Posted December 5, 2007
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St. Maarten Restaurants / St. Martin Restaurants: The Most Complete Info!
Heavily
Updated December, 2007
PRINT THIS PAGE AND TAKE IT ON YOUR
TRIP (see copyright, page bottom); USE IT AS A
GUIDE TO RECOMMENDED RESTAURANTS IN ST. MAARTEN
-- ALSO USE OUR ST
MAARTEN DINING COUPONS ON THIS PAGE
More Restaurants & More photos
coming soon . . . and watch for our new "Best
Bars" Page Coming in 2008
Site owner Jeff Berger, in a rare moment
away from his computer or St. Maarten's beaches
& restaurants.
Important:
- No restaurant can
get listed or recommended here by paying us,
ever. If we like restaurants, they get listed.
If we don't, they don't. If a restaurant slips
in quality, off it goes. We list preferred
restaurants here, not all restaurants (the
island has about 400.) That has been our policy
since 1995 when this site was launched.
- This page represents the personal
opinions of its writers. Some other
perfectly good restaurants may not be listed
simply because we don't prefer them. We also do
not normally bad-mouth restaurants; those that
we don't like we usually don't mention at all.
Here goes:
Of all the tropical islands in the world, none is
known for its culinary expertise like St. Maarten /
St. Martin. The island is a magnet for innovative
and creative chefs who offer world class quality,
ambiance, and service.
This delightfully half-Dutch, half-French island
has over four hundred restaurants
offering a kaleidoscopic array of cuisines from
the world over -- French, American, Caribbean,
Tapas, Japanese, Creole, Chinese, African,
vegetarian, steak houses, seafood havens, and
many more. There are beach bars, casual dining
places, tops-in-the-world burger places, gourmet
dining at reasonable prices, and some gourmet
dining at "rich and famous" pricing.
Regardless of whether you choose St. Maarten
Dutch Side restaurants, St. Martin French Side
restaurants, Grand Case restaurants, Cupecoy
restaurants at Atlantis Casino, Philipsburg
restaurants, Simpson Bay restaurants, or Dawn
Beach restaurants, you'll quickly get the point:
great dining abounds on St. Maarten and St.
Martin.
There was a time when most of the island's most
renowned restaurants were in Grand Case, on the
northwest coast of French St. Martin. They are still
there and they're as incredible as ever, but during the
last several years they've been getting huge
competition from the Dutch Side, particularly in the
Cupecoy and Simpson Bay areas, and from Dawn Beach /
Oyster Pond. In fact, some of the top chefs /
restaurant owners from Grand Case now have restaurants on the Dutch Side.
You'll still want to have dinners in Grand
Case, but plan to explore the Dutch Side restaurants as
well. You will not be disappointed.
This page is undergoing continuous
updates, so bookmark us and come back soon.
You may find us dining at the next table -- so
please say hi. And *ALWAYS* tell the
restaurateur you read about them on our site.
This page was very heavily updated December 5,
2007.
Some restaurant owners have given us virtual
coupons for you: print out the information on
selected restaurants and you'll get something
special with your dinner.
If you've never been to St. Maarten,
prepare to get hungry. And, if you're
thinking about getting engaged or married in St.
Maarten, you'll be especially interested in our
information about that, later in this section...
Phone
numbers are here as well.
This Restaurant Revue is mainly focused on places
for great dinners, but dinners aren't all you'll
have so let's look at breakfasts first... Get a map
when you arrive or see our
St. Maarten maps on this site; it will help.
Reservations: It is unfair to make reservations
and not show up. If you can't go, please be
considerate and cancel.
About your bill: In the
Caribbean, it's considered bad manners for waitstaff to present a
bill without being asked. When you're ready, ask;
otherwise you'll just wait.
Service Charges usually
are not tips. They are often shared by the whole staff. Tips are always
appreciated by your server.
Note: August, September, and
October are the quietest tourism months in St.
Maarten/St. Martin. Some restaurants are closed for
a few weeks at that time of year. Call for
reservations and to be sure the restaurant is open
when you visit; early evening is the best time to do this.
BREAKFASTS:
Our top
choices for breakfasts:
Mr. Busby's Beach Bar on Dawn Beach in Oyster Pond,
immediately next door to Oyster Bay Beach Resort, is
our favorite place for breakfast on the entire
island.
