Hidden away in St. David's is the very quaint Dennis' Hideaway, a restaurant that has an island appeal not normally found in Bermuda.

The owner, Dennis Lamb -- a giant of a man who is as St. David's as they come -- is like no other. He has a unique charm that allows him to chum around with anyone and everyone but his tongue can be sharp when need be.

The restaurant, originally the home he built for his family, still has that look. On entering you can be excused for wondering if you are in the wrong place.

The restaurant was Mr. Lamb's idea when he was a boy.

"Many years ago when we first came around here -- my family lived on part of the land that was taken over by the base -- I said to my dad one day, I was only a young boy, that I wanted to build a little restaurant, but at that time we had a farm here and my father told me he knew I was crazy if I thought I could make a restaurant out here with all the pigs and cows,'' Mr. Lamb said.

He added: "I drew a sketch of what I had in mind and I got the Health Department down to have a look. They laughed at me and said I had to do a lot of cleaning up. Next month I will have had this restaurant for 30 years.

"The restaurant used to be my house, I built it for me and my family.'' The secret of Dennis' Hideaway is the St. David's Island flavour of the food.

Dennis cooks an array of seafood dishes from conch chowder, mussel stew, and fish dinners to conch steak dinner, hashed shark and conch fritters.

"People seem to like everything about the restaurant. They say they can't get enough of this wonderful stuff,'' Mr. Lamb said.

Why a focus on seafood? Dennis says everyone likes it, especially him. He added: "My son and I do the cooking. I wanted to stick to seafood because I know people like it and I like it.'' Somehow is it appropriate that his son is known to friends as "Sea Egg''.

"We get some local fish and shark but we have to import the mussels and the conch.'' Mr. Lamb also said some of his wife's Filipino dishes will soon be added to the menu.

Many of his diners are visitors to the Island who have heard about the restaurant from friends or have read about the unique experience of dinner with Dennis in an array of US magazines.

Dennis has enjoyed Dennis' Hideaway: "I have really enjoyed this restaurant, which I run with my son, Graham, and my wife, Merly, and I have made a lot of money but I have never been able to save because I've always had to put the money right back in the business.'' He added that he has always loved to cook, since he was 13 years-old, and he likes to make people happy.

"We get a lot of tourists down here. They come and they go home and tell their friends about Dennis' Hideaway and then the friends come. I also get a few locals.'' Flipping through his guest books and reading the various comments it's clear that people who have visited Dennis' Hideaway thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

One visitor wrote, "a culinary experience like no other - a taste of Bermuda'' while another said, "just what I was looking for, keep it exactly the same''.

On what makes the restaurant so attractive to people? "They love it because it's something different - the food, the hospitality, and my singing. I used to go singing from table to table.'' With that, he breaks into a tune of "When I Fall in Love'', his wife harmonises with him and one can see why customers enjoy their singing. Mr.

Lamb also tells of some of his well known guests such as former US President Jimmy Carter and former Governor Sir Edwin Leather. That's a story within itself.

"One morning Governor Leather called down here, I answered the phone and he told me who it was but I thought it was a hoax. I told him I didn't care who he thought he was and not to be calling down here. I used a few curse words and then hung up on him.

"My phone rang again but this time it was a woman and she told me that the Governor wanted to make a reservation. I told her off and hung up again. The next thing I knew there were six CID officers outside my door. I invited them in and they explained to me that it really was the Governor calling.

"Well, he came a few days later sat down for lunch and told me `Dennis I like the way you spoke to me on the phone'. I really have had a lot of fun in this place.'' "I really enjoy what I'm doing here and we make good food. I would love for more locals to take advantage of this place,'' Mr. Lamb concluded.