The sound of drills and hammers filled the ocean air at Macabuca bar and Cracked Conch restaurant on Friday morning, as construction workers worked feverishly to get the popular spot ready for its planned reopening on Monday.
“We’re doing everything we can to get open at a capacity. Obviously, there’s a lot of work that still needs to be done. So as soon as we can get what we can to open we will,” Matthew Moore, general manager of Macabuca and Cracked Conch said in an interview with the Cayman Compass Friday.
Moore said the aim was to open on Monday in time for Macabuca’s popular barbecue buffet.
Both businesses, and others along the western coastline, were battered by the nor’wester that hit 5-6 Feb. leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
Residents along the same coastline were also forced to flee their homes as sea surges accompanied the near 15 feet waves and gale force winds.
‘Devastating blow to the business’
Moore said the team at Macabuca and Cracked Conch is eager to get back to work to serve the community.
“We’re a week into pretty much tearing the place down and rebuilding. We’ve made great progress, so I’m pretty happy. Obviously, it was a devastating blow to the business, but we’re positive and we’re working hard to get get back open as soon as possible,” he said.
He said the community support has been touching, from vendors to peers and other restaurants.
“Everyone’s reaching out and helping out where they can, but the the support has been fantastic,” he said.
Moore said they are still crunching the numbers on the cost of the storm damages, but he said it was “substantial.”
The entire Macabuca bar, he said, was “wiped clean” and the outdoor deck of Cracked Conch was destroyed.
“That’s been rebuilt so we’re gonna come back stronger than ever,” he said.
Indepth dive shop, which is located on the lower level of the building, is also being reconstructed.
On Friday, divers were gearing up under a tent, serving as a temporary operation centre, in the carpark.
Moore said, though they had been warned of the impending weather, what unfolded during those two days was catastrophic.
“There was only so much we could do. We were prepared, and we were locked down and secured the best we could. But obviously, the force of Mother Nature said otherwise,” he said, adding that they knew it was going to be big, but “certainly not as big as it was”.
Moore said the support from locals and visitors alike has been encouraging and, though there will be some minor changes to the spaces being rebuilt, it will have the same look and feel.
“The staff have all chipped in and they’ve been working on what they can do to help us get back open and running,” he said.
“We will look after them best we can and both [places] will be open soon. So we will be back in action in no time,” he added.
Vivo not as lucky
Over at Vivo restaurant on Northwest Point Road, the prospect of reopening quickly is not as likely.
Troy Leacock, co-owner of the restaurant, said the business is looking at three weeks of work before it can be reopened.
“Unfortunately, the damage was extensive, not only to our furniture, fixtures and appliances, but also in the restaurant. We need to make sure that everything functions electrically in terms of health and safety, fire suppression etc. So it’s almost, to some degree, a complete rebuild,” Leacock said.
He said the community outpouring of support has been tremendous.
A fundraising page has been established to assist the impacted business and Leacock said so far $6,000 has been donated.
Leacock said the team is looking at this period as an opportunity to “have a quite a radical redevelopment of our internal space so that we can offer even more to our customers”.
The restaurant area, he said, has been completely cleaned out and work will commence to rebuild soon.
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