Shucking a Coconut
August 20, 2008 Filed in: Videos
Here is a short clip of a guy Jim saw on one of the
islands shucking coconuts. It is so funny as Jim and
Jay have been here in Panama for almost 9 years and up
until a few months ago they thought you could only open
a coconut with a machete. All of our employees and any
other local we know use a machete to open a coconut. It
takes lots of machete strikes to the coconut and then
bending the machete across the coconut husk to get the
nut out of the husk. And here is this guy with an
ingenious little tool that lets him shuck multiples of
coconuts in the time that it takes for anyone else to
shuck one. This is all part of the fun of learning
something new everyday!
Fresh Baked Goods
January 14, 2008
I used to underestimate the importance of freshly baked
breads, cookies, and desserts. I have always enjoyed
them, but I never realized the difference in eating
these items within a day or so after they leave the
oven.
We make all the baked goods we serve here on site. So that includes fresh breads, daily cookies, cakes, pies and so much more. Our guests are surprised each time they learn that we bake everything on site. To us it has become second nature to make sure that we have plenty of yummy stuff on site.
One set of guests informed me that they didn’t eat much bread but that they did prefer whole wheat bread over any other type. So the next day when we were baking our daily bread, we added a few loaves of whole wheat. Our guests were delighted to have this fresh whole wheat bread for their sandwiches and toast.
Each day we bake a different kind of cookie. These cookies are served with lunch whether you are eating on site or off site on one of our excursions. We very rarely see any cookies return from an excursion or for that matter remain on the plate following lunch onsite.
Our desserts each day are all made here. We have some tasty pies and cakes which highlight all the local ingredients such as pineapple, coconut and chocolate. It is a good thing that our property is so large and includes so many sets of stairs as it helps all of us to have an excuse to eat dessert!
We make all the baked goods we serve here on site. So that includes fresh breads, daily cookies, cakes, pies and so much more. Our guests are surprised each time they learn that we bake everything on site. To us it has become second nature to make sure that we have plenty of yummy stuff on site.
One set of guests informed me that they didn’t eat much bread but that they did prefer whole wheat bread over any other type. So the next day when we were baking our daily bread, we added a few loaves of whole wheat. Our guests were delighted to have this fresh whole wheat bread for their sandwiches and toast.
Each day we bake a different kind of cookie. These cookies are served with lunch whether you are eating on site or off site on one of our excursions. We very rarely see any cookies return from an excursion or for that matter remain on the plate following lunch onsite.
Our desserts each day are all made here. We have some tasty pies and cakes which highlight all the local ingredients such as pineapple, coconut and chocolate. It is a good thing that our property is so large and includes so many sets of stairs as it helps all of us to have an excuse to eat dessert!
Who is cooking now?
November 03, 2007 Filed in: Story
One of the challenges associated with living on an
island is that you have limited access to an extended
workforce. For most positions it isn’t a problem as you
can rotate the schedule of your staff to take care of
the time off for each employee. However, there are
certain positions for which you do not hire multiples
and for those vacation time is a bit more challenging.
We have a cook and a helper in the kitchen. We are fortunate in that they can turn out some incredible food. Our cook is kind enough to teach many of the different things she makes to her helper so that the helper can take on additional responsibility and fill in for the cook at certain meals. The helper lacks the experience of the cook which is why he is currently the helper and not the cook. He is hoping to return to school someday so cooking is not what he wants to be doing for a living. The cook on the other hand loves to cook and you can tell. Her food is amazing.
Well, it is her turn to go on vacation. She doesn’t take vacation on a regular basis like all of our other employees and she is absolutely entitled to it. I on the other hand cannot find anyone to work with the helper in the kitchen for the time she will be away. So it appears that the food the kitchen turns out for a few weeks will be a bit different than the food prepared in our kitchen most of the time. It will still be delicious, but it will be more like going to a party at a friend’s house rather than dinner at a restaurant. Why is that you ask? I will be back in the kitchen for a period of time. I can design menus for our cook to prepare, but I do not have the same skills that she has to turn out the same meals she cooks. I will miss her immensely, but I would prefer to miss her for a brief period of time rather than let her burn out and miss her all of the time.
We have a cook and a helper in the kitchen. We are fortunate in that they can turn out some incredible food. Our cook is kind enough to teach many of the different things she makes to her helper so that the helper can take on additional responsibility and fill in for the cook at certain meals. The helper lacks the experience of the cook which is why he is currently the helper and not the cook. He is hoping to return to school someday so cooking is not what he wants to be doing for a living. The cook on the other hand loves to cook and you can tell. Her food is amazing.
Well, it is her turn to go on vacation. She doesn’t take vacation on a regular basis like all of our other employees and she is absolutely entitled to it. I on the other hand cannot find anyone to work with the helper in the kitchen for the time she will be away. So it appears that the food the kitchen turns out for a few weeks will be a bit different than the food prepared in our kitchen most of the time. It will still be delicious, but it will be more like going to a party at a friend’s house rather than dinner at a restaurant. Why is that you ask? I will be back in the kitchen for a period of time. I can design menus for our cook to prepare, but I do not have the same skills that she has to turn out the same meals she cooks. I will miss her immensely, but I would prefer to miss her for a brief period of time rather than let her burn out and miss her all of the time.
Dining options
October 24, 2007
When you eat dinner on your vacation do you want to eat
by yourself with just your party or do you want to dine
with other people staying at the same lodge? We can set
it up either way. If you are on a family adventure
vacation, you may want to share stories of your
adventures with others at dinner each night. Or you
might want to share a meal with just your family.
We can arrange it either way. We frequently sit at communal tables and invite our guests to decide where they want to sit. The resulting conversation is interesting. To hear about an adventure from a variety of viewpoints broadens the experience. One person may notice fine details that others didn’t expressly remember but once they details are brought to the forefront then they become a part of the experience for the whole group. A different person may have noticed an unusual landmark and point it out to the group. The photographs that each person takes during the excursion also provide input into the discussion.
Then there are those who are celebrating their family time. They may enjoy the group dynamic during the cocktail hour and then prefer a private table for dinner itself.
We try to read our guests so that we can give them what they want. After all it is your vacation – make it what you want it to be.
We can arrange it either way. We frequently sit at communal tables and invite our guests to decide where they want to sit. The resulting conversation is interesting. To hear about an adventure from a variety of viewpoints broadens the experience. One person may notice fine details that others didn’t expressly remember but once they details are brought to the forefront then they become a part of the experience for the whole group. A different person may have noticed an unusual landmark and point it out to the group. The photographs that each person takes during the excursion also provide input into the discussion.
Then there are those who are celebrating their family time. They may enjoy the group dynamic during the cocktail hour and then prefer a private table for dinner itself.
We try to read our guests so that we can give them what they want. After all it is your vacation – make it what you want it to be.