Grenada - Flaming Swords!

On the morning VHF net there was an announcement for a dinner at a local restaurant where the meal would be served on a flaming sword. How could we pass that up? So we made a reservation and Thursday night we headed over to Le Phare Bleu for a fabulous meal. The restaurant and marina is just one bay over to the east so it wasn't far. The owners of the marina have added a very distinctive feature to set the marina apart: a beautifully restored lightship which houses the marina facilities as well as an upscale restaurant. For those of you unfamiliar with lightships, they served as a guide for vessels wherever the currents or shifting shoals prevented building a lighthouse. The ship at Le Phare Bleu, Vastra Banken, was built in 1900 and was active as a lightship until 1970. It's 28 meters long and something like 250 tons. Since 1970 it has been used as a cafe, a houseboat (big house!), and finally it was loaded onto a container ship and brought here to Grenada to serve as the centerpiece of the Le Phare Bleu Marina.

When we arrived we were offered champagne glasses and invited to take a look around. We headed to the upper deck to enjoy the twilight and the cool ocean breeze. After the sun set our hostess Veronika invited us down to the dining room, where we were seated and served delicious bread and appetizers. Finally the moment arrived for the flaming swords (we have video - it's no Errol Flynn swordfight but it's still pretty cool). The swords were presented by Chef Alexander Sattler (Veronika's husband) and the food was excellent (seared tuna, beef fillet medallions, chicken and shrimp). They kept making more and bringing the swords around for seconds and thirds. We were almost too stuffed for dessert, but we managed to save room for the fruit sorbets and espresso chocolate mousse. Yum. Afterwards, Chef Alex drove us back over to Clarkes Court and it was interesting to hear the challenges he faces running an upscale restaurant here in Grenada. We had a great time, plus how often do you go to a four-star restaurant and get chauffeured home by the executive chef? Only in Grenada.