Property Recognized as a Top Hotel for Hospitality Excellence by Travelers Worldwide

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla.– Homewood Suites by Hilton Palm Beach Gardens has been recognized with a 2015 TripAdvisor^® Certificate of Excellence Award. The award, now in its fifth year, recognizes hospitality excellence and is given to establishments that consistently achieve outstanding traveler reviews on TripAdvisor.

TripAdvisor highlights the world’s top properties based on reviews and ratings from travelers around the globe. In addition to positive online guest reviews, hotels must maintain an overall TripAdvisor bubble rating of at least four out of five. Volume, timing of reviews as well as a hotel’s tenure and popularity ranking are all factored into the selection process.

“Our staff is committed to showing each of our guests that while they are here with us, they are part of our extended stay family,” said Liz Oliver, general manager. “There is no greater seal of approval than being recognized by our guests, and we are honored to receive this award based on our commitment to customer satisfaction.”

Homewood Suites by Hilton provides travelers amenities and services that maximize their travel budget including: complimentary internet, daily full-hot breakfast and complimentary evening social Monday -Thursday.  In addition, Homewood Suites offers inviting, generous all suite-accommodations including fully equipped kitchens, complimentary grocery shopping service* and fun recreational options such as a fitness center and indoor pool, enabling travelers to “stay in the groove.”

Homewood Suites by Hilton Palm Beach Gardens participates in Hilton HHonors^®, the only hotel loyalty program that allows members to earn Points & Miles^® on the same stay and No Blackout Dates on reward stays. HHonors members always get our lowest price with our Best Price Guarantee, along with HHonors Points, digital check-in and no booking fees only when they book directly through Hilton.

For more information or to make a reservation, visit Homewood Suites by Hilton Palm Beach Gardens  or call +1 561 622 7799

Read more about Homewood Suites by Hilton at www.homewoodsuites.com and news.homewoodsuites.com.

* Guest pays for groceries. Other restrictions apply.

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About Homewood Suites by Hilton™
Homewood Suites by Hilton, Hilton Worldwide’s upscale, all-suite, extended-stay hotel brand with more than 360 locations in the United States, Mexico and Canada, is an award-winning leader that has been named “Top Upscale Extended-Stay” hotel by J.D. Power the last five years. The first choice for guests seeking comfortable accommodations when traveling for an extended or quick overnight stay, Homewood Suites offers inviting, generous suites, featuring separate living and sleeping areas, and fully-equipped kitchens with full-size refrigerators. Additional value-driven essentials include: complimentary Internet, a daily full-hot breakfast and complimentary evening social every Monday-Thursday. With Hilton’s award-winning digital check-in with room selection tool, Hilton HHonors members can log into their accounts and choose their exact room from a digital floor plan, as well as customize their room prior to arrival with amenity requests. The service is available for 650,000+ rooms at more than 4,100 properties across 11 brands worldwide. Homewood Suites is focused on guest satisfaction and stands behind each stay with its 100% Suite Assurance® guarantee. For more information on the extended-stay advantage, visit www.homewoodsuites.com or news.homewoodsuites.com.

Grub Burger Bar is a fast, casual concept offering eclectic burgers, fresh salads and cutting edge shakes and cocktails. Grub stands for Good people, Real food, Unique vibe and Big flavors. They grind their signature blend of chuck and brisket in house every morning. They also bake their buns from scratch every hour. The menu is made up of gourmet burgers, delicious bar appetizers, crisp side dishes, filling salads and even some “Burgers That Don’t Moo.” Grub has locations in Texas, Atlanta, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. They are opening in Tallahassee, Florida on June 16th and looking to open in Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania in late July.

Some of their unique burgers include the Lockhart Legend, Thai Peanut Burger, and Ghost Burger, featuring its ghost chili sauce. Not looking for a burger that moos? Grub also offers the Hippie Chickpea and the Jive Turkey Burger. This fast casual burger bar even features a full-bar, complete with shakes, both spiked and regular, that is best enjoyed during its Happier Hours Drink Specials!

