Our first week of catering for guests is almost over and it’s been a fun and demanding week. We’ve been so busy there’s been no time to really explore or snorkel yet – the kids have seen and done so much more and are in and out the water all the time! They are learning so much from the boys and constantly tell me about some strange sea creature they’ve found.
I’ve been on my own steep learning curve going straight in at the deep end with catering here whilst still finding my way round the kitchen and what ingredients are available. Despite being fully catered it’s such small amounts to cook compared to what I’m used to – in London I’d regularly cater for large groups of 50-100 – but the personal service, limited ingredients, and small home kitchen all push me out of my comfort zone, as does the idea that not everyone is happy with vegetarian food. At Global Generation we were proud of our vegetarian food; never waving it in someone’s face as a crusaders flag, but covertly surprising and impressing staunch carnivores with our ‘non veggie’ style. Here however, we are not serving to the would be converted, and I’m surprised to discover that people, well these first guests, actually expect meat, large chunks of meat on a daily basis. So, as much as I was the chef, in charged of menu planning and meal coordinating, actually Boris has done a huge amount in the kitchen this last week with helping out on every meat dish.
The first guests arrived in an epic way with darkness, high winds and choppy waters. Kian and I spent the day baking, in a slow and dazed way (wondering are we knocked out by the heat, still acclimatising, or in a stupor from still finding our feet?) whilst Karyn and Boris were out sorting provisions and picking them up. We put flowers in the guest house, gorgeous frangipani and hibiscus, put the lights on there to welcome them, and then spent a couple of anxious hours waiting with head torches. When they arrive on la Venuella they have to transfer onto the blue boat, the small dinghy, and we wade in waist deep to to help transfer bags under starry skies. I was waiting for supplies to come in to finish off our meal and begin cooking starters. The English/ Spanish couple with their teenage son arrive in a tired huddle and Karyn shows them the way to the beach house. We’d spent the day finding our way round the kitchen, I’d thought about this cooking for so long, and now it began…
I got through the week and each day got better but I’m frustrated to find I’m still not in my groove. I’m still a nervous cook around Boris and Karyn, so wanting to impress. The days in the kitchen felt busy and full but it’s really not, it’s just a very different pace here. I’m simply catering for 3 guests, and our 2 families ( so 9 of us) each day with simple breakfasts and lunches and 3 course dinners. The big difference is there can be no missing ingredients, no running to the corner shop for something forgotten and no spontaneous adding of items at the last minute. I think of and miss my lovely GG team often and am so grateful to have Kian, he has been so supportive and helpful.
The evenings have been fun, if not entirely professional. The intention is generally to try and feed the kids first before the guest so we can all relax a little, but this doesn’t always work out, depending on what we’re cooking up, so often kids are mewing round our ankles along with the hungry cats whilst we are putting finishing touches to ambitious starters.
Delivering the dishes in the dark along a path lined with roots and potential coconut crabs strong enough to bite your toe off in high winds is a hilarious nightly challenge. We learn to hold on to flowers and garnishes or they blow away and to fend off cats and keep them out of the house (the 15yr old is allergic) whilst attempting to serve in a vaguely sophisticated way. This scenario is run through 3 times every evening by which time we all feel the need for a drink. After feeding the guests and the kids us four adults finally get to relax. So nice sitting round the table having a drink and a laugh with Boris and Karyn. So fun to be doing this with my old school friend. I have found a whole new respect for her. How feisty and tough and amazing she has been to stick at it and forge a life here for her family. Such good times, hearing of their adventures and pioneering spirit, of some of the whacky people out here and some of the crazy incidents of island life. I am in awe.
It’s not fruit season yet and so we are having to be pretty inventive with our puddings – everyone coming to a tropical island for a holiday surely expects lots of seafood and lots of tropical fruit! Bananas are plentiful so we’ve done variations of yummy things with them (flambéd in rum, battered with chocolate sauce, banoffee pie) but we’ve also done a few cheaty things with tinned pineapple. Here’s one dessert I invented which worked pretty well (I’m relieved to say! – as ever winging it on the night..) it’s hardly wild but it’s yummy and pleased the guests on wild nights. See the recipe link at the bottom of the page folks.