Everyone talks about the ‘good old days’ when times were simpler. Take a look at this image from yesteryear and see if it you recognise it.
Portofino/Wreck View
When I saw this picture of the Portofino on the Old Cayman Facebook page, it immediately took me back to the days when my parents used to drive out to the eastern districts on a Sunday and stop there for its very popular brunch.
An Italian restaurant located on the coast of East End, where Tukka now resides, it was established at a time when such cuisine had become very popular on the local scene. Restaurateur Marino Flelli, who opened Bella Capri on Canal Point Drive in the ’80s (The Falls Steakhouse presently occupies the space), started Portofino in the late ’90s.
Many posters on Facebook recalled their favourite menu items, with the bruschetta featuring high on the list. Pasta options included angel hair tutto mare, spaghettini primavera and linguine alle vongole, with local specialties, meat and fish dishes, and a range of appetisers, soups and salads to choose from. Fans of Indian food could also find some ‘killer curries’ according to the Fodor’s Travel guide, once they were added to the menu.
“Portofino was always the spot where my family would go for special occasions,” said Caroline Neale-Allenger. “We lived close by, so it was perfect.”
“Also, my dad did not want to drive all the way to town,” she laughed.
Yes, Portofino was a hotspot for local and visiting diners, but did you know that before then, it was Wreck View, run by Eileen McLaughlin? Wreck View served up local dishes every weekend, with some residents happily making the journey from West Bay for that delicious food.
Neale-Allenger’s family frequented Wreck View “or Ms Eileen’s, as we knew it”, she said. “This is where we would get lunch on Sundays – ‘one turtle [stew], one bbq chicken, please’,” she added, quoting one of their favourite orders.
Ilene Phipps also remembered her family’s dining experiences there.
“Great local food. We took my Mom, Aunt and Uncle there when [daughter] Courtney was young in 1983. She had a clip-on chair, and reached out to Uncle Jim’s plate and a lot of food hit the floor. Ms Eileen said not to worry; she swept it out the side door for the chickens and brought my Uncle a fresh plate of food. Lovely, kind people!”
Even something as simple as the homemade lemonade stuck in people’s memories, as well as picnic tables under the sea grape trees.
“[The] lemonade was fresh squeezed… ,” recalled Susan Arch Parsons. “Nothing artificial. Remember the fresh rolls they used to make too?” she said, adding that the heavy cake was also amazing.
From the restaurant, there was a clear view of the ships that had foundered on the reef off the coast there, such as the Ridgefield. Since then, most of the remnants have worn away over time, but are still visible with binoculars from Tukka’s patio.
Although Ms Eileen is no longer at her restaurant in East End, she still keeps busy with her remarkable thatching skills, creating beautiful items from these traditional materials.
Portofino recipes
I found these recipes in Compass article from 2017. If you still miss the food, maybe you can try to recreate the dishes at home. (As lobster season in Cayman doesn’t start until 1 Dec., you have plenty of time to find the ingredients for that recipe.)
Lobster Prepared the Chef’s way
Lobster
- Take fresh chunks of Caribbean lobster, dip in a batter of beaten eggs, a few pinches of salt, fresh chopped parsley and grated parmesan cheese.
- At a medium heat, shallow fry lobster in a frying pan with butter until golden brown on both sides.
- Cook lobster in oven warmed to 325 °F for about five minutes, or until cooked through.
Portofino Lobster Sauce
- In a frying pan, melt a touch of butter and add two chopped shallots.
- In a separate frying pan reduce two cups of Chardonnay.
- Add reduced Chardonnay and one dollop of heavy cream to the saucepan containing butter and shallots. Boil for one to two minutes.
- Add sliced champignon mushrooms and chunks of fresh plum tomato. Boil for another one to two minutes until mixture reduces to a sauce consistency. Add salt and pepper to sauce.
- Serve sauce over lobster. Garnish with parsley and fresh asparagus.
New York baked cheesecake
(Makes 1 cake/14 slices)
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 pounds cream cheese
- 8 whole eggs
- 500g sugar
- 50g sour cream
- 2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest (peeled and chopped)
- 2 tablespoons vanilla essence
Method
- In a 10-inch springform pan, mix cream cheese and sugar together until smooth.
- Add eggs one by one, while stirring.
- Add vanilla essence, lemon juice, lemon zest and sour cream.
- Bake cheesecake at 350 °F for 35 minutes.
- Add topping of choice, and summer fruits (e.g. strawberry or blueberry).
If you have some old photos that you’d like to submit, we’d love to see them to consider them for publication. Be sure to include the credit for the image and any information you have about it. Email to [email protected].
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