The Saint Martin Tourism Office team poses at the entrance to Baratié Restaurant. (Robert Luckock photo)
MARIGOT--The Saint Martin Tourism Office invited the press to a dinner at the intimate Baratié Restaurant in Concordia on Saturday as part of its promotion for the upcoming fifth Festival de la Gastronomie, scheduled for November 11-22.
Owned by the festival’s local Chef Ambassador Shane Huggins, the restaurant offered an exquisite three-course dinner highlighting the flavours, savoir faire and talent that Saint Martin possesses. Aside from the presence of Chef Huggins, Yolène Peyrard, winner of the 2024 Mixology Contest, created a passion fruit tonka margarita welcome cocktail, in keeping with this year’s star ingredient, passion fruit.
The programme for the festival this year was explained in detail by Tourism Office President Valérie Damaseau, Director Aïda Weinum and other staff members in between courses. The successful formula for the event is largely unchanged.
“Each dish and every flavour on your plate reflects our vision, a vibrant island proud of its diversity, creativity and passion,” Damaseau said in her introduction.
Local chef ambassadors for the 2025 edition are Shane Huggins, Gaëlle Mussington, Danitza Dormoy, Kénila Hyman, Kareem Brooks, Ashanta Daniel and Angela Marcenat.
Familiar names returning include the judging team for the Mixology Contest, Arthur Sutley, Mia Mastroianni and Phil Wills; President of the jury for the Food Trucks and Private Chefs competition Jason Santos; and Kevin Bludso, President of the jury for the BBQ competition.
Michelin-starred chef Laurent Huguet is once again the godfather of the festival. Invited international chefs who will be taking part in workshops and other aspects of the festival are coming from France, the USA, Guadeloupe, Africa, Martinique, and St. Lucia.
The Taste of Sunrise pre-event will be held at Loterie Farm from 9:00am to 3:00pm November 9. Local chefs preparing this brunch will be Danitza Dormoy, Shane Huggins, Ashanta Daniel, Kenila Hyman, Kareem Brooks, Gaelle Mussington and Angela Marcenat. Entry fee is 35 euros including a welcome drink. Dress code is purple and yellow, the colours of passion fruit.
The Festival launch will be on the Grand Case Boulevard on November 10 from 6:00pm. No entry fee.
Wine and Cheese pairing events are on November 12 and 19. Participating establishments include Totem Wines, Le Comptoir des Fromages, Le Gout du Vin (Hope Hill) and Le Gout du Vin (Marigot). Reservations should be made with the individual establishments.
The charity evening at Lycée Daniella Jeffry will be on November 20. Three chefs will be preparing the menu, an entrée by Xavier Isabel, main dish by Laurent Huguet, and dessert by Angela Marcenat. The Lycée competition on November 15 will see six students from the hotel and catering section create and cook a menu, judged by international and local chefs. The price for the meal is not yet set. The winning student wins a trip to France to visit a famous restaurant.
Also on November 20, Food and Cocktail pairing will take place at Marina Fort Louis from 7:00pm to 11:00pm. Shane Huggins will be preparing an appetizer, entrée by Rafael Pires, main dish by Vladimir Francois-Maikouva and dessert by Jimmy Bibrac. Entry fee for this exceptional evening is 100 euros for the dinner, drinks and cocktails. The event is open to 60 persons and spots are selling fast.
The popular cooking workshops at Marina Fort Louis will be taking place on November 15, 16, and 17. Entry fee for the children’s workshop is 50 euros, adult workshop 100 euros, and Sip N’ Cook workshop 110 euros. All of the invited international and local chefs will be imparting their skill and knowledge to the participants.
The Gastronomy Village will be open on the Marigot waterfront on November 14 and 15, from 5:00pm until midnight on Friday and 3:00pm to midnight on Saturday. The village will highlight local restaurant stands, food trucks and street food, caterers, local home grown products, liqueurs and desserts. There is an entry fee this year of 5 euros per day.
Due to the popularity of the BBQ competition on November 16, this event held on Rue de la République, Marigot, will start much earlier, from midday until midnight instead of 5:00pm last year. There is no entry fee. There will be 11 BBQ cooks participating.
The Private Chefs competition will be held at Villa Les Jardins de Bellevue on November 12 and 13, and the Food Truck competition at the Gastronomy village on November 15. Five chefs are participating. This competition is open to the public by reservation. Entry fee is 15 euros.
The main change to the festival format this year is for the “Best Table of Saint Martin” competition. Instead of judges visiting the participating restaurants, this time the four restaurant categories will be split into groups of 10 and will be judged live at Marina Fort Louis, on November 18, 19 and 21, in front of the public. The entry fee to watch is 5 euros.
On November 18, Beach Stars will be judged at 9:00am, Authentic Stars at 12:00pm, and Dessert category at 4:00pm.
On November 19 it will be the turn of Gourmet Stars at 12:00pm and City Stars at 4:00pm.
The finals take place on November 21 with the winners of each category facing off against each other. Their dishes will be judged by a blindfolded jury composed of international chefs. Some 31 restaurants are participating.
Also at Marina Fort Louis on November 21 will be the Mixology Finals, with eight establishments registered. This competition is also open to the public with entry at 5 euros.
The closing night in the Gastronomy Village on November 22 is from 7:00pm until midnight. Entry fee for the public is 150 euros, which includes unlimited food tastings, cocktails, activities and musical entertainment. Some 12 chefs from the islands have also been invited to showcase their national dish.
With regard to the cashless bracelet system, this will be used for the Taste of Sunrise, the Gastronomy Village, and the BBQ competition. For those who still have unused credit on the bracelet, this can be reimbursed by credit card, not cash, up until December 22, 2025. The balance on the bracelet can be checked anytime by going to the dedicated site. It is also possible to create an account and obtain the bracelet before the festival.
