St. Barths "Ocean" for Dinner

Last night we tried the fairly new St. Barths restaurant, “Ocean,” for dinner. It’s almost across the street from Eddy’s, and serves mainly seafood. We went to this restaurant after a cocktail party hosted by Wimco, the company that rents out dwellings, such as villas, to St. Bart’s tourists. At the cocktail party we had fun chatting with John, chief moderator on the St. Bart’s website, and his wife Suzy, as well as other Wimco customers. Ocean has a small staff and a bright, white interior space. After placing our order one of the waiters brought us an extra treat, an‘amuse bouche,’ as the French say; this was a tiny glass of asparagus cream soup. Then our wine from the Loire Valley arrived, a Chteau de Targe 2010 rouge, with a spice-like, fruity flavor. It suited Jim’s appetizer, the curried king crab with avocado slices. My lobster salad had perhaps too many red peppers and corn to my taste, but it was accompanied by a small salad. Jim loved his entrée, the scallops sautéed in butter with a roe sac attached to each one, served along with a puree of parsnip and squash. Unfortunately my entrée, the risotto, though tasty, was too salty and though I enjoyed the clams and mussels on the dish, the predominant octopus was tough, not cooked enough. However, my dessert was a scrumptious chocolate soufflé, and Jim enjoyed his Key Lime concoction, a variation on the pie which is so popular in the Caribbean. –Dan