ST. MARTIN: DINING

Cheri's Cafe
Maho Bay
Dress code: casual
Reservations: optional
$-$$
This lively nightspot is also open for lunch and dinner (until midnight) and features American favorites such as burgers and sandwiches as well as pasta specials, seafood, and grilled steaks and chicken.

Rancho Argentinean Grill
011-5995-52-2495
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: suggested
$$-$$$
Housed in a thatched roof building, this large restaurant serves up Argentinean delights. Start with sangria or wine and some empanadas or chorizos criollos (Argentinean grilled sausage) and continue with the house specialty: steak. Sirloin, tenderloin, rib eye and T-bone served with side orders such as cebollas fritas (fried onions), maiz choclo (grilled corn on the cob), arroz criollo (seasoned rice), or plantos fritos (fried plantains) make for a genuine Argentinean meal.

Holland House
Philipsburg
011-599-52-2572
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: optional
$$
Dine on veal wiener schnitzel, beef brochette, duck a la orange, or Dutch pea soup at this waterfront restaurant located at the Holland House Beach Hotel. We especially enjoyed the appetizers: miniature chicken parmigiani and spicy sateh skewers of pork.

Chesterfields Restaurant
Philipsburg
011-599-52-3484
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: optional
$-$$
Enjoy a yacht club atmosphere in this waterside eatery which offers many excellent seafood dishes. Both indoor and outdoor seating is available.

Lynette's
Simpson Bay
011)-5995-52-2865
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: suggested
$$
The King Beau Beau Show, a calypso revue, livens this restaurant every Tuesday and Friday night. Any evening, however, you can find island favorites on the menu: Creole dishes, lobster, steak, fish and more.

Saratoga
Simpson Bay Yacht Club
011-5995-42421
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: suggested
$$$
Located right at the yacht club, this elegant restaurant features an ever-changing menu that highlights local ingredients. Start with Wild Mushroom Bisque of Fish soup with Rouille and Gruyere Cheese and then select a main course: Grilled Mahi-Mahi with Whole Grain Mustard Sauce, Sautéed Red Snapper Fillet with Garlic-White Wine Butter Sauce, or Grilled Duck Breast with Duck Confit, Basmati Rice, and Yellow Roast Yellow Pepper Sauce.

Le Bec Fin
Frontstreet, Philipsburg
011-599-52-25725
Dress code: casual
Reservations: no
$$This seaside restaurant has a casual downstairs eatery for breakfast and lunch and an upstairs section for an elegant dinner. Grilled lobster flambée, marinated duck breast, soufflés, and more tempt evening visitors. The lunch crowd enjoys quiche, burgers, fish sandwiches, and Neptune salads with sea scallops, smoked salmon, and marinated fish.
L'Escargot
84 Frontstreet, Philipsburg
011-5995-22483
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: optional
$$-$$$
Located right on busy Frontstreet, this French eatery features, you guessed it, escargot. Try the snails in garlic butter, in cherry tomatoes, baked in mushroom caps, or cooked up in an omelet. Seafood includes yellowtail filet sautéed in lemon butter, snapper in red wine sauce and shallots, and lobster. The specialty dish is Le Canard de "L'Escargot", a crisp duck in pineapple and banana sauce and winner of an award from Gourmet magazine. Open Monday through Friday for lunch and dinner; dinner only on weekends.

Wajang Doll
Philipsburg
011-5995-22687
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: suggested
$$
Rijstaffel is the order of the day at this delightful eatery that serves up delicious Indonesian dishes to satisfy even the pickiest of eaters. Choose from a 14- or 19-dish spread. Rijsttafel or "rice table", an Indonesian feast, is served and creates an evening of entertainment. Come with a big appetite to this spread. The meal begins with an appetizer of egg rolls followed by main courses such as sateh ajam, skewered chicken covered with a spicy peanut-flavored sauce, kerrie djawa (beef curry), daging ketjap (beef braised in soy and ginger sauce), and telor (egg in spiced coconut sauce.)
Passanggrahan
Philipsburg
011-5995-23588
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: suggested
$$
This guest house serves up a spicy menu: jumbo prawns Marco Polo (red and green bell peppers in cream sauce flamed with Pernod), Pla Pow (grilled whole snapper with Thai seasoning) and Thai chicken curry.