Faces that stand out: Miss Greta

Miss Greta. So remote and yet so outgoing. Such a wonderful laugh when she laughed. She will always be a mystery to me.

Guest 3

Is she really a guest? I look over at her, in the lobby of the hotel, evening after evening. She always has meetings here. Maybe her company puts up some of their personnel with us on a regular basis. I should make a point of checking this with bookings.

Her dress sense is stunning. Black for the most part. Usually draped to suit her hourglass shape. I cannot help but notice her as she strides in through the revolving door on her coloured pumps. I don't know her name. She orders the same drink from the waiters in the lobby bar. A crisp white Chardonnay. Never touches the bar nuts, even though they are very good. A hint of rosemary to them. I suppose that she is wary because of the urban legends about bar nuts. But we always discard them after they have been served.

She waits patiently. Her contact, usually male, turns up, although sometimes she meets up with women. They usually have an intense discussion. Business-like, but there is more to it, I can feel it. I never have the opportunity to overhear them. Then they usually leave. I keep on reminding myself to see where they have gone. Out for the night? Or maybe I am ignoring the fact that they never leave at all?

2. The good night porter should be: invisible

We are good at managing what you don't see. But we are also very good at remaining unseen.

Tell me, when you walk past me, and you acknowledge my good evening, do you actually know what I look like? Who am I? What do I wear? Am I a woman or a man? Am I bald maybe, or is my mane pinned back in a tight bun? Do I have blue eyes? Do I speak with an accent?

I am sure that you are unable to answer any of these questions.

Likewise I know that you have no idea what makes me tick. Nor should you because it is none of your business. Occasionally I will lift a tip of the veil, allowing you a glimpse into the world that is mine. A world that brightens up at night, and that is dull in the harsh daylight.

Mine is a world of disappearance.

Recommendations: excursion to Cadzand/Pure C

When guests ask me for recommendations about excursions, I am always hesitant to give them any. But recently a guest asked me about a day-trip to the seaside. I hesitated to share my favourite resort with a guest. But she was nice, so I did.

Cadzand is easy-going, friendly and best of all, lacks the Atlantic Wall that typefies long stretches of the Belgian coastline. The few hotels that have been built there stand out like ridiculous lighthouses in various colours. Behind the dunes lies a tiny village, Cadzand-Bad. A few tourist shops, a rather good Italian ice-cream parlour and since mid-March, an excellent brasserie, Puur C.

The excellent Dutch chef, Sergio Herman, of Oud-Sluis, recently opened this beautiful brasserie in an otherwise unassuming and dumpy-looking hotel. I suppose that appearances can deceive. Herman prefers to work with home-grown Zeeland produce and is ranked among the best chefs worldwide. His restaurant, Oud-Sluis, a few villages into Holland, is legendary. Bookings are hard to obtain, both in the brasserie and in the restaurant. I wonder if he serves his risotto with zeekraal at Pure C.

Unfortunately I had to tell our guest that she would be unable to eat at Pure C given that it was fully booked until late September. However, she happily booked a table for October and will return to stay with us on that occasion. Proof that our service is still the best. Meanwhile, our guest enjoyed a leisurely day sunbathing in the dunes, looking for sea beans in the sand, and she also took a stroll by the restaurant which, she told me, looks fabulous.

All that remains is to count down the days until I will be able to dine there myself.

http://www.pure-c.nl

Restaurant fare 2

There is a dish that our restaurant does exceedingly well: the horseshoe-shaped gammon (ham) steak with a thin layer of fat which packs a maximum of flavour. I grew up with this dish, completely forgot about and then was reintroduced to it. There are various ways of preparing it but the traditional preparation with pineapple and an egg is still my favourite.

The saltiness of the smoked gammon is perfectly offset by the syrupy sweetness of the pineapple ring, which is caramelized in brown sugar. And finally, one fried free range egg, its yolk oozing thickly as you cut into it.

So easy to cook, so hard to get wrong and so perfect as a nourishing meal to carry you through the night.

Try it, I'm sure you will enjoy it too. It's on our menu.

Faces that stand out 2: Mr Peter

What a dashing WASP he is, even though he looks like he may have stepped out of an early GAP ad.

Guest 2

How pathetic this man is. Every morning I see him take the elevator up to the gym, where he spends at least an hour, like a hamster in its wheel, on the treadmill, until his personal trainer arrives. He has all the right clothes, the little gadgets, the sensors, the iPhone, the cool headphones. He is staying with us for a while until he finds a home.

When his trainer arrives, it's all he can do not to fall over himself with excitement. He eyes the man's pecs (impressive, it must be said), which strain his shirt across his chest, with interest. When the trainer turns around to grab one of his many implements, our little guest's eyes dart to his buttocks. They chat aimlessly about all the women that they have ogled in the past days, and the women with whom they scored.

Is it all about the body? Is our guest aspiring to achieve the same buttocks, the same pecs? Or is there more to it? Would it be a case of 'hello boys' in the shower room?