Copacabana Fridays At Bluebeat In Montego Bay Featuring DJ Irie Latino: January 2011

We've had a great start to the year this January with a couple of truly incredible nights. On the first Friday of the month we celebrated the 2nd anniversary of Copacabana in Bluebeat with a great party, longtime friends, food and champagne. It seems nobody wants to leave the party these days and we have had some epic nights. Thank you to those kind-hearted and fun-loving party maniacs who cook me breakfast on a Saturday morning. What a life! I'd like to welcome the new faces at Copacabana this year, both Jamaican and Latino. Already you are making your mark on the nights with the enthusiasm and hype expected from Irie Latinos. I've seen some incredible dancing from some of the new folks and that just makes the night more exhilarating and appealing. Below are some of the pics from January.

(click to enlarge, pulse para agrandar)

Going Mexican At Caliente Beach Bar & Grill Near Ocho Rios

If life is a bitch then turn it into a beach, instead. That's what I did in the middle of a busy, hot working day in Mammee Bay near Ocho Rios a couple weeks ago. It didn't require magic, just a simple decision to have lunch at the town's newest restaurant featuring Mexican cuisine. The result, however, was definitely magical as I discovered this oasis of Mexican food in the middle of a Jamaican white sand beach. The ocean breeze, brilliant sun and deep blue Caribbean sea wiped away any memory of life's everyday hassles as I stepped out the car and looked around.

Caliente Beach Bar & Grill is tropical living at its best. Opened recently by Greek chef, Angelo Konidis, the restaurant is a comfortable, airy structure with a covered, thatch-roofed section as well as an open-air, wooden deck just meters away from the water's edge. Angelo is the brother of Dimitri Konidis who manages the Mykonos Greek Bar & Grill recently featured here on this blog. On meeting Angelo at Caliente the first thing that struck me was his unbridled enthusiasm for his establishment. It's my experience that enthusiasm for anything you do brings optimum results and Angelo's restaurant is no exception.

Angelo treated me to a mouth-watering meal of "carne asada" tacos. I sat near the porch savouring every bite and digesting the sights and sounds of tourists and locals enjoying the beach. Not far away from where I sat a lobster trap lay in the water and Angelo explained that guests can go there to pick the lobster for their lobster dish. I had to kick myself out of this dream to go back to work.

The Caliente menu is quite varied. Appetizers include Spicy Tequila Ribs, Prawn Cocktails and "Baja Ceviche" just to name a few items. Entree salads feature Taco Salad and Mexican Ceasar. There are a variety of tacos from fish tacos and "carnitas" tacos to "pollo asada" tacos and lobster tacos. You can also order from Caliente's choices of burros and chimmis. Pollo Asada and Snapper Veracruzeno are two more delights available from the kitchen.

This is an experience you can't afford to miss. This is the kind of break you deserve to have. Check out the pics I took with my Blackberry and then go check it out for yourself. The restaurant is located on the Mammee Bay beach next to the Hotel Riu Mammee Bay, a few kilometers west of Ocho Rios. Click the pics to enlarge.