The daytime view, for breakfast and lunch, is
spectacular. At dinner, the
ambiance becomes more intimate and romantic, as
Busby's morphs into "Daniel's By The Sea," the
reincarnation of the "Da Livio" restaurant which
owner Daniel Jurczenko ran
for 10 years. Mr. Busby's serves breakfast and
lunch, then at night, Daniel's serves truly fine
dinners on the beach. In Fall, 2006, they won the Gault Millau Award as
the island's best beach bar; they won it again in
fall 2007. Make sure they're on
your list for all three meals. Outstanding. (Their
poached eggs are great at breakfast.)
At
Ric's
Place on the lagoon side of Airport
Road just North of the Simpson Bay drawbridge you'll
see what makes them so
popular. Great food, friendly service, and lots to
watch in the lagoon -- including the nearby super megayachts. Really
delicious, filling breakfasts. Ric's popular website
has their entire menus. Ric's has onsite parking, dining on
both their lagoon-side terrace or indoors, and a dart
room (bring your darts for tournaments). The
island's only real Sports Bar, Ric's also has super
Tex-Mex and a full American menu as well. If you're
here at 9am or 530 pm, watch the megayachts glide
through the channel from Simpson Bay
to the lagoon, under the drawbridge. Some are over
300 feet long....
Turtle Pier near the airport has a large variety of breakfasts
to choose from, and Turtle is conveniently located
off Simpson Bay lagoon near the airport. Ask for the
"Shadow Special" at breakfast: fried
egg and melted cheese atop grilled French bread,
with lettuce and tomato.
La Veranda, outside at Pelican
Resort near the Hollywood Casino, has fine
breakfasts too plus a good view of Simpson Bay.
Breakfast specials include French Toast made with
thickly-sliced, home-made egg bread and topped with
maple syrup or tropical fruit toppings; egg-white
omelets; New York breakfast specials include
"lox-eggs-and onions" and smoked salmon and bagels;
and they have really luscious home-made sweet and
savory crepes. They also offer WiFi
for patrons.
The Kissing Fish Bar at
Summit Resort overlooking the northern end of Simpson Bay Lagoon in Cupecoy not
only offers fine breakfasts, but also has yet another spectacular view. Kissing
Fish also has one of the friendliest little happy hours on the island.
Zee Best in Simpson Bay
also has very good breakfasts.
But enough about breakfasts. SXM is a restaurant
Mecca, and we're here to tell you LOTS about them.
But first...
This Emergency Medical Evacuation
Insurance is Highly Recommended by this website:

DEALING WITH INSATIABLE BACK-HOME
CRAVINGS:
Best Pizza. Pizza
Pasta (much more below), at the end of the
little road between Casino Royale and Cheri's in the
Maho district, opens for lunch and dinner and is
wonderful. They have fantastic Italian dinners and
great prices. Domino's is quite good too; on
Tuesday's you get a "two for" deal on bigger pizzas. Read on
about Pizza Pasta. (Use free Valet Parking at Casino
Royale. We suggest you avoid
parking in nearby, dimly lit Mullet Bay.) The
Blue Sapphire Cafe at Sapphire
Resort also has great pizza at lunch.
Best Pastry.
Go to either the "Where's
Ivan?" Gelateria/Pastry Shop at the
Simpson Bay Yacht Club or the little
Sucriere pastry
restaurant near FedEx in Simpson Bay or the bakery
at Galerie Dupont, the supermarket just north of the
drawbridge in Sandy Ground on the French Side, south
of Marigot. Sucriere is a good place for French
Bread, as is Galerie Dupont -- and Sucriere is less
pricey. "Where's Ivan?"
has luscious pastries and Italian Gelato and
breakfasts/lunches. Yummy stuff. They're next to
Scotia Bank in Simpson Bay where, incidentally, you
can use your Bank of America ATM card without
service charges to get cash. (Where's Ivan?
has been sold; we can't vouch for the new owners,
not yet anyway.)
Lunch & Dinner . . .
A LITTLE REPEATED ADVICE... PRINT THIS
ENTIRE PAGE and take it with you to the
restaurants we've recommended for some dining you'll
never forget. And don't forget to use our
DINING COUPONS.
