So, this week there isn’t a huge amount to talk about as the island is quiet. Ramadan has started, Alice has landed back in the UK, and our new bookseller has yet to arrive. So, I want to pay homage to a super important group on the island that doesn’t really get a look in.
As I said, Ramadan has started. That means that everyone who is a practising Muslim fasts during daylight hours before dining from sunset to about 2am. Dining doesn’t change much for non-fasting hosts; we just have slightly shorter meal hours.
But the guys I want to pay homage to are the chefs! Not the ones who cook for the guests – though bless them because their jobs are incredibly difficult, and I love being able to eat what they cook when I get the chance to eat in the guest areas. But in this blog, I’m specifically talking about the kitchen staff who handle the host dining.
You know when you meet people involved with food, who really care about what their diners eat? That’s these guys. They are cooking for hundreds of people, we have a decent range of options, they could easily turn around and just be like ‘there, you have food, just eat what you’re given.’
But they always go that extra step. Whether it’s digging out fruit for you in the mornings, giving a fresh serving of egg fried rice right from the stove, or always telling me if something is too spicy for me (because my Indian roots have failed me, and I cannot handle any spice whatsoever). If it’s in their capabilities, they’ll try and get it done, and it’s just nice to be around people who really care about food and looking after the people who eat it. It’s what being around kitchen staff should be like.
Just a short post today. As I said, not a lot is happening because we’re low in guest numbers, and most of the hosts aren’t around due to Ramadan. I’m actually really enjoying the peace around the host areas. I was told the food usually get worse during Ramadan, but, if anything, I would say it’s better. This is amazing, seeing as the chefs are cooking for people eating from before sunrise, all the way through the day and on into 2am – it’s a literal full-time job at the moment.