La Cabane (Cheval Blanc) review of our lunch today

I was not sure where to have lunch today but at the vista point of Colombier, the beach of Flamands looked beautiful, so I made a lunch reservation.

It’s funny that things always turn out differently from what you expect. I know the Cheval Blanc group from Courchevel and that is one of the most pretentious hotels I’ve seen, catering foremost to Russians and charging up to $1000 for a tasting menu. So I was expecting more of this here in St Barths. How wrong could I be! The staff where incredibly kind and warm and with so much enthousiasm that we felt immediately at ease. The whole afternoon was incredibly relaxed and hard to beat with the views over Flamands.

The food was delicate and precisely balanced between casual food and fine dining. The attention to detail was great and we had beautiful dishes. I would rate this 16/20

The only dissapointment was that at 15.30 we wanted to use some sunloungers but for the remaining two hours we had to pay €50 per person. After spending a lot of money on the lunch (with some good bottles of wine) this felt a bit greedy to us.

Thank you Miani for the excellent report. So this is the highest rated dining you have had thus far, sounds wonderful. Please keep the reports coming. Nice that you included a picture. Wishing you a wonderful time the balance of your vacation. Sorry to hear of the lounge price disappointment.

Miani said:

The only dissapointment was that at 15.30 we wanted to use some sunloungers but for the remaining two hours we had to pay €50 per person. After spending a lot of money on the lunch (with some good bottles of wine) this felt a bit greedy to us.

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I have mixed emotions about this.
It does seem ungracious, from one point of view.
From another, I understand it helps maintain the exclusivity essential to an establishment of its standing . . . holder of the only "Palace" designation in the entire Caribbean.
Plus, given le Shérif's new constrictions on private beach area, there are only so many transats to go around for hotel guests . . . who can also show up at 15h30 desiring a transat.

We had a similar experience at Pearl Beach regarding loungers. Spent a small fortune on wine, cigars, clothing from their shop and lunch; and were still charged for chairs. I’d rather get gouged at Nikki where the food is better, in my opinion.

cassidain said:

Plus, given le Shérif's new constrictions on private beach area, there are only so many transats to go around for hotel guests . . . who can also show up at 15h30 desiring a transat.

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Exactly. The topic of beach tables and chaises came up in conversation with a senior person at one of the beachfront hotels last November. It can be difficult to keep everybody happy given the reduced beach area available to them, and the big revenue comes from the rooms.

Tiffany said:

We had a similar experience at Pearl Beach regarding loungers. Spent a small fortune on wine, cigars, clothing from their shop and lunch; and were still charged for chairs. I’d rather get gouged at Nikki where the food is better, in my opinion.

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LOL!

Miani-
Given your travels globally, we wonder about those restaurants that have received the highest ratings from you? Which ones, where are they and what did they do to receive those special ratings?

stbartshopper said:

Miani-
Given your travels globally, we wonder about those restaurants that have received the highest ratings from you? Which ones, where are they and what did they do to receive those special ratings?

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Some 20/20 restaurants:
USA: Alinea (Chicago), French Laundry (Yountville) Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare (NY)
Europe: Epicure (Paris), L’Ambroisie (Paris), Hof van Cleve (Belgium), Christian Bau (Germany), Martin Berasategui (Basque Country), El Cellar de Can Roca (Spain), Le Calandre (Italy), DiverXO (Spain) Restaurant Hotel de Ville (Switzerland)
Asia: Matsukawa (Tokyo), Sushi Saito (Tokyo), Robuchon au Dome (Macau), Odette (Singapore), Ultraviolet (Shanghai)

These are just a few 20/20 restaurants, there are more but now you have an idea. They are all at the top of their game, inspire many chefs around the world and push the culinary world forward.

cassidain said:

I have mixed emotions about this.
It does seem ungracious, from one point of view.
From another, I understand it helps maintain the exclusivity essential to an establishment of its standing . . . holder of the only "Palace" designation in the entire Caribbean.
Plus, given le Shérif's new constrictions on private beach area, there are only so many transats to go around for hotel guests . . . who can also show up at 15h30 desiring a transat.

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You’re right. I didn’t realize that the sunlounger issue was such a complex matter with the local gouvernement. Thanks for your insight.

It is a tricky decision for hotels with such limited beach space. Is the priority a guest staying at the hotel or a top paying restaurant client. Our thought is the hotel guest trumps!

Just my two cents here, but if the real reason for charging 50 euros for the lounge chairs might be because they had hotel guests who may want to use them does not make a lot of sense to me. Then would they not just say they are reserved for hotel guests only? If they charge someone 50 euros, the guests would not have access to the chairs anyway, as they would already be occupied.

stbartshopper said:

It is a tricky decision for hotels with such limited beach space. Is the priority a guest staying at the hotel or a top paying restaurant client. Our thought is the hotel guest trumps!

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as Kevin said, the big money comes from the rooms. the cheap rooms shown available this season of the year are approaching $2,000 a night. they go way up from there . . .