Lunches are everywhere, like
breakfasts . . .our favorites are:
-
Mr. Busby's Beach Bar in Oyster Pond,
Dutch Side; huge variety, fresh & delicious,
responsive staff, amazing location (steps from
the beach; beach chairs and umbrellas available
right there.) Bring your camera.
-
Ric's
Place in Simpson Bay; full
delicious American breakfasts & lunches,
experienced staff
-
Pizza Pasta in Maho
-
Jack & Linda Parker's
Peg Leg
Pub in Simpson Bay at Three Palms Plaza
opposite Sputter's Miniature Golf. PegLeg
received a record four awards in 2006 for
excellence by a vote of local patrons...it is
quite the place for steaks and fish. Great
stuff.
-
On the French Side, try
Baywatch near Club
Orient on Orient Beach (more below). Note: The
beach is clothing optional.
-
Papagayo inside Club Orient at the
southern end of Orient Beach has great lunches
too. Clothing optional.
-
Turtle Pier and La Veranda also have good
lunches.
About Dinner Reservations: Many
SXM restaurants are small, only 8-10 tables, and
some are smaller than that. Reservations are
essential in high season and advisable in low
season. If you can't go once you've made
a reservation, please remember to cancel it
-- you'll be doing the right thing and helping the
restaurant accommodate others who CAN go.
FYI: Ristorante Laguna on Airport Road
has closed. The building will become a car rental agency. Franco and Gianni are
retiring. They had a long and very successful career and we wish them the best.
Save money on hotel reservations through our
site:
If you're thinking about getting
married in St. Maarten,
check here. It's the best weddings in St.
Maarten site.
La Gondola in the Atlantis
Casino complex at Cupecoy Beach is a must
for dinner.
Grand Case is widely regarded as the Culinary
Capital of the Caribbean, but the Dutch side - -
pointedly represented by some fine-dining
restaurants at Atlantis - - is no culinary slouch
either, as we told you at the top of this page.
Several years ago, La Gondola founder David Foini
started manufacturing pasta in a little shop in
Sandy Ground and soon found most of the island's
better restaurants as his customers. Eventually he
opened a tiny restaurant on the site, La
Gondola, where he served his pasta and
other excellent meals to a very loyal clientele.
La Gondola was soon turning away more would-be
customers than accepting reservations from them, so
David relocated his restaurant to far larger
quarters in the Atlantis Casino complex. Until Fall
2004, he was still manufacturing pasta in Sandy
Ground for top SXM restaurants, but now he makes it
just for La Gondola.
This place is perfection.
The surroundings, service, and the selections at
La Gondola are all fabulous; everything about this
restaurant shouts "perfection". The
atmosphere is quiet and refined. Early in his career David worked at
La Samanna, the elite French Side resort, and that
training shows in the quality of the food, its
presentation, and their attentive but unobtrusive
service. It's truly outstanding. No matter what you
pick, you will be back. For dessert we
chose either the nougat ice cream “made with crunchy
caramel and almonds and served on raspberry sauce.”
We also love their homemade
banana, coconut, vanilla, and pistachio ice creams.
Wait till you try the food: From appetizers to
main courses to all their incredibly decadent
desserts, La Gondola does it right and we highly
recommend them. Detailed reports on our several
recent
visits to La Gondola were in our weekly St. Maarten
newsletters. For many details, go to the newsletter
archives and search "Gondola". Check the newsletter
archives
here.
Trust us: La Gondola is one of
the best. Reservations strongly recommended; call
545-3938. Valet parking year-round at the side
entrance of Atlantis Casino.
Many of you may remember
Da Livio in Philipsburg, run very capably for
10 years by Daniel Jurczenko. Daniel has now moved the
entire Da Livio staff to Dawn Beach and has taken
over
Mr. Busby's Beach Bar. Result: a
tremendous selection of breakfasts and lunches right
on the beach all day . . . and a total metamorphosis
of the very same Dawn beach restaurant at night to
the new
Daniel's
By The Sea, where the
same highly seasoned Da
Livio staff provides impeccable service while
offering you great steaks, seafood, and fine Italian
dining in the Da Livio tradition.

Mr. Busby's / Daniel's By The Sea is
just steps from the beach,
offer
dining under the palms...
