We had an uneventful flight, and picked up our rental car. While on the plane, reading the "Welcome to Aruba" magazine that they hand you as you board, we had made a list of five restaurants we wanted to try, and El Gaucho Argentine steak house was open for lunch, so we made it our lunch place for today. I ran into trouble navigating around Oranjestad. Most of the streets are not identified by name, and many are one way. I finally got us to El Gaucho after having to double quite a way back. We both had the signature gaucho steak. The steak was excellent -- there was no fat or gristle at all. It was great with a sauce of garlic and fresh spices. But the vegetables were even better: Red potatoes with grilled onions, peppers, and carrots; buttered broccoli; and corn on the cob that had been fire grilled somehow and was so tender it dissolved off the cob into our mouths. They have a Vegetarian Platter on the menu. This is a steak house, and they have a Vegetarian Platter on the menu. I'd give it a try. One thing, though: The ice tea is instant, not real. To add insult to injury, it's very strong instant. It is, in a word, vile. Yes, vile is the word for it. We just drank water. Don't drink the tea.
Today got off to a dismal start. We had decided that today would be a beach day, but when we woke up there wasn't much sun, and as the morning went on the clouds thickened. So we switched to Plan B (you should always have a Plan B): Eat at one of our four remaining target restaurants and visit some of the sights we wanted to see.
Heading into downtown Oranjestad, we quickly found that three of our restaurants were inexplicably closed. They had posted hours and should have been open, but they weren't. So we set off to find the fourth, which was supposed to be in San Nicolas, the second biggest city on the island. But we couldn't even find San Nicolas. Or at least, we couldn't be sure when we were there. It was very frustrating. The streets here are still not marked (since yesterday), and we never had any idea where we were. To top it off, it began to rain. Returning to Oranjestad, we found our three still closed. Then we tried to stop by two grocery stores, only to find that both had closed (it being Sunday) at 1:00 pm.
We were down to, like, Plan E by this time, so we went to Plan F (sometimes you find you need a Plan F): Return to Paradise Beach Villas, the resort where Judi had stayed last year, and have grilled gouda cheese sandwiches, which Judi remembered as being very good.
We got there, and got in during a lull in the rain. Seating was outside, but under a roof. The rain returned, and we got misted a couple of times, but it was tolerable. Besides the grilled goudas, we ordered a potato item off the appetizer menu that sounded sorta like potato skins.
Judi's memory had not failed us: The grilled gouda sandwiches were great, the fries were good, and the potato wedges (which was more what they were like), covered in melted gouda and grilled bacon and onions and peppers, were magnificent! We may well go back just for these.
And, as if it were possible to improve on this perfect experience... they had real ice tea! With limes! Delirium ensued.
Then it was change into clothes and drive to Oranjestad for lunch at one of the places on our short list: Carlos and Charlie's. This is a pretty famous place that you can read about elsewhere. Among other things, it's the place where Natalee Holloway was last seen. If you don't know who Natalee Holloway was, don't worry about it. It's not a big deal. For me, I'll limit myself to talking about just two things: The volume, and the food.
The volume (as in sound) was loud. Not from the patrons -- the place was almost empty -- but from the sound system. At times we had to shout to hear each other. Note to Carlos and Charlie: This does not make for a pleasant dining experience.
Now for the food: They really push their ribs, but we had a coupon for free ribs appetizer if we ordered two lunches, so we decided to order other things and try the ribs appetizer, just to broaden our horizons, don't you know? At least with respect to the food at Carlos and Charlie's.
So Judi ordered the Tequila Fish (fish filet sauteed in butter, onions, coriander, garlic, serrano peppers, lime juice), and I ordered a steak grilled in soy sauce, orange, lemon juice, and garlic. And, of course, the ribs appetizer.
So... they brought us a nachos appetizer. Hello! Can't you tell ribs from nachos? The nachos were whisked away and after a bit replaced with ribs.
The ribs were good. Not as good as Beau-Beau's on St. Maarten, but good. Meaty. Not as meaty as Beau-Beau's on St. Maarten, but meaty. Tender. Not as tender as Beau-Beau's on St. Maarten, but tender. And the sauce was flavorful. Not as wonderful as Beau-Beau's on St. Maarten, but flavorful. If you go into Carlos and Charlie's in Oranjestad and order the BBQ ribs, you won't be having the most wonderful ribs in the Caribbean, but I promise you won't be disappointed, either.
Then our meals arrived. My steak was good, but I wouldn't order it again, and I wouldn't recommend that you do. You could do better. You could order the ribs. Or you could do even better than that, and order the Tequila Fish, as Judi did.
The Tequila Fish was "amazing." I put "amazing" in quotes because it isn't my word, it's Judi's. I lost count of how many times she used it to describe her meal. I do know that she called it "Maybe the best fish I've ever eaten" only once, but you know that counts for something, too.
And she was right. She generously split it with me, so I got to enjoy it, too. The Tequila Fish at Carlos and Charlie's in Oranjestad is worth tolerating the volume of sound. And if you don't like fish, you can't go wrong with the ribs. Pass on the steak.
Oh, and pass on the (fake) "tea," too. The quest for real ice tea is a long and arduous one, and Carlos and Charlie aren't going to help you on your journey. We drank lemonade and water.
