Reggae Beach Bar, Turtle Beach, St. Kitts

This is the place for limin’. I first learned of the Reggae Beach Bar on an earlier visit to St. Kitts, when Nancy and I were hosting Debbie and Jeremy McMullen. Jeremy suggested a trip to Reggae, so we all hopped into a cab and off we went. After a mile or two we stopped at a mountaintop overlook where a Kittitian entrepreneur was selling beer. Jeremy and I had one each, and we all proceeded to the beach. Everything there was wonderful, especially with Jeremy’s lively wit and sense of humor. What a great day!

You can’t recreate a day with Jeremy, but one with Ella and Lily is a treat. We took a cab, forwent the Morning Beer en route, and on the way focused instead on the spectacular views dotted with mega yachts and mansions. We arrived and were greeted by the incomparable Maia who arranged our day for us. Here’s the deal. You hand them a credit card and your wish is their command. Chairs and umbrellas appear as if by magic, as does whatever you want whenever you want it from a friendly staff alert to any possible irritation or need. The Reggae Beach Bar is a great place to experience the Kittitian idea of “Liming,” of settling back and enjoying life, the usual stress of the world set aside. You settle at the end of the day — or as you go if you haven’t yet achieved limin’ — surprised that it didn’t cost more.

The Reggae Beach Bar is not a particularly impressive structure,

but it’s head and shoulders above the other beach bars. If you get hot, the interior is deeply shaded and open to catch the breezes. Cold beer, crisp wine, and rum cocktails.

The water at Turtle Beach is a delight, crystal clear and just cool enough to refresh. Ella and Lily — well, Lily takes a nap on Liza or Nancy’s lap whenever she’s near water, but Ella was reassured by being able to see the sandy bottom. There were no sharks, crabs, jellyfish, or other untoward critters in the water, and Ella had a wonderful time swimming in open water rather than a pool. Once awake, Lily loved it, too.

It’s about time I got to the food. First, I verified that the beer was cold, and then Liza and I, never having had a passion fruit pina colada, each ordered one. We agreed that it was delicious, a step up from a standard pina colada. Thus prepared, I decided to start with the conch ceviche. There was a glitch in the conch supply chain, so no conch ceviche. I can have them prepare a mahi mahi ceviche. Please do.

Before we go any further, I want to tell you that the mahi ceviche may have been the best ceviche I’ve ever had.  The fish was utterly fresh, as were all of the other ingredients. It was tart, spicy, and, again, tasted oh, so fresh.

I surprised myself by ordering the curried chicken and potatoes wrapped in tasty roti, the Indian bread. Perhaps I was inspired by my dinner at Tiranga. The curry was a mild Island curry with a good flavor. An incendiary Scotch Bonnet pepper sauce was available to kick it up to vindaloo heat and well beyond. 

Liza and Nancy both had the grilled mahi mahi.

The fish was well seasoned and cooked just enough. It was the same as the ceviche fish, and was perfectly fresh.  The roasted vegetables also tasted good, as did my rice. Even Nancy, who was eating it while Lily took a nap on her lap, enjoyed the meal.

Ella had chicken fingers, and although there was ketchup on the table, Maia brought a special house-made ketchup for Ella that was sweeter than the commercial ketchup. Ella was limin’.

I’ve only been to the Reggae Beach Bar during the day. It gets livelier in the evening. There are various special events. Their Friday night Lobsterfest is always sold out, and there are other special menus. There’s often live music in the evening, and I imagine that it’s a great place for the more vigorous aspect of liming. We did not explore that. My salad days have wilted a good bit, and I’m perfectly happy to sit on the beach, swim in the cool, clear water, and enjoy the sensational food and drink. I may be able to think of better places for that than the Reggae Beach Bar, but why bother? If you go to St. Kitts, you must go to the Reggae Beach Bar. And try the ceviche.

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