The Batelière Beach Club, on the waterfront on a beach in the town of Schoelcher, near Fort-de-France, looks like a large Robinson’s hut with its structure of raw wood with palm flowers. We let ourselves be lulled by the soft song of the waves, before the arrival of the plates turns the dream into a nightmare. That evening, half of the menu was unavailable (goodbye acras and grilled fish), the rib steak had the consistency of a sole (size 46) and the octopus a rubber hose. The prices, them, soar to nearly 30 euros per dish, which makes the postcard expensive.
Yet another beach restaurant collision that ends in shipwreck, as happens on all coasts. Except that in the West Indies the experience feeds a stubborn cliché. “We still think that our cuisine is imprecise, too greasy, too spicy, even the locals develop an inferiority complex”laments Suzy Palatin, author ofAt my Creole table (Hachette Cuisine, 2022), bringing together one hundred appetizing recipes.
Is culinary excellence incompatible with the Caribbean island? Obstacles exist: trainers tense on metropolitan fundamentals (we teach blanquette but not colombo), a volatile workforce and fishermen – often paid hand in hand – unable to ensure regularity of supply. In addition, the Michelin guide does not go there, and, since 2020, the Gault & Millau either. It is Le Petit Futé that serves as a culinary compass for tourists. The big names in Creole gastronomy, the Martinican Marcel Ravin and the Guadeloupe Babette de Rozières, have set up their main establishments, one on the Monegasque Rock, the other in the town of Maule (Yvelines).
However, the great Caribbean pot has everything to delight gourmets: Caribbean heritage, African influences, Indian spices, French technicality. And you have to trust the word-of-mouth of the many local gourmets to find good addresses. For a metropolitan, even bakeries invite you to get away from it all. At Kréyol Sandwich, in the town of Lamentin, you can discover pickled herring snacks drizzled with a spicy vinaigrette that electrifies the palate, as well as soft little “pâtés”, a kind of cod or Christmas ham pies , slightly caramelized. Elsewhere await even less conventional delicacies: sandwiches with pig’s snout or beef testicles, which are eaten poached with a touch of dog sauce (based on onion, cive, garlic and chilli).
You have 63.92% of this article left to read. The following is for subscribers only.