A pickled boiled egg, a washdown and Ramjattan’s stupid curfew

Aug 02, 2015 Features / Columnists, From the Diaspora

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By Ralph Seeram

The text came on my Messenger, “We taking a “washdown” at PK, accompanied by a photograph of my friends having some “drinks”. The name stumped me for a few seconds. What PK Bar? Where is that in New Amsterdam? Then it dawned on me, and I am saying to myself, “What? That Bar is still around?”
PK Bar is a cultural icon in New Amsterdam, in fact, in Berbice. Back in the day it was a must visit bar where you “tek a washdown in the wee hours of the morning.”
Why am I calling it a bar, it’s more of a rum shop, and has been around for over 50yrs, yes you read right it’s been in that same location for that length of time.
So what makes PK bar so special? Well for a start it was the first rum shop that introduced, pickled boiled eggs, as “cutters”.
Its pickled boiled eggs were a hit, no one thought of the idea then, naturally a few bars started imitating PK, but never could measure to the taste of PK pickled boiled eggs.
I actually thought PK bar had the monopoly on the idea of pickled eggs, until I moved to Florida where I had a convenience store, and customers kept asking me for pickled boiled eggs. Turns out it’s a Southern thing in the U S, popular among “red necks”.
PK was also famous for Fried Shark, in New Amsterdam- delicious fried shark seasoned with local herbs to bring out the flavour of the fish.
The honor of introducing fried shark in New Amsterdam, indeed all of Berbice, belongs to France Bar, which was situated at the corner of King Street and Republic Road (Backdam Road).
France bar is no more, but today just opposite that spot is a popular “watering hole” in NA, Data’s bar, noted more for its girls than cutters.
Of course you readers might ask what makes this icon so special. Well, it brings to mind the recent ill advised 2 am curfew by this new Government – a most stupid move by this APNU/AFC coalition and Ramjattan. Let me emphasize again, it is a STUPID decision made without any serious thought, survey or input of the public and bar and club owners.
It is a story for another day, but I hope Mr. Ramjattan is happy for the people who are losing their jobs because of his nonsensical actions.
But back to PK. During my “drinking” days in New Amsterdam, after some “bar hopping” you naturally needed a “nite cap” or a “washdown”. And who can you find open at 2 in the morning? PK course. What better place than to have some hot fried shark at that hour in the morning.
PK is a bit more nostalgic for me. More than the bar, it did help that he had a bevy of beautiful daughters, though never in the bar. You made the trip to “catch an eye” or “catch the eye” of one of the daughters.
One of the girls, the eldest, I think her name was Shurkalene, I may have the spelling wrong, was a former classmate of mine. I had a serious crush on her, only to find out that my brother had the same feeling. Naturally there was more than one motivation for me and quite a few of the guys to go drink at PK – those beautiful daughters.
Way back, oh maybe more than 20-odd years ago, I was at Caribana festival in Canada (which incidentally is this weekend), at a dance with Byron Lee and the Dragonnaires playing, when this very attractive young lady came up to me and started a conversation, I prolonged the conversation trying to figure out where I knew her and finally asking where I knew her from.
Big mistake, “You don’t know me?” She asked with a beautiful smile, “You play like you don’t know me.” Embarrassed I said I could not recall, “I am Prince Mongal daughter from PK bar”.
Yes it was those beautiful girls that had lots of us guys going to drink there. I can tell you this, in the Diaspora, if you see a Guyanese you don’t recognize, and they quick to tell you “how you turn bigshot”; this time poor you wracking you brain to figure out who they are.
I never knew what the K stood for. I know the owner was Prince Mongal, a very pleasant gentleman very well known in New Amsterdam. He himself was popularly known as PK, so naturally the bar became known as PK, instead of the official name DIXIE bar.
If you want ambiance you don’t go to PK but then again PK bar had its own ambiance, its own rum shop ambiance. There was no class or race distinction, (and I am told it’s still so today). And ordinary folk will be “hitting glass” with professionals, be they doctors, lawyers or other “big shots”. They will be on the same table with the “little shots”.
The spot holds some other nostalgic memories as some very good friends lived above the bar. One Eddie Greenidge was an electronic/electrical self taught genius, Eddie has passed on but not without imparting his skills to his son. The son, I am told, has a leading Air Conditioning & Refrigerating Service which still carries the name Greenidge.
This 2 am curfew business will throw quite a few food stands out of business too.
PK was the liquor washdown, but if you need some real food then there are the little food stands that cater for the “foreday “ morning crowd, Be it fish and bread, cook up, black pudding and souse and so forth. You could find them on Main Street, New Amsterdam.
This I am told is still in practice in both NA and Georgetown today. Guess Ramjattan in his wisdom did not take those pool souls into consideration in making his stupid decision.
Jerry Bacchus I feel your pain, PK was the Jerries All Night in New Amsterdam.
So, on my visit to Guyana some time later this year, one of my first stops will have to be PK rum shop.
Don’t know if the pickled boiled egg and fried shark is still a staple there. If not they will have to make some for me, I hope the recipe was handed down.
I want to experience that nostalgic feelings, and imagine those beautiful daughters peering in the bar to get glimpses of the guys, and most of all hear some good old Guyanese rum shop gaff.
I want to know how the government is doing, I want to know who sleeping with whom, who getting “blow”, who gone “foreign” and so forth, and I want the latest gossip. There is no better place than to go to a rum shop, and I am sure PK bar can give me some answers.
Ralph Seeram can be reached at [email protected] and Facebook.

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