Michael Lennon Named GM Meritage Resort, Napa
Sean Dempsey, Jeff Longnecker and Ross Anderson Named to Executive Team
NAPA, CA, May 9, 2006. Pacific Hospitality Group announces the executive team for the soon-to-open Meritage Resort at Napa. The luxury resort opens the end of May.
Meritage General Manager Michael Lennon was formerly general manager of the four-diamond Omni San Francisco Hotel. Under Lennon's management, the Omni San Francisco was recognized on Conde Nast's Gold List and was honored as the 2005 winner of TripAdvisors' Traveler's Choice Award. Lennon also served as general manager with Kimpton Hotels at the Hotel Vintage Court and the Monticello Inn, both in San Francisco. In addition, he has held key management positions with Wyndham Hotels and served as chef at the Jupiter Beach Resort in Florida.
Meritage Director of Food and Beverage Sean Dempsey was formerly the director of conference and catering services for Meadowood and Silverado resorts, both located in Napa Valley. In his executive position with The Meritage Resort, Dempsey will oversee the resort's gourmet restaurant and Reserve Wine Bar, and all catering and conference food services. He will also direct food and beverage operations for the Estate Wine Cave, a highly stylized meeting space located in an underground cave which will open in September.
Jeff Longnecker will serve as executive chef in the resort's upscale restaurant, Siena. Longnecker was formerly executive chef and culinary director of the Sea Ranch Lodge along the Sonoma-Mendocino California coast and, prior, executive chef of the Carmel Valley Ranch in Carmel Valley. Longnecker also worked at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, the Ritz-Carlton Buckhead in Atlanta, and the Ritz-Carlton in Aspen. He also was banquet chef for the Swissotel Atlanta.
Ross Anderson will also serve on the hotel's executive team as the resort's director of sales. Anderson was formerly with Villagio Inn and Spa in Napa and The Vintage Inn in nearby Yountville, California. Anderson responsibilities include promoting the resort's 338 guestrooms, resort amenities and over 14,000 square feet of meeting space.
"We're pleased to assemble a team with strong experience in upscale resort management," says Pacific Hospitality Vice President Dan Fitzgerald. "We're confident that this team will help us achieve four-star, four-diamond status."
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