Our Man in Antigua

it’s the motion…quoting maria maldaur…or channeling flipper..rain tonight? throw in some thunder, lightning and a few moments of no power…i got as far as the park and circled back to ocelot…Carla! looking much improved per the second opinion of no surgery, different meds and a new lease on life..Keith, on top of the bar action…place packed, as was Reilly’s, Cashbar and El Pescatore…Neil Craig! serious about food, tastes, wine and so on…his restaurant,  Pangea, should be a serious statement on culinary arts. Our mutual guru is thomas keller, of french laundry and bouchon fame and  i can only look forward to discussing the finer points of goat vs. buffalo cheese..soft opening after the licenses are in place and a grand opening later, probably in september…speaking of soft openings, Alex Bell is opening the doors of his  new place on 4th calle, across from the dona luisa bakery, this friday night..6-9pm or so..the numbers he quoted me for overhead were/are  staggering..the old joint, Fusion…no need to go there..hector on top of the flow at ten pm…joint packed, the crew moving in syncopated motions…he has a plan B for if/when the changes as  proposed by the city actually take place…supposedly some 39 estashbliments have applied for exemptions..establishaments? is that a word? spell check isn’t working, nor am i..thanks to shawn of o’lot, i met an archeologist who’s discovered something huge in the peten…ocelot killed last night…30 salvadoreans on the upper level, sucking $320 worth of liquor…huge…Alex Ferrar, doing business with a group of ladies (Carla there)…says he’s ordering a freezer to handle the increased need/orders for his ice creams…30 flavors and counting…I know of at least one new outlet that would be glad to have him supply their dessert needs..the once rum-soaked white linen jacket has survived another outing..as have i..be well, go to church in the morning and pray for all the wild oats you’ve sowed tonight to suffer crop failure in the morning.