First Timers Trip Report 12/2 - 12/7
Andrew and Lena's Trip Report 12/2 - 12/7
WOW!!! Even after months of reading all of the posts and descriptions of the island on this and other boards/websites, I was still completely amazed and put under a spell once I arrived. My fiance, Lena, and I were completely blown away by our first trip to St. Barth.
ACCOMODATIONS:
We were originally booked for 5 nights at the Sereno Beach Hotel on the West Indies package for a garden room ($1200). The package includes free continental breakfast each day, one free dinner at the hotel restaurant, and a rental car for the duration of our stay. To our delight, upon checking in to the hotel we were informed that we were being upgraded to a beachfront suite. Woo Hoo!!! Everything was perfect. The hotel was even nicer than I had expected and it (and the island) seemed empty due it being right before the beginning of the high season. The service at the hotel was excellent and everyone was extremely friendly. The beachfront room was huge and had everything we would ever need. It was truly a bargain at the price we were paying, but we still would have been happy in the garden room, which is definitely much smaller but still very clean and comfortable. A great hotel for someone looking for great bang for your buck, especially on their first visit to the island.
FOOD:
Living in NYC and being somewhat of a food snob, I thought that the food was excellent on St Barths. It was expensive, but not much more expensive than a nice dinner out in New York/LA/San Fran. I found that the main difference seemed to be that appetizers and desserts were priced $5 above what I was used to. I guess you save money with the tip being included and also can save money by getting a French wine. Here is a rundown of where and what we ate. Note that Lena and I usually split everything so that we can try as many things as possible on the menus.
The Hideaway (Lunch) - Hideaway Salad and Quatro Fromage Pizza...mmmmm. Friendly and fun atmosphere, good reasonably priced food. Andy is quite a nice guy and makes you feel right at home.
Le Piment (Lunch) - Panini Poulet with Curry and a salad. Service was good, but a bit unfriendly. Food was excellent though.
Le Select (Lunch) - Had the cheeseburger and fries and it was pretty solid. Liked the location and outdoor atmosphere.
Epicerie Italianne (Lunch) - Stopped in for a quick bite and had a Salami, provolone and tomato panini. A bit greasy, but very tasty.
West Indies Cafe (Dinner) - Had a free dinner here as part of the hotel package (Sereno's restaurant). May have been very expensive if we had to pay, but the food was great. Tuna Tartare, Salad with Lobster, Grilled Mahi Mahi, Swordfish Steak. Incredible dessert...creme brulee and a hot chocolate cake.
La Langouste (Dinner) - The grilled lobster is as good as advertised, if a bit pricey. A lot of meat and it is super sweet. Great dipping sauces too. Also had the Mahi Mahi and assorted ice creams for dessert. Thought the service was a bit on the unfriendly side.
Maya's (Dinner) - Excellent food and service was very attentive. Most expensive meal we had, but glad we went. Roquefort Salad, Crabcakes, Seared Wasabi Tuna, Grilled Creole Shrimp. The shrimp were huge and phenomenal!
La Gloriette (Dinner) - Casual place with extremely friendly service. Felix the cat spent a lot of time at the foot of my chair looking for a taste of my Poisson Cru (Mahi Mahi). The $32 price fixed meal was extremely reasonable. The main dish makes my mouth water just thinking about it...Shrimps, Scallops and Lobster sitting in a Lobster Bisque.
Wall House (Dinner) - Best meal we had. The food and service were top notch and reasonably priced for the quality of food you get. Lena started with a Leek Salad in Beet Coulis and I had the special of chicken cooked like frog legs. We shared the main courses; Duck and Monkfish. Both were great, but the duck was as good as either of us had ever had. Shared a the dankest chocolate/coffee cake in the business. Overall a great experience for our final dinner.