The
Busby's / Daniel's menu is one of the most extensive
on the island . . . steaks, seafood, fine Italian
entrees, and great desserts for dinner. Meanwhile,
you can get a full breakfast all morning, and a
super lineup of lunches mid-day. Make it a point to go to Dawn beach
and check out Mr. Busby's / Daniel's. You will not
be disappointed.
Le Montmartre
may be a challenge to pronounce but it is an exquisite Parisienne Bistro next to
La Gondola at Atlantis Casino in Cupecoy, Dutch Side. Owned by Pascal and Karen
of L'Auberge Gourmande and Sunset Cafe in Grand Case, Le Montmartre is artful
French cooking with sizeable portions, and delightful flavors. We've tried most
of the menu now and our favorite is the sea bass, which is just outstanding.
Everything is scrupulously fresh and meticulously prepared and presented.
In addition to wide-ranging
offerings of seafood and meats, Le Montmartre also offers a sizeable vegetarian
menu. Watch out for the desserts: you should not miss them. Le Montmartre is an
exceptional restaurant. They accept online reservations directly from their
website.
Spiga is around the corner from Grand Case
Beach Club and just off the far Northern end of
Boulevard de Grand Case, French Side. Owned by Lara and Ciro;
Lara is the daughter of Livio, founder and retired
former owner of Da Livio on Front Street, P-Burg.
Excellent culinary skills clearly run in her family
and certainly in Ciro's.
Lara and Ciro's extensive culinary experience
shows in their preparation.
Spiga is fabulous -- in our opinion,
one of the island's top three restaurants. Located
in a newly rebuilt early 1900s creole-style
building, Spiga has an extensive menu of elegantly
prepared, delicious entrees.
Salads are all garden fresh. Try their Lobster
Bisque. Our son-in-law, for many years a Southern
California restaurateur, described it as "the best
I've ever tasted." If you like beef, try their
tenderloin. It's easily as good as the best
Argentinean beef we've had, and the piece is big. The tenderness is amazing and very
consistent. Their lobster ravioli is totally
irresistible. My only problem is that I truly love
all the main courses, which you'll see
here. The salmon filet with angel hair pasta
is scrumptious. Their website shows you all their
exceptional entrees. Spiga is a must --
outstanding. Save room for dessert. Their
phone: 011-590-590-52-47-83. Please say hello to
Lara and Ciro for us.... Spiga is
generally closed from mid-October until early
November. The website reflects pricing in dollars,
but do ask about the exchange rate; you do best
paying cash at most Grand Case restaurants. At this
writing it's one-to-one, Euros to dollars, when you
pay by cash...quite a deal.
L'Alabama in
Grand Case has closed though their site is up.
Subscribe to
St. Maarten Weekly News for updates.
Ric's Place American Cafe & Sports Bar,
on the lagoon side of Airport Road just North
(going toward the airport) of the Simpson Bay
drawbridge, is another long-time favorite of ours.
You can relax on their patio and soak up the
serenity of the lagoon while you sip their libations
or enjoy their fabulous Tex-Mex and traditional
American food.
Ric's menu has been expanded. All the old
favorites are still around, but now there's an even
wider selection of Tex-Mex specialties, more
luscious desserts, and of course plenty of the
gringo food you're used to. The new menu is posted
on Ric's
website, along with tons of SCUBA pictures
-- former owner Ric Hetzel, who founded the place,
is an avid diver and underwater photographer.
Ric's was bought by long-time customers the Lopez
family from California during Summer, 2004, and they
have retained friendly, welcoming flavor of the
place.
The "new" Ric's opened late in the winter of 2001
after moving from Front Street in Philipsburg.
Complete details of the location including inside
and outside pictures and all the menus (breakfast,
lunch, dinner) are on the Ric's Place
website.
The new
Ric's is triple the size of their old
downtown restaurant, has loads of free off-street
parking (unusual for Simpson Bay restaurants), and a
dart room (bring your darts -- there are
tournaments), but two things are the same -- great
service and consistently excellent Tex-Mex and
non-Tex-Mex food.
Ric's actually serves a wide assortment of
fare which everybody will love, even if you're
not a Tex-Mex fan. Ric's serves breakfast, lunch,
and dinner, all inexpensive, delicious, and filling.
