Steele family among first inductees to RANL Hall of Fame

Kathy Barbour, Restaurant Association of Newfoundland and Labrador president, and Nancy Brace, RANL executive director, present the award to John Dicks of Steele Hotels on behalf of the Steele family.

ST JOHN’S—With its first three inductees, the Restaurant Association of Newfoundland and Labrador’s Hall of Fame is no longer empty.

The Steele Family of Steele Hotels and Restaurants, the Johnson Family of The Johnson Foodservice Corporation and Stan and Jenny Parsons of Seaside Restaurant in Trout River were accepted into the Hall in mid-January.

Catherine and Harry Steele launched their hospitality career with the purchase of the 42-room Albatross Hotel in Gander in 1970. The Albatross has undergone expansion over the years to turn it into a full-service hotel with 90 rooms and suites, a restaurant and bar.

In 1974, the Steeles bought Corner Brook’s Glynmill Inn, which housed two fine dining establishments: The Wine Cellar and the Carriage Room, which originally opened in 1924. As late as 1993, customers would still write up their own orders on a menu card that was delivered to the kitchen.

Their third hotel was the Sinbad’s Hotel and Suites, constructed next to the Water Fall restaurant, which the company purchased in 1976. The hotel opened two years later.

Son John Steele took over the hospitality side of the business in 1991 and changed the company’s name to Steele Hotels.

“Across the island, Steele Hotels has earned a reputation for quality experiences in accommodations and food service,” RANL said in the induction presentation.

“Over 40 years of menu development and culinary excellence means customers eat out at Steele restaurants, but feel like they are at home.”

Steele Hotels added the Holiday Inn Gander to its portfolio in 1995, changing the name to Irving West. The company also operates the Capital Hotel in St. John’s.

RANL Induction ceremonies took place during the annual dinner of the St. John’s Branch of the Canadian Culinary Federation at the Delta St. John’s Hotel and Conference Centre.