Ah, the good part about Caribbean Islands at least for me is the Cuisine. I can smell the mangoes right now. I remember the abundance of avocado trees. Ed our driver fror the day actually took me on a walking tour deep in the lush forest; we passed a few tour groups. They were quite envious of my interactive expedition. Ed and I searched for almonds and picked avocados. I think one tree might have been loaded with more than a hundred avocados. He told me the little monkeys would come and eat them sometimes before they ripened. If I were a monkey, I would do the same, because unripe there was what I get in the grocery store labeled as ripe here, and ripe there –was beyond a buttery delectable dream. The only other place I had avocados that scrumptious was in Jamaica; A slightly sweet and creamy papaya sized delight. Uhm, why am I doing this to myself?
I can tell you a few places that had some really great tasty local foods. I know it sounds odd, but one of them was a grocery store. I needed some rum cake and Ed knew just were to take me. I also was in the mood for some fish and the local street smokers are where it’s at. I wouldn’t waste all of my nights in the hotel restaurants as they cater to tourists. You know what some of them say, “they don’t know what the heck that is anyway, just put it on the plate and call it Island surprise.”
If you want authentic food then go where the locals go. I asked Ed and several strangers in the grocery store. I thought they were too busy doing shopping to abduct me at the time and anyway I had Ed, who knew everyone. There are a few really inexpensive restaurants that serve authentic dishes and also the reasonably priced restaurants. I’ll talk about the under $15 another time. Let’s start with Reasonable. Reasonable would be around $13 for Lunch and around $19 for a good sized dinner platter.
The Kittitian Monkey Bar and Restaurant is reasonably priced and delectable. They have their own web site, so you can see the menu. They have some tasty salads including the mussel salad with corn relish—it’s different. If you can, try Oszie’s platter which consists of BBQ Lobster and well prepared fish and chips you’re on a roll. The items from the grill range from $7 to $25 and include burgers, chicken and seafood. The lobster of course is on the pricier end of the range. The dinner menu ranges from $13 to $28. Don’t leave without sipping some of the Guava berry colada or Banana rum concoction.
Then there’s Bobsy’s Bar and Grill which also serves some great grilled lobster and caters to just about everyone. This place is the hot spot, it can get crowded, but that’s all the more reason to stop by and enjoy what apparently everyone else has discovered, the uniquely prepared Liamuiga lobster salad with Kittitian pepper sauce, and a whole lot of love. The Tamarind, ginger shrimp and the glazed passion fruit ribs, done up right isn’t too bad either. The food not only tastes good but it looks good. I’ve been to a few places where the food was well prepared, but a lot of local joints pretty much throw the food at you. Don’t get me wrong, I would much rather have good taste over presentation, but if the joint can master both, my hats off to them. The great part about Bobsy’s is it looks pleasing and the price is reasonable. The menu ranges from $4 to $24, with exception of the whole lobster dish which will run you around $36. I forgot to mention they have something for everyone. A more subtly grill menu, anything from burgers, gyros and fish and chips. There’s even a daily vegetarian menu.
The Oasis restaurant & Beach Club seems to be a constant hit, Look up reviews of this hot spot on Google and you’ll see. The price is around $10 to $20. I haven’t eaten there so I can’t say if the food is worth the money, but there are more people who say they like it than not. They seem to be geared toward the authentic stuff like stewed mutton and pot steamed fish.
The spice Mill is another fairly inexpensive place to fill up on some Kittitian food with a twist. The views are to die for. You get warm greetings by the chef and staff. All in all it has a very intoxicating atmosphere; I think that 50% of that intoxication is the smell. Taste their Conch Fritters, Gumbo and their Grilled snapper with roasted potatoes pumpkin and tropical fruit relish for $22 –it’s mouth-watering. The Chef prides himself in explaining why fresh ingredients and a familiarity with local butchers, fisheries and farmers is the essence behind what makes good food great. He talks about Lobsterman Pupil, Fisherman Franklyn and various farmers. Yes, I like this restaurant because they obviously take pride in what they create. Take a look at the website.
Now one man’s treasure is another man… You know what I’m saying. To each his own. If any of these suggestions lead you astray or you disagree with the choices, and then by all means post a review about your experiences. I’ve been able to avoid many pitfalls while on holiday or traveling due to bloggers and review postings.
