Turtle Bay, the national chain of Caribbean-esque restaurants, will fling its doors open in Croydon for the first time on Sunday in the old Tiger Tiger spot.

The restaurant, in High Street, Croydon, aims to recreate the relaxed mood of a beachfront shack, with its big octagonal bar in the middle and a full complement of rums.

Bar staff aren’t just drink-pourers, we were told. Part of the shtick is to get them to be chatty and open.

Their enthusiasm for all things rum seemed genuine and helped to relax the guilt for cutting loose on a Wednesday night.

The food at Turtle Bay is pretty good. We were plied with jerk chicken wings and sweet corn fritters first up, which were both as good as any I’ve had.

The curry goat came next, which was very rich and sweet, followed by more jerk chicken, by which time I should have been too full to take it on. The fact it was all gone by the time the waiter came back would suggest speaks to its quality.