Smoking and an informal SBH/AXA comparison

" the fact is, we enjoyed our dining experiences much more in Anguilla [than in Saint-Barth]. We were really surprised to find the meals to be of a higher calibre, the food seemed fresher and the presentations more appealing than in SBH. Anguilla was about the same price, maybe even a little more expensive than SBH, but we found every meal to be worth the cost (unlike several of our meals in SBH)."

I'm not particularly concerned about the smoking in restaurants (we too have been going to one French place or another for a long time - 26 years - and don't really seek out the same sanitized, American experience we find at home, and, though not generally smokers, the smoke doesn't bother us) but I'm intrigued with your review of Anguilla. We're not overly impressed with Saint-Barth restaurants, though there are a few we adore, but I'd love to know more about your Anguilla experience (other than the non-smoking bit). Merci par avance, Lynn.
 
I just returned and from my unscientific appraisal, the restaurants were half empty, the villa companies are flooding my emailbox begging for my business ... in FEBRUARY, their biggest month ... there were only a couple of big yachts in port, and shopkeepers were complaining about a serious decline in sales. (I just checked and there are over 50 WIMCO villas available for the 3rd week in February alone; I picked that week at random because Presidents Day/Week is usually so busy.) Anguilla was booming at the very same time, restaurants were full, resorts were at around 85% occupancy, and there were dozens of private jets sitting on the tarmac and yachts parked offshore, and I was told that there were so many that several had to park in St. Maarten. SBH is lucky because it has a cadre of loyal visitors including those on this forum, but if those loyal visitors such as ourselves start choosing to go elsewhere due to the hassle factor, smoking, or whatever reason, business will suffer even more. I'm just alerting the restaurant owners and government officials who choose to listen that the majority of their potential customers are unhappy with the status quo, it's decades behind the times and it's in their best interest to listen to those who bring money onto the island. Successful companies listen to their customers... unsuccessful companies say "this is who we are, take it or leave it". Those are the ones that go under when times get tough. I have too many friends who live on the island full-time (most of whom make their living from tourism) to want to see St. Barth get bypassed for more customer-centric resorts. And by the way, Lloyd and Pat, Amy & Phil, and many other regular visitors spend way more than a week or two on the island. We would too if the smoking issue were eliminated. We had always assumed that when my husband retires in a couple of years that we would spend our winters there; now we are actively looking elsewhere. Our health is our #1 priority because let's face it, without that you really don't have anything.
 
Hi Cass, sure, I'll be happy to speak to the restaurant quality in Anguilla vs. St. Barth. We too have never been as impressed with the majority of SBH restaurants. Like you we always had our favorites but lately nothing really stands out for us. I cook better than most of the chefs on the island and the food in the individually-owned, non-chain restaurants in our area (the only ones we frequent) is consistently better than we get on St. Barth (and a for the most part little less expensive, although not always). I'm not sure how to put this but the chefs in Anguilla, even in the small locally-owned spots like Madeariman, Ocean Echo, Trattoria Tramonto, showed more skill in both preparation and presentation. We are partners in a restaurant in Columbia and, like many forum members, very particular about our food and very focused on quality. We did not have a single "average" or even "pretty good" meal in Anguilla. Every meal was bright, fresh, well-prepared and artfully presented. And plentiful... no tiny precious portions. Lunch and dinners (and the few breakfasts we ate at Straw Hat) were consistently delicious. That was not the case in St. Barth this trip, nor in the past few years. I've noticed a decline in quality and appeal of the food that is totally unrelated to the smoking issue, while prices continue to soar. Living in the DC area we are accustomed to paying $125-$200 for dinner which is what we averaged on both islands, so price is not the biggest issue. But the price-to-quality ratio seemed more in line in Anguilla than SBH.

Our favorite restaurants in St. Barth were Tamarin (we always loved that place and we're glad it's back, beautiful setting, lovely service and very good food) and our lunches at the Guanahani (same reasons actually). We had several very mediocre meals which I will not mention, not wanting to cause a riot here or cast aspersions on a good restaurant that had a bad night. Our favorite restaurants in Anguilla were Jacala, Trattoria Tramonto, Straw Hat, Blanchard's, Blanchard's Beach Shack, Sand Bar, Madeariman, and breakfast at Cap Juluca (we didn't have dinner there but will definitely dine there and at Cuisinart next trip). We prefer small beachfront restaurants, which all of these are, and all served really delicious food. We will go back to Anguilla for sure. And we'll go back to St. Barth to see our friends, which is the main draw for us.
 
I would have to disagree with your assessment that the majority of the potential customers for st. barths are unhappy with the status quo.

and if the island is decades behind the times as you say, I would call that the allure of the island.