Their beefburger (Certified Black Angus beef) has
been declared "the best in the Caribbean" by The
New York Times; it’s juicy and excellent. Their
great selection of Tex-Mex specialties includes
really tasty nachos and lots of other traditional
favorites.
This place rocks during Super Bowl, Final Four,
playoffs of any description, etc. Watch your
favorite team on any of their many wide-screen TVs!
Drink a few beers come Superbowl Sunday, and you
could get free giveaways!) Ric's has a great
selection of beers from the world over, too.
Again, visit
Ric's
website. Don't forget the coupon
below when you go. They're close to all the Simpson
Bay and Maho area hotels and timeshares, and close
to Isle de Sol -- so you can see all the super
megayachts right from their terrace. (Updated
2/4/06.) Ric contributed SCUBA photos for our
"Butterflies, Beasts, and Beneath" screensaver.
Learn more about it
here.
JEFF BERGER'S SXM WEBSITE DINING
COUPON FOR RIC's PLACE

If you're tired of rich foods and pricey
restaurants, brings this EXCLUSIVE coupon with you
to Ric's Place and trade it in for one FREE Miller
Lite, soft drink, juice, or iced tea with lunch or
dinner. Ric's specializes in Tex-Mex cuisine and
big, luscious American "Best in The Caribbean"
burgers and other sandwiches and salads. Plus, you
can enjoy your favorite team on a bunch of
large-screen satellite TVs! (Limit, one coupon
per person per week). --Tamara (updated
2/2006)
Stone, an
entirely new little restaurant next door to Subway
in Simpson Bay, is very small but a diamond in the
rough. Watch this place grow in popularity. Seafood,
meat, and vegetarian entrees are cooked and
presented on stone -- in a non-smoking dining room.
In February 2007 we had salmon and yellowfin tuna
entrees and have already scheduled return visits.
Casual. Great, responsive and friendly staff.
Website coming early in 2008.
Taloula Mango's Caribbean Cafe on
the boardwalk in downtown Philipsburg is a must
stop, either when you're shopping in town around
lunchtime or for a great dinner right on the beach.
Philipsburg has undergone a renaissance in the last
few years and the St. Rose "Arcade" (not an arcade
at all in the U. S. sense) is a prime reason why.
Taloula's is a beautiful piece of entirely new,
innovative architecture, and is the prime tenant in
the "arcade" along with a variety of small shops.
It's near the center of town, convenient to
shoppers, not far from center-of-town public
parking, and is also a natural stop for cruise
passengers.
Taloula Mango's offers sandwiches, seafood, beef,
and pasta, and has recently increased their fine
vegetarian entrees. They also have great drinks --
definitely put it high on your list. Frequently
Taloula's has live entertainment. Say hi to Norman and Su for us.
For something a bit different, check out
Baywatch on Orient Beach near Pedro's and
Club Orient. Baywatch is the latest bar/restaurant
from Andy, who ran a hugely successful steak house
in New Jersey many years ago. Evidently you can come
as you are -- pictures are on the 'net of clothing
optional sunbathers who stop by (but it doesn't
happen too often, so don't let that stop you).
The sandwiches are great here. The place is
festooned with all kinds of New Jersey memorabilia,
since Andy & Cheryl hail from there. We'll be adding
several restaurant pictures soon.
Andy formerly owned Surf Club South in Grand
Case, which was named one of the ten best bars in
the world by Newsweek International until a
hurricane blew it away. Andy's place on Orient is
thriving. Call 011-590590-29-50-40.
Say hi to Andy and Cheryl for us!
Also on Orient Beach check out BIKINI BEACH:
There are many other bar/restaurants on Orient. Our
favorite is Bikini Beach. Check it
out at
www.bikinibeach.net. Elisa Cohen manages nearby
Palm Court Hotel, a perfect and very reasonably
priced place to stay if you want to be on or near
Orient. See it on our
Reservations page.
There are many other fine restaurants on this
island. You should try Don Camillo
and Wajang Doll (Indonesian), to
name a couple. The Rijstaffel (if I spelled that
right) is said to be exceptional at Wajang
Doll, which is next to Three Palms Plaza in
Simpson Bay / Welfare Road.
More restaurant reports are about to be added . .
