Extraordinary Stories From An Ordinary Guy: The "Paradise by the Plateful" Story

It was an ordinary day. Sitting in Le Piment in Place du Village, Baie Orientale, sipping on my last shot of Ma DouDou vanilla-banana flavored rum and listening to the last song of my vacation sung by a native guitar-toting fellow about my age. Song sounded familiar, but could be anything, since it was being sung in French. Carol and I had just finished almost three weeks of a great vacation on the Caribbean island of St. Martin. Our first night and last night on the island we traditionally spend at Le Piment, enjoying the atmosphere and having some of the best food on the island. Our first meal consisted of the Prosciuttella salad (lettuce, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, Parma ham, Parmesan), Lasagnes Maison (home-made lasagna with beef) and two peach ice teas with the complimentary Ma DouDou at the end. Has been our first meal for about 10 years and will continue to be that as long as we travel to this tiny two-nation island known as "The Friendly Island." Tonight we are having two of the specials they offer; Carol the grilled steak with salad and roasted potatoes and me the mushroom ravioli with parma ham. We both toast our final meal with the special Sangria wine. A wonderful evening in Place du Village, but the fitting ending to a vacation packed with great food and drink. The French side of St. Martin is known for their cuisine, with the city of Grand Case known as the Gourmet Capital of the Caribbean. We made two trips to Grand Case, a ten-minute drive from our villa, to eat at first the "Talk of the Town" lolo (called 'lolo' for either the fact that is locally owned, locally operated, or because of the large metal drum that they use to cook their meals) and then to Il Nettuno, Ristorante Italiano. Both places have been favorites from the past with an inexpensive bar-b-que meal at the first, and spinach ravioli in sage butter sauce at the later. The owner of Il Nettuno greeted us at the front door of his restaurant and we talked as if we have know each other for years. Matter-of-fact we have! The owner is a native of Virginia and a huge Redskins fan. Since our son-in-law was picked by the Redskins as high school coach of the year in Maryland a couple of years ago and by the Washington Post as the coach of the year this year, we spend some time talking high school as well as pro football. Another French side restaurant we enjoy annually is located directly on the sand of Orient Beach. Andy, former resident of New York, and Cheryl, former resident of New Jersey, run Andy and Cheryl's Restaurant, formerly known as Baywatch, in a colorful beach bar painted bright blue and yellow. License plates decorate the ceiling beams and many posts of the open-air restaurant. We presented them with a license place from the "Lancaster County Corvette Club" this year and Andy came and sat with us at our table to talk with us about our visit to the island and about corvettes. Gave us a prominent spot for the plate on a post in the center of the restaurant. On our first visit, a lunch-time meal, we had "Mussels a la Andy" which is about three dozen Prince Edward Island mussels done in a delicious tomato based sauce with plenty of spices and garlic along with all you can eat French baguette bread that is buttered and grilled. Another visit, for breakfast, saw us with Pina Colada French toast which is French toast made with Pina Colada mix in the batter and bananas between the layers of toast. Another great French side meal was the Sea Scallops with rice and salad that I had at "The Safari Grill" which is also located in Place du Village, Baie Orientale. The sauce, made from cream, butter and basil was fantastic. Carol even enjoyed dipping her steak in the sauce. Located in the same neighborhood was "Little Italie" where we both had, as usual, the Carbonara which is pasta done in cream, french bacon with a raw egg. Unbelievable! We did make a few stops on the Dutch side of the island for meals. One morning we ate at our favorite breakfast stop, "Zee Best", where we sampled their freshly baked croissants along with the best freshly squeezed orange juice I ever had and their house speciality, French Toast made with their own croissants. On a trip to the capital of the Dutch side, Philipsburg, we stopped at the Hotel Passagraham, a yearly favorite, for a chicken salad and a mango smoothie. This hotel is where the royalty of the Dutch Government stay when they visit Sint Maarten. One evening we visited with a friend, Norm, who we got to know through the Internet. Ate at a favorite restaurant in Simpson Bay area called Pineapple Pete's where Carol and I split the Surf and Surf meal. Consists of a two pound lobster thermidor and a dozen shrimp soaked in a garlic and beer mixture. No way can this be good for you. We did enjoy a few home-cooked meals at our villa overlooking Baie Orientale. Fresh mahi-mahi, which we purchased at the fish market in Marigot, the French capital of St. Martin, grilled baked potato in spicy butter sauce, a vegetable medley and applesauce for one meal and scrambled eggs, pork links and french bread pieces with home-made strawberry jelly for another. Naturally we had warm, freshly baked croissants for the remainder of our breakfast meals which we purchased at Tap 5 in Place du Village. All the meals at our villa we ate while sitting next to our pool. What a life! It doesn't get any better than this. It's like eating paradise by the plateful!! It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.