The Insiders' Guide to St. Barths: Trip report Part I

Restaurants 09/15-09/22

Easily more than half of the restaurants on the island were closed. Even St. Barts has felt the pinch in the past year's travel slump, and the staff at our hotel said that more restaurants were closing during this August and September than in years past. They had a chart that listed which were closed for the season and which were closed on particular days. Of course, several restuarants that I had read about and hoped to try were closed. But as it was our first visit, we still had enough to keep us busy. By October 1, 75% should be open; the rest will open by Oct. 15. This is also true of the shops.
Here's a note for anyone considering a trip to St. Barts: You should budget $50 for casual meals for 2 and $100 for dinner for 2. This includes "un apero" but not wine! We had a few meals that topped $100; I'm pretty sure that the cheapest lunch we had was $35.
We arrived midday Sunday, knowing that what wasn't closed for the season would probably be closed for the day. As we drove to our hotel, we saw that at least one thing was open--La Plage at Tom Beach Hotel. After settling in at our cottage, we went back for our first meal in paradise. My husband ordered the langouste farci (stuffed lobster); I opted for another local specialty I'd heard about: accras. I thought they would involve fish in a more meaningful way; they were hardly more than simple "hushpuppies." I can't remember now what I had for a main course, but I remember being satisfied on the whole. The dining area is open to the beach and quite beautiful with all the colorful drapes. Since the bill topped $85 (thanks to the langouste) and so few places were open on Sunday, we opted for pasta at our cottage Sunday night.
On Monday we decided to explore Gustavia. Very little was open. I've always observed in France that shops are slow to open up on Mondays...Anyway, I found myself famished and developing a headache so we just sat down at La Rotisserie and had slices of that limp reheated pizza that French boulangeries often sell. After a rest that afternoon I was ready for a gustatory adventure. After consulting the binder at our hotel, we opted for dinner at the Wall House. This was frankly one of the finest meals I've ever enjoyed. We started with the house kir--made with house-made cherry liquer. Delicious! I had a difficult time choosing, so I went with the specials, both for my entree and my plate. The entree was called "salmon surprise." It was 2 pillows resting in a pool of dill cream; the pillowcase was house-made smoked salmon, the stuffing a feather-light salmon mousse. My husband had watermelon-balsamic vinegar gazpacho. It sounds odd, but was incredible! He had duck for the main course, but can't remember more details, except that it was superb. I had chicken wishbones prepared as the French customarily serve frog legs: delectably browned in butter and served with more butter and minced garlic. All this was arrayed around a pile of delicate green salad. At this point, desert was out of the question. The service was extremely gracious but never overbearing. We vowed to return.
On Tuesday we opted for a simple lunch near our cottage. This brought us to Le Piment, right along the road in St. Jean. This is a very casual spot with only a handful of tables and a tiny open kitchen. Josh had a cheeseburger which he reported was big and juicy; I had a very light dish of chicken breast and pasta with pureed tomato and chopped scallions on top. It was fine but not spectacular. For dinner we decided to take a chance on a "hole-in-the-wall" that caters primarily to locals called La Gamelle. This place is hidden behind the surf shop in Gustavia. The had only a few tables and no printed menu. They offer only a few selections each day. I ordered a salad with "gumbos" which the French-speaking waitress described as an odd local vegetable. It turned out to be okra (live and learn)! Then I had "chicken colombo," apparently also a local specialty. I would describe it as curried chicken "pot roast" complete with carrots and potatoes. It was tasty, but clearly more homestyle than gourmet. The crowd was local and boisterous. Everyone was so chummy that it was hard to tell who worked there and who was simply a friend. Thanks to Franz and Philou (sp?) for the hospitality!
Wednesday we reported to Le Repaire for lunch. I ordered Salmon with toasts, then the daily "vegetable plate." The "toasts" were Wonder bread! I ordered the vegetable plate after seeing delicious "sides" accompanying some other plates. I was hoping for a pile of the sweet potatoes au gratin I saw on the chalkboard. Instead I got unseasoned vegetables steamed in foil with saffron rice. No butter, no cheese, no sauce. It was fresh but not very filling. I don't know what Josh ate, but the bill came to $85. Call me finicky, but don't think that Wonder bread is worth $85. On the other hand, this did include Josh's Pina Colada, which was a work of art!
