Once in Provo on a Thursday evening, the Island Fish Fry at the Bight (Children’s) Park is the place to be! The family friendly event packs a true TCI cultural experience into one evening of unforgettable fun and has become a weekly highlight on the island’s social calendar.
From delicious local dishes, entertainment from live bands, dancing, a Junkanoo parade, native games, cultural tidbits and great island vibes – tourists and locals are always in for a treat just steps away from the world famous Grace Bay Beach.
The free entry event, which marked its second anniversary at the end of January, runs from 5:30pm to 9:30pm and is made possible through a collaboration from the Turks and Caicos Tourist Board, the Department of Culture, Department of Environmental and Maritime Affairs and telecommunications company, Lime.
Tasty food from one or several local food vendors always become Thursday’s dinner plans as the grills fire up and arousing aromas fill the air. Usually there are about a dozen local restaurants preparing various types of fish, conch and lobster dishes with sides of peas ‘n’ rice, mac ‘n’ cheese or juicy corn on the cob – all hot off the grill. The local restaurants emerge from all corners of the Island and include Froggie’s on da Beach, Smokey’s on da Bay, Kay Jo’s, Hole in the Wall, Cactus Bar and Grill, Uncle Dough’s Salad Bar, Middle Caicos Café, Bugaloos Conch Crawl, Doreen’s Place and Crackpot Kitchen.
Apart from the delicious dishes available, local performers keep the crowd entertained with island music. Bands like Lee and the Force, Sea Breeze Rip Saw Band, Island Boys, Keno & Kazz Alroy & Daz, Kew Band Lynx and V6 Rake-n-Scrape Band keep the rhythm going through the evening.
In their colorful costumes the ‘We Funk’ Junkanoo puts on a show, dancing to the rhythmic music created by goatskin drums, cowbells and other percussion instruments. Henry the Conch adds some more excitement with his appearance and photo opportunities for tourists to add to their vacation memorabilia.
Visitors to the event also enjoy cultural facts and dance tips from TCI’s dynamic Director of Culture, David Bowen, who keeps the crowd captivated. If you’re lucky, you can walk away with a prize for winning a dance competition or knowing the answer to one of the evening’s cultural questions. There’s also the opportunity to purchase from a variety of local handmade arts and crafts right on location.
This “MUST DO” event has become so popular that there are talks of relocating to a bigger venue and even introducing it in the other islands. But for now, whether we’re sitting on the picnic benches under the stars or bobbing gleefully to the Caribbean sounds, we’re loving the great food, island vibes and all round good time. (Kandida Hariraj)[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
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