Spontaneity the key to cafe’s success
Fish will be the main ingredient at a special happy hour event at the Lemon Tree Cafe next Friday.Chef Bastuan Wasantha isn’t sure how the dish will be seasoned or what it will be paired with. That’s because the Queen Street cafe is known for being spontaneous with its menu items.The restaurant uses only the freshest vegetables and herbs or ingredients in the kitchen on that particular day, according to manager Craig Smith.Next Friday’s menu will feature deep-fried fresh, local wahoo, french fries and some kind of freshly prepared coleslaw or salad, said Mr Wasantha.There will be some specially prepared sauces to go with the dish, one is likely to be a home-made sweet chilli sauce.Mr Smith guarantees people will have a great time at the Fish in the Park party.“Just ask people how much fun they had at our last event. Our events have spread mainly from word-of-mouth. There’s a reason why we have, for numerous years, been named the happiest happy hour on the Island.“This is pretty much the only place in the world where you can have a happy hour in the park, in the middle of the city, in the middle of an Island, in the middle of the ocean.”Mr Smith said the cafe decided to hold the event after the success of their Pig in the Park party in April.“We actually had a whole pig on the spit and we had such a positive response from it so we said ‘let’s do it again with the same concept, but a different theme’.“Next time we are going to be doing Cow in the Park and a Chicken in the Park event will be later [this summer].”The manager said they are constantly trying to think outside the box to give customers a unique and authentic dining experience.“With Lemon Tree each day the menu changes because we go by the ingredients we get in on the day and what we have available. Each day at Lemon Tree it’s a unique experience because very rarely will you get the same thing twice.”He said the only things prepared on a regular basis were popular staple items like beef pies, wraps and sandwiches.“People love the pies. We are known as having the pest pies on the Island. Unlike other beef pies we actually use big chunks of meat,” Mr Smith said.Mr Wasantha explained the secret to the pies was in the red wine reduction, fresh vegetables and beef sauce.The cafe also offers a healthy plate of the day that is fit for diabetics whole wheat pasta or rice dishes.“We use what we have available which is why we get the fresh taste,” Mr Wasantha said.For more information e-mail lemontree@transact.bm. Tickets to next Friday’s event are available at the Queen Street store.