Linda Card writes this cute story for International Living about how one can make things happen here in Panama.
“Why is life better here? Well it’s warmer, I don’t shovel snow, I buy beer for under $1, I’m 10 minutes from a beach, and I play softball all year round,” says expat Jim Thomas.
Jim lives in Las Tablas, a small town that serves as capital of Panama’s Los Santos province, heartland of the country’s Spanish-colonial heritage. Las Tablas is known for its annual carnival celebration and Holy-Week observances, major events that attract crowds from around the country. The rest of the year this rural town is peaceful and unassuming.
It was sports that first brought Jim to Panama in 2004. “I lived in Boston and was running a sports-marketing company for American football. I handled recreational events, tournaments, leagues, and celebrity events.
“While coaching a start-up flag-football team here, I first met my wife Priscilla. We went back to the U.S. and worked together in sports marketing, but when we decided to start a family in 2009, we returned to Panama and made our new home in Las Tablas. We wanted to be near Priscilla’s family.”
Jim left American football behind, but not sports. In Las Tablas he immediately became involved with baseball, both local and national teams, following the Panamanian season and the annual league championship. “I play in local softball leagues, and I traveled to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and Bangor, Maine, supporting Panama in the Little-League World Series,” says Jim.
Then in 2011 life took another interesting turn. Jim explains, “The Amateur World Series of Baseball took place in Panama. I went to the game dressed up as Ponchalo, and created a lot of media interest. So I decided to open a restaurant and use the media to my advantage.”
“¡Ponchalo!” is Panamanian slang for “Strike him out!” and the letter K is shorthand for a strike-out on a baseball scorecard. Jim created the character “Ponchalo” on a whim. He added to it bit by bit: first face paint, then crazy wigs, then the “K” costume. “I go to the baseball games as Ponchalo and get the crowd all worked up and into the game,” he says.
Jim and Priscilla opened Ponchalo’s K Restaurant and Sports Bar, a small, open-air eatery on the main street in Las Tablas. The concept of a sports bar was new to the local people, and acceptance was slow in coming, especially for his U.S.-style food. “I had people come in to my restaurant and argue with me about the menu. They told me I had to serve chicken and rice because that’s the traditional dish and every restaurant serves it. But I didn’t change my menu, and now the other restaurants in town are serving bacon burgers and trying to copy me!”
Jim serves burgers, chicken wings, pizza, and other typical U.S. bar food from a small kitchen. He and a buddy work the bar and do the cooking, and he hires local waiters to work the busy shifts. Ponchalo’s is open for lunch and dinner four days a week, for dinner on Sundays, and is closed Monday and Tuesday. “We have Ladies Night weekly, offer two-for-one specials, and promote all types of sporting events. I understand the importance of social media, so I post a lot of photos of the restaurant and our food, and people love it,” Jim says.
Today every baseball fan in Panama knows Ponchalo, and everybody in Las Tablas knows the restaurant. “Business at the restaurant is up 500% from last year. There aren’t many expats here and we rely on local residents to keep us going.
“I just signed a contract with RPC Television here in Panama to promote baseball, go to all of the games to get the fans involved and entertain the kids. Now I have commercials on TV, billboards, T-shirts, and thousands of followers on Facebook. It’s incredible!”