Angeline Update from Antigua, Guatemala

http://www.facebook.com/angelineantiguaWe are open! We survived all the little hassles and beaurocratic snarls that delay opening on time, and….we’re almost there! Doors are open although there is still some paperwork not finalized. We’re looking at a Grand Opening in late June, I think the 27th.

This place is exquisite! It is comfortable—we don’t like to leave. Its a place to hang out, have a drink, have a tapa (gratis with first drink), have a craft cocktail, eat a gourmet dinner, listen to live music… you get the idea. After playing music in nightclubs and bars for so many years, I knew just the kind of place I wanted to be a part of!

I hosted my first open jam session last Thursday. I need to meet the local musicians (I’ve a mind to create a tango band, jazz combo, flamenco group…) and this was a good start. Friday, we had our first flamenco show, featuring a dancer and a singer from Guatemala City. We had a nice crowd, enthusiastic and very diverse.

Angeline is notable for 4 things: the food. Contemporary fusion fine dining with specials everyday. Tasting menus with wine parings are soon to be. We have a wonderful Guatemalan chef, Gustavo, who will team with Jes Werkmeister (from the Harriet Brasserie in Minneapolis, MN) who arrives on June 14th. Delicious tapas, too.

Secondly: the wine program. My partner, Alberto Blanco, really knows wine and has his sommolier certification. By the glass or the bottle, we have wines to please the connaisseur (French, Spanish) and very affordable South American offerings, as well. It is difficult to find really good wines in Antigua—here they are!

Thirdly: craft cocktails and mixology. Virtually unknown here until now, partner Chi Ngo makes her own vermouths and tinctures in-house mostly using what we grow on the patio. I love Negronis and hers are the best I’ve had. Enough said. (We do have beer, btw).

Lastly is the music program which is my baby. The acoustics are great in this classic Romanesque building and I’m delighted to be doing virtually all music with-out amplification (I do have a sound system, so far just for the i-pod and youtube). Nothing like it! This post is long enough—more updates to come.