St. Martin Layover

First, a clarification: Elsewhere on this blog it has been incorrectly reported that staff photographer Zach and I were marooned on Anguilla a couple of days ago. Actually, we were marooned in St. Martin because we missed our connection from Anguilla. You've never seen a you-know-what-eating grin like the one on Zach's face when the agent told us we missed the flight and the next one wasn't till the morning. We checked into the Sonesta Maho right by the airport. (If you go there, make sure you get a pool-facing room and not a waste-treatment facility facing one; not only are they more fragrant and the views nicer, but we got a suite that had recently been nicely reno'd, with 2 flat screens, a jacuzzi tub, rain shower... ).

First stop, the nearby Sunset Bar, where Zach "21 Sexiest Beach Bars" Stovall always feels right at home. After the sunset and traffic subsided, we naturally headed up to for Grand Case for dinner. Taking my own superb advice from a feature I wrote a few years ago, we dined at Restaurant Le Cottage, where the warm hospitality is exceeded only by the cuisine. We ordered the lobster tasting menu, a succession of wildly original and successful small courses starring the local langouste: soup with coconut and ginger; fritters with various sauces including an airy lemon mousse; carpaccio with foie gras with passion fruit dressing; and a creamy roast. Each course was paired with appropriate wines by the glass and followed by souffles for dessert and a bright green digestif. It was a lobster feast like no other, and a stunning reminder just how unbelievably high the level of cuisine is in Grand Case. Consider this note a mere amuse-bouche for the full-size report coming up in our June/July issue titled "Hooked on St. Martin." Cheers.