Interview with Alexandre Scarvelis

22 May 2009

Alexandre Scarvelis General Manager of Hotel Balzac Paris Interview

Who are you?

Alexandre Scarvelis, General Manager of Hotel Balzac in Paris, on the Champs-Elysées. Hotel Balzac is a beautiful 5-star luxury boutique hotel made up of of 70 rooms, which opened in July 2007 after 2 years of renovation.

What do you like about what you do?

Meeting new customers and providers everyday is the most thrilling part of my job. Enjoying people from all over the world, with different culture, personal history and occupations. It is really enriching as you have to greet them according to their own traditions, yet they all have to be satisfied and ensure to make them come back.

What don't you like about what you do?

That I am not able to meet all the clients, even though our team is dedicated to make their stay the most enjoyable one, I would like to see them all.

Please tell us about your hotel and your aims with it?

Hotel Balzac is a unique property, mixing the traditional decor with contemporary fabrics along with a gourmet restaurant, rated 3-star at Michelin Guide. A stay at the Balzac is an once-in-a-lifetime experience.

My goal for the Balzac? Make it one of the best hotels in Paris, reaching the top 20 in 2010. We can make it.

Are you working with blogs and if yes, what is your favourite blog?

Not that much actually, except my friends' ones.

I truly think this is a great medium and I will create one for the Balzac for sure.

Your TOP 3 hotel experiences:

• Oriental in Bangkok: for its tradition and excellence
• Montage in Laguna Beach: the best Californian experience ever
• Eden Roc on French Riviera: perfection in service and view on the Mediterranean sea

Your TOP 3 destination experiences:

• Provence, as everything there seemed to have been especially created for happiness
• South East Asia, especially Thailand for its culture and the kindness of its people
• California: from San Francisco to Los Angeles, the true American dream

Your TOP 3 food and/or beverage experiences:

• Restaurant Pierre Gagnaire, inside the Hotel, one of the 3 best restaurants in the world
• Mon Vieil Ami, gourmet bistrot in the heart of Ile Saint-Louis in Paris
• Rosticceria Fiorentina in Roma: genuine, simple, perfect

Can you offer possible readers 3 things they absolutely need to do/visit/see when visiting your city?

• Champs-Elysées
• Ile Saint-Louis
• Trocadéro Gardens

Any comments you want to share with us?

Life is short, enjoy every minute of it.

Originally from The Ring Hotel Press Blog

http://theringpress.wordpress.com/2009/03/24/interview-alexandre-scarvelis/