Rosemary Parkinson, Contributor
Left: Jamaica's bartender should have had top points for presentation. : Right: Cookie Kinkead and Jag Mehta at the Jamaica table. - ROSEMARY PARKINSON PHOTO
THE CARIBBEAN Village was a colourful delight with everyone who joined the Inter-American Institute for Co-operation in Agriculture's (IICA's) first participation at Caribbean Hotel Industry Conference (CHIC) and Taste of the Caribbean 2006. Unfortunately, organisers placed the village right at the back of the showroom and although word got around and it had its share of visitors and press, trader interaction could have been better.
Miss Brathwaithe's Rum Shop within the village did roaring 'business' with a special integrated Caribbean cocktail that I made - Trinidad's Angostura's Caribbean Club Rum Punch, Barbados' Cockspur Rum, fresh bananas, oranges and lime juice - the large punch bowl having to be refilled several times! Angostura's 1911 rum showed enormous popularity with its aged, mild tasting and delightful aromatic qualities.
Thanks must be given to Barbados' Cockspur Rum, Anne Marie Whittaker and her divine Native Treasures, Shane Johnson and Tortuga Rum Cake, Jamaica's Buccaneer Rum Cake (both cakes great tasting), the Barbadian chefs for the preparations of our meats for grilling, the men at the Angus stall with whom we exchanged beef for Caribbean sauces and all others who sent in products to be displayed. Next time the Caribbean "going to mash up de place with excitement 'cause Miss Harvey going to insist dat de IICA village be placed to the front of the exhibition hall." Caribbean products must get priority!
As far as I could gather there was disappointment in general amongst exhibitors. Firstly, somehow the vast numbers of attendees from the Caribbean region were clearly absent - only lunches, cocktails and the night fetes brought them out in their thousands. The Hyatt Regency's taxis did bumper business with 'shop-'till-we-drop-a-holics'.
Secondly, although carded for breakdown on Wednesday, June 27, with no real official mandate and no explanation, the word spread that all exhibitors were to disassemble booths on Tuesday night. So rumoured, so done - the consensus being that efforts were hardly rewarded by only two full days of nothing much.
GOVERNMENTS HAVE TO HELP
With food in mind and on the subject of sustainable tourism; during a press conference termed The Live Caribbean Studio, I reiterated the importance for the Caribbean region to feed itself. I pointed out, however, that before we can successfully achieve this, governments have to put linkages into place. These include freight and customs facilitation for Caribbean products among islands - or we will be spinning top in mud.
Right now it is far easier to import a banana from China into any of the islands than getting one from St. Lucia into Barbados for example. This linkage topic was seriously focused on by outgoing president of the Caribbean Hotel Association, Berthia Parle MBE and Miss Ena Harvey (IICA Barbados), during the many sessions where Caribbean issues were discussed. Hopefully, incoming president, Peter Odle will pick up the fight.
Because I went to CHIC wearing a different hat, I was unable to attend any of the Taste of the Caribbean sessions bar two - The bartenders competition during the day (for just a few minutes) and the restaurant of the nations culinary competition dinner on Tuesday, June 27. Unfortunately, the young Jamaican bartender dropped his cocktail shaker mid-air during competition. Recovering quickly he created what appeared to be a perfectly good rum punch; however, the other entrants in his class had superior presentations. My message to the young man, never mind, I once left the top off a rather large blender filled with fruits and rum, switching same to high whilst an audience of 2,000 had a good laugh at my expense. A little humour on my part saved the day and would have worked wonders for the bartender too.
THE MENU AT THE JAMAICA TABLE
Jamaican event planner, Maurison Randall, photographer, Cookie Kinkead, Jag Mehta of SuperClubs and I all rushed to the Jamaica table for the Taste of the Caribbean dinner expecting to be smiling with pride from ear to ear. I quote the menu exactly as typed and handed to us.
"Starter - crispy conch and avocado cake with coconut lime foam on a plantain hash with breadfruit soup garnish with pumpkin seed oil. Entrée - island green and herbs stuffed pork roulade with annatto and mango jerk sauce; pan seared coffee rubbed tri-tip of beef Colby cheese pumpkin fritter Angostura plus Blue Mountain Coffee sauce, West Indian lamb curry - okra and rice cake roast pineapple and mint chutney with cassava chips sautéed island vegetable. Dessert - warm ravioli with rum cream pineapple compote caramelised ginger and chocolate mousse with tamarind sauce ice coconut parfait with oven roasted banana and sorrel syrup."
What a mouthful of badly typed and confusing words! We could hardly identify what was what with everything tasting quite horrid - the appetiser and dessert were left on the plates with inedible stamped on both. With the US$200 spent among us, we could have gone on the town in Miami and enjoyed a night of champers and good food. Sorry guys but truth is truth. Who put together all that craziness? Maybe next time, the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) better think of having one of the many local culinary professionals at the helm of the national team. Something was really wrong here.
Rosemary Parkinson was last seen walking the pavements of South Beach mumbling, "Knutsford Boulevard should be like this."
