Do you know how hard it is to return from a Caribbean vacation and make simple family-friendly food again when you’re still day-dreaming about Jerk shrimp and Keshi Yena? Incredibly hard!  Though it’s a tiny island, Aruba boasts a large variety of cuisine prepared by world-class chefs offering a range of casual to elegant to personalized experiences!  Whether you crave fresh catch of the day, Spanish Tapas, delicacies, or hearty home cooking, there are some amazing Aruba Dining Options at your fingertips.  You’ll find yourself in foodie heaven eating your way through Aruba!

L.G. Smith’s Steak and Chop House  Our first island dining experience started right inside our own hotel.  Located in the Renaissance Aruba resort overlooking Oranjestad’s Marina, L.G. Smith’s Steak and Chop House delivers on flavor and atomosphere!  It’s here we were introduced to the local beer, Balashi.  My husband loved it’s hoppy aroma and soft bitterness and it became his beer of the week ordering whenever he could! Fresh bread and butter started our meal and we shared the tortilla soup and a garden salad.
An upscale dining experience yet relaxed atmosphere made this spot something we’d come back to, then our meal solidified that opinion!  We love sharing big meals, so we fed eachother  shredded pork crostini with a sweet mango chutney and tangy balsamic glaze and the 80z Certified Angus Beef  Prime Top Sirloin Baseball!  Cooked perfectly medium well for us, the sirloin was amazingly tender and literally the size of a baseball!  Our servers were very attentive and as guests of the hotel, signing our tab to our room was easy!  You can find live jazz music weekends at L.G. Smith’s.

De Suikertuin Our media group ventured the next morning for breakfast at De Suikertuin a quaint Dutch restaurant.  Classic breakfast and lunch choices include bagels, croissants, bacon and eggs and baguette sandwiches, salad, soup, and wraps.  Locals love the Dutch pancakes and Hotchpotch stew that changes weekly.I ordered the Dutch pancake and it’s about as big as my head.  No, bigger!  It was divine, stuffed with bacon and banana, sprinkled with powdered sugar and the Schenkstroop deep and rich syrup…WOW is about how I sum it all up! A wonderful breakfast with American coffee, well worth it and definitely shareable!

Matthew’s Beachside Restaurant Located at the Casa del Mar beach resort, we came upon this great spot on the beach just after a rainstorm.  Unfortunately we didn’t dip our toes in the sand under a palapa, but we did have some nice cocktails and I had a delicious Caprese Salad for lunch.  Great variety of appetizers, Seafood soup, salad, pizza, salmon sandwiches, grouper and kebabs.  3 Happy Hours a day, Rib Tuesdays, Italian night, and  Romantic Sunset Dinners 6 days a week, Matthew’s has something for everyone.

Bugaloe Beach Bar and Grill On the water of Palm Beach with a grand view of the Riu Resort, Bugaloe was one of our pitstops before dinner.  Named one of the 10 Best Beach Bars in the Caribbean by Cruiseline.com, our visit included appetizers, cocktails, and a few minutes of dancing.  I have to mention the snack platter with calamari, shrimp, onion rings, and crab and tuna salads, so fresh and so refreshing on this warm evening.  This is a fun location that I’d love to revisit!

The Kitchen Table Imagine a 16-seat dining area surrounding a large square ‘kitchen table’ with chefs preparing an ultimate 7-course gastronomic experience and wine pairing using intricate tweezer-like tools to plate gorgeous creations.  It was quite a surreal vision. Chef Urvin Croes directs the restaurant and uses locally sourced ingredients and home grown vegetables and herbs.  Aruban Snack Trio of Cachapa, shrimps croquette and chicken liver pate began our culinary adventure paired with Prosecco from Italy.  Freckadel is a pan fried fish cake with a creole dressing served with a French Rose.  Carni Stoba is a braised veal cheek with rabbit shaped carrots and funchi chips. I was so thrilled to see half of the wines paired were from Santa Barbara, Sonoma, and Monterey all within driving distance from my home.  To know how powerful California wines impact cuisine internationally makes me love my home so much more!  We culminated our evening with a Ponche Crema creme brulee with tres leches rum vanilla ice cream.  Open just this past August 1 at the Blue Residences condo resort, visit http://www.bluearuba.com/to learn even more.

Rent a Chef Bas We visited Boardwalk Small Hotel Aruba and enjoyed a catered lunch by Rent a Chef Bas Kuurstra.  Specializing in private dinners and personalized service, Bas can prepare small romantic dinners to super luxury 10-course dinners all in the comfort of your home away from home while staying on Aruba for vacation!Chef Bas prepared a typical Aruban main course of Keshi Yena.  This was like a hearty comfort food I would associate with a holiday supper consisting of Gouda olives, raisins, capers, and spices, baked with chicken.  Topped with a tangy pickled cucumber, I was so satisfied at lunch I wanted to jump into one of the Boardwalk’s hammocks for a nap!  For lunch-dessert we were treated to a Pan Bolo pop, a krioyo bread pudding that was moist with prunes and raisins topped with icing.

Screaming Eagle Hopping off the Kukoo Kanuku party bus, we arrived at the Screaming Eagle on Eagle Beach for dinner. With South Beach decor and French fusion cuisine your evening can even be served in bed!  The restaurant devotes one section to canopy beds strewn with white pillows, soft romantic lighting, and draped with white chiffon. Couples can kick off their shoes and cuddle up while enjoying sumptuous dishes laid out on wooden bed trays.

The carpaccio appetizers floated around the table as did the deep fried brie, world-class wines from their extensive menu.  I decided on steak (again) and Pepper Tenderloin came with a show, the flambé cart, positioned table-side for a dramatic preparation, makes everything even more spectacular.

I was asked about spice level and I love a good spice so I wanted it the spiciest, I was a little disappointed that it was fairly bland, but the steak was cooked to perfection.  My friend Alex ordered the Rock Lobster with pasta carbonara and bacon.  His sauce had a bigger kick than mine, it will be what I order the next trip!  The desserts were top notch, Lemon Pie, sorbet, trilogy of Chocolate Mousse to die for!

The West Deck  Probably my favorite spot on the island with it’s beachfront views, kind waiters, and a lovely owner by the name Anabela.  Greeting our group as well as a surprise visit by my husband, the owner made quite an impact on us as a passionate restaurant owner out to please the customer 100%.  Maybe it was the coconut mojito served in a coconut or the addicting flavor of the Caribbean Jerk Shrimp that I had, but I am still dreaming about The West Deck.  Really!  The sweet coconut milk rice and my favorite veggies, as you can see from the photo, it’s a perfect plate of food.    It was so good that as my group ventured to a different location for dinner that night, my husband returned for dinner at The West Deck for Jerk Chicken Wings and some great music from a local guitarist.  Located just a short walk from the Renaissance Aruba, if that was the only place to eat on the island, I’d be so happy! Te otro biaha!

Flying Fishbone  A warm breeze, toes in the sand, the water lapping at the shore.  All of this while we sit at a dining table with lovely wine options and great company.  The Flying Fishbone, with European cuisine and Caribbean flair, was our final stop for our trip and we ended on a great note.  With a caprese salad and Surf and Turf for our main course, I shared with my new friend Parm and we talked long into the evening in this relaxing restaurant that would be perfect for a romantic sunset dining experience.

If you’ve been to Aruba, share your favorite dining experience!

My meals were covered as part of the media trip, all opinions my own.  Many thanks for the hospitality offered!