The Monocle Minute

I like to eat out when I travel for work and have noticed that the old ways of cooking have become fashionable again. A lot of classic recipes are popular right now. For at least the past 10 years, chefs have been trying to create out-of-this-world molecular menus. But in reality, people just miss the classics. In Thailand, chefs are focusing more on local food, even if they have trained in France or the US. Diners have begun to pay more attention to the differences between northern and southern Thai cuisines. Five or 10 years ago, you wouldn’t see people paying highly for a Thai meal because they opted for cheaper street food instead. They thought that fine dining didn’t really make sense here. But now visitors and citizens alike are appreciating what Thai chefs have to offer.

Forgotten ingredients are returning to plates and menus across the world. Central, a restaurant in Lima, Peru, excels in finding unusual regional produce and presenting it in a unique way. Eco-friendly practices are also being adopted by many restaurants. Some chefs want to focus on sourcing ingredients from sustainable suppliers, while others want to produce less waste. The lack of manpower is the biggest challenge facing the hospitality industry right now. I have spoken to both restaurant and hotel managers, who are struggling to find enough workers to fill roles as chefs in kitchens and waiters in dining rooms. The economy isn’t strong enough to plug the gap in staff shortages.

People don’t spend as much on eating out nowadays. This will sadly force many restaurants to close. But I’m excited about the new places that will pop up and those that will stay. In this economic crisis, only the strong will survive. Emerging restaurants will have to offer something different. Their concept has to be a lot stronger; everything has to be better and more interesting in order to make it through. I’m really interested to see what will happen next.

Pichaya ‘Pam’ Soontornyanakij is the chef and founder of Bangkok’s Potong. Her essay on the future of fine dining features in the latest issue of‘The Forecast’, which is out now.

Spending Valentine’s Day in Hawaii might sound romantic but for US defence-policy bigwigs, 14 February will be devoted to one thing: matching Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific. The Honolulu Defense Forum (HDF) at Waikiki Beach will bring together 250 policymakers, military strategists and industry leaders to address the region’s pressing security challenges. Organised in partnership with the US Indo-Pacific Command, HDF focuses on “operationalising urgency” amid rising tensions in the South China Sea and Beijing’s growing maritime dominance.

“With intensifying security challenges, such as those posed by Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and heightened tensions in the South China Sea, both European and Indo-Pacific theatres face pressing security needs,” says Kimberly Lehn, senior director of the HDF. “What we offer is an event focused on strategic policy questions and solutions.” Speakers will include Washington insiders, while sponsors such as Lockheed Martin, Vannevar Labs and AWS reflect the sector’s shifting dynamics. Against a backdrop of an $895bn (€853bn) Pentagon budget request, all eyes will be on Waikiki this Valentine’s for a signal of Washington’s renewed intent.

For more agenda-setting stories on global defence and foreign affairs pick up a copy of Monocle’s bumperDecember/January issue, which is out now.

For Tirana mayor Erion Veliaj, a warm welcome is a government policy. “If most countries suffer from xenophobia, this one has xenophilia,” Veliaj tells Monocle during a recent visit. The Albanian capital is luring expats with its unique visa scheme: a one-year residency (renewable for up to five) in exchange for proof of employment with a foreign firm. This openness, paired with tax breaks – no tax on the first €140,000 of revenue and minimal employee levies – has made Tirana a hotspot for entrepreneurs and professionals.

Belgian architect Guust Selhorst moved to Tirana in 2017, attracted by opportunity and the capital’s low-cost living. Today he runs his own firms, tapping into local talent from the city’s university. Meanwhile, Italian expat Roberto Mazzuca found success managing properties for fellow Italians, who have flocked to the country in recent years. With a thriving restaurant scene and affordable luxury, Tirana’s evolution is fast-paced and inviting.

“Most mayors are in charge of preserving things,” says Veliaj. “Our job here is to change everything.” If Tirana’s citizens remain xenophilic as its streets continue to swell with new faces, his will be a job well done.

For our full report on Tirana, pick up a copy of‘The Forecast’, which is available to purchase now.

Stephen Kircher is the second-generation president and CEO of the Michigan-based Boyne ski-resort empire. Today its portfolio encompasses nine ski resorts across six US states and one Canadian province, including Brighton, Utah, and former Olympic venue Cypress Mountain in British Columbia. But the family-run business faces stiff new competition from US conglomerates with global ambitions, such as the private-equity-backed Alterra Mountain Company and publicly traded Vail Resorts, which owns outposts in countries from Australia to Switzerland.

How do you hedge against ever-warming winters?
Bad winters are nothing new. In the old days, if you had two bad winters in a row, you sold or closed. My father invested in patented snow-making in the 1970s, way ahead of his competitors. We were the first ski company to develop summer resorts such as Gatlinburg SkyPark in Tennessee to generate cashflow in the off-season and diversify geographically when we bought Big Sky, Montana, in 1976. Dad thought like a pilot. He realised that you could manage a property across the country before the internet. Those decisions have sustained us over the years.

Where does Boyne look for inspiration?
We embrace the latest in lift technology from Austria, such as Doppelmayr’s D-Line and bubble chairs. We installed the first eight-seat chairlift in North America. We brought the igloo hospitality concept from Europe. It was all the rage over there and has been equally successful at Sunday River, Maine. In terms of village design, I bring back ideas about human-scale buildings from places such as Gstaad and Megève.

What type of business mindset comes with a Michigan headquarters?
We have a Midwestern perspective – longer-term thinking, less flashy and more methodical. Other ski companies have come and gone through a lot of financial engineering, overpaying and growing too quickly. Our acquisitions have been very careful over the 75 years of our existence. We only purchase properties one at a time, on average every eight years. That has been part of not getting in too far over our skis.

Our interview with Stephen Kircher features in Monocle’s seasonal newspaper, ‘Alpino’. For more mountainous inspiration and slope-related ideas, pick up your copy today.

French newspaper kiosks might have evolved but they still play a key role in the life of Paris. And there’s one that has become a star in its own right – Le Kiosque de Paris, in front of Le Bon Marché. It’s run by the brothers Médéric and Nicolas Bogo, who are following in the footsteps of their great-grandparents, grandparents and parents. And it’s not just the line-up of titles that pulls in so many regulars – and passers-by – but also the siblings' rich knowledge about the titles that they sell and the time they take to talk to their customers.