a week in the bag

The good news is people love the place and we have tons of people coming back several nights in a row. This weekend was packed and we actually got so busy we had to raid a neighbors restaurant for more chairs in the middle of the night. We still have many important details to work on the most urgent is to finish the long bench on the back wall and another couple of benches for the long tables to provide for the planned amount of seating. A decorative shelve by the bar for showing off the licor is also high on the list. Then we need to move on to cover more of the outdoor areas for those rainy months. We can't always count on our sloth, Patsy, showing up doing a show by passing thru the restaurant or the baby sloth, Janet, doing her daring acrobatics on cue distracting people from the rain. The lounge area up front has become a great hit thats really inviting and what better place to enjoy our signature mojitos.

first night

Yesterday was the first night we were open to the public. No big announcement, no performers. We wanted a soft opening to give our staff a chance to warm up and not get swamped but guess what. We got packed right away. Our first guests walked in the door at six and our menus were still warm from printer when I stuck them in their hands. Locals as well as tourists from Belgium, Brazil, Germany, Israel and the US all seemed to enjoy themselves. Everything worked smoothly till about nine when a terrential rainstorm rolled in and moments thereafter resulted in a powerfailure. The people seated up front by the beach covered only by umbrellas had to be moved to the covered dining area but everybody got a table. Jorge quickly brought all the torches out and placed them around the restaurant for light and with plenty of candles to go around it was a very romantic setting. And with the rain smattering all around us it made up for the lack of music. A very Caribesur experience. The kitchen runs on gas and the bar was fine so people keept on ordering food and drinks till the rain stopped and the light came back on. A generator is now on top of my list.

Right before closing we had a little scare as one of our resident sloths decided to walk across on the inside of the restaurant ceiling on a beam that holds our metal fans that were running at full speed but quick thinking by one of our waitors, Jose, saved the unsuspecting animal from potential disaster. Its good thing sloths are very slow animals.

All in all the feedback from clients was very good, the staff did great and the night was a success. We have a good feeling about KOKi Beach so we are excited to see what tomorrow brings