Interesting link on the art and science of pizza

While I am very much enjoying being a full-time student, it takes a lot of my energy. Consequently, I become lazy during downtime and all the free-time activities I used to be excited about--exploring my neighborhood, blogging, reading for fun, etc.--become sidelined in lieu of other things. Such as sleep and TV. Still, I found this link this morning while pondering what goes into a truly great pizza. See, the past couple of months while on summer vacation, I have eaten some truly delicious things...meals at Providence and Sushi Zo in Los Angeles, visits to the Cheeseboard in Berkeley, my mother's cooking, and various French pastries and breads in San Francisco. As a result, I have grown more critical of other foods that are not quite so delicious. I began wondering how one makes a really great pizza, and found that it was more complicated that I had imagined...

http://www.varasanos.com/PizzaRecipe.htm

Last dinner at Sol e Luna

We had a nice long dinner to end our trip. Highlights were the tuna carpaccio with red curry and seaweed and the lobster bisque with puff pastry. We love the tradition on the island of ending meals with a small sip of flavored rum.

The chandelier in our room

The Lolos, Part II

Guest Editor Jack

The Lolos are a famous institution in Grand Case, maybe even more than the fancy French restaurants which are nearby. The Lolos are outdoor BBQ stands with a variety of food options from chicken, steak, ribs, lobster, fish and shrimp. We ate at the Lolos on 3 separate occasions and were impressed with the food each time. We ended up trying grilled chicken breast, shrimp, red snapper and stuffed eggplant. Not to be outdone, the side dishes were also excellent, from curried rice, red rice and beans to salads. The lolos were a great way to find an inexpensive, yet filling lunch. The two lolos we ate at were Talk of the Town and Sky's the Limit.

Walk to Petite Cayes

One afternoon we went for a beautiful walk over a hill and on a rugged bleached coral trail to a hidden beach, Petite Cayes.

An afternoon at Friar's Beach

Jack and I spent our last afternoon here at Friar's Beach, lounging on beach chairs and watching children run away from the occasional five foot shorebreak.

The lolos, part I

Lolos are casual eateries around the island that serve Creole food with many grilled and seafood dishes. There is a group of them by the waterside in Grand Case. Jack will write about the food we had at Talk of the Town and Sky's the Limit, but I want to recount an entertaining incident we had while walking past one on Wednesday night with our friends Drew and Rachel.

After dinner, we strolled around Grand Case and a gentleman at one of the lolos began to tell us about his menu. After informing him we had eaten, he inquired where we were from. When we told him "Virginia", he launched into a discussion of the Chris Brown-Rihanna incident, becoming so passionate in his vitriol against Chris Brown that a woman at an adjacent lolo asked we wanted to call a taxi. I was impressed with how updated he was with his Hollywood gossip.

Au Grain du Sel

One place that we ended up eating at a couple of times was Au Grain du Sel, a pizza place on the left side of the road on the way to Embarcadere Pinel, which had paper menus and a bevy of flags on the outside but surprisingly good food. The tagliatelle tasted as if it were freshly made, and we enjoyed the carbonara sauce with bacon, although we agreed that we prefer an egg-based sauce to the bechamel-like sauce that we had. The pizza was also delicious and prompted a debate on how many slices of pizza one should eat. Every meal started with a small plate of little spicy olives.

Our home base

We have been staying at a little inn in the hills in Mont Vernon, a few minutes from the beach and situated above an estuary. We have fallen into a routine--wake up, breakfast on the balcony, go out for an excursion or stay in and read, get lunch, and go to the beach in the afternoon.

Le Bistro Nu

One night we had dinner in Marigot, which is the capital of the French side of St. Martin. We had quite a time trying to find Le Bistro Nu. We found it while driving on the main highway which runs from Grand Case to Marigot, and on to the Dutch side. We continued on the highway, past the first turn-off to Marigot and around the round-about. We then found the restaurant hidden on a little alley across from the stadium, close to a Moroccan restaurant.

Inside there were wood paneled walls, ceiling fans, red-checkered tablecloths and modern art posters. Our host created a relaxed atmosphere and we enjoyed a bottle of pinot from Burgundy. We started dinner with oysters on the half shell with a mignonette, then Jack had Boeuf Bourguignon with buttery mashed potatoes and I had tuna tartar with frites. We ended up liking the entree we hadn't ordered better...I couldn't stop eating the comforting beef stew, which reminded me of the Vietnamese dish Bo Kho, except the sauce here was more wine-based. We ended up sharing creme brulee. Dinner was very enjoyable with classic French food as well as low-key.