Speaking of lunch, we struggled through the traffic and broke a couple of laws to get a parking spot and eat at Cafe Bahia in Oranjestad. On Judi's suggestion, we each had the Keeshi Yena for an appetizer. Supposedly, in the old days, ships from Europe bearing cheese were few and far between. The locals ate the rounds of cheese from the inside out, until only the rind was left. Not wanting to waste anything, and not knowing when the next shipment would arrive, they stuffed the empty rind with what they had and baked it and ate it. That was what became Keeshi Yena. Never fear, however: Today we do not eat cheese rinds. Instead, Keeshi Yena is a sort of chunky cheese casserole, and it's heavenly.
For our entrees, Judi just ordered another round of Keeshi Yena. I had the Aruban Beef Stew, which we both agreed was most excellent. It came with a side of peas and rice, which was so-so.
The ice tea was real, but laced with lime juice, which was actually pretty good (we each had two glasses, which we had to pay for separately), but make sure you try it before you add lime or sweetener. You never know what you've getting into.
Lunch was at The Islander, La Cabana's poolside restaurant. We tried the potato wedges topped with cheese as an appetizer, and they were okay but forgettable. There, I've forgotten them. Then we had burgers. The burgers were nothing short of fabulous. First, the burgers themselves were huge. And they were lumpy and uneven -- obviously hand-formed, which is always better. And they were perfectly cooked -- well done but still juicy. And the meat had a great flavor somehow. I got mine topped with onion rings, and when it was delivered to our table there were so many onion rings that I swear the distance from the top edge of the bottomside bun to the bottom edge of the topside bun was a good six inches. It was held together, not by a toothpick, but by a skewer. I kid you not.
Judi got the bacon burger, and we added cheese, and there was so much bacon on her burger that the spread from bottom-bun to top-bun was, if not quite as impressive as mine, still four or five inches.
We squashed our burgers down as far as we could and stretched our mouths as wide as we could and proceeded to enjoy ourselves to no end.
And as if this experience couldn't be any better, the ice tea was real, the most excellent tasting tea we have had on the island so far, and refills were free!
The service was excellent, too.
Next stop was Oranjestad for lunch. Starting to get to know my way around, I missed the worst of the traffic and we got a parking spot. Lunch was at Iguana Joe's, which claims to have the best ribs in the entire Caribbean. Naturally we couldn't let a statement like that go untested, so we both had the ribs, with sides of mac and cheese. But before I get to that, we had an appetizer of cheese and "calaloo" (I think) dip. The menu said calaloo was an Aruban plant, like spinach, so this was a sort of native cheese and spinach dip.
It was terrific. Besides the calaloo and the cheese, it had artichokes and other stuff, and some kind of spicing, and it was yummy. It came with green tortillas that had been toasted just a little to make them a bit stiff, but they weren't hard like chips. We spread the dip on the tortillas and spent a little while in Heaven. We didn't leave a drop on the plate. I was tempted to lick it clean.
Back to the ribs and mac and cheese: The ribs were very good, but I don't think they were the equal of Beau Beau's in taste, meatiness, or tenderness, and since St. Maarten is still in the Caribbean, as far as I'm concerned that settles that. However, they were still good. Judi wasn't even so sure that they weren't as good as Beau Beau's, so there you have a second opinion, but I'm sure of it myself.
The mac and cheese was outstanding.
The ice tea was real, brewed, and excellent, and came with free refills! Yay for real ice tea and free refills!
Lunch was once again at The Islander. I had the Onion Burger again, and it was just as great. I forgot to mention that they put cucumbers on the burgers at The Islander. When I was growing up, my mother used to put cucumbers on our burgers, and that made The Islander's burgers special for me.
Judi had an inexplicable attack of "be healthy" and ordered a Greek salad. I don't know what comes over that girl sometimes. If I had a magic wand I could un-hex her. (I've been reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince on this trip.)
The Islander is an outdoor restaurant, so naturally birds fly in to pick up some lunch. The staff clears and wipes the tables with alacrity, I think to discourage the birds. There are also prominent signs asking (ordering) us to not feed the birds (or the lizards). But, as you would guess (if you knew her), Judi was an agent of the Revolution, always ready to break the rules in order to aid the poor and the downtrodden: She smuggled bits of bread and fries under the table and tossed them to what eventually became a horde of adoring feathered fans. She was careful to treat each bird fairly, making sure than no one got more bites than any other.
It kept her busy.
Today was our last day in Aruba. We were sad to leave. We spent the morning packing and then had our final lunch at Iguana Joe's. This time (after another wonderful Cheese and Calaloo Dip) we both had the Keshi Jena (I know they spell it differently than Café Bahia, but anyway it's pronounced kay-shay yeh-nah), which is an entree here, not an appetizer. The Keeshi Yena at Cafe Bahia is great. The Keshi Jena at Iguana Joe's is beyond great. They line the bottom and sides of a bowl with a think layer of cheese, then fill it with a curried mixture of chicken, green olives, capers, raisins, and spices, then top it with another thick layer of cheese and bake it. Did I mention cheese? Judi and I have made Iguana Joe's our new Keshi Jena place.
It came with a side of black beans and rice, and the black beans were rich and flavorful, but there was so much food we couldn't finish them. We even left a little of the wonderful Keshi Jena in the bowls. It was more than a mortal could eat.
Text and images © Copyright Gregory Smith or Judith Fulks 2005