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St Maarten/St Martin |
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Weather and Beach
report: Saturday was hot and hazy. Saba cannot be seen! Same
on Sunday, possibly warmer. Same on Monday with no breeze. The planes are
landing from the east and taking off to the west. Tuesday was cloudy and hazy
with a hint of a breeze. By Wednesday the breeze had turned around and was
picking up. The rollers were hitting the little cove from the SE and the little
cove was heeding to the NW. There was still plenty of sand and we had a great
time playing in the large, but not dangerous, surf. Still hazy and hot on
Thursday and Friday with swirling gusts. Saba seems to have sunk beneath the
sea. Same on Saturday: warm, hazy, not much breeze. Sunset is at 6:25 and the moon is in its first
quarter.
Dutch Carnival:
The carnival village opens on 14 April, the grand final parade
down Front Street in Philipsburg is on 30 April, and the final jumpup and
burning of King Momo is on 2 May this year. Here is the full
schedule. We will be having lunch and
watching the parade from the porch at L'Escargot. If you are on the
island and want to join, make your reservation early. The restaurant generally
is not full, but the front porch and street are quite crowded.
Fast-breaking news: Statia has
voted to remain in the Netherlands Antilles. Unfortunately, the other members,
in referenda starting in the previous millennium and continuing until the
present time, have voted to move out in various ways. Consequently, Statia will
become the only member of the Netherlands Antille. That's a joke, as we all know
that the final result will require several more referenda, but things
are going full Caribbean speed ahead and I fully believe that a final
resolution will be achieved in this millennium. Stay tuned.
Sapphire Beach Club: For those of you who wish to sell or
rent their week or unit, we have opened up the Sapphire Beach
Club website for that purpose. The first
ten weekly listings are free. After that, we will charge $25 per year and have
only received one request. So this offer is still out there.
Construction: You should visit
the construction site again if you are interested in
what is happening at Cupecoy. The largest undeveloped section of land that
stretches from the Caribbean to the lagoon now has a sign announcing the
development and an ad appeared in the Daily Herald. There are 44
lots, the largest near 3 acres, that will become villas and probably remove
access to the remaining beach in the little cove. In another late breaking
development, Mel, captain of the White Octopus, is currently docked
behind Hot
Tomatoes and has an excellent view of the
current filling of the lagoon to create the runway extension. He sent a letter
to the Daily Herald stating that the extension would go about halfway
across the lagoon and at that point, the roadway around the airport would head
into a tunnel to emerge at Port de Plaisance, reducing traffic problems in
Simpson Bay. The tunnel would be deep enough to allow passage of mega-yachts and
would be of modular construction. A spokesman for the government urged Mel to
contact Jeff Berger before his plans were finalized. That's a joke also,
but the Daily Herald will print most anything you send in, so join
the fun.
St Maarten Open:
SXM-Info is sponsoring a hole at
the Golf tournament that will be played on 30 April and 1 May. We have
donated $600 worth of website work that will be auctioned off. The proceeds will
go to charity. Last year the I Can
Foundation, the St. Maarten
Medical Center, the St. Maarten Welfare Foundation, and the
St. Maarten Golf Association Junior
Golf program were chosen to receive
funding.
Bikini Beach Tsunami
Relief: An Arts and Entertainment auction at Bikini Beach with a
free Rock & Roll concert featuring 5 great local bands raised $9000 on 13
March. On the website is a photo of Lisa with the check for "Feed the
Children". Her new charity is a Buddha sculpture by Greg Bowering
that, in true Orient Beach fashion, has no covering . Please help
"Gild the Buddha". Come by Bikini and pledge a square of real gold leaf for
$5 or take a piece of real Thai gold leaf home for a $10 pledge. All
pledges go to charity as well.
Le Perroquet: We bumped into
Thea from Le Perroquet last week. She has been trying to sell the building but
has finally decided to rent it out. She believes the deal will go through and a
restaurant more in line with present trends in Simpson Bay will open. That means
casual, lower-priced dining.
Hans
Meevis: We stopped into the new showroom and
studio of Hans Meevis in Simpson Bay. It had been shown in the construction
feature and now that they are open we
stopped in. The showroom features furniture and showcases made by Hans and, of
course, his jewelry is displayed on the tables and in the showcases. His studio
is directly behind the showroom and separated by a wrought iron gate. If you are
looking for custom made jewelry or repairs (or just a clean and polish) this is
a pretty handy place with parking at the eastern end of the runway.
