# St Barts Forums > St Barts Trip Reports Forum >  >  Recap

## cassidain

It had been 2-1/2 years since our last venture down to the island, and I was feeling the need to test my interest in the place, to reconnect before too much time had passed. We had previously been in January, February, and the second half of April. We decided to try the very end of March/first of April. 

We have stayed in Vitet, Gouverneur, St-Jean, La Pointe, and Merlette, but wanted to try les Hauts de Saint-Jean this time. 

I studied the current restaurant scene for months and made a few reservations before coming down. 

So, first, what is our interest in returning? From December thru February, about 30%. To escape our mid-winter weather we will mainly choose Naples but will work St-Barth in every few years. The remainder of the year we will go elsewhere to get our annual French fix. Better. Cheaper. 

As for les Hauts de St-Jean, we enjoyed the convenience of its central location. The views encompass a broad sweep of the island. The activity of the airport is a daily source of entertainment. But, as always, make sure your accommodation's outside living areas are not sheltered from the cooling breezes. 

Restaurants, etc. We dined at Le Grain de Sel 3 times (2 lunches, 1 dinner). Le Piment at the bar 3 times (dinner). L'Isola 2 times (dinner). L'Esprit 1 time (dinner). La Gloriette 2 times (lunch). Le Bouchon 1 time (dinner). Le Sereno 1 time (lunch). At our appartement numerous times for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Every single experience was everything we wanted it to be. We were not solicited for a tip a single time. We left on average 10% in cash to our server or for l'èquipe. For efficient and charming effort beyond the standard. We discovered that we were tempted by La Guérite but at too late of a date to make it work. We had Orega and Tamarin on our maybe lists but couldn't get motivated to give them a try. We had François Plantation and Le Toiny on our maybe lists but finally decided their tariffs would feel too punitive. Boulangerie Choisy was disappointing to us this trip. Scoring fresh fish or langouste at la Poissonnerie was challenging even waking up at dawn. 

On a general level. We were not bothered by any construction noise, nor did we see a level of construction activity beyond our expectations. The nature of the island and its people remains constant with the way we recall it in the not too distant past. 

It was was a fun trip. And we finally met Dennis Carlton.  :Big Grin:

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## andynap

:thumb up:   I'm working on mine-too long - I have to cut it down.

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## amyb

Great review of your visit. Enjoyed bumping into you and Donna at a Gloriette lunch.

Safe travels wherever you go

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## KevinS

> It was was a fun trip. And we finally met Dennis Carlton.



Always a positive thing!

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## amyb

He adds to the island charm, for sure!  IMHO...

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## amyb

He adds to the island charm, for sure!  IMHO...

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## cassidain

Oh, I meant to include but forgot: the one thing I found beyond annoying and unsustainable is the volume of traffic. And the lack of common civility, not to mention normal rules of self-preservation, in driving behavior.

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## cec1

Great recap, Hank!  And a great, if brief, meeting at La Gloriette (with new found, mutual connections to Memphis!).

SBH Online has brought me together with so many kind, charming, diverse, & interesting people . . . and I'm grateful for the friendships developed with them & many fun times spent together.  You & Donna should return soon!

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## andynap

> Oh, I meant to include but forgot: the one thing I found beyond annoying and unsustainable is the volume of traffic. And the lack of common civility, not to mention normal rules of self-preservation, in driving behavior.



You join the chorus of posters- me included-  lamenting about the horrible traffic.

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## cassidain

Carambole became our go-to pâtisserie this time. Disappointed in Choisy quality.

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## dadto6

You can always go to La Petite Colombe  in Lorient if you need to use the bathroom  :Wink-slap:

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## cassidain

To add a little clarity, one of the strong negatives for us about Saint-Barth is that it is increasingly NOT a walking island. At our two favorite destinations we drive either not at all or very rarely. Walk or bicycle. The COM really needs to rekindle its sidewalk program. It is stalled. 75% of the island is between unsafe and suicidal for pedestrians. The lagniappe is, of course, that walking also gets cars off the street.

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## julianne

Agree. For us, the major negative change since we started going to the island in the late '80s is the increased traffic and size of vehicles. We like to walk and jog and find both activities less enjoyable in St. Barth now. I guess they can't limit the size of vehicles but they could certainly enforce speed limits and clamp down on hazardous driving.

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## stbartshopper

We too have observed the lack of safety in walking. Fortunately, since we always rent the same Villa in Pte. Milou, our daily long walks and jogs have been unimpeded by traffic. However elsewhere, even around Eden Rock and the walk from there to the shops in St. Jean- ugh!
Glad your trip was carefree and everything you wanted it to be!

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## cassidain

Juliana notes. 
Le Bistro by Bacchus is quite acceptable. Real wines. Good sandwiches on very good baguettes. Quality salads. Nespresso café. Comfortable seating. Same Bacchus as in Lorient. 
Usual strange assemblage of characters plus plein de Français. Parce que nous sommes au beau milieu des vacances scolaires de printemps ?

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## MIke R

The more I read, the more I am inclining towards hunkering down at the bungalow....walking to either Colombier or Flamand during the day for our beach time, avoiding St Jean  and Gustavia areas all together during the day  and just doing Gustavia at night .....sad that it's come to this - but it is what it is ...you get lemons you just  have to make lemonade

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## andynap

Gustavia at night is the worst traffic. It took me 15 minutes from Le Repaire to go around and back to the restaurant.

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## MIke R

Yeah  we won't put up  with that at all.......it will only happen  once 

we ll see

 it's also gonna be a little slower than when you were there too ...we ll see how that translates

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## Bart -my real name-

Cass -  No L'Isola or L'Esprit?  I thought those were two of your favorites?

Was there any weird smell on Le Piment?  I'm guessing 'no' since you ate there 3 times, but that was a complaint someone had a while back.

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## cassidain

> Cass -  No L'Isola or L'Esprit?  I thought those were two of your favorites?
> 
> Was there any weird smell on Le Piment?  I'm guessing 'no' since you ate there 3 times, but that was a complaint someone had a while back.



Oops ! Forgot L'Esprit. Just edited. L'Isola 2 times already on list. 
Love everything about L'Isola. Completely professional operation. The cuisine at L'Esprit was excellent. Washed down with quite good CdP blanc. It's just not a fun place for us. Feels up tight to us. 
No problem with sewer smell at Piment. Not really interested in regular table service there. Just bar. Érica and Laurie took very nice car of us (and we took nice care of them  :cool:  ) and we met nice/interesting folks at bar. Normally they want to just serve tapas at bar, mais ça dépend. . .

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## cassidain

Also pizza à emporter at L'Isoletta  :thumb up:  and Papa's

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## pascaleschmidt

The best walks are off piste.... Everytime I walked from St Jean to Gustavia and back, it felt like walking on a highway... dommage...

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## cassidain

i wanted to add that we rented thru sophie raffeneau, the owner of terre de saint-barth. elle est super sympathique. i can recommend her without reservation.

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## cassidain

One final reflection. Not only does Bacchus in Lorient carry the complete line of Nespresso capsules (dozens) but for your assiette de charcuterie selections i don't think there's a better source. Imported from France to their St-Martin location then expertly sliced and vacuum packed there before being sent to St-Barth boutique. Maybe half a dozen choices of jambons crus et saucissons secs.

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## Chipper

Nice report Cass! Thanks!

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## stbartshopper

We echo the excellent quality of charcuterie at Bacchus in Lorient. We have become Bacchus 'addicts.'

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