Tuesday, March 31, 2009
April Fool's
Today marks the 6th month anniversary of us living on Saba. Well, actually it would be tomorrow since American Airlines screwed us up back on October 1st in 2008 and we arrived a day late.
I wonder what type of April Fool's jokes I will bear the brunt of today but no doubt there will be plenty given the funk I'm in right now.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Oh, the Fun never stops
As we are winding down from "high season" here on Saba Paul and I have decided to sit down and take a look at where we want Tropics Cafe to go as we enter into our first low season on the island.
We are talking about making some changes to the menu and "tighten up" the list and offer a limited amount of great quality food and spirits. Not having ever done this before it will be a trial by fire to see whether we make the right decision.
That said, the hotel bookings are quiet going into this week end and our friends, Shawn and Sonya are having their baby's christening today so we decided to close for dinner service tonight and celebrate the event..
The service begins in 11 minutes and, needless to say since we just got home from the restaurant's lunch shift, we will miss the Church aspect of it. Probably a good idea since I wouldn't want the poor child's special day ruined by a lightning strike by my prescence!
We will, however, enjoy the Blessed event at the cocktail party afterwards.....
It is also LeAnna's 25th birthday today. (GOD, THAT MAKES ME FEEL OLD!!) She works with us at Tropics and is a Godsend to us at the restaurant and bar.
Another hotel/restaurant on the island is having a special 6 course wine tasting dinner tonight and Paul and I are treating Travis and LeAnna to dinner there for her birthday.
Cocktail party, wine dinner, birthday celebration??? Maybe I should STOP drinking this Bloody Mary I'm enjoying right now.................
Hmmmmn..............
Friday, March 27, 2009
Murderers!
Last night we had a young couple who came in for dinner and liked it so much that they're coming back in tonight and requested fresh lobster.
I just got back from the harbor and had one of the guys pull the lobster traps and sell me 2 four pounders for the meal tonight.
Larry the Lobster says his final goodbyes right before the hatchet chops him in half.
Off to the steamer pot!
Paul just pulled a recipe off the web and will "par steam" them first, finish them on the grill and serve "the cockroach of the sea" with a Thai pepper, lime and cilantro sauce.
Bon Appetit from Saba!!
In a Mood
Monday, March 23, 2009
Our day off today
We had a really nice day off today. Paul and I enjoyed a lazy morning here at the house and then we went to friends Malcolm and Rodney's house for a long lunch on their deck overlooking the pool. They are from England and spend several months each year on Saba. Malcolm is a writer and photographer who has produced dozens of books on floral design, gardening and entertaining and Rodney, also a writer, has dealt in fine art.
It will take some getting used to understanding tropical plants but we were given some awesome things like Bromeliads, Coconut Palms, Crotins and more. Now to plant them all.
As we arrived home the yacht Limitless was sailing by on its way back to St. Maarten. It is a 315 ft. long privately owned ship by the Limited Company owner who owns Victoria's Secret. I wonder how many bra sales it took to cover the $250 Million it cost to build it.
Happy Monday from Saba!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
The "Bakery" is in full swing this morning
Friday, March 20, 2009
Movie Stars, Oh, I'm all goose pimply!
Colleagues of ours that run another hotel and restaurant said that some of them came in for lunch while the others went hiking and scuba diving.
Three things come to mind when I heard this;
#1 I guess the gossip rags are true that Kate and Owen are back together
#2 Why didn't we get invited for cocktails on the aft deck in the harbor
#3 How DARE they NOT come into Tropics for a meal!
The yacht leaves this morning.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Paul's much better
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
St. Patrick's Day Wrap Up
St. Paddy's Day
Friday, March 13, 2009
Friday The 13th
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Now it Looks like I've got "the Bug"
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Back to the grind
Yesterday was our normal day off and I made dinner at home for us and enjoyed this awesome sunset from the deck.
By the time dinner was over Paul's fever had spiked again and he went to bed, tossed and turned all night and was sweating so I made do on the couch which translates to a shitty night's sleep and a grumpy Chris this morning.
Back to the grind today at Tropics in about an hour or so for a long day on little sleep. Not so Happy Tuesday from Saba.....
Monday, March 9, 2009
Sunday, March 8, 2009
My Chef Debut
Saturday, March 7, 2009
The Heineken Regatta, St. Maarten
Friday, March 6, 2009
All Rain and..... No Water? What's Up with That?
Yesterday, however, Paul was taking a shower as I was brushing my teeth and the the water supply started spurting and "coughing" out air. I thought "we can't be out of water" and went to check the pump below the house and then the cistern which had plenty of H2O in it.
Our landlord Wayne asked Luke, AKA maintenance Man extraordinaire, if he would go into the cistern to check out the pump valve. Poor guy, he asked is could borrow our wetsuit since the water would be cold. Talk about shrinkage!!! Well, they changed the valve and it still didn't work. Ultimately, the pump had to be changed out and tonight we have water again. Time for a warm shower, a bite to eat and then to bed.
Happy "Almost Tropical Storm Conditions" from Saba and Happy Daylight Savings Time for all you US folks...... Spring is almost here.......
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Why I love Saba!
I was convinced that our exhaust system was about to fall off so we took the car down to the local mechanic to check things out. He confirmed that there was some rust on the exhaust pipe and it had separated from the muffler.
I asked him what it was going to cost for a "new system" and he looked at me like I was from Mars.
He said that he would weld the pieces back together and that would fix the problem for (at least) the next year or two.
Paul picked up the car and paid the tab ($65 TOTAL) and things are great again.
I can only imagine the freakin' crooks at the Lexus dealership in DC saying that the repair would be something like $1,400 because our warranty was no longer valid. Hmmmmnnnnn........
My Cysterectomy
So after a little local anesthesia and four fucking shots, he cut it open, dug in and started pulling scraping and gauging away!! 45 minutes later and several stitches it's all gone and I'm back in business. I asked to Doctor to make sure that my scar will be really macho and cool so I can regale people with stories of me getting into a bar fight with knives and shit like that.
Come on guys, I have to live vicariously with the thought of living a cool and exciting life like other people!!
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Rain, Rain, Rain
Carnival 2009
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Our day off
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Sunday Brunch
Paul and I are gearing up for a busy Sunday Brunch today. We have a handful of reservations but the island is pretty full right now so I predict a strong crowd.
We end our Sunday Brunch at 2pm and we have stayed open in the past through Happy Hour until 6 but we have both decided that it just isn't worth the few extra dollars of bar business so, starting today, we are closing right after brunch and having "a true" half day off which will give us a total of 1 1/2 days off each week.
Looking forward to spending the late afternoon with tapas poolside at another hotel/restaurant today!!
Happy Sunday and Happy March from Saba............