Arts in the Park: On Sunday
there was an outdoor art show at Emilio Wilson park in St Peters. It's a pretty
little park that is badly in need of some rain, like most of the island after
this long spate of sunny weather. We saw some amber art from Plata del Sol, some
shell art from Edith, interesting photos and note cards from Captain Jack on
Changes in Latitudes, some interesting paintings by Freddie who signs them
Fin and has a gallery on Hope Hill next to Paradise View Restaurant, some
mini-gardens from Marci Cooke, some watercolors and
prints from Jill Alexander, some flavored
rums from Rhum
des Pirates, some Presidente from the Navy League, and
more. There are some photos as our current feature.
Speaking of Paradise View Restaurant: We stopped in
recently for a beer or two and a great view out over all of Orient and Galion
beaches. Look further and you see Green Cay, Pinel, Tintamare, and St Barts.
They are open for lunch and have a Creole buffet on Sunday.
Nannette
Bearden Fine Arts Gallery: After Nannette
Bearden's death, the gallery closed in Philipsburg and has now reopened in
Simpson Bay above Artsen Travel and Tours and Telem. Nannette founded the
gallery a year before Romare Bearden's death in 1985. Dourthe
Dow, Nannette's sister, keeps it open from noon until six, Tuesday through
Saturday.
Sunset Beach Bar: There have
been several complaints in the Daily Herald from locals about how
the new owners have changed things at SSBB. The complaints rail about prices
(even though locals get VIP discount cards - honest), too may TV screens - can't
see the planes as well, not allowing kids on the dance floor, etc. I did get an
email from Janis C telling me what a great newsletter this is (such a perceptive
reader). She said she was sitting at SSBB using their FREE wireless internet
access as she waited for her daughter and friends to take off. No
complaints from her.
Art at California
Restaurant: Zouzou says that for the month of April, and possibly
longer, she has a seashell art exhibition in the restaurant containing
mirrors, mobiles, jewelry boxes, seashell boards, cards, and more. There are a
couple examples on the boutique page of the California website.
Car rental: We just picked up a
new Getz from Brinks Car
Rental. This is the second time we have driven
this car as we rented one last year also. I've seen complaints about their
power, but this seems fine for the two of us. Four people and luggage would be a
problem.
Photo feature:
This week's photo feature is in a secret location not posted here. Subscribe to the newsletter to get the location.
It contains some Cupecoy
beach sunsets. There's some Marigot shots showing the wall at the cemetery
and the prices at the gas station at the entrance to Concordia. The
government on the Dutch side announced that gasoline prices would be rising on
their side. Currently they are about $3.00 per gallon compared to about $3.50 on
the French side.
CONTEST
Several businesses in Simpson
Bay are sponsoring the contest that runs
from 27 March to 24 April 2005, offering prizes worth
about $100 each. Just click their name to go to their website,
find the contest code(s) and the link to our new signup form,
fill it out, click send, and you are entered. Put all the contest codes for the
contests you want to enter on ONE entry. Do not send multiple
entries.
Obviously everybody that is getting
this email is already signed up for the newsletter, but you are
not automatically signed up for the contest. You really do have
to go to their website and click the email link to show you visited their site.
Just tell me you are already on our mailing list, and I'll leave you signed up
for the newsletter and just add your name to the contest list.
We have so many prizes that we will be doubling and tripling up for several
contests and producing feature photo spreads in conjunction with the contests.
