RESTAURANTS, CAFES, BARS

My descriptions of restaurants, cafes, and bars are in no particular order this year.

Pizza-Pasta Italian Trattoria (behind Cheri's at Maho Bay)

Wow! What a good place for a simple dinner of delicious food. An informal, cash-only restaurant, we ate there twice, each time for less than $40 (including drinks). The Penne Bologna was especially outstanding. And Pam says they serve the best fresh-brewed ice tea on the island. Selena (born in Italy, raised in Africa) and Marcia (from Jamaica) provided superlative, friendly service. This is a kid-friendly restaurant that provides crayons to the kids (the resulting artwork adorns the walls). Get there early or make a reservation.

Ren & Stimpy's (or Berry's Island Grill) in Simpson Bay

We're still in denial. We loved the old Ren & Stimpy's on the Pizza Hut road in Simpson Bay, so we went to see if maybe Ren & Stimpy's had reopened; instead we found a restaurant named Berry's Island Grill. The waitress said that Ren & Stimpy's went out of business and that now the original owners have the place.

When we asked for a menu, the friendly waitress warned that they don't have any of the things listed on the menu. Berry's is a local seafood shack now, specializing mostly in swordfish, mahi-mahi, snapper, and so on. The waitress then tapped her breasts and said that they also have chicken breasts. This was clearly a neighborhood lo-lo that didn't cater to tourists, so we finished our drinks and moved on.

Ric's Place (Philipsburg)

We had a couple of western omelettes for $5.50 each for breakfast one day. The food is good, the service is excellent, and the view from the deck is great.

Lynette's (Simpson Bay)

We usually eat at Lynette's once each trip. We had appetizers of spinach salad and crab cakes, which were so-so. I love the lobster creole, which is to die for, and Pam said the baby back ribs were excellent. Prices are reduced from last year: the lobster creole was $25 instead of $30; the ribs were $12. The ambiance is very nice (though you wouldn't guess that from the outside), the quality of the food is great, and the service is very good.

Lynette's (like many restaurants in St Martin) has a 15% surcharge, which you will see on the check but not on the credit card slip. Add more tip if you want - just remember when you're signing the credit card slip that it already includes 15%.

Turtle Pier (Simpson Bay)

We love Turtle Pier - unfortunately, the whole time we were there it was closed to repair damage caused by the hurricanes. It will be open by the time you go. As I said last year:

The kids will love all the birds and animals that line the walkway into the restaurant. Be sure to take a seat right at the water if you bring kids - they'll love to toss bread to the fish.

Turtle Pier serves an outstanding breakfast with plenty of coffee refills. Lunches are also dependably delicious - everything is flavorful, fairly portioned, and reasonably priced. For example, a lunch of hamburger and onion rings costs $6.50. All that and you get a great view too.

Le Fregate (On the waterfront in Marigot)

The food and desserts at Le Fregate were outstanding and the service was excellent. We both had an outstanding beef tenderloin covered with duck liver, a couple of desserts (the tiramsu was excellent), and drinks for $82. The ambiance was relaxing. We thought the place was comparatively pricey, but worth a trip.

Paradise View Restaurant (on the main road to Orient Beach)

This place is quite an experience. There is a mini-market lined up along the walk to the restaurant, which itself is a very nice, informal place that serves lunch and dinner. The clothes prices in the market were very reasonable. The restaurant has tables inside and out, and provides a fantastic view of Orient Bay.

A hamburger or cheeseburger with 2 side dishes cost $10 (a little high), but the food that Sinclair cooks is great and Paulette and Claudette give good, friendly service. They're really nice people. It's a fun place and worth at least one stop on your vacation - bring your camera!

Sunset Beach Bar (Maho)

As you know from last year's travelogue, we really enjoy this place. It is getting quite a following and stays pretty busy all day. Famous for its sign that says, "topless women drink for free," the Sunset Beach Bar has picnic tables on a large deck overlooking Maho Bay and Juliana Airport. It is a lot of fun to watch the huge jets and small commuter flights taking off and landing. The WinAir commuter planes' landing are the best...those pilots pay no attention to the proper approach and glide path...they just come winging in from all angles, line up on the runway at the last possible minute, and touch down as close as possible to the start of the runway. They're a riot.

The steak sandwiches were delicious but the meat is sliced too thickly so they are too difficult to eat. Try the hamburgers, which are supposed to be the best on the island (see newspaper extract below).

Michael's Cafe (Grand Case)

Michael's Cafe took a beating from the 1999 hurricanes, but it's still open and just as good as ever. Michael and Marilyn Petone (in the picture) are a couple of American expatriates from Harvard, Massachusetts who opened their cafe in Grand Case during the summer of 1997. You can read more about them in my 1998 and 1999 travelogues. Give yourself a treat by stopping in to enjoy delicious food and great conversation about life on the island.

