Buba’s Hideout - A Dream Come True

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Restaurants

Sunday, 15 July 2012 02:30

By D Francis

Antigua St. John’s - Elmond “Smokey” Benjamin is well known for his Information Technology expertise, but there is another side to him that fits in perfectly with his personality – a man who is known to love fun and excitement.

Benjamin said ‘Buba’s Hideout’ was born out of an idea he had long ago and out of a passion he has to get top class entertainment to the country area.

“I believe that although a lot of activities and entertainment are in St. John’s there could be just as great entertainment out here, anywhere in the countryside for that matter. We are trying to show people that the countryside is where it’s at, it’s the best thing…the ambience, the scenery, lots of fresh air, it’s the best thing and oh…our ‘happy grass drink’ a popular choice among patrons is a must-have”. Without giving away too much, he said among the main ingredients are lemon grass, lemon juice and peppermint.

Benjamin said Buba’s Hideout Restaurant, Bar and Grill at Buba’s Avenue in Buckley’s is now conducting a special promotion called “Countdown to Carnival” to attract the mass crowd that is expected on island for the annual summer festival starting later this month.

He said since Buba’s opened its doors about a year ago, the response though encouraging, could be much better. He specifically addressed the need for more locals to support their own.

“There is good support but it could better. I mean we have a lot of visitors who come via Ministry of Tourism from time to time and the Safari trips, and so on, but I think more locals could patronize one another. I am a person who loves to hang out and I’ve been patronizing local night spots with friends over the years and I think we need to do more of this locally and not just depend on the visitors alone,” Benjamin said.

Benjamin, who conducted computer training programmes for years said he started to pay serious attention to pursue this business in earnest when he shut down his business on Factory Road after the government offered the “Connect Antigua Initiative” programme to the public for free.



“It was a blessing in disguise, in a sense, because when the government started this programme, a lot of people opted for it. Of course, that’s understood because it was free, so that was it for me; then I began to focus on this.”

In terms of development plans, he said he expects to transform the upper deck of the building into an all inclusive area for special parties/private functions. He said they are also working on installing a zipline to offer the public a spectacular view of the area.

Buba’s Hideout offers breathtaking views of Mount Obama and Body Pond, in a lush and tranquil location..

I asked him out of curiosity how he came up with the name Buba’s, and he said: “It’s an interesting story. Anybody who knows me know I love clothes, I love to look good and my grandmother said to me one day ‘u lub too much a clothes (bubas), in those days they use to call clothes ‘bubas’ and so the name ‘Buba’s stuck. Also this is in tribute to my grandparents and father who bought all this land in the early days that we now inherited. At Buba’s Avenue, it’s one big family that lives here. The business is surrounded by family, so it’s all in the family here and we get along great together.”



Buba’s Hideout opens from Thursday to Saturday evenings. It is not open during the day on a regular basis, although persons requiring service via the business will make reservations.

The Countdown to Carnival promotion is conducted on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays to include karaoke, live music and Oldie Goldie Lay Back Night.

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