Just got back. Spent 4 nights at Club O. This was my first single trip to Club O. Had a great time and will return as a single again. Wondered if I would.

Enough said. Now onto the restaurant report...

Rare (Atlantis Casino) : Fantastic! I couldn't imagine a finer restaurant for the perfect steak. They even have Morton's beat. I arrived at 7 pm on a Thursday evening. Was given a primo table even though I was by myself. Started with a glass of chardonnay and the caesar salad. The stemware at the restaurant is beautiful. The caesar salad was remarkable. What looked like croutons surrounded the plate, were actually tiny squares of baked/fried polenta. The salad and its dressing was perfect, as was the bread. The entree that followed is causing me to book my next trip immediately... 5 ounce filet prepared medium rare to perfection. The potato gratin side dish was one of the finest I've had outside of St. Tropez. Nice bernaise sauce and asparagus as well. A glass of cabernet with the entree complemented it well. Finished the evening with an expresso.... 5 star dining. $67 plus tip of $20. The restaurant was busy. A reservation is recommended. For those that remember Marc, the bartender/waiter from Club O... He is now at Rare. It was so nice to see him. He is very happy with his new job at Rare. Dino the owner/chef came to chat as well. Gave away many of his secrets!

Kakao on Orient Beach: This is our favourite lunch spot. My survey of locals still calls this the best restaurant on the beach. (Note - Baywatch is good as well, but closed for the season). Went for lunch and have to whole-heartedly agree. Had the entree of shrimp, scallops and salmon. Wow. The seafood was plump and delicious. I especially enjoy the different small vegetable presentations. With 2 glasses of wine lunch came to $27. Olivier is a great. One of the owners were there as well. Can't seem to remember his name. Regardless, I was charged at par to the Euro. Tipped Olivier generously.

Papagayo - Same menu. Same presentation for the most part. Had 2 lunches and 3 dinners here. Lunch was cheeseburg and fries. That included the sex show at the bar, which is another story. Guess it has something to do with the fact that only 5 people eat lunch and or dinner per day. Had the Snapper for dinner the first night. It was fantastic. 19 euros. Had french onion soup and goat cheese salad the second night. The goat cheese salad was excellent. French onion soup is onions without beef broth. Not sure what's up with that. Last french onion soup. The following evening I had the snapper once again. It was fishy and pretty bad. Go figure. That night only 3 people dined at Papagayo. The other couple did enjoy their fish soup and NY strip. Not sure what they can do to fix this restaurant, but I would start with some ceiling fans. It's too hot. The renovations seem to have closed the dining area in. Another suggestion would be to vary the menu! After 8 years (or more) of the same menu... please change it...

That's it for now... have to plan my next trip back!!

Loretta