Sao Asian did not disappoint, for the most part. We were given a nice table just as you walk in, very breezy and great location to people watch both within and without the restaurant. We started by sharing shrimp tempura crispy sushi. It came with a generous portion of ginger and wasabi, and a green stringy side (not sure what it was or what it is called but it was very good). As my wife took her fork to have some, she accidentally scooped up about 3/4 of the wasabi as the lighting was low and it was about the same color as the side. Thankfully she caught the mistake beforehand. I ordered a steak dish (Crying Tiger, I think) and she had salmon, swimming in coconut milk. Both meals were very good, but I should have ordered my steak medium rare as I found the medium to be a bit overcooked. No pink at all. It did come with a spicy side sauce which you could add depending on how hot you desired. I got a taste of the salmon and it was amazing. We shared a white chocolate and berries dessert which was so light and tasty. I mentioned “for the most part” because I think 75% of the patrons were smoking and we’re just not used to being around smoke. Not judging anyone who smokes, just being honest about our experience. Is it because it’s the French side that it’s more prevalent? That said, we would go back for the sushi as a single serving each could due as your meal. We stopped to look at the vendor tables and found a nice bracelet for my wife. It’s made out of woven aluminum. Sounds weird, but it is very pretty.
We started the next day with take out breakfast croissants with ham and cheese, a raisin danish and peach cobbler from Good Morning. All were very good. We also had pour over ice coffee made the night before. It’s lovely sitting on our deck in the morning for breakfast and before bed with a glass of rum. Our supply is running low (why is the rum always gone?) so I’ll need to pick up more at the Casino shopping store. We plan on heading down to Bikini Beach bar to sample a rum before we buy it.
Living in the moment, instead of walking down to Le String we decided to walk the opposite direction to Cocoa Beach. However, we got there and it looked like a ghost town. There was on woman sitting on a lounge but we couldn’t tell of anything there was open. We thought Orange Fever would be a good option so we headed back the other way. There is sargassum on the beach but it’s not as invasive as we thought it might be. We remembered one year it was a foot thick and at least 15 feet wide up on the north end. It was easy to remember because as my wife walked through it she stepped on something sharp which turned out to be a small dead fish with spines on it. It drew blood so we cleaned her up as soon as possible and there were no side effects.
When we got to Orange Fever a large group of people, we assumed from the cruise ship, were looking for chairs also. The employee saw us and pointed to two chairs right up front by the ocean. It was a nice vantage point and we ordered a Mai Tai for my wife and I had a Heineken with a glass of ice. We again decided to eat up in the restaurant rather than on the beach. It was very windy and we don’t enjoy said in our food LOL. A young couple next to us in their 20s a pizza, which was delivered and sat out in the wind on the small beach table in front of them. We wondered “how do you do that?” My wife had the chicken Caesar and I had a cheese burger with fries. The food was very good. I make smash burgers on our Blackstone griddle at home (best burgers prep I’ve ever had) and my burger at Orange Fever was just as good. Nice and crispy on the outside and juicy in the middle. Perfectly cooked. I decide on a Diet Coke and she had water. We’re wanting to pace ourselves with alcohol as it sometimes is tougher to tolerate walking in the hot sun. We were glad we did because once we walked back to our studio, and it was very hot again, we didn’t feel as wiped out.
After resting up, we walked down to Bikini to sample a rum. On the bartender’s suggestion, we tried an upper shelf rum made here in St. Martin. It was quite good but quite pricey. The bartender was great, very congenial, and made sure the waitress told us how much a glass would costs. We said it was fine. We were curious about Topper Rum, which another bartender told us was primarily for mixed drinks. It comes in various flavors, the bar had Guava available. We also were interested in tasting a drink called Aperol, a cherry colored liquor. I asked some folks on chairs next to us at Le String the other day what they were drinking, and they said a cocktail made with Aperol. We ordered a shot of the Topper and the Aperol. Just our opinion, it tasted like Robitussen DM, or other cough syrup. It probably is fine in a mixed drink, but shots just weren’t making it for us.
We enjoyed the rum while sitting in the evening breezes watching a mom chasing her two very active two year old children around on the sand, making sure they weren’t going places they shouldn’t be up near the bar area. The one little guy tossed a bag into the Corn hole and then stuck his head as close as he could to see where it went.
Afterwards, we walked down to see if we could purchase another bracelet for our grand daughter who lives with us. We found something that was almost what we’d thought she’d like and after we talked a bit with the vendor she said she’d make one special for her and bring it tomorrow. We are finding everyone here very friendly.
