They came for the food and the rum, but were also treated to an exciting motorcade and stellar entertainment package that complemented the culinary fare on offer.
Last Friday August 26, as Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc (BTMI) kicked off this year’s Food and Rum Festival, they took the opportunity to showcase the island’s talent in a big way, with a motorcade that started at their headquarters in Warrens and made his way to Golden Square Freedom Park. On board were several well-known social media influencers such as Mahalia Cummins and Akhnaten Burrowes, who were joined by BTMI officials, including Tourism Minister Senator Lisa Cummins, Chief Financial Officer Craig Hinds and Chief Executive Dr Jens Thraenhart, among others.
Along the way, branded gadgets were handed out to the many people who pulled out of their homes and workplaces and showed their support as the walking spectacle passed by. In addition to information about the upcoming festival, they were encouraged by MC for the evening Jamarr the Star to come out and support the festival.
Impromptu performances by artists Peter Ram and 2022 Road March King Bruce Lee Almighty stopped Bridgetown traffic along Cheapside and on Broad Street, where members of Dancin’ Africa added to the roadside extravaganza. As some shoppers and passers-by waved and sang along, some even joined the street dancers.
Arriving at Freedom Park in Golden Square, the throngs of people gathered there were treated to numerous drinks and sampler-sized dishes prepared by some of the island’s top chefs and mixologists, who made up the 26 festival participants. These included rum cocktails from mixologists Alex Chandler, David Barker and Ryan Adamson while chefs Damian Leach and John Hazzard prepared special culinary delights.
In addition to the delicious flavors, customers had the opportunity to participate in contests and other lively activities where they were awarded with a variety of prizes. These included spinning a wheel for a chance to win prizes, as well as amateur rum mixing and tasting competitions.
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Entertainment for the evening included a roaming steel band, renowned DJs Salt & Don as well as a cast of some of the island’s finest artists. Biggie Irie’s catchy song started the ball rolling and he was followed by, Nikita, Mahalia, RPB and Lil Rick who were all shown love from the open crowd.
When the live entertainment ended shortly after 10pm, it was clear that the presentation had been successful in both whetting the appetite and raising public awareness of the upcoming Food and Rum Festival, which is scheduled for October 27-30 later this year.
