HEADINGLEY RESTAURANT STEPS IN AFTER COUPLE'S WEDDING RECEPTION ON BARGE IS SCUPPERED
Yorkshire Evening Post 25th March 2008

Newlyweds Joaquim and Rachel De Souza always dreamed of getting married on the crest of a wave. But when their plans for a water wedding fell through at the last minute, it was an Headingley Italian restaurant that provided the lifejackets.

Up until two weeks ago, the pair were due to hold their reception on a barge, which would take 40 guests up the Leeds-Liverpool canal to Wharfedale.

But a licensing problem for the Black Prince, the new boat owned by Leeds City Cruisers, meant the reception had to be cancelled - so the couple, who live in Moortown, called on John and Gip Dammone for help.

The brothers, who own Salvo's in Headingley, agreed to close the restaurant for the first time in their 30-year history and provided a special menu and a table plan for Joaquim and Rachel's new reception.

Rachel, 42, said: "We were gutted when we had to cancel the boat but Salvo's really made up for that.

"They did this without any obligation or duty, just out of the total goodness of their heart.

"I can't tell you what a difference it made. They put themselves out for us and it was really, really good."

Rachel and Joaquim, 41, were married at Leeds Town Hall on Saturday after 15 years together.

The pair, who live with their son Tiernan, 12, and daughter Semphra, 11, got engaged during a trip to Robin Hood's Bay last August - another reason why they were keen to celebrate their nuptials on the waterways.

Rachel added: "The attraction of the cruise was the novelty and everything was geared up to that. But what Salvo's has done is an equal novelty, because who gets Salvo's to close for them?

"We've been through so much over the last 15 years that I just wanted this to feel really special. And that's exactly what Salvo's gave us."

Sharon Pickard, director of Leeds City Cruisers, told the YEP she was "devastated" that the reception had to be re-arranged and said it was because the Maritime and Coastguard Agency couldn't process the passenger certificate in time.

The firm, which has re-located from Hebden Bridge, was due to launch the Black Prince last weekend but all planned cruises were cancelled. The company, formerly Bronte Boats, now expects the boat to be sailing by the end of April.

When contacted by the YEP, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency said the certificate would be ready when Leeds City Cruisers had met the necessary requirements in terms of changes and crew.