(Left to right) Sally-Ann White, Esme White, 7, Sheryl Aitken, of Riva, Toby White, 10, and dad Simon took advantage of yesterday afternoon’s sunshine for a spot of alfresco dining, but wet weather in the morning meant four of the six restaurants that had set up outside on Sunday held back.

RAIN in the morning stopped most restaurants taking part in the second day of the Pollet Food Festival.
Of the six that served food alfresco on the Sunday, only two set up outside yesterday. Riva and Petit Bistro embraced the afternoon sunshine and people took advantage of the warmth, cuisine and entertainment from singer Lee Rosete.
‘It comes down to the weather,’ said Riva manager Christian Carbone.
‘We had only a small gap with sunny periods, which discouraged participants. There were only a few of us taking part, which didn’t help with the atmosphere. We kept things going just to get into the spirit of things.
‘We need some sort of weather protection or it’s not worthwhile, but there is talk of doing this every Sunday. It’s being hinted at.’
Da Nello Restaurant head waiter Antonio Oliva said that although Sunday had been a success, yesterday morning’s weather had stopped them setting up again.
‘We saw the weather in the morning, which wasn’t very good, but when the sun comes out it’s a bit better. Sunday was a beautiful day and we did really well. But today [Monday], there’s not many people around. If it had been sunny this morning, we would have set up.’
On Sunday, Riva, No. 44, Victor Hugo Boulangerie, Da Nello, Claddagh and Petit Bistro took part, with Mr Carbone estimating that about 300 people had been served.
‘It was excellent and I reckon there were a couple of thousand people walking through Town. There were also a lot of cruise ships in and those people came here to experience Guernsey cuisine.’
This was the second Pollet Food Festival this year, with a third one planned for August – for which Mr Carbone had high hopes.
‘If the sun’s not shining then, there’s a problem.’