Al Bustan Palace
William Edwards has worked in Oman with His Majesty Sultan Qaboos for the past 10 years as the preferred supplier of bone china tableware. As a result, William was the first choice to design the new afternoon teaware for the Al Bustan Palace.
The brief was to create a spectacular bone china collection to complement the afternoon tea experience that is served in the world-famous domed atrium.
The Brand
Regarded as one of the world’s leading 5-star hotels, the recently refurbished Al Bustan Palace is superbly located on the longest stretch of private beach in Muscat, in two hundred acres of lush palm-filled gardens within the Al Hajar mountains.
Originally built to host the Gulf Cooperation Council Summit in 1985, the hotel is a suitably grand affair. The soaring domed lobby is fragrant with frankincense and resplendent with hand-carved wood panels and gold, bronze and cream tones.
Following an extensive 18-month renovation project, Al Bustan Palace required a spectacular afternoon tea service to match the grandeur of the luxurious hotel lobby.
William Edwards was tasked to create a bespoke afternoon tea set to wow guests staying in the newly refurbished hotel.
Taking inspiration from the interiors of the hotel, the design was inspired by the unique gold and maroon traditional Islamic fretwork that decorates the walls throughout the 38-meter high domed atrium.
The Execution
William worked closely with the management team during the design process, visiting the hotel on four occasions over the course of the project to ensure that the final design fulfilled the brief supplied by the team at Al Bustan Palace.
The project was fully supplied on time in September 2018, in readiness for the soft opening of the hotel in October 2018.
Following completion and delivery of the new afternoon tea range, William and his design team met with General Manager of Al Bustan Palace Katrin Herz to confirm that the new range met the exacting standards of the exclusive establishment.
The feedback from Katrin and Executive Chef Eric Meloche was overwhelmingly positive, with the new range being so well received that hotel management deemed the teaware to be the perfect gift for visiting diplomats and other high status guests.