If this island ever catches up with the times, you will see a lot of people leaving for other places, that is why st. barths is so unique and special. That is why people keep coming back, a lady that I met the other day while I was walking in grand fond said that she felt that coming here was like revisiting the past. we all had better hope that it stays the way it is.

I think you may be looking for a utopia that does not exist, but keep looking, perhaps its out there somewhere.
 
Lynn,
appreciate your well written concerns along with the rant.

We're lifelong non-smokers and hate being in the company of them.
She and or I do 4/5 trips a year and visit the same restaurants, perhaps we go at different times (we dine early) but for us, I can recall but a VERY few instances over the past 15 years it's ever been an issue---and I certainly would not view the situation as getting worse...whatsoever.

One of the attractions of St Barth for my wife and I has always been that's it's NOT the Caribbean in the sense of other islands like Anguilla where an underclass waits on Guests of another, which is certainly not the case here.

I terms of jurisdiction I'm told enforcement used to be via Gendarmes then transferred to the local or Territorial Police.

Fact: individuals and groups who have direct influence in St Barth monitor concerns expressed on this board.
 
well Diana if you're correct then I'm wondering why business is so slow, why there was such a marked difference between the two islands? My point about the status quo did not refer to the island itself, just to the smoking issue. But if the quality of food is declining, as it appears to be (and several of our friends agreed with this assessment, they are too afraid to post those comments on the forum but the feeling exists with many of us that the restaurants are overrated) and the smoking issue is a deterrent to going to certain restaurants, and if those restaurants are not listening to their customers, then business will decline. It's just market forces at work. Money flows to quality. And you may not be affected or aware of those forces because you don't work for a living, but Didier may not have as many villas to build and Jeff may not have as many clients for his villas. So it's in the best interest of those who live and work on the island to be sensitive to what customers want, and between 75-85% of customers do not want to inhale smoke with their meals. I have come to St. Barth every year for 14 years and still consider myself a novice compared to many long-time visitors. But because of my ties to my friends on the island who asked me "why are you going to Anguilla", I thought it was worth my time to respond. If I didn't care I'd just toss out a flippant and dismissive response like "well, there will be more parking in town LOL". By the way, I've been in SBH during high and ultra-high season (Bucket Week) for the past 14 years and I have had zero problem parking over the last 4 years, as compared to previous years. Something is going on and if you want to bury your head in the sand and deny it, be my guest. Good luck with the Russians by the way, their economy is plummeting.
 
Many resorts use the Disney model to deal with written Complaints .....when the season is over they tally up complaints on an issue and then times it by 6 because marketing gurus tell us that for every written complaint there are 6 people who agree but won't complain.....so after they get a total number they put that number against the total number of visitors and if the percentage is significant they deal with it and if it's not they don't........

I have been saying for years the food is overrated on st Bart's .....certainly good but not over the top by any stretch
 

In 2006, before our first trip to SBH, I was telling someone I knew at the time (extremely pretentious person, whom I am no longer in touch with), that we were headed to SBH for our honeymoon and how excited I was. She looked waaaay down her nose at me and said "well, you should know that NO ONE goes to St. Barts anymore. They ALL go to Anguilla (pronounced an-gweeeeeeee-la). Right then I was overjoyed that we were headed to laid back little SBH :cool:
 
We have been going to ️St Barths for 14 years , usually twice a year, and have been going to Anguilla for 17years, usually every 2-3 years. To Lynn's point, I have to say that over the years I have noticed a great improvement in the restaurants/ food in Anguilla. Sure, they have the food trucks( which have the best BBQ ever) , but with Cusinart having a hydroponic farm, it seemed that started a vegetable wake up . Sometimes on ️St Barths I look at the produce in the markets, and am dissapointed.
Anyway, off track.....on the smoking issue, I do agree I saw less in Anguilla, but I don't think that the native Anguillans were ever that big into smoking ( cigarettes anyway:) ,last year when we were there, I actually saw a bartender from ️St Barths there at one of the beach restos, he said he was on vacation for a couple days....hmmmmm.....well, saw him smoking , but outside the bar area.
But I also agree with you guys on the cigar smoke, that's worse to me , and I have an occasional cigar sometimes.....but never near an eating establishment.

I couldn't get that article Cass.....but that was one of the restos I told Lynn to try....loved it last February, and the owner came over to talk, a very nice guy. Delicious meal.
 