. La Rosa, Le Montmartre, Blue Sapphire Cafe, La
Marine, La California, and more. Many more
restaurants are below, too, so please read on.
Much more restaurant info is below,
but first please read this message. . . .
Want a St. Maarten "SXM" Sticker Like
This For Your Car?
CLICK
HERE OR CLICK THE STICKER FOR
DETAILS!

Parking: In P-Burg, park in the lot behind
the straw market behind the courthouse, not on
Front Street. There is no parking allowed there.
La Veranda at the Great
House at Pelican Resort (outside on the
weather-protected veranda near Hollywood Casino)
has expanded its lunch menu and their entirely
new "Bistro" dinner menu is fabulous. Lunches
include tasty sandwiches, fresh salads, and a
Standard-Reference Burger selection; home-made
crispy pizzas; and local creole dishes are
offered daily.
La Veranda's evening "Bistro Menu"
now includes the famous specials from Captain's
Cove, the owners' former restaurant:
baked-stuffed Caribbean lobster, which many
people claim is the best lobster on the Island
(my wife, a lobster person, loves it); their
deservedly famous El Gaucho Argentine
Tenderloin, which I love; Grilled Prime Rib on
the Bone; NY Striploin; and chops including Rack
of Baby Lamb from Colorado. Their seafood
specials include delicious Salmon Wellington,
made like Beef Wellington . . . fresh salmon in
a savory puff pastry crust stuffed with spinach,
served with a citrus sweet and sour sauce. They
also serve delicious grilled snapper and
mahi-mahi from local waters and terrific
home-made desserts including NY Cheesecake, Pina
Colada Cake, crepes stuffed with home-made ice
creams and fruit, Carrot cake, and daily
specials.
Make sure La Veranda is on your
list....
Pizza Pasta.... Tucked deep
in the alley between Casino Royale and Cheri's
is one of the island's many Italian restaurants,
Pizza Pasta Trattoria Italiana,
which is our favorite homestyle
Italian restaurant.
A smallish, unpretentious restaurant, Pizza Pasta
fills up early. Owners Ilde and Dario Figarolo have
moved to St. Kitts and turned the reins over to
their daughter Selena, who is doing an extraordinary
job. The atmosphere is a bit quieter, the place is
spotless, attractive art is now on the walls where
kids drawings were, and service is fast and food is
plentiful and piping hot, as it should be. It's a
must.
On every visit we go to Pizza Pasta five or six
times, and it never fails to satisfy.
We tend to choose both Melanzane
Parmigiani, Eggplant Parm (we opted for the
vegetarian sauce), and Spaghetti Bolognese,
spaghetti with meatballs, which is so delightful it
reminded me of "Carrie" Fargnoli, a friend of my
parents who, when I was a kid, made her own pasta
(long before it was chic) and the most delicious
meatballs.... We also love Pizza Pasta's
Chicken & Eggplant Parmigiani. The salads,
soups, and of course the incredible,
melt-in-your-mouth thin-crust pizza are all
top-notch -- the best on the island. Prices are very
reasonable here, too.
Make reservations, come early or wait - but the
wait is worth it. Make SURE you put Pizza Pasta
Trattoria next to Casino Royale in Maho on your
list. Phone: 011-599-545-4034.
Mention Jeff Berger's SXM website! (Updated
2/5/2007.)
Located in Simpson Bay in the same plaza as Dominos
about 1/2 mile from Cole Hill,
PegLeg Pub &
Steakhouse isn't what you think it
is. It doesn't really have a pirate theme. It's more
a British pub atmosphere with lots of nautical
features, but what will strike you is the shelves of
books here, like a library where you can eat, drink,
play darts, watch TV, and generally take it easy.
Jack and Linda Parker took over PegLeg a few
years ago and turned it into a great restaurant;
come in and tell them we sent you. They quickly
became the most popular St. Maarten steak
house, with fine aged American beef that
many visitors claim is the best anywhere. Their
swordfish is moist and delicious, too. Try the fish
and chips -- made with mahi-mahi, by the way - you
don't get THAT in New England. Use our
coupon: The sandwiches are also big and sweet.
Parking on site. Highly recommended....