Here is the list of future contests and feature photo spreads:
Simpson
Bay Feature - 27 March to 24 April
2005:
Horny Toad
Guesthouse - seven low season days for the
price of five
Hideaway Restaurant - $75 off a dinner
for two
Unity
Cars - $100 off a one week car
rental
Tri
Sport - Kayak Snorkel Tour for two
Charter Boat Feature - 25 April to 5 June
2005:
Celine Pub
Crawl - two tickets on the Lagoon Pub
Crawl
Sealine
Charters - $100 off a half day or full day
charter
Escapade Restaurant - $100 gift certificate for two
GCBC Snorkel Trips - A guided snorkeling trip for two around Creole Rock and an afternoon on our lounge chairs on Petite Plage
GCL Car Rental - $100 off a one week car rental
L'Esplanade Hotel - $100 gift certificate toward a week's stay
AIA Massage - Two massages for the price of one
Cupecoy Feature - 18 July to
24 August 2005:
Cupecoy
Villas - stay seven nights, pay for
five, only $1750 for a two bedroom, three bath villa on the
beach
Villas
in Paradise - $100 gift certificate to
Temptation for
two
Cliffhanger Beach Bar - $40 gift
certificate for two
Marigot Feature - 25 August to
30 September 2005: Orient Beach Feature - 1 October to 15 November 2005:
L'Esperance
Car Rental - $100 off a one week car
rental
La
Vie en Rose - $100 gift certificate for
two
Thai Garden - $100 gift certificate
for two
Chez Pat - $100 toward a day on
Galion Beach
Kakao Beach
Bar - $100 toward a day on Orient
Beach
Sol e Luna
Apartments - $100 off on a one week
stay
Nono Car
Rental - $50 off on a one week rental
Philipsburg Feature - 16
November to 15 December:
Vacation
Suites - a free low season
week!
Lucky/Hibiscus Cars -
$100 off a one week car rental
Antoine
Restaurant - $100 off a meal for
two
DK
Gems - $100 gift certificate
Karen and Pascal's
Restaurants - 16 December 2005 to 6 January
2006
Auberge
Gourmande - $100 off a meal for
two
Montmartre
Restaurant - $100 off a meal for
two
Sunset
Café - $100 off a meal for two
GROCERIES
We picked up some beef
tenderloins at the Food
Express at Maho. The price was 80 Nafl per kilo.
Divide by 4 to get $/lb, so they weren't cheap, but they were pretty good. They
also had green beans, not haricots verts, but still good at a fraction of the
price. It was a Sunday and we had wasted too much time in the early
afternoon so the normal (ie, unattached markets) were closed. Markets attached
to hotels and gas stations can remain open. We put some blue cheese on the
tenderloins (specifically Forme d'Ambert from the Auvergne region by way
of US
Import/Export, see the Cheese Primer by Steven Jenkins), something that
Mario at Mario's Bistro does with his
wonderful tuna on gnocchi. We had no doubt it would work on beef, also. Martha
slipped a bit of garlic into the mashed potatoes and I popped a cork on a bottle
of Pommard. US
Import/Export also had some of the wildly flavorful Fleur de Sel from
the salt ponds of the Camargue in the south of France. Our batch was hand
harvested by Luc Verhes. It all seems very much over the top, but the taste is
amazing.
RESTAURANTS
On 9 April the euro
was at 1.293 and today it is at 1.285. French side restaurants with many costs in dollars and many American
(or Canadian) clients have been offering more favorable exchange rates. Some
restaurants offer a 1 to 1 exchange. We got that at Escapade, Bikini Beach,
Restaurant du Soleil,
California,
Auberge Gourmande,
and La Marine. La France in the
Marigot marina, Rainbow Cafe, Balaou, Santal, Sebastiano, and Marlin's Cafe were
offering the same. were offering the same. Note
that some only offer this rate for cash. We will let you know about other places
as we find them. As always, know what the euro is worth, what the restaurateur
is offering for an exchange, and what the costs are on the menu. Finally, you
are here to have fun and fine food, not to do complex financial calculations, so
don't worry about it too much.
Dining: On Monday night we visited Amaury and
Thibault at Bistrot Cariabes for good food and
great service. The great service was even easier as the island is about as slow
as the breeze that left the lagoon looking like a mirror. The nights do cool off
and our table by the door and lobster tank was quite pleasant even though
it was well removed from the A/C. We perpetually order the smoked salmon (about
the best on the island) and that leads to a bottle of the white Rully and that
leads to more fish for the main courses. This is not a bad thing as we really
like the French sea bass and the fisherman's stew among other dishes.
