Hotel Glossary Terms

E.g. homard a la nage, or lobster boiled and served ‘swimming’ in some of its cooking liquid.

A tag or badge bearing the name of the wearer or attached to an object and bearing the name of its owner.

Napery  are the table linens.

Name given to oysters reared in beds such as at Colchester.

Natural disaster is the event capable of causing loss of life, great material damage, destruction, and distress. May be caused by fire, flood, earthquake, hurricane, or tornado.

Natural Toxicants is the Poisonous substances that are found naturally in foods. Natural toxicants are benign when taken in normal quantities.

Rich stew made with cheap cuts of mutton, usually garnished with potatoes and spring vegetables.

Net income is total sales revenue from sales and other income less total expenses.

Net income to sales revenue ratio is net income divided by sales revenue and multiplied by 100.

Net present value (NPV) is a method of measuring the value of a long-term investment using discounted cash flow. 

Net return on assets is the net income after income taxes divided by total average assets for the period.

Net worth ratio is the total assets less total liabilities; it equals owners’ equity.

Night audit is the control process whereby the financial activity of guests accounts is maintained and balanced on a daily basis.

Night Auditors get their name because of the hours they work. At the end of the day after most hotel guests have retired, these auditors begin recording charges to guests’ accounts and verifying the revenue for the hotel. However, with computers and various technologies, the hotel industry can post charges instantaneously. Some hotels have actually changed the night auditors to become day auditors.

Night auditor is a person who balances the daily financial transactions of guests who have used hotel services, acts as a desk clerk for the night shift, and communicates with the controller.