When I attended the world Travel Market in London, my time was divided between promoting tourism for St. Vincent and the Grenadines by day, and being entertained royally at night. My English friends, all of whom were regular visitors to Bequia, were determined to show me what the nightlife was like in their neck of the woods!
Aubrey (“Po”) Powell and his wife took me to an extremely busy seafood restaurant in the heart of London. Po was a big shot in the entertainment business, agent to bands such as Pink Floyd and Led Zepplin, and also an extremely nice man. Obviously a popular spot, the restaurant’s bar and dining room were jam-packed and extremely noisy. Po had made a reservation but was told there would be a wait, and we stood in the bar to have what I assumed would be a short pre-dinner drink. I had always hated telling customers their table wasn’t ready, and was a bit naïve in thinking we would soon be seated! After two drinks Po finally asked for menus, and ordered a seafood platter which we had to eat standing around the little bar table. Conversation was almost impossible due to the noise level, and the food (when it finally arrived) was somewhat bland and boring compared to the wonderful seafood I ate regularly at home. I DID have a good time, Po pointed out a few celebrities from our vantage spot in the bar, and although I had no idea who they WERE, it was still a thrill to be in such company!
Bruce Higham (affectionately known as “Bru”) was another Bequia regular eager to introduce me to the social scene in London. Bru was a soft-spoken, gentle man who was also in the entertainment business, he produced and distributed the industry’s first rock and roll videos with great success. Bru always mailed us his latest video and we looked forward to receiving them, they were great! Due to their work in the music industry, Bru as well as Po qualified for membership to the Chelsea Arts Club, and together took me there for drinks. What a weird experience! When I heard the word “club” I expected a posh, exclusive place; it was exclusive all right but no-where CLOSE to being posh! Bruce and Po were so proud to be members of the shabby building they took me to, even prouder of the equally shabby bar. The club was pretty much empty, and smelled rather musty. Adorning the walls were the artistic offerings for the month, which looked exactly like colourful intestines leaping from the walls! The best part about the Chelsea Arts Club that night was the silence, except for the rattling of the odd ice cube the place was quiet, and Bruce, Po and I were able to have an actual conversation as we sipped our drinks.
My good friend Jasper, also keen to wine and dine his Bequia friend, invited me to a restaurant called Quaglino’s. Jasper was a well-known fashion designer, and his father (Sir Terrance) owned Quaglino’s as well as a large shop called Habitat. Jasper vacationed on Bequia often, always arriving from England looking very pale and tense. After a couple of weeks in the Caribbean he relaxed and turned brown under the tropical sun, and I was curious to see what he would be like on his home turf. After the show closed for the day I dashed to the hotel to change, then stood in the pouring rain trying to hail a cab. I arrived at my destination a bit late and soaking wet, but not as late as Jasper! I had invited Bru to join us that evening, and together we waited in the extremely plush bar for our host to make an appearance.
Quaglino’s was like nothing I had ever experienced, it was above and beyond grand! The steps sweeping from the bar down into the restaurant led to a glittering space set for 450 patrons, and it was full. When Jasper arrived (pale and tense!) with his friends we were seated at a beautifully set table, and after ordering from an impressive menu we were served a fabulous meal by the expert wait staff. Jasper, although happy to see me, was distracted to the max, often interrupted during the course of the evening by other diners eager to claim his attention. I guess it was the price to pay for fame; the Jasper I knew and loved, sipping rum punch and soaking in the sun’s rays at Lower Bay Beach, was (in my humble opinion) a much happier person!
On the last night of the trade show I treated the tourism staff to dinner. While I had been taken out to fancy restaurants, my fellow tourism attendees had dined at the mercy of St. Vincent’s meagre budget! At the urging of the Tourism Representative in London I chose a Thai restaurant, where the food would hopefully be plentiful as well as tasty. I had considered other dining options, but she smartly steered me away from anything sniffing of “Nouveau Cuisine”, stressing that large helpings of good food would be more appreciated. The clever lady was right, my Vincentian colleagues dug into their Thai food with grunts of approval, and ate like they hadn’t seen food for three days! That food hit the spot for me too, although I had been wined and dined in fancy establishments, the Thai cuisine tasted better and was a fraction of the cost. The simple restaurant didn’t offer celebrity sightings, but the good food made up for the lack of famous people!
