CAP MAISON
GASTRONOMY IN St Lucia – Cap Maison
Craig and the chefs
IT IS baking hot even at 8 a.m. as I explore the sights and
smells of the Saturday market in Castries, St Lucia, which has been billed one
of the top three markets in the world by National Geographic. The stalls are
piled high with mangoes, yams and less familiar knobbly looking fruit and
vegetables. Luckily I am here with Craig Jones, the dreadlocked Welsh chef from
St Lucia’s Cap Maison hotel who is as familiar with all the local characters
here as he is with the soursops and the christophene. Craig brings hotel guests to the market to see
where he buys the food that will later grace the table at The Cliff at the Cap.
Everyone here seems to know him and is either trying to interest him in the
produce they are selling , or asking him
for a job in his famous kitchen
I first met
Craig in the summer when he was at Drakes ’ hotel Brighton as part of the international
chef exchange. Now back on his home territory,
the market tour is just one part of the ‘gastronomy holiday’ which Cap Maison offers.
Craig also arranges visits to the organic farms in St Lucia which supply
the hotel as well as giving cookery lessons back at the hotel.
Children love this hands-on experience too and learning about how food gets from farm to fork is a valuable lesson for them.
Cap Maison is rightly proud of its culinary reputation, as
the Cliff restaurant with views to Martinique to the north and Pigeon island to
the west is one of the most highly regarded on the island. Craig’s French influenced Caribbean cuisine includes
signature dishes such as his butter poached Caribbean lobster with mascarpone
enriched gnocchi .
Rock Maison
Guests can dine in the hotel’s Rock Maison, a private dining
area set over the rocks where champagne can be delivered in a basket via a zip-line (should that be a
sip-line?) with the waves crashing on every side. Manager Ross Stevenson tells
me that there has been no less than 29 proposals at this spot, and not one
engagement ring has gone overboard.
The hotel's other restaurant The Naked Fisherman Beach bar & grill is a toes in the sand
casual dining and beach bar with great cocktails.
The food and
wine experience continues in the Cellar Maison , where sommelier Robbie , who also calls himself a ‘Rummelier’, and
expert sommelier, Jasper Kok jointly
host a wine and rum pairing evening with a selection of wines from the
hotel’s 1200 bottle strong cellar and some of its fine rums. The drinks are served
with a selection of deli-style dishes.
The melting pot of colonial influences takes root in St
Lucia’s creole cuisine, and island’s
fertile volcanic soil sustains a rich diversity of plant and animal life,
enhancing the goodness of local dishes and the surrounding waters abound with
seafood.
A garden view room at Cap
Maison starts from £275 per night on a B&B basis (two sharing). www.capmaison.com; 020 8977 6099
British Airways and Virgin
Atlantic both fly to St Lucia from London Gatwick