For more information please visit: http://www.grubburgerbar.com/

The Florida Chamber Foundation wants to better understand Florida’s opportunities in “Medical Tourism.” Your insights will help them provide information and clarity in support of the work Florida’s restaurants and lodging establishments lead.

Broadly, we include three activities under the heading of “Medical Tourism”:

1) inbound travel and services associated with consumers traveling to Florida for medical, surgical and broader health services;

2) medical meetings and conventions which attract inbound domestic and international travel by physicians and other health care professionals; and

3) health and wellness related tourism, events and activities.

Please click here to take the survey.

Media Contact:
Elizabeth Ray
FRLA Communications Director
850.224.2250 x255
ERay@FRLA.org

Firehouse Subs CEO in Ft. Myers to Share Insight on Building Your Brand
– Don Fox to Present at FRLA SW Florida Chapter Meeting on April 1st –

(Tallahassee, FL) – The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association (FRLA) is thrilled to host Don Fox, Chief Executive Officer of Firehouse of America, LLC at its next Southwest Florida Chapter meeting. Fox leads the strategic growth of Firehouse Subs, one of America’s leading fast casual restaurant brands and is scheduled to give a presentation titled, “Seven Keys for Building a High Performing Brand” on Wednesday, April 1, 2015 at the Holiday Inn Fort Myers Airport at Town Center. Drawing on 40 years of experience, Fox will offer insight on developing and leading a high performance organization. The event is open to FRLA chapter members and non-members. Media is invited to attend.

“This is a must-see presentation that is truly inspiring. Don Fox is an incredibly engaging speaker with a wealth of industry knowledge. He helped lead the growth of the Firehouse Subs brand – one of the top franchises in the country. There’s no doubt he’s a successful veteran of the business and will motivate restaurateurs, hoteliers, and other businesses to take their brand to the next level,” said Carol Dover, President and CEO of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association.

Under Fox’s leadership, the Firehouse Subs brand has grown to more than 750 restaurants in 41 states and Puerto Rico. Fox sits on various boards of influence in the restaurant community, and is a respected speaker, commentator and published author. He was recognized by Nation’s Restaurant News as 2011’s Operator of the Year. In 2013, he received the prestigious Silver Plate Award from the International Food Manufacturers Association (IFMA), and was recognized by FastCasual.com as the No.1 Executive in the fast casual restaurant community.

WHAT:
Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association Southwest Florida Chapter Meeting
“Seven Keys for Building a High Performing Brand”
Presented by Don Fox, Chief Executive Officer, Firehouse of America, LLC

WHEN:     
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
11:30 AM – 12:00 PM Registration and Networking

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM Luncheon and Presentation

*Media is Invited to Attend

COST:
$23 Per Person
$190 For Reserved Table of 8

WHERE:
Holiday Inn Fort Myers Airport at Town Center
9931 Interstate Commerce Dr.
Fort Myers, Florida 33913
*Royal Palm Ballroom

To register for the event, please email dannette@frla.org or click here to see the event flyer.

About the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association
FRLA is Florida’s premier non-profit hospitality industry trade association. Our mission is to ‘Protect, Educate and Promote’ Florida’s $76.1 billion hospitality industry which represents 23% of Florida’s economy, $4.6 billion in sales tax revenue, and more than one million employees – making it the state’s number one industry. We offer regulatory compliance and food safety training needs (RCS and SafeStaff®); industry developed career-building high school programs (FRLAEF); sponsor the only event in Florida exclusively serving the restaurant and foodservice industry (FR&L Show, October 6-8, 2015 in Orlando); and we safeguard the needs of the hospitality industry by providing legislative advocacy. We represent and serve more than 10,000 independent and household name members, suppliers, and theme parks. For more information, go to www.FRLA.org and find us on Twitter @FRLAnews, Facebook and YouTube.