This time around we stopped for lunch and grabbed a couple of Cheese Pepper Steak submarines with fries and cole slaw ($8 each) - delicious! Michael and Marilyn serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We've tried all three and have always enjoyed the fine quality of food at prices quite a bit lower than the fancy restaurants in Grand Case. In fact, our son Joey gives Michael's Cafe his now famous 5-Star Joey Rating for the best breakfast on the island. Tell 'em Joey sent you and Michael and Marilyn will know exactly who you're talking about!

Friar's Bay Beach Cafe

This is the epitome of a great beach cafe. I ordered a really delicious Creole Plate (1/2 lobster, stuffed crab, stuffed 'something else'), all of which was served on a plate of lettuce, tomatoes, and onions. Pam had a burger and fries. With three beers and two cokes added, our bill came to $43. And you can't beat the view (ain't talkin' about the seascape here, folks).

L'Alabama (Grand Case)

It's no secret that L'Alabama is one of the truly great restaurants in a village of truly great restaurants. Pascal and Karin own the place and will chat with you during your visit at this very comfortable restaurant. They've had L'Alabama for nine years and named the place after a Greek restaurant of the same name where Pascal and Karin met 11 years ago - "tres romantique," as Karin said. Karin is from Austria and Pascal is from France ... what a nice couple.

For appetizers we had shrimp and conch ravioli (to die for) and a good garden salad with house vinaigrette; for the main course we had pork tenderloin with cinammon and carmelized apple sauce served on a bed of mashed potatoes (which sounds like a strange combination but tasted wonderful), sea scallops and shrimp sauteed in something (very good); and for dessert we each had a crepe stuffed with almond custard and fruits with an almond and cholcolate sauce (outstanding). With a couple of glasses and coffee our bill came to $93.50.

The service here could not possibly have been any better. What a great place to dine. Get reservations.

Le Pressoir

Pam and I continue to believe this is the best restaurant we've ever visited in Saint Martin. Definitely get a reservation. Our dinner consisted of swordfish, an exceptionally good vegetable pasta, a couple of delicious appetizers and a $27 bottle of wine; minus the wine, the bill was $68.

As I've said before, this restaruant is located in one of the oldest homes on the island. The food is consistently outstanding and the service is great. For the first time, however, I noticed the service would have been more relaxed if they had one additional waiter. They are simply too busy for the maitre d' and two waiters to handle the load without rushing.

This is still, in my humble opinion, the one restaurant to eat in if you can eat at only one.

Richard's Crepes Cafe (Simpson Bay)

What a find! This cafe is located in the Royal Village II plaza next to Adventure Car Rental and across the street from the Lightning Casino. This simple waterfront cafe serves an astounding variety of sandwiches and crepes. I suggest that you don't mess with the eggs and sandwiches - they're good, but you can get those anywhere. Go for the crepes. You've simply got to order "The Parisienne" crepe - it contains ham, mushrooms, bechamel sauce, and cheese. Oh my gawd. Also, try the Garlic and Basil Potatoes - they're outta this world. Funny, Richard's wife apologized because the potatoes arrived after the rest of our food ... seems that Richard peels and cooks the potatoes at the time you order, which takes time. Not bad!

The Parisienne crepe, eggs & bacon, breakfast salad, two orders of those great potatoes, a couple of coffees, and a beer came to $27. We ate there twice on this trip - the second time was just before dropping off the rental vehicle at Adventure Car Rental right next door. It was easy to get an outside table where we could keep an eye on our luggage-loaded vehicle while we ate. Then we dropped off the vehicle and headed for the airport.

Sebastiano's Italian Restaurant (Grand Case)

We've been driving by Sebastiano's for years and finally decided to drop in for what turned out to be one of the very best dinners we had on the island. We used the valet parking (pull off the road across the street from Sebastiano's and an attendant will park your car for you) and enjoyed a nice art exhibition being held by the island artist Dago in the entryway.

Food, service and ambiance at Sebastiano's were outstanding - couldn't have been better. This was one of the friendliest bunch of waiters we encountered. The appetizers were all scrumptious, as were the main courses of gnocchi and veal parmesian. Add in a few drinks and some coffee, and our bill came to $92.

Le Charolais (Simpson Bay)

I hate to say we "found" a place that was in plain sight all this time, but we always drove by Le Charolais (across the street from Lightning Casino) without giving it a try - until we decided late one evening that we were starving and didn't have reservations anywhere. We pulled into this unpretentious open-air restaurant and found the food and service to be simply excellent - the owner even visited the table to be sure everything was all right (it was).

I ordered an Argentinean T-Bone steak with Le Charolais's Peppercorn Sauce ($25) and Pam had a Farmer's Salad ($8) that she's still talking about. We didn't try the desserts, but they had quite a selection. They also had an extensive wine list. It's real easy to understand why Le Charolais received a culinary award from Ti Gourmet - everything was great.

Le Charolais is an outstanding alternative to Rancho Argentina (where the food is more expensive and the service often is horrible). Our whole bill (drinks included) at Le Charolais came to $40.