However, on this evening the snails and mushrooms in a garlicky cream sauce were
available as an ap. The veal stock reduction has enough pepper or the garlic has
enough punch (or both) to add just a hint of heat to the finish of this tasty,
multi-textured dish (10 euros). We added Drouhin's 2001 Chorey Les Beaune (red)
and had a great combination. With a bottle of red wine firmly planted on the
table, we proceeded to the roasted duck breast with veg, in a sweet and sour
honey sauce (19 euros) and a veal scaloppini layered with veg and mozzarella (20
euros). In both cases the veg included skinned and pulped tomatoes,
leaving nothing but an interesting texture and great taste. The duck breast
must have come from a giant prehistoric duck as it filled half the plate. The
other veg was the crisp tips of some asparagus and the stalks of same, skinned
and diced - lots of tasty texture to add to the flavorful sauce. Obviously, the
tomato, veal, and mozzarella was a good start and when the chef added some
eggplant, this dish became another multi-layered taste treat. So now you know
that there is more on the menu than smoked salmon and fish, moreover, it's
pretty good! We finished with coffee and armagnac. The bill came to about 110
euros and, having lowered their prices, they used a realistic (though good)
exchange rate of 1.25 to get to about $135. They both are getting a bit tired
after a season of seven day work weeks. Amaury, however, looked
surprisingly good considering that he is the father of a six-day old baby
girl! Mother and daughter are doing fine.
On Tuesday night we had more
good food and great service, this time at Montmartre
Restaurant at Atlantis Casino. It was a
slow night. I guess everyone on the island, which isn't too many people for this
week, was at Harmony Nights in Grand Case. We may have been a bit early also, as
the restaurant did reach about half capacity as we were finishing. We started
with our water and Olivier appeared at the table with the usual bottle of 97
Champ Pimont Beaune. I said that I hadn't looked at the wine list in months. He
wisely set the bottle on the table. This Premier Cru costs $45 (and it is
dollars here on the Dutch side). The next step up in Burgundy is almost twice as
much money and doesn't have as much bottle age. That Volnay may be better than
my Beaune, but my pocketbook does have some limits. Olivier appeared shortly
thereafter with a knowing smile and expertly opened the bottle. It was great.
The bread basket contains the usual baguette slices, but also a wonderful whole
grain breads loaded with flavor and texture. Stop the presses: Martha ordered an
ap! The new waiter, Eric, who has replaced Arsene (who is at the
Boathouse), said something in French about a crab and shrimp appetizer. She
was thinking a small bit of crab and a few shrimp and neither of us listened
enough to realize that it was a plateau de fruits de mer, like those that we get
at Saint Severin. This, at least, was a mini-version
of that, but there was a whole crab, six shrimp, and a dozen bulots. We asked Karen, the manager and
part-owner with husband Pascal, whether this was a winkle or a whelk. She
replied that she didn't know as she didn't eat either! A pity, as they were
quite tasty with the very garlicky home-made mayonnaise or even the less
garlicky version with more parsley. I ordered the tuna and scallop tartare
on what seemed to be a round of the whole grain bread. If the three
textures of the scallop, tuna, and bread weren't enough, a dollop of wakame
seaweed was provided to give a satisfying pop in the mouth. I had ordered my
favorite Capon leg stuffed with foie gras and mushrooms and Martha experimented
with the Duck Supreme which has duck breast and nems featuring shredded
duck. (Nem is the Vietnamese version of spring rolls or egg rolls). They serve a
similar ap at Sunset Café, Karen and Pascal's
restaurant at Grand Case
Beach Club. The crispy outer wrapper encloses
shredded and tasty duck mixed with crunchy veg. Both dinners were great,
enhanced by a variety of veg, including roasted garlic. We were forced to retire
from the fray and move on to coffee and Armagnac (They have a Laubade 92). There
was enough wonderful food left to provide a great lunch the next day.
Very good food, excellent service from friendly and knowledgeable people, a
large wine list, and an improved view as the plantings around the outdoor dining
terrace have grown up a bit over the high season.
We had a bit of business in
Simpson Bay on Thursday night and as usual we couldn't get there. Between the
bridge openings at 4:30 and 5:30 and the obligatory broken-down truck on Cay
Hill, traffic was backed up to the airport. We turned around, apologized via
cell phone, and took respite at Bamboo
Bernies. We also took a couple mudslides and
Heinekens to some lovely cushioned chairs and enjoyed the sunset. As we had
arrived between 5:30 and 6:00, the drinks were 50 cents each. A bit earlier,
they would have been FREE - honest. A bit later they escalate to $1 and at 7:00
they reach $2. (It's just mudslides, margaritas, and beers that follow this
pricing.) This truck required a tow truck, which given the backed up traffic,
required an hour or so to get there and traffic began to clear after
sunset.
