Papiamento Restaurant

Description:

• Originally from Holland, the Ellis family has served award-winning Caribbean food in their 200-year-old cunucu (farm) home for almost 2 decades. Over the years, tables have spilled out from the thick-walled, antiques-filled interiors to the large fairy-lit palm garden. At twilight, birds serenade outdoor diners around the luminescent pool. Diaphanous cotton swathes the rattan chairs, and white eyelet tablecloths add to the tropical elegance. When Beatrix, queen of the Netherlands, is in Aruba, she sups inside on the former veranda, now dubbed the Queen's Room. Capers, caviar, basil, passion fruit, and radicchio garnish the smoked salmon appetizer. The crudités platter features prosciutto, aged Gouda, and marinated peppers and onions. If you're lucky enough to be around during the season, order Brazil fish, a luscious, snapperlike delicacy that's caught only in March and April. Lightly seasoned with pepper and garlic, it's cooked and served on a stone that's heated in a 600°F (316°C) oven. Mango, onion, and chile-pepper chutney accompanies pisca arubiana (fish Aruban-style). Best bets for dessert are cocobana, an ephemeral coconut mousse, and flaky-crusted Dutch apple pie. Coffee snobs, take note: Papiamento's espresso may be the island's best.

• © Frommer's 2012

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Highly Recommended 2010