Sunday family brunch at PIC is back

Magellan Restaurant reopened on Sunday for brunch and, as a welcome treat as well as a gesture of concern for the health of the community, guests will be given special slow roasted garlic when seated.  PIC management believes that the health benefits of garlic includes prevention of colds, extension of life of cells, reduction of cholesterol, protection against heart disease, low of blood pressure and more. (Contributed Photo)

Family-friendly Sunday Brunch opens this weekend at Pacific Island Club’s Magellan Restaurant. Enjoy your favorite brunch food and have a memorable weekend with loved ones because brunch at the Magellan is the perfect reward to end the week and a good start to welcome another.

“We are excited to bring back the Sunday Brunch at the Magellan. …The decision came because of the demand from our regular customers. …The buzz of excitement from both our employees and our regular guests is tremendous,” said PIC general manager Gloria Cavanagh.

The hotel resort first opened Happy Hour and dinner at the Seaside Grill in mid-August. That outlet is open every Thursday, Friday and Saturday .Another PIC outlet, The Galley, opened for lunch last Sept. 1, from Monday to Friday. This time, it’s The Magellan Sunday Brunch.

“Since there is limited seating in The Magellan, we encourage reservations. We are also open for events and workshops but they have to follow our government’s guidelines,” Cavanagh said.

According to her, the expansion of services one after the other at PIC is based on the demand of their regular customers. “We had to wait until the most recent restrictions were lifted and that we are back to Level Blue.  The opening of both Magellan and [Seaside Grill] are very labor-intensive and so we needed to run fiscal projections so as to be comfortable in making a small profit or at least breaking even.  Hotels run huge losses in a dormant environment (completely closed),” she said.

She said PIC is also looking at the possibility of opening limited services in its waterpark, the main pools and the Siheky kids’ pool.  “We are still toying with the idea of opening our rooms for the weekends but there is no definite plans as of yet. We are looking at the numbers and hopefully decide soon for October,” she added.

Cavanagh said that due to COVID-19 concerns, they had to bring in additional preventive and protective measures to ensure the safety of both guests and our employees.  “Our employees—even though they are called employees—are only working part-time now and, even with that, they are very excited about the reopenings and we are ready to provide a great product.”

This Sunday, as a gesture of concern for the health of the community, PIC will be presenting each of its guests at The Magellan a special slow roasted garlic as they are seated. Cavanagh said the health benefits of this garlic are prevention of colds, extension of life of cells, reduction of cholesterol, protection against heart disease, low blood pressure and more.  “We hope that our guests would appreciate and enjoy the beginning of a wonderful experience,” she said.

Looking at the silver lining, Cavanagh said the pandemic also had a great impact on PIC operations. “…after Super Typhoon Yutu, our operations were trimmed of wasteful fat.  The closure because of the pandemic made us find more fat that can be trimmed.  At the time of opening, we all should be lean and well-oiled and ready to bring our best foot forward to welcome back our tourists,” she said. “We are very hungry to give our customers the best service we can provide. Additionally, I think we all learned a huge lesson on patience and respect of each other. Many people and businesses have stepped forward to help others and hope that all of us have learned what is really important in life.”

With local discount, the Sunday Family Brunch is only $30 for adults and $15 for child. The Galley is open during lunch, 11am-2pm from Monday to Friday, while the Seaside Grill is open for Happy Hour, 5pm-9pm, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. For more information call (670) 234-7976, 8am-5pm, from Monday to Wednesday and 8am-9pm from Thursday to Saturday.