Local songbird breathes life into CGB restaurant

It’s only been a few weeks since the restaurant’s reopening and things are not quite what it used to be at Myett’s (now Pusser’s at Myett’s) in Cane Garden Bay. But when Friday evenings roll around, the resident waitress at the establishment knows she’s in for a busy night because Jalena & Kevin are there.

The two don’t come to the restaurant as guests but as the acts for the evening — Jalena the sweet-sounding vocalist, and Kevin, as he playfully describes himself, the ‘master behind the disaster’.

But, with him behind the keyboard and her uttering melodies, ‘disastrous’ isn’t the term Friday night guests use to describe the duo.

“Is the first time I hearing her and she got a real nice voice. That girl sound sexy, man,” one male patron commented to the establishment’s bartender who was keen to insert that the songstress was born and raised in the British Virgin Islands.

“The white girl from here?” the patron then asked in pleasant disbelief.

Jalena and Kevin came together as an act in 2016 and performed an entire season at establishments such as Myett’s, Scrub Island Resort, Peter Island Resort, The Moorings, Fish ‘N Lime, and De Loose Mongoose in Trellis Bay, Beef Island.

But then the hurricanes happened.

Good music and good vibes

The musical duo, who have been friends their entire lives, had no bookings for more than a year as local restaurants and known tourist attractions rebuilt. And with Myett’s now back up-and-running, the duo has seemingly made a notable impact on the turnout weekly.

Jalena — whose given name is Jessica Mikoleiczik — wasn’t very keen on taking any credit for her influence in the turnout at the establishment but told BVI News she was humbled by the sentiment.

“Last Friday was so good. I’m just hoping that it stays consistent,” the singer said, promising ‘good music’ and ‘good vibes’ in the weeks to come.

Her set comprises music from genres such as RnB, zouk, country, reggae, pop and even a taste of her original music which sometimes has dinner-goers abandoning their seats to dance.