Ahead of Tuesday’s World Heart Day, the Heart Foundation of Jamaica (HFJ) in association with Bumble Bee Foods and Fidelity Motors welcomed patrons to an evening of food, wine and entertainment on the lawns of Jamaica House. The event, dubbed Simply Red: Wine and Food Festival, returned for its 26th staging under the theme: Caribbean Flavour, Flair and Fashion. The organisers fulfilled their promise of delivering a four-hour foodie event ostensibly to raise $10 million towards the Building Fund for the Heart Foundation Cardiac Rehabilitation & Research Centre and expand the Emergency Cardiac Care Programme.

Patrons made their way from booth to booth in search of tasty hors d’oeuvres and scrumptious fare prepared for the most part right in front of their very eyes by local and international chefs and caterers; and enjoyed wines courtesy of the Embassy of Chile. The culinary line-up included Jacqui Tyson, Lorraine Fung, Theo Smith, Evrol Ebanks, Saleem Lazarus, and Bajan chef John Hazzard, who unleashed a mixture of spicy, savoury and sweet, yet heart-healthy bites.

On the menu, too, was musical styling courtesy of chanteuse Gem Myers, reggae icon Freddie McGregor, and his son, dancehall artiste Stephen ‘Chino’ McGregor.

(PHOTOGRAPHER: LIONEL ROOKWOOD)