Voices of the Future: Signature Hospitality - with Vice President Katrin Steindl
At the JRE Congress on April 20, Vice President Katrin Steindl offered a perspective that shifted the focus of gastronomy to something more fundamental: people. Addressing fellow chefs and restaurateurs, she spoke about Signature Hospitality as a mindset that goes beyond guest experience, placing responsibility on how teams are treated, supported, and empowered.
What followed was a clear and honest reflection on the role of hospitality within the industry, and what needs to change for it to remain sustainable.
Katrin Steindl on the importance of Hospitality
I grew up with three sisters. In a house that had already been a guesthouse long before Christopher Columbus arrived in America.
And the most common sentence I heard throughout my life was:
“Four daughters? The poor father – who will take over the kitchen one day?”
The answer is: none of us did!
So we had to make sure that this part of our family business would end up in the best possible hands.
From products to people
When we talk about gastronomy, we often talk about products. About dishes, origins, techniques, rankings, service, and operations.
But I am convinced that we need to talk about something else: About people.
About those people who create spaces, who carry atmosphere and who make connections possible.
About those people who impact other people’s lives by adding magic to certain moments and turning intuition into creativity.
At the same time, we must ask ourselves an honest question: Has the perfect guest experience sometimes
come at the expense of those who make it possible?
The uncomfortable question is not: who did something wrong?
The question is: how much of this have we all seen and accepted?
Rethinking passion
We need to stop hiding behind words like “passion.”
Passion is not a free pass for missing boundaries.
Passion without structure becomes exploitation.
Signature Hospitality
As a board, we are convinced that we must stand united for a new understanding of “Signature Hospitality.”
Not as service to the guest, but as an attitude towards people:
Hospitality begins within the team, not in the dining room.
Service is not performance, it is relationship.
Hosting is not a show, it is responsibility.
Perctive and responsibility
I am a woman, and I am not a chef.
And in my position and membership of the international board, I also bring an additional perspective:
Hosting, service, organization and leadership are not “supporting roles.”
Equality is not a diversity topic. It is a sign of quality.
Looking ahead
If we, as the JRE association, want to remain relevant, if we want to stay true to our own manifesto, we must become the breeding ground for the best workplaces in our industry.
We plant the seeds of a strong, sustainable, and future-proof industry by asking ourselves the uncomfortable questions and by giving the right answers.
Let us plant these seeds together, and harvest voices that will say:
“This was not only one of the best dining experiences of my life this is an industry I want to be part of, to help shape, and to work in.”
A shared direction for JRE
Steindl’s message points to an important shift within JRE. It is not only about performance or concept, but about responsibility.
By placing people at the center of hospitality, Signature Hospitality becomes a standard that starts within the team and shapes everything that follows.
As the industry evolves, creating strong, supportive, and sustainable workplaces will be essential to attracting and retaining talent, and to defining what quality truly means.
