Tourists and Anguillians alike are flocking to Crocus Bay at the foot of The Valley. The area has become a place of much attraction, fine dining, and relaxation. This is not only due to the opening of the lovely, top-notch and formal locally-owned DaVida Restaurant, but now the addition of its informal exquisite Bayside Bar and Grill and related services.

DaVida Bayside Bar and Grill

“DaVida Bayside is an extension of the original project and it will cater a lot to the beach needs,” said Mrs. Vida Christine Lloyd-Richardson who, together with her brother, David, are the owners of the upscale project. “We have a full food and beverage set up to cater to guests, at the beach, or persons who just want to stop by and do something a little more casual.”

The soft-spoken professional Nurse, turned businesswoman and General Manager of the project, continued: “We have beach activities like kayaking to Little Bay, Katouche Bay or just kayak out and we will extend the services as we go on.”

Asked what led her and her brother to expand their business, she replied: “The DaVida project is really a five-phase project. When we opened in May, it was with the main restaurant and then upstairs where we do special events and catered-functions such as weddings, reunions, birthdays and any other kind of celebration. This [the Bayside Bar and Grill], is the third phase. We need to complete a wine cellar on the lower level and then eventually the spa, a natural earthy facility also created from wood. We also have right next to the kayak station a beach shop which will be opened by mid-December and is all part of this section. There will be t-shirts and sundries.” It will be operated by Fabiana of Why Knot, a well known fashion specialist in Anguilla who in fact started her business at Crocus Bay under the Tamarind Tree.

“You obviously have hope in the island’s tourism industry,” The Anguillian said to Mrs. Lloyd-Richardson.

“We have faith in God and from there you stay hopeful and open,” she chuckled. “Even if there are concerns about the economy you have to prepare for when things change. There are several predictions as to when it will change, but only God knows that so we are prepared.”

DaVida's Kayak Station

She returned to the subject. “What we are going to do here is much of a weekend programme,” she explained. “We will start on Friday evenings with live entertainment and maybe like a beach barbecue concept. On Saturdays we will focus a lot on the kayaking, volleyball and beach sports and on Sundays the Happy Hits String Band will be here.”

This is about the third week since the opening of the new addition. “The same gentleman who did DaVida Restaurant, my husband, Clyde Richardson, has been very instrumental in the project, she said, casting a pleasing look at the inviting architecture. “He likes working with wood and this concept has a lot to do with him. He has a great team with a lot of wood specialists. It is the same team that did the main building, but he has been very instrumental in getting it done for the season. He has stayed very-focused on the project and has helped tremendously to get it to this point.”

The project is nestled at the foot of the Crocus Bay Villa Development (owned by other investors) which is now at an advanced stage of construction perched on the hillside some 213 feet above sea level and providing a stunning back-drop for DaVida. “So far they complement each other,” Mrs. Lloyd-Richardson commented. The guest who will want to come to the beach for the day will not necessarily have to dress up. The main restaurant has taken on its role…We are becoming very popular for special dinners and at lunchtime the developers will have their guests who would like to dine here. So this is a complement to what is there already.

“Our overall theme everywhere on the property is Asia/Caribbean and I think you can see it captured here,” she glanced over the project. “With the wood being Asia or Caribbean, both are at play all the time. Here you come and relax. I think our overall theme is also Celebrate Life. We have some regular guests who like what’s here and the way it is designed and set up. We have here as staff Dwayne Baird who is Food Service Manager, Dillon Cadette is Beverage Manager and Vaughn Gumbs is the Chef. This team is special for here at the Bayside Bar and Grill and they work well. The comments we are getting are that the guests feel well taken care of by them. They are the leaders and there is a cadre of other persons who assist them.” She noted that uniform shirts and some of the accessories at the Bayside Bar and Grill are lime green while the terracotta uniform was over at the main restaurant.

The Happy Hits String Band

Shirlene Woods is the Operations Manager at the project and award winner, Guy Gumbs, is the Overall Chef. The chef at DaVida Bayside reports to Guy Gumbs and the employees in food service report to Shirlene. “We have a very, very good operation and a very standard operating procedure-driven environment. We believe it is best to be orderly and do things properly,” the interviewee told The Anguillian.

As for herself, Mrs. Lloyd Richardson had this to say: “My role is the General Manager but I like to empower so I allow Guy and Shirlene to tell me on a daily basis what they see. I think if you embrace and empower people that lots of good can happen because instead of one idea at all times you are embracing several ideas. I think both Nursing and Human Resource Development have encouraged me in that direction because a lot of times if you free people, they go further than what you anticipate. Everybody is important. I have a good staff, very motivated, work with a lot of passion and have real concern for the guests and everybody is very complimentary of our very local staff. Contrary to popular belief, there are Anguillians who can work very well and I know that from growing up at the Bread and Breakfast (referring to Lloyd’s Guest House at the Upper Valley).

Asked what she thought the family-owned project had done for the area, Mrs. Lloyd –Richardson responded: “Crocus Bay has been closed for some time in terms of restaurant activity and now people know that food, beverage and activities are available here. It is almost like an awakening and both locals and visitors are coming expecting something.”

She closed the interview with a special acknowledgement to her, and David's parents, the late Nurse Vida Lloyd and builder, David Lloyd. “I think that in all fairness, I would have to give my parents a lot of credit as I always do because they did the industry here fifty years ago when it was virtually non-existent. Growing up around the industry for such a long time, there is a certain comfort I have in knowing what was, and having an appreciation for what is now.”

If her parents were to come back and see the new project, she guessed they would remark to her and her brother: “Good job. Well done.” She added: “They were always so complimentary and appreciative.”

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