It is a truly beautiful spot and was a real privilege to spend a week there.
As you know, we had two toddlers with us. The cribs, high chairs and car seats were perfect and saved the young parents from bringing many things. The house is most suitable for adults and teenagers (who spent MANY hours perfecting their game of pool!). The deck
- We have been to Jamaica/Montego Bay/Discovery Bay 4 times and stayed in 3 villas. The staff at Coral Cove remained constant and we loved them. We thought the cook was unparalleled until we came to Villa Contenta ate Deychanell’s cooking. She had dishes for the babies (one of whom is allergic to fish), the vegetarian and teenagers (who are selective eaters) at every meal. She dealt cheerfully with parents who needed to prepare snacks, teenagers who slept in and special requests. She made a peanut porridge, a plantain porridge, oxtail, goat curry and jerk chicken that were lip smacking. The day that Marcia had off, she and Reneece also serviced our rooms.
- Lloyd, the gardener, introduced himself and offered a tour of the garden. He is justifiably proud of the beauty that surrounds the villa and deeply knowledgeable about which plants can be grown elsewhere. He cleaned the outside area daily, finding random toys and organizing strewn bottles of sunscreen.
- Marcia was sweet and an excellent cleaner. We had welcome bottles of water at our bedsides each night and a steady supply of fresh bath and beach towels.
- Renecce cleaned as well. She also went to the long grocery trip run the first day, assisted with meal prep and service. The name tags helped; thank you.
- Ray was the key to the high level of service. He viewed it as a team effort and involved everyone in a final thank you after dinner. He also called on team members to serve the penultimate key lime pie. From the first moment when he met us with rum punch, he was always there. He selected beautiful fresh flowers for the floral arrangements, donned bow ties and even a black satin vest for “fancy nights” and took great pride in answering our every question. He is a fabulous mixologist. The Brown Cow, made with coffee, cream, rum and some other ingredients, was spectacular. The Rose Hall beach was lovely and perfect for the babies. There was a bit of a glitch getting in the first day but Ray spoke to them on the phone and motored right through it. I found it hard to believe that he had not been running the villa for years. He and Deychannel are the lynchpins. They remained calm and cheerful throughout but cannot have gotten much sleep.
- Deychannel is a creative and flexible chef. She served several alternatives at each meal. The vegetables were fresh and high quality. The meat was flavorful and tender. Desserts were beautifully presented and delicious.
