Published: Wednesday, 3rd February, 2010 5:00pm

Fáilte Ireland gives service award to Glasson's Wineport

Wineport Lodge in Glasson has been honoured at the Fáilte Ireland Optimus Awards which were held in Galway last week.

The restaurant received the Service Excellence Award for special recognition for their ongoing commitment to continuous improvement and business excellence.

It was one of ten restaurants to receive the Service Excellence Award across the country. The Optimus programme, developed by Fáilte Ireland, aims to help tourism establishments - including hotels, restaurants and visitor centres - achieve excellence in every aspect of their business by providing a practical approach to improving the quality, value and delight that visitors experience during their stay in Ireland.

Tony Lenehan, Head of Food, Hospitality and Standards, Fáilte Ireland commended the award winners: "I would like to congratulate Wineport Lodge on their achievement.

Not just on the accolade that they have received today but on their business acumen which has seen them embrace a management framework that brings tangible business benefits.

"This year we have twenty winners who are receiving recognition for their commitment to quality through the Optimus programme.

The recipients are located throughout the country, representing twelve counties in all, and reflect well on the tourism industry's willingness to embrace change and innovation towards self-improvement.

Redmond O'Donoghue, Chairman, Fáilte Ireland stressed the importance of Optimus in the current trading conditions.

"I would like to commend your willingness to take on Optimus at a challenging time for tourism. This demonstrates your ability to embrace challenges and deal with them proactively. For our part, we in Fáilte Ireland are committed to working with you and others in the industry to overcome the challenges posed by the current economic climate. Indeed, 2010 will see us enhancing our level of practical business support offered to tourism enterprises."

The 'Optimus' programme is a national quality standard and business improvement tool for the Irish tourism industry with an emphasis on business improvement.

It helps enterprises understand their performance and then assists them in establishing priorities around making continuous improvement.