Pretentious and clueless Kat...Anguilla is pronounced like vanilla not gweeeeela





In 2006, before our first trip to SBH, I was telling someone I knew at the time (extremely pretentious person, whom I am no longer in touch with), that we were headed to SBH for our honeymoon and how excited I was. She looked waaaay down her nose at me and said "well, you should know that NO ONE goes to St. Barts anymore. They ALL go to Anguilla (pronounced an-gweeeeeeee-la). Right then I was overjoyed that we were headed to laid back little SBH :cool:
 
I agree, Linda, the owner of Jacala was very charming and friendly, spoke to us for about 15-20 minutes after lunch (over lemon rum, yum). He and the chef are partners, they used to run the restaurant at the Malliouhana and now have the hottest resto on the island. Loved it!

And to those of you who thought I was implying that Americans aren't the ones smoking, I never said that. What I said was that it's up to the restaurant owner to curb any smokers, whether they are French, Russian, American or Martian. That's how they handle it in here and in Canada, mainland France, Italy, Spain and every Caribbean island we've visited in the last few years (Aruba, Grand Cayman, Hope Town in the Abacos, Puerto Rico, St. John, St. Thomas, Virgin Gorda, Tortola, etc.). (And when we visit, we are not on a cruise ship, we're spending a week or 2 on an island so we get a good idea of the place.) We have never had a problem with smoking in any of those places since the laws started changing. It is up to the business owners (and if they don't comply, then I guess to the police) to uphold the law, whether it's a local customer or a tourist who is breaking it. Providing ash trays on every table is not my idea of compliance.

And Jeff, many of us on the forum agree that the situation has declined over the last few years, maybe the restaurants you frequent have better compliance. I know Andy's, Santa Fe, Case de l'Isle at IDF and L'Isola are typically non-smoking. Although the beach restaurant at the Guanahani is not under roof, they were very considerate in seating us on the perimeter and separating us from smokers, so we never had an issue. I'd love to hear of other restaurants that maintain a non-smoking environment... I can certainly provide a long list of those that don't.
 
We have been going to St. Bart's religiously for the past 30 years. We still get that same feeling of peace and contentment as we did the first time we were there. Yes the restaurants have changed, yes the island has progressed, but we don't consider it a decline...it is a French island and we respect their ways and mannerisms and are most happy to enjoy their island....
for those who don't there are other islands out there to explore...
 
Our favorite restaurants in St. Barth were Tamarin (we always loved that place and we're glad it's back, beautiful setting, lovely service and very good food) and our lunches at the Guanahani (same reasons actually). We had several very mediocre meals which I will not mention, not wanting to cause a riot here or cast aspersions on a good restaurant that had a bad night. .

I'm surprised you put Guanahani at the top of your list. My wife and I had lunch for the first time in December and it was probably our most unremarkable meal of the trip. The setting and staff were wonderful, but the food seemed very basic and very overpriced. And definitely a meal that we could make at home.

You should name the mediocre meal too! What good is having a restaurant forum if we're too scared to post a bad review?!?
 
On the serious side, I don't smoke and never have smoked. However, its a french island folks, how much clout do you think an american organization like the home owners association has here?
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Exactly! You're in France and there are a lot of smokers in France/Europe.

Would you make these demands at a café in Paris? Or would you prefer that some French visitors in the US start petitioning to allow smoking in restaurants, or make beret wearing mandatory, or replace the American flag with the French one?!?!


I feel your pain (lmj) and I hate smelling smoke anywhere, but I hate the idea of a bunch of foreign visitors dictating the laws much worse.
 
to quote a great president (Kennedy)

Ask not what your island can do for you, ask what you can do for your island.
 
Our last trip we had a group of friends over for dinner and lots of laughs----one of those laid-back 4-5 hour dinner parties where everyone had fun, the conversation flowed, and the food was great. It was a really good mix of people. A few locals (meaning born on the island), a few French who had lived on the island for 20+ years, a few others who spent the winters there, and a few tourists like us, who were there for just a few weeks. We had a really interesting conversation about the culture of the island, and how different the various groups can be---from the "locals" to the seasonal workers, to the visitors, both long and short term. The people we know who live there full time are very sensitive about visitors and tourists demanding changes to their ways of life. About half the guests smoked, which was totally fine by us. I hate the smell of smoke when eating, but am otherwise completely fine with it if it's outside..... I don't judge-----who am I to judge?
 
The people we know who live there full time are very sensitive about visitors and tourists demanding changes to their ways of life.
I 've spent so much time in fishermens bars ( where you need a radar to find the bathrooms through the smoke ) that it doesn't bother me in a social setting ......but not around food please.....

we now have our resort and town public hearing meetings at the most inconvenient times and days, so those who don't live here have a difficult time attending .....to minimize the drama ........it was getting ridiculous ......

we don't go to their home towns and try and run their neighborhoods ......so please don't do it to us.....
 
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