The Trenton Times published the following article on October 23, 2013. To read the full article, click here.
Lafayette Yard Hotel in Trenton cuts staff hours, changes restaurant menu to cut losses
By Jenna Pizzi/The Times of Trenton
on October 23, 2013 at 8:22 PM, updated October 23, 2013 at 8:23 PMThe big juicy steak is gone from the offerings at The Archives restaurant in Trenton, replaced by chicken and shrimp.
The lunch buffet, which used to cost $14.95 and offer relatively costly options such as seafood stew, now runs $9.95 and includes a more modest beef and vegetable soup.
As the board of the city’s Lafayette Yard Hotel tries to make the facility as attractive as possible to potential buyers ahead of a bankruptcy sale a month from now, the management has been making changes to cut its long-running financial losses — dismissing some managers, consolidating positions, reducing room expenses and even tightening up spending at the restaurant, while dropping the buffet price to draw in more diners.
General Manager Ben Zabala said the expensive lunch buffet was “out-pricing the neighborhood,” so he lost what he called the “Marriott menu,” referring to the hotel’s former brand. His company, Marshall Hotels, was asked to make cuts after it came on in mid-July, he said.