William Sears Zuill in his book Bermuda Journey wrote that “St David’s Island is over two miles long with an area of over 500 acres and is one of the largest islands in the Bermuda group. The eastern end of the island is the most easterly part of Bermuda and there the coast has a bold and rugged aspect, enhanced by the constant surge of the ocean”.

The culinary heritage of Bermuda has been made more interesting by the contribution of the people in St David’s. For 300 years, the island remained separated from the rest of Bermuda until a bridge was built in 1934 to connect it to the mainland. Today we all know that Cup Match and county games are the places to find the best St David’s specialities.

When I was a little girl, my parents sent my brother and me to spend time in St David’s with Gertie and Roy Smith. Uncle Roy was the owner and proprietor of the St David’s Grocery Store and Aunt Gertie, who was originally from Catskill, New York, was my brother’s godmother.

We had so much fun making cane-grass lassoes to catch lizards and harassing bees in their nests until I bore the brunt of their annoyance and was stung on my hand. Boy, did it hurt and swell to an enormous size. What a performance to remove the sting and dab it with something called “Blue” while I sobbed loudly. Despite it all, it was a change from staying with our grandparents in St George’s. Somehow it seemed we were freer to roam around with other children, go fishing and get into mischief. We always loved our stay in St David’s.

Sometimes my father and grandfather would drive over to visit Clarence Borden at his Mount Area Restaurant. He was famous for his conch stew, mussel pies, suck rock stew, fried fish, turtle steaks, lobster and more. In fact, I believe they talked more about politics than food, but then again, I was too young to be interested and was probably given some food delight to keep me occupied. We would later stop to visit “Bay”’ Lamb and her husband Jed, where more socialising took place and I was spoilt with either a coconut cake, a glass candy, fudge or a frozen Popsicle. For me, St. David’s was definitely the place to be!

More than 50 years ago, my husband and I would travel with our son to dine by the water at Dennis’s Hideaway. We were able to sit at a picnic table by the water. It was the first time we had ever seen seahorses.

There was no set menu. The server simply told us what had been prepared for that day and she always added, “what we going give the likkle bie today”. We loved the friendly, relaxed and caring atmosphere. We ordered our drinks and a bowl of ice was placed before us, giving us the opportunity to add as much as we chose.

We were told the story of Government House calling to make dinner reservations. Dennis thought it was someone fooling around and said, “Sure, and I guess the Queen and her acegirls will be calling next.” It took quite some time to convince him that the call was genuine. After all, everyone knew, no one made reservations to dine at Dennis’s Hideaway — they just turned up!

When I began to write this article, my plan was to focus entirely on the food of St David’s, but somewhere along the way I got sidetracked. I called my friend Bill Anderson to inquire about mussels and conch, and he began to reminisce about Clarence Borden and his cousin Felix, who ran the Mount Area Restaurant and Nightclub.

The Bordens were originally from Jonesville, of the former Spanish Honduras in Central America. Clarence was described as a ship’s cook and rum runner.

From 1920 to 1933, rum running was a method of discreetly shipping liquor by boat into the United States during the era of Prohibition. It became a lucrative import/export business for the Bahamas, where legally imported alcohol was later sold and transported 50 miles away to Florida, where it was illegal.

When Clarence Borden arrived in Bermuda on one of these boats, he was invited to lunch by a St David’s Island fisherman. He later met Marie Lamb, who worked in her uncle’s grocery store. They married when Marie was 15 and had eight children. Jessie Pitcher is their sole surviving child.

Clarence was a born entrepreneur. He operated a grocery store before the war and began building Mount Area in 1945 just next to the St David’s Lighthouse. He began with two apartments and a restaurant specialising in St David’s cuisine, and a nightclub catering to locals and American service personnel. The building had a grocery store and, on a lower floor, one of his daughters ran a candy store and an ice-cream parlour.

By 1952, business was booming and improvements were necessary. He employed local architect Wycliffe Stovell to renovate and expand the building. The revamping of Mount Area was completed in seven weeks. The ribbon cutting by Collingwood Burch, a Member of the Colonial Parliament, was a lavish affair with 200 guests invited to a cocktail party. The manager was Bert Wright, from St George’s.

The renovations included a more spacious bar, an enlarged lobby, a redesigned dining room and a sunken dancefloor which could accommodate 75 couples and a seating capacity of 200. The colour scheme was pink with soft, flush lighting. Entertainment for the evening was provided by the Freddie Matthews Orchestra, as well as Noel Smith and his three sons.

During the era of segregation, Mount Area was renowned for entertainment, and people flocked there from all over the island. Many young men were working in the hospitality industry making good tips, which enabled them to purchase cars that cost about £400 at that time. This made the drive to St David’s possible. Ronnie Chameau remembers sitting on the patio on a summer evening in 1953 watching the British war film The Cruel Sea. Yes, you could even watch a movie at Mount Area!

When Bill Anderson won the bingo jackpot at the Leopards Club, he took his friends to Mount Area for dinner — it was after midnight and the place was “jumping”. He said it was if the place never closed. You could turn up at 3am and not be turned away. Mr Borden, he said, “was a businessman”. Before the renovations, there was a small lounge inside but the bulk of the entertainment took place on the patio.