Rule 69L-6.007, Compensation Notice, Florida Administrative Code, has been adopted and will become effective on January 30, 2011.  The rule adopts the revised workers’ compensation notice posters, including the Spanish version of the poster and updates the information that is required to be included on the poster.  Section 440.40, F.S., requires every employer who has secured workers’ compensation insurance to post in its place of business a workers’ compensation notice and an Anti-Fraud Reward Program notice.  Section 440.40, F.S., also authorizes the Department, by rule, to prescribe the form of the notices and to require carriers to provide the notices to policyholders.

For a transitional period of 90 days from the effective date of the rule, an insurer or self-insurance servicing agent may use the “broken arm” posters identified and adopted in subsection 69L-6.007(1), Florida Administrative Code, or the corresponding poster(s) in effect prior to the adoption of the rule.  After the completion of the 90 day transitional period, only the revised posters adopted in this rule may be used.

Copies of the rule text and the revised workers’ compensation notice posters may be obtained from the Division’s website at http://www.myfloridacfo.com/WC/.

Contact Tasha Carter, Chief, Bureau of Compliance, Division of Workers’ Compensation, 200 E Gaines Street, Tallahassee, FL  32399, (850) 413-1878 regarding this rule.

The federal health care law requiring Americans to buy health insurance unlawfully expands the powers to Congress by forcing consumers to buy something they may not want, a Florida federal judge “reluctantly” ruled on Monday in a challenge by Florida and 25 other states.

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Tallahassee – Florida House Majority Leader Lopez-Cantera (R-Miami) today issued the following statement regarding the Economic Development & Tourism Subcommittee’s passing of the Proposed Committee Bill (PCB) on Unemployment Compensation (PCB EDTS 11-01)

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By Michael C. Bender, Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau

February 11, 2011, Tallahassee – Unemployed Floridians would work harder to earn fewer state benefits under a pair of proposals on the fast track in the Florida Legislature.

On Thursday, a divided House committee approved a bill from Republican leaders that would:

• Make it easier to fire employees.

• Put more burden on workers to prove they deserve benefits if employers appeal.

• Reduce weekly unemployment checks from the state from 26 weeks to as few as 12.

“This bill … helps ease the burden on businesses so they can start hiring again,” said Rep. Doug Holder, R-Sarasota.

The House Economic Development and Tourism subcommittee passed the bill 7-4 along party lines.

PCB EDTS 11-01 has two more committee stops but could be ready for a vote on the House floor when the annual spring lawmaking session starts March 8.

The Senate plan is similar to the House bill but includes a slight increase in the base unemployment tax rate on businesses. SB 728 is scheduled for its first vote later this month.

Unemployment benefits in Florida are paid from business taxes. The state fund, however, was wiped out in August 2009 by the historic unemployment crisis.

Lawmakers attempted to save the fund in 2009 when they increased business taxes to pay for it. But the Legislature undid those changes in its first bill of 2010.

Instead, lawmakers have taken on $2 billion in federal loans plus more than $200 million in interest.

President Barack Obama is pushing to let Florida delay about $500 million in payments for the next two years. But Gov. Rick Scott wants lawmakers to cover the federal debt obligations while cutting unemployment taxes for businesses by $630 million over two years.

Scott’s plan would also reduce state benefits to 20 weeks from 26 weeks. His plan, as well as the House and Senate bills, would limit unemployment checks to 12 weeks if the unemployment rate reaches or falls below 5 percent. It’s now at 12 percent in Florida.

Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, said he would consider Obama’s plan.

“Interest payments cripple families, cripple this state,” Haridopolos said. “We need to find a long-term solution.”

In the House committee on Thursday, nearly a dozen out-of-work residents pleaded not to reduce their benefits. The maximum benefit is $275 per week, among the lowest in the country.

But the Republican majority sided with business lobbyists who said lower taxes would make it easier to hire new workers.

“The whole system needs to be reformed,” said Senate Commerce and Tourism Chairwoman Nancy Detert, R-Venice. “And that is going to be a huge lift.”

Michael C. Bender can be reached at mbender@sptimes.com.