In the summer of 1990 the language school we studied at in Quetzaltenango (Xela) brought a group of students … including us … to Panajachel. There were not many restaurants in Pana then (there's 60+ Tripadvisor reviewed eateries now in this very small town). One of the places we ate at was a kind of downscale cafe called “El Ultimo Refugio” … The Last Resort. We've been coming back here since, as the tourism level has fallen, and new places to eat have proliferated while old standards have disappeared … while The Last Resort has been a study refuge from tourist glitz.

 

The Ultimo Refugio remains a great economical meal … the plates shown here cost $6.50, and offer a nice steak or fried chicken or chicken curry or another selection from a small number of other things on a perennially durable menu. 

What's special about the plates, though, are the veggies … a whole assortment of simply cooked, perfectly al dente veggies with no sauce other than maybe a little lemon juice or a light mayonnaise dressing on a slaw or small portion root salad, served separately on a large plate. Tonight's plate included steamed potato, white cabbage slaw, red cabbage slaw, piece of corn on the cob, broccoli, tomato slices, two kinds of squashes, cucumbers and carrots. All prepared and served very hygienically. I've brought I don't know many people here … a lot … and nobody has ever gotten sick.

 

Anyway, since the beginning, the same guy has worked here. And over the years, we developed a relationship in which we nodded at each with vague recognition … until a few years ago, when he finally told me he remembered me. At which point we had a conversation.

 

We immediately discovered we had something in common, which is Chichicastenango, where he's from and of course is where we've worked and lived for so long.

 

Tonight when he came out of the kitchen, he saw me and pointed at me, and I said “I know you!” and we talked a little more. It turns out he actually lived very close to … possibly in the same house as … our apartment is in. He moved to Panajachel in 1967, and has owned and operated the Ultimo Refugio since then. He's still working away, at 84, and sharp as a tack.

 

The last time I was there with Mary, he called the woman cook, quite a few years younger than him, over and introduced her as his “life companion.” He explained that he hired her many years ago, and they had become partners. She came over again this evening and smiled and greeted us … but I didn't catch her name.

 

Anyway, it's nice to finally be on a first name basis with don Damien Velasquez, of Chichicastenango. I hope we get in a number more visits before his days of cooking and my days of trips to Guatemala are over..