Brook Boutique: A success story of 18 months with top international award

Guests were quite surprised to stay overnight in Melsiripura, an unfamiliar name on the tourist map of Sri Lanka. Still, once you reach this beautiful countryside location closer to Dambulla, which is immaculately placed within an 80 acre fruit estate, one would easily reschedule the entire holiday plan just to indulge in the Brook’s luxurious hospitality that perfectly blends with the natural surroundings.

Amongst the many global winners of 2012 World Luxury Hotel Awards, Sri Lanka’s Brook Boutique Hotel was announced the winner of Best Luxury Country Hotel in the respective region.

The World Luxury Hotel & Spa Awards are accepted as the pinnacle of achievement for Luxury Hotels & Spas worldwide and are exclusive to luxury hotels, lodges, resorts, hotel groups and do not include any other areas of the travel industry.

Recognising the ultimate achievement in service excellence, the award is about rewarding and congratulating the hotel officially as they have excelled beyond the normal call of duty. All nominees will be carefully evaluated by a selected global panel of consultants situated amongst 87 countries with an official and/or mystery site visit arranged by the World Luxury Hotel Awards.

It is a significant achievement for Brook Boutique that opened its doors of luxury boutique style hospitality just 18 months ago to be recognised as the winner of World Luxury Hotel Awards 2012.

Managing Director Pubudu Dassanayake and Director Operations Karen Whyte were present at the gala ceremony and the awards presentation held in Kuala Lumpur to accept the award for Brook Boutique Hotel & Spa and to represent its managing company, Castle Royal International Resorts.

Dassanayake, a qualified hotelier with more than 15 years of industry experience, extended his sincere gratitude to the entire team that ensured an unequalled service and the continued loyalty towards Brook Boutique and numerous fans who voted for us in World Luxury Hotel Awards.

Whyte, a British lady who never wanted to miss the beauty of this Paradise Island, settled in Sri Lanka, which made a wonderful home for her. “My journey with Brook is all about ‘living my passion’ and we as a team are simply delighted to be internationally recognised in such a glorious way. Securing global recognition in less than two years in operation is an unprecedented achievement for Brook. All the credit goes to the first class team at Brook and we are honoured to accept this award on behalf of entire tourism and hospitality industry of Sri Lanka,” Whyte explained.

Dassanayake and Whyte went on narrating their story of success beyond 18 months in operation and reached the groundbreaking moment in the year 2007. An ambitious project that began constructing a hotel during a difficult period of time was unveiled when Sri Lanka was regaining its confidence in the tourism industry as a promising destination. Much thought were put-in designing and building this true piece of heaven; architecture, interior designs and even the colours were carefully selected and creatively matched with a lot of enthusiasm from Whyte using her flair and talent for same.

“I made sure that no two rooms were the same in all aspects such as the curtains, bathroom fittings, linen, wall decorations and even the furniture arrangements in each room are unique,” said Whyte. “Looking through a guest’s eye made it all possible for me to fulfil the delicate requirements of our clients and present it the way they want.”

“Karen and I have been working in the hospitality trade, specialising in training and development sector of industry personnel, and now we do practice it continuously at our own property,” said Dassanayake. “We train and develop our own team at Brook with a lot of individuals from the area are given the opportunity to serve in the hospitality industry with continuous guidance and industry improvements. This proved to be a vital point in this service oriented industry that rewarded us with a prestigious award within a short period of time.”

Developed on an exceptional concept that offers total relaxation and higher level of contentment for the traveller makes sure ‘guest’s privacy’ is one of their main priorities. Service comes first at Brook which accommodates guests in three room categories; Superior Room, Garden Chalet and Villa in which you could find oversized beds, large screen plasma TVs with individual satellite connections and DVDs, fully stocked mini-bars, splendid bathrooms with quality toiletries, private gardens, plunge pool or couple Jacuzzi and individual gym equipment provided according to the type of room category for one to feel that extra comfort in Brook style.

“Apart from the soft cushions and pillows piled on their bed we provide the guests with a ‘pillow menu’ from which they could select their own choice to pamper themselves,” said Whyte, who really wants to spoil her guests with extra comfort.

When it is time to lay the table, amazingly talented kitchen brigade at Brook would use the finest and freshest ingredients available and even the guests could select the fruits and vegetables grown in the boutique’s own gardens. The chef would note down each individual’s preferences while welcoming guests and they are in for a treat when it is time for a meal with that exclusive spread laid over the dining table.