The Ministry of Tourism is hosting Christmas in July from 11am-6pm TODAY at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel.
Check out locally made gift items that will be on display.
No sales will be made today but be sure to get contact information and order your gifts.
Be sure to check out the buzzing new crochet line, Eli’s Knits and Knots specializing in cosy hats, clothes, stuffed animals and dolls, blankets and more for the young ones!
For only $960+tx and service charge ($1214.40), ‘The Pegasus Burger’ served with fries from The Blend Bar and Lounge is fantastic!  Spicy and succulent to the core with jalapeños, mushrooms, cheese, bacon and more.
Suga gives it 4.5/5 stars but just because the bread broke up a bit too much while eating.
Fatty b
ut wholesome. Worth a day of make up in the gym.
The Blend Bar and Lounge
Ph#: 876-926-3690
Address: The Jamaica Pegasus, 81 Knutsford Boulevard, Kgn. 5
Dwight was our server for the night. He was well trained, pleasant and knowledgeable of the menu and wines available for the night. Of course, we went with the Full Dinner Buffet.
We started off with Minestrone soup and a Roasted Garlic Cream Soup with Spicy Croutons. The Minestrone soup consisted of vegetables, with the addition of pasta. Other recognisable ingredients that were common to the Italian origin included beans, onions, tomatoes and parmesan cheese. The broth was not as thick as it should have been but the soup had a nice flavour and was a great start to dinner.
The Roasted Garlic Cream Soup was also tasty and the garlic was not overpowering to make you feel like you needed to pop a breath mint every minute.
Then, to the Antipasto Station we went! Suga knows Italian staple foods and had her eyes peeled. My desire for a suitable array of authentic Italian cuisine was more than satisfied. What a variety!
The Antipasto station had the following: –
â— A Turkey Pastrami platter
â— Breads
â— Grilled yellow squash
â— Grilled red onions – tasty!
â— Anchovies – Expected intense, salty flavour
â— Rockefeller Garlic crumbled Mussels – I loved it, but for persons like my beau who prefer mussels moist and more plain, it wouldn’t be a favourite
â— Pepper jack and Olives Flatbread
â— Smoked Salmon and Marlin along side a Cheese and Fruit platter
â— Bruschetta – delish!
â— Jerked sausage
â— Grilled vegetables such as carrot and zucchini
â— Prosciutto (Ham) -the real deal Italian ham (used on Italian Gourmet pizzas as well). Lovely, succulent, unique taste
Everything was of high quality and would certainly leave you satisfied if you chose the Soup and Antipasto Station option.
For the Entrees, it was hard to choose from Pollo Rotolo e Prosciutto (Chicken wrapped in Ham), Canneloni Agnello (Pasta shell stuffed with Minced Lamb with a Plum Tomato Sauce), Bistecca Alla Griglia (New York Steak topped with Garlic butter), Gamberetto Alfredo (Skewered Shrimp with Linguini Pasta in a Mushroom Cream Sauce) or a Mini Pasta Posto. Mini Pasta Posto? What? Imagine, if you weren’t satisfied with what you saw on the menu you could head over to a station and have them create your own Pasta dish using Penne or Linguini, a choice of Chicken, Shrimp, Meatballs or Vegetables topped off by a Marinara, Pesto or Alfredo sauce.
We went with the Gamberetto Alfredo and the Canneloni Agnello. The serving size of the Gamberetto Alfredo was huge compared to the Canneloni Agnello. I couldn’t finish it. I could actually try since I have a fast metabolism but that would be gluttonous and leave me feeling quite uncomfortable. The taste? Oh boy. Everybody can do Shrimp and Pasta but these Shrimps were well seasoned and had a unique taste with a kick to it and the alfredo was divine with a soft garlic bread on the side, all paired well with my Chardonnay. The taste of the Minced Lamb was pronounced in the Canneloni Agnello, an indication that very fresh lamb was used and the flavour was savoury.Â
Throughout the night, the staff were very attentive, coming around to either check if everything was ok, give advice or seek feedback. It wasn’t an ‘in your face’ kind of vibe either, they were polite and stayed as long as you invited them to. Very refreshing to see and experience.
What else could we ask for that night? Well, the majority of Italian staples were covered especially the ones I went specifically for, such as the Prosciutto (Ham), Cheese, Wine, Pizza/Flatbread, Squash, Zucchini and Pasta. However, I did not see any Risotto. I was quickly put at ease when Executive Chef Mark Cole, who cooked for President Obama visited the table. He is also just returning from Miami with a gold medal from The Taste of the Caribbean competition of which he was team manager and coach for Jamaica’s team. He informed me that the menu for Italian night changes about every month or two and a Risotto dish will actually be on the revised menu this August. I was delighted to hear.
I suppose throughout the year they play around with the different pastas as well, such as Ravioli, Lasagna, Spaghetti and much more. Seeing Tortellini  (a navel shaped pasta usually stuffed with cheese, pork or prosciutto) on the menu would be interesting as well.