Wednesday night took us to K'fe Massai, despite warnings of spotty service. The decor was laudable. It was partially open, as are most restaurants here, with lights recessed in ochre walls. Josh had gazpacho again--a fairly straightforward version this time but good. I had a green salad with very rare tuna steak rolled in sesame seeds. Excellent. Our main courses were good, but apparently not very memorable. Now for the service: I am accustomed to having to ask for the bill in French restaurants, and K'fe Massai was no exception. But other restaurants seem to understand that once you've asked, you aim to complete the transaction and take your leave. Not K'fe Massai. Once they brought the bill, the entire staff retired to a back room to rearrange furniture. After an extremely long wait (How long has it been?...Am I just being an impatient American?...Good grief, what are they doing back there?...Uh, is that the sunrise?) I got up to hike across the restaurant to get them. Plus, the bill stated "Gratuity at your discretion" and the credit card slip had a line for the tip. This was generally not the case at other restaurants. For anyone who still isn't sure about this, French law *requires* that service charges be included in the prices. An additional small cash tip is polite. We consider ourselves quite generous tippers--generally around 20% in the States. In France we leave no more than 5% for casual meals and a bit more (but not over 10%) for finer meals. I just felt that they were trying to take advantage of the occasional confusion people have on this matter. I vowed not to return.
Thursday lunch found us on foot at St. Jean. This time we opted for Chez Andy aka The Hideaway. Their ad in Ti Gourmet touts "Corked wine, warm beer, lousy food. View of the parking lot." Naturally we had to check it out. I chose chicken in a creamy onion sauce. It was served with a mound of fries. Josh chose pasta carbonara. Both plates were quite satisfactory. Now comes the evil part. Many of you may be familiar with the customary jigger of rum at the end of the meal in St. Barts. At Chez Andy, they bring a generous decanter of the stuff. Suffice it to say that the uphill climb to our cottage seemed much steeper that day...
For dinner on Thursday we tried Au Port in Gustavia. This is a second-floor (1er etage) restaurant; open-air of course, so you get to look out over the streets of Gustavia. It was pretty quiet during September, but a seat by the front would be prime people-watching territory during high season! I can't remember our entrees, but Josh had red snapper in mango sauce for a main course. He wasn't enchanted with it, but chalks it up to a poor choice on his part. I had filet of sole over sweet potatoes and enjoyed it quite a bit. The service was gracious and the decor was pleasant, so I would go back again.
Friday we ate lunch at our cottage. For dinner we returned to the Wall House. Again, the staff was gracious and charming. We had kir royale this time, again the house version. Josh had the gazpacho again and loved it just as much again. He had duck again, but a different preparation than before. Again he raved. On my first visit, I took the special when I couldn't decide between the gnocchi and the Moroccan tagine. This time they offered a "menu" that included both, so that solved my problem. The entree was an assortment of nibbles in dill cream--shrimps, salmon, etc. Then came the gnocchi. I've often been disappointed with gnocchi--sometimes I've been served bland, heavy dumplings. But at Wall house they were melt-in-your-mouth light and flavorful even without the pesto sauce (not that I left the sauce behind!). Exquisite! Then came the tagine. It was a large piece of chicken wrapped in puff pastry and placed in a bowl of Moroccan-style stew. It was excellent, but not as exciting as the gnocchi. I couldn't believe I still had desert to go...
Saturday we returned to Chez Andy for lunch. We each ordered a pizza, which we assumed would be "personal" sized. Wrong! They were good, but not exactly like we have here at home. The crust was quite thin, and mine included cream sauce. then the waitress brought that darned decanter at the end again. This time we had the car with us, so I had to tackle it myself so that Josh could drive home. The hill up to the cottage was no kinder in that Samurai than it was on foot! We had leftover pizza for dinner.