Trip Report 10/25/21-11/8/21 - Food

Routine Meals

Not having had a proper meal for over 24 hours, I headed to The Palms the first night and ordered the drunken ribs. They hit the spot as usual and also provided plentiful leftovers. For the first time, I had the carrot cake as Greg hadn’t yet made any cheesecake; it does live up to its reputation.

The second night, I met up with two local friends at Balls and Wine and ordered the Churrasco Tataki, which was accompanied by roasted avocado and roasted asparagus. It was the best beef I’ve ever had! Apparently I neglected to take a picture, but there’s a great photo on their home page (after clicking the third “load more”). I returned again a few days later by myself without calling for a reservation; big mistake, as all the tables were reserved. While waiting for take-out, a reservation cancelled so I was able to stay and eat there. Had an assortment of their fabulous tacos. Again, no photos; I am really falling down in that department this trip.



Neighbors at the Toad invited me to join them on their first-ever visit to Spiga. I ordered pumpkin ravioli (I love all things pumpkin), a chicken entrée, and a cheesecake dessert (prix fixe three-course meal). OMG, the dessert alone was worth the price of the evening. The cheesecake was accompanied by a to-die-for carmel sauce and carmel ice cream. It was a lovely evening with wonderful food and company.





There have been some memorable lunches at Anse Marcel. I thought they changed their menu seasonally but was told it can be changed much more frequently. For instance, a friend had scallops the first time I was there, and I decided I would order them next trip because they looked so good. The presentation had changed completely in five days. At any rate, on my first visit I had a fruit and cucumber salad with prawns. Very good.



On my second visit, I did order the scallops. They were underneath the parmesan crisp and were fabulous. I had a chocolate cookie for dessert; very good but not the WOW that the scallops were.




I have also been to Bar Code a couple of times. Once I had their tuna tartare special, which was excellent. The second time I had a chicken with mushroom sauce entrée that was less memorable. They have been slammed both times I was there and have only one server. She was working her butt off, but service was a little slow as a result.

Take-out from Spaghetti House has also provided a few meals. The chicken parmigiana was quite tasty, and the spinach cannelloni was also flavorful but a little too rich. They offer a discount to members of the SXM or Bust! Facebook group.

Special Events

Beach Kitten hosted a “chat and chew” at El Zafiro one night and invited a nice mix of locals and virtual Facebook/TTOL friends. There was an attractive array of appetizers; they were good enough that I just might return to El Zafiro for lunch on a beach day. I had previously been unimpressed with their food but had a different experience this time around. I neglected to take a picture of the hors d’oeuvres assortment, but these are the lights of Simpson Bay. It was a very pleasant time meeting new people. Big thanks to Leona for doing this.



The “big” food event so far was organized by Jeff Jhangiani and was at The Flavor Academy on The Corner Road in Simpson Bay. It was put on by a husband-and-wife team in their home; she’s the chef and he is the mixologist/server/everything else. If I were to do this again, it would need to start much earlier. We didn’t start eating until 8 p.m. and finished just after 11 p.m. Much too long for my taste; that said, it was a six-course meal. According to their website, owners Kristin Joseph and Paul Peterson also offer hands-on classes, workshops, and tastings. LINK - The Flavor Academy




While I thought the food was very good and quite nicely presented, I didn’t think it was a “wow” experience food-wise. However, it was a nice evening with fourteen people, about half of whom I was meeting for the first time.








More friends are arriving on island over the next few days so the pace may step up. Not sure that’s a good thing. 😊

Thanks for the report! Good thing I just finished lunch! (Although no way my beef stew could compete with those meals!!!) The Flavor Academy sounds like an interesting concept. Paul Peterson I think is the long time bartender from Temptation and then Emilio's??

We enjoyed the scallops at Anse Marcel yesterday. The gnocchi was
really Polenta, but very good!!!
The asparagus were a little chewy, but all in all a great lunch!
Wish we had room for dessert, but the coffees were great!!

Really nice report and pictures.

My lunch home was non eventful and after your report I'm hungry again.

Looks great Linda!

Enjoyed having you at the get-together. My husband loves the coconut shrimp at El Zafiro. I had a veggie pasta in a red sauce earlier in the week that was so delicious! Just a slight bite to it.

Enjoy your future weeks!

Thanks for taking time to post your report and pictures. Amazed that you're already two weeks into your vacation, although I'm sure you know that already.

Wow Linda, that is a lot of food! I hope those dishes don't show up on the scale!😍 Looking forward to reading more about your adventures.

Wow Linda, that is a lot of food! I hope those dishes don't show up on the scale!😍 Looking forward to reading more about your adventures.

Missing having you here, Elizabeth. But you really don't need to talk about the scales twice!

Lol! Finally home and slept like a log. Avoiding the scale! Lol. Though getting dressed for work tomorrow may tell the tale! 😳

Linda..another thing about El Z is that (barring a cruise ship) it’s a chill and quiet day. Chairs and umbrellas are included with food & drink.

Leona--I think that Linda, like me, has had some 'less than stellar' dining experiences at El Zafiro. Is the food better there now? I do understand that some of the food at your party did not come from there.

Love all the photos. All the dishes look delicious. Looking forward to more of your adventures. Have fun!