DEEP BACKGROUND:
The original, eponymous owner converted his cliff-top villa into a bar and restaurant in 1974, and Rick's quickly became the place for Negril's bohemians and beach bums to drink rum and watch the sunset. Through a procession of owners -- and a rebuilding after 1988's Hurricane Gilbert -- it has remained a popular West End hangout, especially for those hoping to glimpse the elusive green flash during the sun's splashdown.
CAST OF CHARACTERS:
The crowd runs the gamut from Rastas to Rolexes -- local Jamaicans as well as renegades who've escaped the walls of their luxury all-inclusive resorts for a dose of local color. Sunset attracts boats jammed with tourists who also swim in to watch the cliff diving.
SUSTENANCE:
Full menu for lunch and dinner. The head chef, Dario, has been at Rick's for 23 years. Do the Jamaican jerk for lunch -- jerk sausage or jerk chicken pizza. The ceviche is fresh and spicy; dinner choices include broiled lobster and seafood pasta.
DIVERSIONS:
Participants call it "cliff diving," although to locals it's known as "drunken tourists falling off a rock." Rick's official policy is that cliff diving is not recommended, and warning signs are posted. Still, this sport of fools is the main entertainment. Starting a couple of hours before sunset, a crowd gathers on the stone wall that rims the cliff to offer cheers, jeers or hoots for those who approach the 33-foot-high platform, depending on whether they jump well, chicken out or land painfully spread-eagle in the ocean below.
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE:
While a drink or two might help get you to the edge of the cliff, too many and you'll launch with a lurch and hit with a splat. The best technique is a two-step vault off the platform. Then, descend feet first; don't dive. Keep your legs together and your arms at your sides or you'll risk bruising certain tender body parts.
TRY THIS AT HOME:
Here's how to make Rick's Front-End Lifter, a.k.a. Jamaican Viagra: Mix 1 ounce white rum, 1 ounce rum crème and 3 ounces Guinness Stout. Add a single raw egg and a handful of raw peanuts (you can substitute oatmeal for the peanuts). Blend with ice. Rick's advice: Drink it with someone you love ... or someone you plan to.
Posted online 05/01/00.