Thai Savanh has opened at Atlantis Casino and serves Thai food (duh!) and sushi. Deepti and Jeff at DK Gems had recommended this place. Jeff speaks Thai and insisted that we convince the chef that we want the real Thai cuisine, which, having worked in Thailand, I remember as being quite spicy hot. We did our best. There are several tables out on the terrace between Thai Savanh and Dino's two restaurants, Temptation and Dare to be Rare (opening in May?), and a few more inside plus a sushi bar. It's not posh but the prices are quite good, aps $6-10 and most main courses $12-15. We had a shrimp pad Thai (shrimp and noodle dish), a beef with basil, and chicken with cashews. They were all $12 and with a quartet of Kronenbourgs the bill came to a mere $52. That is a pretty inexpensive dinner and the bowl of Thai chilies that the chef provided could turn a campfire into a five-alarmer. Thai Garden in Sandy Ground is certainly more posh, possibly more flavorful, and a bit more expensive, especially given the euro's current strength. We've never been to Mai on the back side of Marigot or Phuket (it's new this year in a frequently changing restaurant location) in the Marigot Marina. There will be a new one in Orient over the summer. Stay tuned, we have been offered the website.
For lunch on Friday we headed
out to Orient and ended up at Kakao
Beach. Of all the big places
at the northern end of the beach, this one seems to have the most "tables" out
in the sand. Tables is in quotes because they are frequently boats
outfitted as dining pavilions complete with roofs to keep you dry and even
drop down plastic windows if it really starts howling. We knew we were going out
to dinner so we tried to eat light: a salade Nicoise and a pizza with a bottle
of Guigal's Cote du Rhone. Even that was too much as the salad contains tuna,
haricots verts, marinated anchovies, frisee, endive, a hard-boiled egg, potato
slices, and tomatoes, filling a large plate and Martha. I had their thin
crust pizza that I like as well as any on the island with the exception of
Hot
Tomatoes wood-fired version. These restaurants
at the northern end of the beach (They have a separate website and call
themselves the Five Stars of Orient) have full service kitchens,
turning out serious food. Yes, you can get a hamburger (and possibly pay too
much) but the last time I was here I had a half duck with girolles, potatoes, a
bit of veg, and a lovely sauce. The restaurants also have boutiques,
massages, bars, bands, and watersports. The grill shacks at the southern end of
the beach turn out good grilled food (hamburgers should be bought here) but
up northern end you can wine and dine. Take your pick, we do
both!
Our dinner was at Antoine
Restaurant on Front Street in Philipsburg.
The new bypass makes it possible to get from the top of
Cay Hill to Front Street easily and quickly. Antoine's valet then takes care of
all your parking problems. We were sitting at our table a mere twenty minutes
after leaving Sapphire. This included a bit of time for getting around the
obligatory broken-down truck on Cay Hill. This one was at the bottom of the hill
where the road is three lanes wide, so traffic wasn't totally stopped.
Nonetheless, it was nice to be sitting in a beautiful and peaceful dining
room looking out over the palms that Jean-Pierre had planted on the beach to the
wide sweep of Great Bay. There were specials of snails Chablissiene
($12.75) and lamb chops ($27.50), among others, and JP said the tuna was
quite good ($18.50). That took care of dinner and we ordered the 1997 Volnay
Taillepieds from Bouchard ($66). That's a bit pricy, but think of the money we
saved on the tuna! I was a little worried that the delicate Chablis used in the
snail dish would be overwhelmed by the Volnay. It turns out that the snails,
mushrooms, and veal stock had already done this and a very tasty dish with
a dark brown sauce arrived shortly and held its own against my Burgundy. The
tuna was everything that JP had promised with an olive oil, lemon, and chive
sauce. The lamb chops were very flavorful with a nice crisp crust. Both dishes
had a nice cauliflower puree with some chunky bits for texture, some sculpted
zucchini slices, and a bit more. It was a slow night by the time we were
drinking our coffee and some major gossip ensued. On the way out the door, JP
invited us for more gossip and Delamain cognac at the bar. When we finally
turned to leave our car was waiting at the front door. I can't promise as
much gossip if you go, but I can tell you that there are no finer hosts on
this island than JP. He, and chef Pierre-Louis, have been on the
island for over 20 years, much of it right here on Front
Street.