We bought a rum called Pappion Spicy at Casino market and a baguette to go with the cheese, sausage and pizza we had on hand. We had a Carib with all of it on our deck. It is interesting how many cars come in and out of Orient Village, particularly in the late afternoon and into the evening. Motor bikes also. We like sitting, talking, eating and watching the coming and goings. There is always a gentle breeze blowing in off the nearby ocean.
I just told my wife this is probably more information than anyone cares to read, but it is our report and we stand by it
enjoying your reports as we are staying in Orient in August and looking forward to chilling with the exception of going out to dinner The green stringing compliment was Wakeem other wise known as seaweed
Surprised you didn't mention of the service at orange fever as John Carlos is in the picture and is very welcoming and hilarious
Can you check out Mango cafe which is somewhere across from the village
Yes, smoking is quite prevalent on the French side. It can be overwhelming when you’re surrounded by it, even in an outdoor setting. Regarding Aperol, yes it can be bitter. However, I love an Aperol Spritz, which is Aperol with Prosecco and/or club soda. Very light and refreshing! Your reports are wonderful, thank you for posting!
Very nice couple of days. Your trip report writing is great. I love reading all the details. My trip reports are wordy as I write them very quickly and spend very little time editing them. Lol
Your wife’s aluminum bracelet is very unique and pretty!
On our last trip to Orange Fever, I ordered a hamburger (very unusual for me), and it was delicious. Their French fries are great too.
And leftover dinners on a balcony are very enjoyable and memorable experiences.
The service at Orange Fever was excellent both in and outside the restaurant. They were pretty busy so we didn’t really meet anyone up close and have a conversation other than to say hi, and thank you. Thanks for the info on Wakeem and the insight on Coco. The chairs looked pretty heavy so it would be hard for us to adjust them to stay in the shade as the sun moved west. Carol, haha. Love your reports. We also walk right by the Taco place on the way up to our studio. We plan to try them out one night.
Love the trip info - I don't think you can give too much info!! I also enjoy watching the sailing You Tube Channels... great stress reducer for me! Recently I've been watching Sailing Zatara...quite interesting to watch them sail off the coast of Somalia and through the Suez Canal.. with teenagers!
You gotta try and Aperol spritz! Aperol by itself is nothing I would ever drink. But in a spritz? So refreshing on a hot day - and I'm currently on island so lord knows it is HOT!
Very true, Carol and Scuba. All my family is complaining about how warm it is. At first I thought it was just me, but no, I've been down here before at this time and it's never been like this. Makes me anxious for Hs (I shall not utter the word)...tho the Sarah Dust - as annoying as it is - does help keep Hs away.
Really enjoying all of of your detail and pics. For those of us coming in the future,your information is great. We are staying in the village in the fall,but haven’t stayed there since pre Irma so things have. Keep up your reports!
Thanks for the kind comments and glad you’re enjoying the reports. Crsxm, the rum we had is Gouverneur. I took a photo so we’d remember and will try to post in this comment. Ihbsurf, we found out about Zatara when they picked up the Wynns for awhile and posted their videos online. So we’ve been following them also. I’m glad to hear, or not, that everyone feels it is hot here. Not so bad in the evenings though. I thought it was just us. I think I’ll have to try the spritz now I have another report coming but will wait until later to see how the evening progresses.
Before our trip this last May I saw a Facebook site that talked about that Rum so I used their Whatsapp number to find out where to find it. Said it's available at Totem or Bacchus boutiques in Hope Estates. Didn't give a price point.
Thanks SXMScubaman and Lancer for the additional Information regarding the rum. I wonder if it's near where the Madoudou distillery was/is. If I remember, that was also in French cul de sac. I will have to check it out.
We sat at Bikini Beach Bar and I had 2 Aperol Spritz while painting en plein air at a high top table. My wife had 2 rose’s which is about the limit of what we’d drink in an hour and a half. I really like the spritz. Straight Aperol was a mistake on my part. I wasn’t sure what it was all about. Very refreshing cocktail. I have about three days of reports to write. I’ve taken notes and photos to remember our activities but probably won’t get around to it until the trip home or possible during the storm if we get a lot of wind and rain and we can’t venture out. We’ve had an absolutely great time and after 2 weeks are sad we are going home. Usually we are looking forward to getting back. Not this time LOL.
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