Siegeret's Rooms

She said, “Dr JGB Siegert created Angostura Aromatic Bitters (AAB) in 1824, 190 years ago and we are extremely proud to celebrate this amazing milestone this year, at this great house, (now the home of La Cantina) which was originally a Siegert property.”

The deed for the property, 12 Victoria Avenue, was originally registered under Carlos, Alfred and Luis Siegert as joint owners in 1899. In 1909, when the company JGB Siegert & Hijos was formed, the property changed hands to Alfredo C, Albert and George as they were then the partners of the company.

From 1943 to 1951, British Guiana and Trinidad Mutual Fire Ins Co Ltd owned the property, but in 1952, Maria J Siegert, was joined in a deed of rectification in her capacity as personal representative of Albert, who was then deceased. He was the last of the partners to own the property.

“It is a tremendous privilege for Angostura to be associated with this house and to be able to see the Siegert legacy preserved in this way as we celebrate our 190th anniversary,” stated Beaubrun.

The room that was conceptualised by Giselle la Ronde-West, Corporate Communications Manager, Angostura, has a chart of the Siegert family tree on one of the walls, pictures of Dr Johann GB Siegert, inventor of Angostura Bitters 1824; Carlos D Siegert, manufacturer of Angostura 1853-1903; Alfredo C Siegert, manufacturer 1872-1919; and Luis BC Siegert, manufacturer 1876-1905 who owned the property on another wall, and the family crest on yet another wall.

One of Siegert’s great grandsons, Gordon Siegert, was present to witness the opening of “Siegert’s Room”.

La Cantina owner Kester Sylvester likened the start of his pizza establishment to that of the Siegerts’, in that there is a shared love for antiquity. He said, “When you drive through Port-of- Spain now you realise that a lot of buildings like this one are being lost; a lot of them are being broken down and replaced with concrete, others being allowed to go to ruins. So when I started talking about that partnership and that marriage, we share that love for antiquity. And when I think about AAB, I feel proud as a Trinidadian to know that anywhere I go in this world I am most likely able to see that product in a bar. And I thought it will be remiss of us (not) to occupy a space that is so steeped in antiquity, so steeped in history, and I thought there is no way that we can allow such a legacy to fade away.”

He added that at La Cantina they hold true to their recipe of authentic Italian pizza as it was made centuries ago, and AAB holds on to their secret recipe, therefore the “marriage” can only be described as a perfect one.

Sylvester stated, “We decided that apart from honouring the Siegert family we needed to go a bit further and we came up with a concept to include in our appetizer menu AAB as a key element, So I’m proud to say that La Cantina Authentic Italian Pizzeria, Trinidad – and soon this concept is going to be shared with our Tobago establishment – is the only restaurant in Port-of-Spain thus far that you can come and dine and find a bottle of AAB on every table.

So for us at La Cantina we intend to see this relationship grow from strength to strength and we are really bent on preserving this property and preserving this part of TT’s heritage.”

He then paid homage to George Siegert and to the legacy of his family and to this “marriage” that he said he intends to keep for a very, very long time.

On the night guests chose from a selection of cocktails that included Angostura 1919 rum and AAB. They included “Chocolate Seduction” (rum, Mokatika, Amaretto ice cream, chocolate syrup, whipped cream and Orange Bitters), “Siegert Breeze” (rum, grapefruit juice, lime juice, AAB), “Johann’s Punch” (rum, melon liqueur, lime juice), “Don Carlos” (rum, passion puree, peach puree and AAB) and “Exotic Delight” (rum, Blue Curacao, banana puree and AAB).

And specially for the occasion Sylvester and his team prepared for vegetarian guests, Saheena with a Tamarind Chutney, Deep-fried Mozzarella Sticks with an Orange Bitters Marinara Sauce,

Spinach and Mushroom Orange Bitters Quiche and Vegetarian Samosas with Green Paw Paw and AAB Chutney. And for the meat lovers, Breaded Chicken Rings with an AAB Barbecue Sauce, AAB Jerked Chicken Wings, Tenderloin and Brie Turnover, as well as seafood delights such as Coconut Breaded Shrimp with a Sweet Thai Chilli Orange Bitters Dip, Sofrritto and AAB Marinade Shrimp Skewers with a Paramin Herb Lime Butter Sauce and Trini Style Accra with a Chadon Beni, Lime and AAB Dip.