Peg Leg Pub & Steakhouse, Three Palm
Plaza (near Domino's & Scoops Ice Cream), 60
Welfare Road, Simpson Bay.
FREE BOTTLE OF WINE WITH DINNER (red
or white).
Limit: one bottle per party, per evening.
Also join PEGLEG for Happy Hour 4-7pm daily
except Sundays: $1 Heineken, $2 well & wine, all
appetizers 1/2 price. -- Per Linda, January,
2006
The new operators
of Turtle Pier have changed the entire staff,
but the menu is as good as ever. We still come by on
some Lobster Nights (Wednesdays); try the coconut
shrimp. Service has been very laid back in recent
months...so just relax and enjoy.
Wines...Vinissimo
on the French side (Marigot) is the best. In fact
they're doing so well they've just opened in St.
Barts and Anguilla. Buy yourself some GOOD wine and
mention us. PRINT THIS PAGE, BRING IT WITH YOU, and
you'll get a free wine tasting AND a 10% discount
off your purchases.
One of the liveliest spots on the island is
Cheri's Cafe in the Maho district.
Cheri's has sandwiches at both lunch and dinner and
a large menu of traditional dinner selections.
There's nightly entertainment and dancing into the
wee hours. If you just want to sit at the bar,
slowly sip on a Pina Colada, and people-watch,
nobody will hassle you here.
Much more restaurant info is below,
but first please read these messages. . .
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Year-Round, Deep Discounts on Car
Rentals, Phone Calls Home, and Hotel and
Timeshare Stays, More SXM Info &
Lots of Freebies for Just $49
Nearly 5000 people have joined JMB
Website Supporters since it was founded in 2002.
Here's what they're getting:
-
SUPER LOW-COST AIRFARES: We
monitor airfares to St. Maarten every day from
more than 100 cities in the U. S., Canada, and
Europe, and whenever we hear about good airfare
sales --scheduled or charter-- we send JMB
Website Supporters members Airfare Bulletins
with all the details, so they can get the travel
dates and seats they want. Sometimes we unearth
exceptionally low fares, after a lot of
digging -- like about $200 for Winter
round-trips to SXM from several U. S. cities, and other low fares
from many cities coast-to-coast. Low airfares
alone are worth the price of subscribing!
LOTS MORE BENEFITS:
-
MORE THAN TWO DOZEN SOURCES
OF LOW AIRFARES: Sometimes there aren't
any low "sale" airfares. No matter. There are
other ways to make sure you fly for less than
most other people. We now show you more than TWO
DOZEN different sources of low airfares!
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WHOLESALE AIRFARES: Our
wholesaler will reserve your seat but you won't
pay for it until a few weeks before your flight.
That way, if lower fares become available, she
can lock them in for you without you having to
pay any "change fee."
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LOW-COST SXM (St. Maarten) AIR/HOTEL
PACKAGES: You will not find lower
package prices anywhere. We beat
Travelocity, Expedia, and everybody else
every day.
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RENT OR SELL YOUR SXM TIMESHARE FOR
FREE through our weekly newsletters
(about 40,000 readers) and online (over one
million visitors) -- no charge, ever. Our
audience goes to the island and needs
accommodations, making our "for rent/sale"
listings especially effective. (Use of this
service requires membership renewals to be
current.)
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ULTRA LOW-COST CALLS HOME:
We tell you how to make calls for pennies a
minute using your hotel phone or your cell
phone. You won't find this info anywhere else.
(Hotels charge about $5/minute for calls home.
How does about 30 cents a minute grab you?)
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DISCOUNTED PLACES TO STAY:
We give you a source for rooms at top hotels and
timeshares for $449 per week, per room (not per
person), far less than you'll pay anywhere else.
That's even less than most timeshare maintenance
fees.
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CAR RENTAL DISCOUNTS:
Members-only discounts give you $15 off the
regular non-discounted rack rate of the island's
best car rental company. Available year-round.
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MEMBERS-ONLY SXM PHOTO GALLERY:
Post your favorite SXM photos online, free.
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MEMBERS-ONLY MESSAGE BOARD:
Ask questions and get answers from other members
and from Jeff, Susan, and other JMB
Communications' knowledgeable, experienced
staff.
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MEMBERS-ONLY TRAVEL CALENDAR:
Meet other members from around the country or
around the world and make new friends on St.
