Hmm...so the longterm met office forecast has gone from a 'barbecue August' to 'Erm...think it might be quite rainy'. Still, we seem to be trading fairly briskly and the evening barbecue sessions - run by our lovely Lewis - are gathering momentum.

We've got a hectic week coming up with our monthly Blue Moon Friday evening with music from Johanna Graham, a wedding at Germoe (we're feeding the choir) and our daily summer holiday cafe trading. The menus are pretty much sorted and I think we've planned what we make and when, as much as we can.

I know we've got a lot on because I'm having to write at least 5 lists a day, and then I need a master list listing all my other lists. And neither Jenni nor I can remember our words or actions of the day before, or of 10 minutes ago for that matter. I think wine is the only solution...and the prawns I'm about to fry in oil with chilli and garlic...and the guisantes con jamon simmering on the hob.

We planned and we planned...and then we planned some more

I can't believe how great it is to set aside a whole day to admin and chatting about the business, and away from the cafe.  Time was, we'd be frantically prepping for a day at the cafe and serving while trying to grab a moment on the bench opposite with diaries open and then someone would order 4 portions of hoummous and a smoked mackerel pate.  People wandering down to the beach would stop for a chat or to chastise us for slacking!  We would explain that we were conducting a 'board meeting' but I'm not sure that we convinced anyone.

High Season

Daily, one of us mentions the fact that carloads of eager and potentially hungry holidaymakers will be gridlocked on the A30 any minute now, and our little beach cafe will be expected to feed lots of them over the next six weeks.  We anticipate the coming weeks with a mixture of excitement and fear.  We love feeding beach-goers, coastal path walkers and anyone else who wanders past our cabin but we feel ever so slightly anxious when the queue for food starts at 8.30 am and doesn't abate until late afternoon.  I tend to face the wall and keep my eyes firmly fixed on the next few checks.  By about 3pm both Jenni and I have lost the power of speech and communicate solely in squeaks and whimpers. It's the Joe Simpson school of survival - get through 15 minutes at a time.  We'll be fine as soon as we get into the rhythm of high season, I'm sure!

Definitely looking forward to Friday which is planning day.  Jenni and I get to sit in her kitchen, a pot of coffee between us and the chance to come up with mouth-watering dishes for the specials.  Beetroot is in season and mezze style dishes seem to go down a treat on sunny days at Peppercorn Kitchen, so we're going for a beetroot based dip to be served with warmed pitta.

With the little belt of  low pressure hanging around our peninsula this week, we thought people would also appreciate a warming bowl of afelia - marinated pork slow cooked with coriander seeds and garlic.  Our Mediterranean salad with butterbeans and warm chorizo seems to be edging off the specials board and heading for the main menu through popular demand.  And of course, there will always be plenty of cakes and flapjack slices for those in-between moments and pudding tummies.