L’Esprit

[Cwater]

One of my favorite restos in St. Barth and in the world.

 

[GMP62]

Us too, Charlie.

 

[amyb]

Us too, Charlie.

Ditto

 

[Leon]

We were opening it with JC and Sonya and we are the fans forever.

 

[cec1]

We were opening it with JC and Sonya and we are the fans forever.

WOW . . . I would guess that being there at time of the opening — and still a patron! — puts you, Leon, in a very exclusive club! What year was that . . . and how has it changed?

I understand the pleasure in such memories, BTW . . . having been at Maya’s in its opening week & there on its closing night. A memorably great “run!” Thankfully, Jean Claude’s still going strong & committed to hangin’-in there for “the long run.”

 

[Leon]

WOW . . . I would guess that being there at time of the opening — and still a patron! — puts you, Leon, in a very exclusive club! What year was that . . . and how has it changed?

I understand the pleasure in such memories, BTW . . . having been at Maya’s in its opening week & there on its closing night. A memorably great “run!” Thankfully, Jean Claude’s still going strong & committed to hangin’-in there for “the long run.”

Jean Claude and Sonia have been building this legend since 2011. The first L'Esprit was opened by the folks who sold the place to Jean Claude (who was then the Senior Chef in the Eden Rock restaurant, not Sand Bar yet) after a few years running it. It was a nice restaurant under them, but very simple. It was the same year when Pascal opened PaCri on the road to Saline with his Italian wife. We visited them too. Then, in the game of musical chairs, the old L'Esprit crew took the PaCri spot and opened Meat and Potatoes (we miss it), and Jean Claude and Sonia took over L'Esprit and developed it through the years into the crown jewel of St Barth, which it is now. The change was mostly evolutionary, expanding the tables area, widening the roof, expanding the kitchen, adding the bar, building a nice bathroom, and changing the greenery accordingly. As we saw, it was not an easy path, but they did it while raising 2 great kids. Despite the challenges, the ambience, the hospitality, and the art of cooking only improved (if it was possible) through all the years we have been coming there. As an additional point, it was fun to meet Oliver (who owns the Pasha store in Gustavia) as a waiter there. And of course, I cannot miss mentioning Cristophe, who is a large and important part of what L'Esprit is. Attached here is one of the old pictures of L'Esprit (by SBH Properties)

 

[Leon]

WOW . . . I would guess that being there at time of the opening — and still a patron! — puts you, Leon, in a very exclusive club! What year was that . . . and how has it changed?

I understand the pleasure in such memories, BTW . . . having been at Maya’s in its opening week & there on its closing night. A memorably great “run!” Thankfully, Jean Claude’s still going strong & committed to hangin’-in there for “the long run.”

Speaking about Maya's, although we missed their opening in SBH ( but not the farewell night), we were at the opening of their short-lived Hamptons Maya's. It was a great experience, and we brought with us their SBH menu to show our loyalty. They were impressed.

 

[amyb]

Jean Claude and Sonia have been building this legend since 2011. The first L'Esprit was opened by the folks who sold the place to Jean Claude (who was then the Chef in the Eden Rock restaurant, not Sand Bar yet) after one year running it. It was a nice restaurant under them, but very simple. It was the same year when Pascal opened PaCri on the road to Saline with his Italian wife. We visited them too. Then, in the game of musical chairs, the old L'Esprit crew took the PaCri spot and opened Meat and Potatoes (we miss it), and Jean Claude and Sonia took over L'Esprit and developed it through the years into the crown jewel of St Barth, which it is now. The change was mostly evolutionary, expanding the table area, expanding the roof, expanding the kitchen, adding the bar, building a nice bathroom, and changing the greenery accordingly. As we saw, it was not an easy path, but they did it while raising 2 great kids. Despite the challenges, the ambience, the hospitality, and the art of cooking only improved (if it was possible) through all the years we have been coming there. As an additional point, it was fun to meet Oliver (who owns the Pasha store in Gustavia) as a waiter there. And of course, I cannot miss mentioning Cristophe, who is a large and important part of what L'Esprit is. Attached here is one of the old pictures of L'Esprit (by SBH Properties)


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Leon, All of the above. Love at first bite for me too. A special place for my birthday and our anniversary dinners. And we enjoyed those Sunday lunches there too.

L.Esprit has a big piece of my heart…thank you Jean-Claude and Sonya and Tof for all the times you lifted our spirits with your kindness and fine food.

 

[Leon]

Yeah, we miss their lunches, they had them daily in the beginning.

 

[Leon]

Just to add for the fun of it, this is what one well known dude wrote in 2016 about Jean Claude, L'Esprit and the rain:

. John King says
February 15, 2016 at 3:47 pm

And just like a rock star he is on “stage” behind the glass-enclosed kitchen. Always a stop for us and we are almost disappointed when it doesn’t rain — part of the charm is watching everyone run for cover from the open air sections.