Maarten.
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FREE ST. MAARTEN SCREENSAVERS:
Just-for-JMB Website Supporters, we offer
totally FREE St. Maarten PC screensavers with a
number of our best pictures. Passworded web
access lets members download these special,
members-only screensavers for free. And now
there's a downloadable St. Maarten movie, too --
with more coming.
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HEAVILY DISCOUNTED EMERGENCY AIR
AMBULANCE INSURANCE: Should you become
ill and require an emergency air ambulance home,
the cost is usually over $20,000. Our members
get $60 off annual plans good for emergency
travel home from virtually anywhere in the
Western Hemisphere: short money for real
peace-of-mind.
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HEAVILY DISCOUNTED ST. MAARTEN
SOUVENIRS: T-shirts, tank tops,
sweatshirts, jumping-dolphin baseball caps,
colorful Caribbean-color hair or wrist
"scrunchies," hand-painted porcelain
refrigerator magnets, and lots more. The lowest
prices are always offered to members only. Meet
other members when you wear SXM Euro-oval logo
merchandise!
IF YOU BENEFIT FROM WHAT YOU'RE READING, PLEASE
JOIN "JMB WEBSITE SUPPORTERS"!
More restaurant info....
Roundup of St. Martin / St. Maarten
Restaurant Websites
Here's a quick list of several websites we did
for SXM Restaurants and other businesses of
note. If YOUR business could use a website, see
http://www.websitesthatwork.info and contact
us. (JMB Communications is Massachusetts-based
and most of our clients are in the US.) For many
more examples of our business
websites,
click here. Mention Jeff
Berger's St. Maarten Website when you visit
these and other restaurants mentioned on this
page.
More Restaurants....
Johnny B Under de Tree – Famous
"under the tree" restaurant perhaps 100 yards north
(toward Marigot) of the Cay Hill road intersection
in Cole Bay. Tender baby back ribs grilled for
crispiness, great chicken, traditional beans and
rice sides. Give it a shot! You won't forget it!
Local fresh-grilled lobsters too! (This is what they
call a lolo, but "Johnny" is a world-class chef. He
just happens to be located under a gigantic tree.)
Poulet d'Orleans is that near
legendary chicken place on the road from the Dutch
side to Orient. It's on a hill with a chicken out
front. Find it during the day. It's in a small
creole house; eat on the porch or inside. Chicken is
served with BBQ, peanut, or creole sauce. If you're
not a chicken person there's a full menu, plus good
coffee. This was recently featured on cable's
Food Network.
Get Married or Renew Your Vows in St.
Maarten!
In case you missed it, we noted on our home page
that Jean Rich, owner of La Veranda restaurant,
is the hands-down best wedding coordinator on
the island. This Rhode Island native (who grew
up in my old neighborhood) has lived on SXM for
more than 10 years and knows the ropes better
than anybody. Jean recently posted a St. Maarten
wedding planning website. You can get to it at
either:
Note: The email shown on her site is now live,
but you can also email her at
wedinsxm@caribserve.net . It will pay you to
check her site. Tell her you heard about it from
us!
Restaurants of Grand Case
Here are phone numbers of many Grand Case
restaurants. If you're calling any of these places
from the U. S., you must first dial
011-590590-, then the numbers shown. (We
published the card.)

Card Copyright ©, Associated Restaurants of Grand
Case. Reprinted with permission.
Don't forget the nightly street vendors (LOLOs)
in both Grand Case (Talk of the Town) and
Marigot. They'll grill lobster and chicken over an
open flame for you... Treat yourself to it at least
once. The most famous of the lolos is Johnny
B's Under de Tree, in Cole Bay, on the
Dutch side, discussed above. Johnny was a five-star
hotel chef until he decided one day to do his own
thing.
You'd need a good couple of weeks at least to
sample some of the best Grand Case restaurants:
La California, Le Pressoir,
Le Tastevin, Le Fish Pot,
and Il Nettuno are all very fine
restaurants. Check our archives
here for 2006 reviews of La California
(which is outstanding).
For more restaurant revues, subscribe to our
free weekly St. Maarten newsletter from the link on the top of this page or the
top of the home page of
www.everythingstmaarten.com.
Updated December 5, 2007 (c)