It was also well known for bringing in entertainers from abroad. There were the midget boxers Sam Dobie and King Vic. Ronnie Chameau remembered the West Indian dancer Señorita Conchita, Billy Young remembered a group called Bongo Nights and being entertained by 13-year-old Stevie Wonder, who was here with his mother. He had been brought to Bermuda by the indomitable promoter Olive Trott, who also brought to Mount Area Frankie Lymon, singer of Why Do Fools Fall In Love. There was live entertainment as well a jukebox playing the music of the Platters, the Flamingos, Little Anthony and the Imperials, and others. Gene Steede and all the local bands and entertainers performed there as well.

Sylvia Courtney was in her late teens when her future husband first took her to Mount Area on his motorbike. It was 1948, the year St George’s lost the Cup Match cup (what’s new?). It was the first Cup Match without the railway and on the first day it was reported that between 8am and 12.30pm, 1,704 cars, 34 buses, 240 autocycles and 34 carriages passed back and forth over Swing Bridge. On the Friday, 10,000 people attended the game. According to Mrs Courtney, when they arrived at Mount Area, the place was rocking to a live band and everyone was dancing on the patio. It was a memorable evening filled with dancing. She arrived home in Southampton at about 3am, only to find her worried parents waiting up for her.

My cousin Marilyn Smith was 16 when she went with five friends. The three boys and three girls got so caught up in the excitement that they lost track of time. Before they knew it, it was very late and there was no transportation back to St George’s. They had no alternative but to walk. All the parents were worried and telephoning each other looking for their teenagers. This was around 1953BC (before cellphones).

Mr Borden’s youngest daughter, Jessie, recalled her sister Yvonne’s love of music and dancing. The problem was that Yvonne was a waitress in the business, but she would get so caught up in the music and could be found, in waitress uniform and all, dancing the night away until her father went out to remind her that there were customers to be served.

St Clair “Brinky” Tucker recalled the tale of a man employed by an undertaking firm. He decided after a county game to play a prank on his friends. He set up a coffin in Mount Area and laid in it. When his shocked and saddened friends had consumed sufficient alcohol, he sat up, scaring the hell out of them. They say that room cleared in less than 30 seconds!

In the late Fifties, Clarence and his cousin Felix purchased a former military PT boat from the American base. It was operated by his son-in-law, Ewart Fox, and rented by Kitson & Co for tours during College Weeks.

I was surprised when Ronnie Chameau informed me that in days gone by, St David’s Islanders did not eat lobster. They were considered scavengers and were placed in fish pots to attract other fish.

Recently, I read in The Royal Gazette that the late Teddy Tucker had observed years ago a decline in the shark population — it’s no wonder shark hash is becoming harder to find. The harvesting of conch, mussels, clams, suck rocks (chitons) and turtles is now legally protected and lobster is harvested only at specific times of the year. These local delights are swiftly making way for imports and increasing the cost to the local consumer. A case of imported conch is now $150.

In 1968, when I was a district nurse in Smith’s Parish, I observed a man with a large pot over an open fire selling mussels in Harrington Sound. Bill Anderson tells me this would probably have been Mr Fleming. The pot of hot water was to encourage the opening of the shells to remove the mussels. At one time, one could purchase mussels by the quart in recycled mayonnaise bottles, but in later years they were sold in plastic bags. Once the men who harvested mussels died, no further licences were issued.

Mullet, another St David’s delicacy especially known for its roe (fish eggs), could be found in large schools mainly in the autumn, swarming in circles in specific areas. They had to be salted, pressed, then hung to dry, followed by the extracting of the roe, which is described as possessing a golden yellow colour. Their numbers have also declined considerably.

Shark hash must be made from a young shark caught during a full moon when it has a white liver; however, the preparation of shark hash is far too lengthy for this article. Another lengthy preparation is that of suck rocks. Once the tough outer coat of the suck rock is removed, a gallon bucket yields only about a cup. Other delicacies are conch stew, turtle soup, turtle steaks, mussel pie and fish chowder made from the head and bones of filleted fish. Nothing in St David’s went to waste. The traditional St David’s diet — rich in home-grown vegetables, local fruit, herbs, freshly caught seafood combined with lots of exercise and a zest for life — is definitely what most of us strive for today.

On August 14, 1979, one day after his 73rd birthday, Bermuda mourned the passing of Clarence Ashwood Dentworth Borden, devoted father and businessman extraordinaire, who generously shared the culinary delights and hospitality of St David’s Island with the rest of Bermuda.

With thanks to Jessie Pitcher and all those who made this writing possible.

References:

Bermuda Journey by William Zuill 1946

Life in Old St David’s by E.A. McCallan 1948

The Royal Gazette July 1948

The Bermuda Recorder June 4, 1952

Jazz On The Rock Part 2 by The Writer’s Machine, edited by Dale Butler 1978

St David’s Island, Bermuda — It’s People, History and Culture by St Clair “Brinky” Tucker 2009

• Cecille Snaith-Simmons is a retired nurse, historian, writer and author of The Bermuda Cookbook