DRIVING:
Renting a car is a must in order to experience all that the island has to offer. We had a car as part of the hotel package so it was very convenient to drive to the market/town/beaches/dinner. Driving on St. Barths is everything you have read and more, yet you won't believe it until you see it for yourself. The roads are barely wide enough for two cars and in many cases, they definitely weren
Andrew and Lena's Trip Report 12/2 - 12/7
WOW!!! Even after months of reading all of the posts and descriptions of the island on this and other boards/websites, I was still completely amazed and put under a spell once I arrived. My fiance, Lena, and I were completely blown away by our first trip to St. Barth.
ACCOMODATIONS:
We were originally booked for 5 nights at the Sereno Beach Hotel on the West Indies package for a garden room ($1200). The package includes free continental breakfast each day, one free dinner at the hotel restaurant, and a rental car for the duration of our stay. To our delight, upon checking in to the hotel we were informed that we were being upgraded to a beachfront suite. Woo Hoo!!! Everything was perfect. The hotel was even nicer than I had expected and it (and the island) seemed empty due it being right before the beginning of the high season. The service at the hotel was excellent and everyone was extremely friendly. The beachfront room was huge and had everything we would ever need. It was truly a bargain at the price we were paying, but we still would have been happy in the garden room, which is definitely much smaller but still very clean and comfortable. A great hotel for someone looking for great bang for your buck, especially on their first visit to the island.
FOOD:
Living in NYC and being somewhat of a food snob, I thought that the food was excellent on St Barths. It was expensive, but not much more expensive than a nice dinner out in New York/LA/San Fran. I found that the main difference seemed to be that appetizers and desserts were priced $5 above what I was used to. I guess you save money with the tip being included and also can save money by getting a French wine. Here is a rundown of where and what we ate. Note that Lena and I usually split everything so that we can try as many things as possible on the menus.
The Hideaway (Lunch) - Hideaway Salad and Quatro Fromage Pizza...mmmmm. Friendly and fun atmosphere, good reasonably priced food. Andy is quite a nice guy and makes you feel right at home.
Le Piment (Lunch) - Panini Poulet with Curry and a salad. Service was good, but a bit unfriendly. Food was excellent though.
Le Select (Lunch) - Had the cheeseburger and fries and it was pretty solid. Liked the location and outdoor atmosphere.
Epicerie Italianne (Lunch) - Stopped in for a quick bite and had a Salami, provolone and tomato panini. A bit greasy, but very tasty.
West Indies Cafe (Dinner) - Had a free dinner here as part of the hotel package (Sereno's restaurant). May have been very expensive if we had to pay, but the food was great. Tuna Tartare, Salad with Lobster, Grilled Mahi Mahi, Swordfish Steak. Incredible dessert...creme brulee and a hot chocolate cake.
La Langouste (Dinner) - The grilled lobster is as good as advertised, if a bit pricey. A lot of meat and it is super sweet. Great dipping sauces too. Also had the Mahi Mahi and assorted ice creams for dessert. Thought the service was a bit on the unfriendly side.
Maya's (Dinner) - Excellent food and service was very attentive. Most expensive meal we had, but glad we went. Roquefort Salad, Crabcakes, Seared Wasabi Tuna, Grilled Creole Shrimp. The shrimp were huge and phenomenal!
La Gloriette (Dinner) - Casual place with extremely friendly service. Felix the cat spent a lot of time at the foot of my chair looking for a taste of my Poisson Cru (Mahi Mahi). The $32 price fixed meal was extremely reasonable. The main dish makes my mouth water just thinking about it...Shrimps, Scallops and Lobster sitting in a Lobster Bisque.
Wall House (Dinner) - Best meal we had. The food and service were top notch and reasonably priced for the quality of food you get. Lena started with a Leek Salad in Beet Coulis and I had the special of chicken cooked like frog legs. We shared the main courses; Duck and Monkfish. Both were great, but the duck was as good as either of us had ever had. Shared a the dankest chocolate/coffee cake in the business. Overall a great experience for our final dinner.
DRIVING:
Renting a car is a must in order to experience all that the island has to offer. We had a car as part of the hotel package so it was very convenient to drive to the market/town/beaches/dinner. Driving on St. Barths is everything you have read and more, yet you won't believe it until you see it for yourself. The roads are barely wide enough for two cars and in many cases, they definitely weren
