Traveling to St. Martin / St. Maarten

January 30, 2011 3:42 PM

St. Martin / St. Maarten filter: My wife and I are vacationing there from Feb. 8 to Feb. 13. Restaurant suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Also interested in general suggestions for things to do/see.

We'll be staying near Grand Case but will have a car so we can get pretty much anywhere. In case it matters, it's just the two of us (no kids) and we're in our early 30s. We're open-minded about trying all sorts of activities, but probably tend more toward the relaxed. Mostly interested in restaurant recommendations, though! Thanks so much.

P.S. I saw this helpful question, but it mostly focused on activities rather than restaurants.

posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell to travel & transportation around (5 answers total)

I can't offer any recommendations, I was only there for a few hours, but our company did a job there a few years ago and the rental car was broken into twice in a few days. Both a laptop and the replacement laptop were stolen. The police informed them this was very common. Just a reminder not to leave anything in your rental car.
posted by Yorrick at 4:11 PM on January 30, 2011

Hi, Conrad. The previous question, which you linked, was mine. There is great advice in there, but as requested I will focus here on restaurants.

We ate out several days and evenings in Grand Case, and all of our meals were at least good. Two places stood out: Le Pressoir and L'Estaminet.

Le Pressoir served French dishes in a classical style. My dish--the house specialty--featured 6 or 7 varieties of fish, each deliciously executed and brilliantly woven together with a light vanilla-scented sauce. They served a special and especially delicious meal.

L'Estaminet also served brilliantly executed dishes; however, this restaurant's technique was more contemporary. In addition, the service here was the best we received in St. Maarten. Like so much of the rest of the island, the service was focused but still friendly and fun. However, the women who run this restaurant really knew how to make our time at the restaurant an unforgettable experience. Do not miss this restaurant, and do not miss the standout chocolate dish, which comes with a variety of small chocolate desserts.

For a delicious, cheap snack, do not miss Hilma's Windsor Castle on the main road leading away from the airport. Delicious Johnny Cakes and salt fish!

Have a beautiful trip.
posted by kevin-o at 4:25 PM on January 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Awesome, kevin-o! Thanks so much. I assume you had a fantastic time. Also, if you care to offer any advice about other activities you did, I'd be really grateful.
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 4:35 PM on January 30, 2011

Do you like airliners? Maho Beach is right at the end of a runway at Princess Juliana airport.
posted by Sallyfur at 6:17 PM on January 30, 2011

We had an amazing trip, and spent a fair amount of time in Grand Case, which is just packed with restaurants. While we didn't make it to the two places kevin suggested, we had an amazing dinner at Le Ti' Provençal. We also had a very nice dinner at another Grand Case spot, Le Tastevin. We also enjoyed dinner at Temptation, a place on the Dutch side. The one place we went to that I would not particularly recommend was L'Oizeau Rare in Marigot.
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 5:16 PM on March 20, 2011