Our second night here on the island we headed over to The SUGAR MILL which is a beautiful spot with a very ruined sugar mill but great service in an elegant setting across the street from the luxurious Half Moon Resort, where my sister spent her first honeymoon in 1970!
We had fabulous drinks at the bar beforehand with Stephon and our friend Ronnie discovered her new local drink favorite Campari & Ting (a local grapefruit soda). We moved to our table just below the mill and settled in with the huge menus and then our fabulous server Keneisha surprised us with a duck special and we had to rethink our choices. Dwight was a trainee (his last name was Downer!) and he brought delicious homemade breads: white, wheat, spicy, thyme with cornmeal and festive(a slightly sweet cornmeal) along with three dips: avocado, yogurt & onion; beetroot and yogurt; spicy escabeche which we loved.
We ordered a white and red wine (again at exorbitant prices) starting with a Sassoregale 2022 Vermintino from Tuscany and moving on to a delicious Marques de Murrieta 2020 Reserva Rioja.
The food was all beyond delicious and everything was served with perfect timing and no rush. Cassava Crepe came with ackee, pak choi and oven thyme-roasted pumpkin with a roasted cho-cho chutney. The Jamaican salad was a ton of Romaine with Jerk Cashews, Breadfruit cracker, tomatoes and a Garlic-Plantain dressing that would embarrass a good Caesar. The Pimento Wood Smoked Marlin Tartare was out of this world with Hackleback Caviar(I couldn't find it), baby greens and Tomato Salsa and the Crayfish Bisque with Annatto & Seaweed was poured tableside and was absolutely melt in your mouth creamy heaven.
The main courses were just as thrilled with the Lemon Jerk Marinated Chicken Supreme being on the spicy side with Pommery Dijon Mustard, Bhutan Berry(?), Lime Juice, Rice & Peas Risotto. Fried Plantains with Maple Syrup were a side I like but declared to be too undercooked by some. The Soloman's Brochette was a huge show flambeed tableside with aged Rum and the skewer had beef (that was cooked so just past rare and tender!), pork, sausage (Will's fave) fish and lobster (that was as tender as could be).
The Pan Seared Duck Breast Special came with blueberry sauce, jerk potatoes au gratin that were oh so rich and creamy, grilled asparagus and spicey fruit chutney, a dream duck dish indeed.
Guess what...we were pretty stuffed so only one Vegan Chocolate Cake and a scoop of Coconut Ginger Sorbet were the desserts.
The meal was not just a step above the night prior, it was a whole different level, and we hope the food is as good for the coming days.