Gnocchi, soft dough dumplings usually made from semolina, ordinary wheat flour, egg, cheese, potato, breadcrumbs or similar ingredients would be another interesting dish to see. The Antipasto Station would probably include Boiled Eggs, Pell Peppers, Salami and Bologna in the future. But of course, you cannot get everything all at once! The layout and variety was impressive, perfect and more than sufficient.
Then to think Dessert followed! Italian cuisine includes decadent dessert as well. Zeppole (a donut filled usually with custard and jelly) was not a choice that night but I had a lovely Panna Cotta served with a duet of Cranberries and Blueberries and an extremely divine Tiramisu. One of the best I have ever had. Tiramisu is the most popular Italian dessert. Fantastic end to the dinner!
Italian Night Dinner Buffet is held at The Blue Window Restaurant, Jamaica Pegasus every Thursday night from 6:30pm-10:30pm and Reservations are recommended (Call 876-926-3690). Great for family outings and date nights.
The WICB/WIPA 3rd Annual Player’s Award function was held last Tuesday, June 9th in the Ball Room of The Jamaica Pegasus with Cocktails at 6pm, Dinner and Ceremony at 7pm. Which function starts on time in Jamaica?! This one started before time! Kudos to the organizers and MC Michael Hall for keeping it flowing. He did his best seeing that there were no menus or programmes given to guests.
Special guests included Lady Allen, Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Dr. Wykeham McNeil, Sirs Richie Richardson, Curtly Ambrose, Andy Roberts, Everton Weekes and Clive Lloyd. Ambassador Courtney Walsh and WI Coach, Phil Simmons were also in attendance, along with members of the Australian team here for the test this weekend versus the West Indies.
Since guests were served on time and each course was in quick succession after the other, we were allowed to enjoy greetings by the Presidents of the WICB and WIPA, Dave Cameron and Wavell Hinds respectively topped off by a fabulous speech by Guest Speaker, past WI fast bowler, politician and minister of the church, Sir Wesley Hall in the mean time. His eloquence, use of vocabulary and ability to captivate the audience’s attention was sensational. He went over his time I am sure, but with his stories, humour and words of inspiration and encouragement to current cricketers, it was a pleasure to listen for more. He reminded players that talent alone doesn’t earn success, but work ethic and discipline as well. There is also no ‘I’ in team, the team wins and players contribute. Wise words by Wes. I surely hope the young and upcoming cricketers walked away from the function with a totally new, fresh, positive outlook. I surely would.
The West Indies Women’s Cricket team were congratulated for winning the ODI series, 3-1 on their Sri Lanka tour as well as the T20I series, 2-1 earlier in May this year. Good job ladies!
The event was aired live on Sportsmax and another channel. IGL, ICWI, Grace Kennedy and other sponsors were thanked for their support. It was a pity that a lot of invited or expected guests did not show, leaving many empty seats, as the event provided a pleasant reminder of the West Indies and quality players in its hay-day and highlighted current and upcoming talent. The Ashe Performing Arts Ensemble gave a vibrant, refreshing performance to close the night. As this event is young, Suga expects even better next year.
Some winners of the night were as follows:
Under 19 Team of the Year – Guyana
Under 19 Player of the Year – Shimron Hetmyer
First class Team of the Year – Barbados
1-Day Cricketer of the Year – Denesh Ramdin
Test Cricketer of the Year – Kraigg Brathwaite
T20 Cricketer of the Year – Samuel Badree
Emerging Cricketer of the Year – Jermaine Blackwood
Womens’ Cricketer of the Year – Stafanie Taylor
Men’s Cricketer of the Year – Sulieman Benn
Lifetime Achivement Award (WICB) – Chetram Singh
Lifetime Achivement Award (WIPA) – Renford Pinnock
See the exclusive video by The Jamaica Observer here on what President Barack Obama ate at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel. Word is he cleaned his plate and some of the must eats got crossed off of Suga’s recommended list such as Ackee and Saltfish and Red Stripe beer!
Gabby took it to the poolside of The Jamaica Pegasus for her birthday last week, where their new Restaurant, the Blue Window hosts their weekly Tuesday night Grill. The poolside was buzzing with patrons from about 7:30pm and General Manager, Peter Hilary was in eyeshot for most of the night being a perfect host, also monitoring staff throughout.
I was initially seated and served my choice of soup from the two kinds offered for the night, then I was free to head to the buffet tables, where I could pick, choose and refuse. There were a variety of options from Jerked Chicken to mouth-watering Beef, accompanied by many sides, to a wide array of Salads, but the highlight was the Pasta station with Pepper Shrimp. The desserts were pleasant to the palate as well, including Chocolate Cakes, Cheesecakes, Tarts, Gizzadas and much more.
The entertainment was good and I thoroughly enjoyed the Happy Birthday song dedicated to me, surely putting a bright smile on my face on my special night. The service was exceptional and the food was delicious. For an ‘All-you-can-eat’ Buffet with lovely ambience, food and service, $2960JMD per person, tax included (Beverages separately*) is a steal of a deal.
Check out the Blue Window’s Tuesday Night Grill by The Jamaica Pegasus poolside tonight!