Villa Bella proprietor Monica Zijdemans is the consummate hostess. She welcomes the Jamaica Observer Food Awards judging panel to her hilltop villa and eatery in Christiana — once home to Richard Azan — with polished ease. Offering trays of her homemade rum punch and ginger beer, and a radiant personality that the judges instantly warm to, Zijdemans regales her visitors with colourful vignettes from her life journey from Jamaica to London to Canada — where she was a nurse, hairdresser, actress, restaurateur, and constant live wire through it all. Intrigued, we pull her aside for sips of Moët & Chandon and more cocktail discourse.

How was it playing host to the Jamaica Observer Food Awards judges at Villa Bella’s Hummingbird Restaurant?

It was exciting. My staff and I loved it. It has been a while since we have entertained such a large group. I enjoyed the conversation over many different subjects, but I loved most that they listened to me bragging.

You were quite hands-on in the kitchen alongside your staff prepping dinner for the guests. Are you always overseeing dinner?

I’m always there when the meals go out. I have a discerning scent for food, so I can immediately know when something is under- or overcooked.

You’ve been the proprietor of Villa Bella for close to three decades now. What have been your high and low points?

We have entertained every prime minister with the exception of the current sitting one. We have hosted VIPs from the World Bank. I also love to host weddings. The low point is our inability to access proper telephone service which impacts on prospective guests, and I have to go into Mandeville to access Internet service. That’s my Sargasso Sea.

We only just learnt over dinner of your history as a film actress while you were resident in England. Was venturing into film purely accidental?

It most certainly was. I was training to be a nurse in England and my first acting role was on the first English soap opera Emergency Ward 10. I had a look where I could play different nationalities, so my second speaking role was as a Jewish woman. I was also in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and had two speaking role scenes. I played one of the 12 handmaidens in Cleopatra and I was also in Look Back In Anger. Acting wasn’t something I wanted to continue pursuing as they wanted me to show skin and I was not about to.

Who does your hair?

I do.

Who does your nails?

Mitzi Cowan at Total Body Care in Mandeville.

What’s your secret to looking so fabulous at 80?

Going out with younger men, and I’m very active. I work 15 hours a day, seven days a week. I also used to go dancing every Thursday.

Jeans or a LBD?

It depends on the occasion. I don’t wear jeans, however. It’s either white pants or shorts. A little black dress is called for when the moment is right.

Flats or stilettos?

Stilettos, every time! They are sexy and make you look and walk more confidently. I’ve been forced to drop my heels because of age, but I still come out in stilettos since I’m not going very far from my car.

What perfume are you spraying?

Ever since I discovered French perfume many years ago, Shalimar is my scent of choice. I’m known by it.

What important life lessons have you learnt that you pass on to your grandchildren?

Be loyal and always tell the truth, especially about yourself. I learnt that from my grandfather.

What five words best describe Monica?

Calm, funny, generous (to a fault), happy, and a lover of beauty (both inner and outer).

Who is your inspiration?

My grandfather was a great inspiration. I grew up with him until he died. He never once hit me, or called me names, and he always made me feel beautiful. I remember going to Sunday School and I didn’t like it and told him I didn’t want to return. He asked why and I explained that I felt like I wasn’t reflected in the Bible. He never forced me to go back. And I’m just the same with my grandchildren. If I tell them to do something and they can give a reasonable explanation why they don’t want to, I never force them.

What’s the most surprising thing that someone could discover about you?

That I’m very adaptable. Whether I’m in a huddle or a palace, I can adjust to my surrounding. And nothing fazes me.

What’s your idea of the perfect man?

I don’t have an idea anymore, but in my salad days, my ideal of the perfect man was a tall, skinny black man who I was going to marry to live on a farm and have 12 children.

What’s your idea of the perfect date?

Depends on my mood. I can be sophisticated and also very casual. I remember one date once was a night picnic where we spread out a blanket in a meadow and ate under the night sky, gazing at the stars. I also like going to elegant restaurants and drinking champagne or white wine and trying different foods, but if it’s ugly I won’t touch it.

Where do you see yourself five years from now?

Villa Bella will be sold and I’ll be retired at a cottage in Negril catching up on my reading. I read three books a week. I also want to go back to university and study philosophy or an introduction to theology.