to a Roman pillar. With its freehand font in black surrounded by cartoonish tribal objects, the sign worked well to entice the wandering, hungry white tourists ready for that authentic western styled food that only resorts in other countries can provide. The band of cross-hatched wooden framing around the roof combined with the two blue pots filled with bamboo, helped to unify the tropical essence. It gave one the feeling of walking into a local chiefs ceremonial hall at Movie World on the Gold Coast. I found this entrance simple in its design, and soft on the eye. It was contemporary, symmetrical and not too over the top with island kitsch to turn you off. I think it needed a little more as the the bamboo just looked like someone had thrown it in the pots, put up a couple of menu displays and went, "that'll do". Yet the simplicity seemed to work as well. The placement of the round maitre d desk at the top of the stairs was a nice focal point as you arrived with a glimpse of the restaurant in the background. I must admit there was a certain romance about this entrance at night, however in the day time it lost everything. Without the warmth of the night lights framing it in the dark, during the day, it just looked like a middle aged divorcee coming out of a nightclub at 8am in the morning after a full night out on Barcardi Breezers.

Door resistance: 0

Closure mechanism: Never closed

Draft: Maximum

Squeak level: 0

Change return time: 2.05 min

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PROFESSIONAL DOOR REVIEWER

Searching the world for the perfect door to eat behind.

First impressions are always important, especially for a restaurant or cafe. So many people are focusing on the food these days that I felt there was a hole in the reviews world. No one was looking at the most important thing, THE DOOR! Everyone complains when it is left open, death stares are exchange when the unsuspecting group of friends having a fun night enter the premises from the cold only to walk straight in and go straight to their table totally oblivious they have left the door wide open to allow an arctic strength gale force wind to cut through the previously warm interior. Like a scene from a western film where everyone in the premises stops what they are doing and cuts down the new comers with a deathly stare. Occasionally you will get the confident diner who gets up, walks across the restaurant and closes the door with a BANG! Just to let the new comers know they have done wrong and to NEVER, EVER DO IT AGAIN!!!!! This individual makes their way back to the table staring at the newcomers, just to make sure they got the message. The only problem is, is that 5 minutes later another group come in and do the same thing and he/she feels obliged to continually do this for the rest of the night.

Well hopefully this blog puts a light on the owners of these establishments and encourages them to lift their game and create doors that allow diners to sit and enjoy their meal, to give the diner an experience before they enter the building. It is also a thank you to the makers of quality doors who care about craftsmanship.

I have developed a scoring system based on,

DESIGN:

This is assessed by the materials the door is made from, whether the door is themed, cluttered or minimal and whether there is an element of surprise or not.

DOOR RESISTANCE: 1 to 5

1 = light push

5 = heavy push

CLOSURE MECHANISM: Manual, automatic or

hydraulic arm

DRAFT: Minimal, medium or high

SQUEAK LEVEL: 0 up to 5

0 = No squeak

5 = Ear piercing

Then the last assessment is the,

CHANGE RETURN TIME:

This is the amount of time it takes to get my change once I have given the waiter the money for the bill. Last impressions are always just as important as first.