My wife who is a romance author has readers all over the world including Saba
since covid she has been emailing back and forth with a woman from Saba

well our journeys brought us to SXM at the same time and a plan was made to share some time

We had already had a pleasant experience meeting Cariblee and was hoping for the same
you never know what dinning with someone you really don't know will be like

Her and her brother were enjoying their vacation at Simpson bay resort
we allowed her choose Sale e Pepe for a lunch meeting

I wished for the best in meeting new friends but also the meal as we have written off Sale e Pepe because of the service

we were greeted with a smile from the hostess who I believe is David's (chef) wife
we were the first table and it took a while for a unfriendly waitress to come over
drinks took a bit longer than it should have but fortunately the conservation was flowing

finding good dinning companions can be difficult
well we hit it off as our new friends enjoy food as much as my wife and myself
both appetizer, entrees and desserts were ordered

The lunch and dinner menus are the same so it was like eating a full meal at full dinner prices
the girls chatted while her brother and myself talked about Saba and I was very interested in his spear fishing and lobster hunting

appetizers arrived and were eaten slowly because of the conservation

my wife enjoyed the fritto misto, fried calamari, shrimp and these small tiny fish which I enjoyed and she wouldn't try
I ordered the crudo which was 3 pristine small portions of thin sliced raw fish and a fair portion of fresh anchovies
I tried one anchovy which was good but not my favorite, lucky my new dinning companion as a fondness for anchovies

we started to learn of our new friends and their island life
from this forum I have heard of how beautiful saba is but on the quite side

about half way through the meal her older brother invited us to spend time with them on their island
it was very touching and honestly not unexpected as our meeting was so wonderful
my wheels were already turning on going fishing with him
I told him I would float up top and watch him fish as he says he drives down about 30 feet (no air), hell no not me
also I'm out of the water at the first sight of a shark or 6 foot barracuda looking for a free meal
he compared me to his brother, no hitting a shark between the eyes to make him go away, HELL NO

I'm sure those of you who schuba you're laughing but most would be back in the boat

I also want to watch him going diving for lobster and told him no small ones for me

the ladies chatted and found that her friend enjoys the same restaurants on the island as us and even Bacchus and the same menu choices

my wife stayed on the lighter side for her main course with a hollowed out lobster shell filled with pieces of lobster and fresh fruit
I did the opposite and enjoyed a veal chop with mushrooms
my new friend told me that it was expected that I pick up the bone and enjoy, much like Lordes at the Gutside told me to pick my lobster using my hands

finishing up the meal, my wife and I shared a baba rhum, 3 little rum soaked yeast cakes topped with vanilla ice cream, I wished for more

our 3 hour meal ended with hugs and I have already started to research Saba but I am sure we will let our new friends guide us with showing us around and meals

Our waitress finally smiled as she noticed her cash tip, she must not be from SXM the friendly island

we plan next year, a week in Orient, store most of our luggage while we visit Saba for 3 days and finish up another week in Maho

Just a wonderful lunch making new friends

tomorrow my "brother' from Anguilla will be meeting us as he will be on SXM getting some stuff for his daughter's birthday

Sounds like a wonderful time was had by all.

Always lovely to meet new friends! Thanks for the report!

We've had mixed experiences at Sale e Pepe. Took us awhile to return but the last time was good. Your food picture looked great.

Not commenting one way or the other re Sal e Pepe since we only dined there quite a while back in their earlier location (which was very good…….) but I would strongly encouragie you to take advantage of the Saba experience as you’re able.

It took us over twenty years worth of SXM trips to finally get there but once there we fell in love with it. No beaches to speak of so when we over-nighted we stayed at the Queens Garden Inn and made good use of their pool. Saba is quiet and lovely. People warm and friendly. Not much to do but if you need some time for serious limin’ this island gets my first place award. Lucky you…….