How Samantha Hall Hosts Unforgettable Events in Salt Lake’s Most Beautiful Private Dining Rooms
When someone is “hospitable,” they take unfamiliar environments and make them so warm and welcoming they feel like home. Hospitable people know how to make “homes” where there wasn’t one before.
Samantha Hall, the Assistant General Manager at Laurel Brasserie & Bar inside The Grand America Hotel, knows a thing or two about this.
Not only has she created homes for herself in numerous cities, but she has also created the feeling of home for guests who host their celebratory dinners and special gatherings in Laurel’s artistic and uniquely designed Private Dining Rooms.
She has perfected the highest level of hospitality since she was 14 years old, when she was a server in a traditional English pub in her native Northwest London.
She crash-landed—almost literally—in Los Angeles in 1983, the plane from London plummeting 1,000 feet mid-air before eventually touching down safely. Samantha was 16 and came to the United States to travel after graduating high school.
Settled in Tucson, Arizona five years later in 1988, she returned to hospitality as a housekeeper, cleaning 16-18 rooms each day. From there, she moved into the hotel’s restaurant, first as a hostess, then as an assistant manager, eventually taking on the general manager position for the hotel’s dining.
By 1990, she was a mother of two sons and had a budding career in hospitality. A career that would take her to 13 hotels and resorts from coast to coast.
“Zipping Around:” From the Desert to the Coast and Back to The Grand America
While living in Phoenix, Arizona, directing brand standards and leading banquet training for Marriott’s Southwest region, she applied for a job at the White Elephant Resort in Nantucket on a dare from friends.
Of this time in her life, Samantha recalls “zipping around the island like a crazy person.” She managed the private events for four different restaurant properties that were scattered around Nantucket.
“I’m an East Coast girl at heart,” she says, “even though I keep landing in the desert.”
It was 2011 when she did land back in the desert—this time in Utah. Her children were having children of their own, and she was ready to spend more time in her role as Nana.
This was the year she came to The Grand America Hotel, starting nearly a decade of leading the hotel’s banquet team.
But when the world shut down in 2020, Samantha took a step back and spent a year relishing her home life. She gardened and she was “Nana,” dedicating her time to the other loves in her life.
Not a Tough Sell: Salt Lake City’s Most Beautiful Dining Rooms
She was at The Grand America one afternoon for a hair appointment at the salon at The Grand Spa, when someone in hotel leadership spotted her.
The hotel’s newly reimagined dining concept, Laurel Brasserie & Bar, was just opening, and he wanted to take her on a tour of the new private dining rooms.
A few months later, when she was asked if she wanted to manage those beautiful rooms, she did not hesitate. Samantha came back to The Grand America to bring new dreams to life in the artfully designed private dining rooms in Laurel.
She’s quick to say it herself, “These rooms are not tough to sell.”
In her mind, the private dining rooms in Laurel are a testament to the difference a family-owned company can make. Not only does she see the freedom to create unique and really special events, but there’s also a specific kind of care for the community.
In the last 2 years, Samantha has already watched a community flourish around Laurel, especially through the special events hosted in the private dining rooms.
She’s seen brides who book in for their wedding showers and return for baby showers. She’s seen families who gather in the Willow Room point to the Olive Room and say next time we’ll meet in there.
Samantha remembers each one and welcomes them back when they return. Because she is herself a part of this hotel’s legacy, in that, she pays attention to the little details. She knows how to be truly hospitable and makes a new home for many in Salt Lake City, one special event at a time.