Mario's Bistro (Sandy Ground)

This is the toughest reservation in Saint Martin. The first available opening we could get was one whole week from the day we were making it! This is the only restaurant that you should probably call from the States for a reservation (if you're going to Saint Martin only for one week). Mario and Martine own the place. Mario is the chef who oversees the sous-chefs, and Martine is the gracious hostess. They are both very personable, likable people who do a terrific job.

Despite all the accolades, we have mixed feelings about the food. For appetizers I had wontons stuffed with shrimp served in a soy and sesame sauce that was simply out of this world, and Pam had a good garden salad. Pam's main course was 'Dual Chicken" and mine was tuna fish topped with a blue cheese mix, both of which were good, but not great. The chocolate mousse dessert, however, was outstanding.

The service was impeccable - even better than in years past. And Martine is such a great hostess, frequently stopping to chat and see how you're doing. She's so nice. Our total bill, drinks included, came to $91.

Les 13 Travaux d'Hercule (Anse Marcel/Cul de Sac)

The menu at this roadside lo-lo mentions the 12 traditional labors of Greek mythology's Hercules, but names the restaurant after the owner Hercules' 13th labor... his son, Sergio.

The advertisement for this place described it as a "lolo inoubliable" (an unforgettable lolo), so we went there one day for lunch. At first we were unimpressed with the service, but then realized that Edelyne (the wife) was doing all the waiting on tables and cooking while Hercules was at the market. As soon as he roared up on his motorcycle the service improved greatly. This turned out to be a real nice place to go!

I ordered an appetizer called 'Creole Dishies' - it consisted of a 1/2 lobster, stuffed crab, and lots of other delicious stuff that I can't name. It was absolutely great. I can't believe Edylyne was cooking this stuff while waiting on two tables of customers. Pam had a good fresh garden salad as an appetizer, and for the main course we both ordered baby back ribs, which were very tasty. The whole meal, including a beer and a soda, cost $30.

La Croissanterie (Marigot Marina)

This is an open-air restaurant in the Marigot Marina where we had brunch one day. The food was good, the service was outstanding, and the ambiance was very relaxing. I had a ham-egg-cheese crepe and Pam had an American breakfast (omelette, bacon, potatoes). The whole brunch, with drinks, cost $18.50.

The crepes here do not come close to Richard's Crepe Cafe in Simpson Bay, but it's a fine place to eat nonetheless. Funny, this place was jammed with customers while the restaurant next to it (St Germain's?) was virtually empty.

Indiana Beach Restaurant (Simpson Bay)

This used to be one of our favorite restaurants for breakfast, but they quit serving breakfast last year. We tried a late night supper this time, but the menu seemed, shall we say, uninspired. We finally opted for a couple of hamburger plates called "Italian New Wave Burger." At $13 each, these burgers were grossly overpriced (but we were starved). Our total bill came to $39, which included drinks and a 15% service charge that they include automatically.

If you decide to eat at Indiana Beach but don't want to use their valet parking service, simply turn into the vacant lot across the street from The Globe restaurant on the main road and park right behind the Indiana Beach restaurant (which is where the valet attendant will park your vehicle anyway).

Don Carlos (Simpson Bay)

Nothing fancy here. We received good food and service from a waitress who looks just like Phylicia Rashad (sp?) (the wife on the Bill Cosby TV show). One interesting feature of this restaurant is that diners get 20 minutes of free Internet access at their computer, which seems like a good way to keep restless kids busy while waiting for the food. We spent $30.00 for a taco plate, a fajita plate, and drinks.

Miscellaneous Notes

Paradise Peak

What an incredible view, no matter how many times you've seen it.We made the trek to the top of Paradise Peak, but found the topmost section of road to be washed out so badly that we feared tipping the jeep if we tried to continue the last 100 yards or so. No problem; just park your vehicle and walk that last 100 yards.

The view at the left is not the great view you get from the top, but it sure was a pretty shot on the way back down. The sign of the pistol at the right is on the front wall of an expensive residence on the road to Paradise Peak.

Dolphin Casino

The Dolphin is nice new casino located at the Caravanserai resort near the Sunset Beach Bar. I must say that I never saw a Blackjack dealer hit 21 or Blackjack as often as my dealer did ... let's just say that Pam and I contributed enough to the island's economy that we didn't need to visit the new Princess Casino at Port de Plaisance.

Marigot Market

We went to the market a couple of times because it was better than ever. For the last couple of years I've picked up nice outfits from a French lady named Nicole. She is a bundle of energy, speaking French and English at the same time - sometimes slipping into English with French customers and French with English-speaking customers before she catches herself. She's a riot. Be sure to find her and tell her you saw her picture on the Internet.

That's it for this year, Folks! Have a great time in St Martin!

Did you find anything helpful in this travelogue? If so, maybe you won't mind taking a minute to sign my guestbook... thanks!

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