Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants announced on Monday that it will source only sustainable seafood according to Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch program.
The San Francisco-based company - which operates 45 chef-driven restaurants in its boutique hotels throughout the United States and Canada - pledged to purchase only species categorized as a "best choice" or "good alternative" under the Seafood Watch program and to shun species listed as "avoid," including farmed shrimp, farmed salmon, imported swordfish Atlantic cod and bluefin tuna.
Kimpton also pledged to train its wait staff about sustainable seafood choices.
This was one of three sustainability initiatives Kimpton unveiled as part of its Earth Share program, which it launched in 2005. The other two initiatives involve its wine and water selections.
"Although each Kimpton restaurant offers a distinct experience, they all share a passion for, and dedication to, preserving the environment," said Kimpton CEO Niki Leondakis, who's also chair of the National Restaurant Association's Committee on Sustainability and Social Responsibility. "This commitment is the reason that we have decided to raise the bar on green dining at our restaurants brand-wide."
Kimpton is the United States' largest boutique hotel chain. Its hotels include Nine Zero Hotel and Onyx Hotel in Boston; 70 Park Avenue Hotel and Muse Hotel in New York; Hotel George, Hotel Helix, Hotel Madera, Hotel Rouge and Topaz Hotel in Washington, D.C.; Epic Hotel in Miami; Alexis Hotel and Hotel Vintage Park in Seattle; and Prescott Hotel, Serrano Hotel, Sir Francis Drake Hotel, Argonaut Hotel, Tuscan Inn, Harbor Court Hotel and Hotel Triton in San Francisco.
