Additional News About the St. Barth Restaurant Scene for the 2015 Season As Well As the “Seen” on the Island

Still more new or reinvented restaurants have opened this season, so I continued my mission to check them out and report to you. This blog features Provença.

Provença is a new restaurant that is located next to the Wall House museum on the La Pointe side of Gustavia where the Wall House restaurant used to be. Under new ownership, the menus for both lunch and dinner are creative.

On our first visit, we shared the Mediterranean Crisp Tomato Tart Provença appetizer and enjoyed it very much. The Sea Bass was flaky and flavorful.

Magda Votava, our St. Barth concierge and restaurant reservation guru, received the following review from one of our clients who dined there over the holidays.

“We enjoyed Provença very much. The food was outstanding –

• We shared the “Fresh Baby Octopus, just jumped with Garlic and parsley” to start – it was outstanding!
• Ellen ordered the “Duck Magret, Topping and sauce, Your Choice of Sides and Sauce” with French Fries and Porto and Fig sauce – the dish was perfectly prepared, but felt like the plate was not complete – it would have benefited from including a vegetable and a starch instead of only one side (vegetable or starch).
• I ordered the Snacked Red Mullet with Tapenade and Figs, Ratatouille, which was great, but again would have benefited from being served with a vegetable and a starch, instead of only being served with the vegetable (ratatouille)
• We skipped dessert (too full)
• Espresso was good. Vanilla and/or Ginger Rhum were offered.”

Note: If you want a second side, you can order one for 6 euros.

Look for the Cicada sign to the left of the item. It indicates that the recipe is an authentic one from Provence. Chef de Cuisine, Thomas DESTINÉE and Second de Cuisine Cédric LABLANCHE create flavorful dishes. General Manager Marie PECOUL is from Provence and explains the menu in detail.

On our second visit, we too shared the octopus appetizer and it was indeed outstanding. For our main course, we each chose the Prawns Flambéed with Pastis, and “Forbidden” Black Rice. We learned that during the days of the Ching and Ming dynasties, Forbidden Rice was solely reserved for the Chinese Emperors. People thought it guaranteed well-being. In due course, commoners were allowed to consume the rice. Now a favorite dish, it is reputed to promote longevity and good health. It is delicious as is the shrimp. Give Provença a try and let me know your thoughts.

As far as the “Seen” part of this blog is concerned, I think you will enjoy the following photos of what you can stumble upon while you are out and about in St. Barts.