Magical Mystery Tour, Part Two

The rain didn't diminish the brightness of the flamboyant trees

The weather was just starting to clear up when we left Savannah Gallery and headed east. Our first stop was, I think, Sandy Hill beach.  Or "Andy Hill," as our map was marked.  I was interested in seeing the eponymous beach for the first time after drinking so many of its namesake cocktails at Veya. It didn't look its best under the overcast skies, but I can see how this long stretch of sand would be very enticing under other circumstances.

It was just starting to rain again, so we scooped up a wee bit of sand and headed back to the main road. From there, we decided to seek out Sea Feathers beach.  We followed a road by the same name through a residential area.  We followed a side road every now and again, only to turn back and retrace our steps.  We did come out very near the water but not at a beach. No sand, but we did stay a moment to watch the waves.

Then it was back to the car, in search of one more beach to collect before stopping for lunch. We decided to look for Mimi's Bay, so we turned right off the main just beyond the Heritage Museum and wandered around.  Even with a slightly more detailed map than what usually comes in the rental car, we had trouble.  The roads weren't in great shape, and there were so many more gravel tracks than are indicated on the map. We got out of the car at one point and could hear the surf, so we just started walking, and before long, there was a little footpath down to the sand.  So we think that it was Mimi's Bay, but it's possible it was someplace else.

The beach itself was largely rocky before giving way to a coarse sand.  The wind was up and there was a real wildness there. I was intrigued by all of the textures there.

We debated about trying to find Sile Bay but decided against it in the interest of lunch. We headed into Island Harbor because we wanted to try the new-to-us restaurant, Elite.  We already knew we liked the breezy location because we'd dined there when it was called Côté Mer, so the fact that they accept the Anguilla Card really clinched it for us.  Knowing that we would be eating Italian for dinner that night, we opted to keep our lunch relatively light. I ordered the salad with wild boar prosciutto, parmesan, and truffle oil while DH had the regular prosciutto and melon salad. Iced tea and a shared slice of key lime pie completed our meal.

The tree- and conch-lined entrance to Elite

I wasn't thrilled with my meal -- the truffle oil was administered with rather a heavier hand than I'd prefer, since a little goes quite a long way -- and I didn't think the pie was very good, but DH loved his dish.  The setting is very pleasant and it was fun to watch the goings-on in the harbor.  We stayed there for a while to read and enjoy the breeze and before long it was time to hit the road again.

Beautiful Maundays Bay

On our way back to Caribella we hit up a few more west end beaches: Cove, Maundays, Shoal Bay West, and West End Bay.  We had time for another swim and a walk on the beach before getting dressed for dinner and being in place for what turned out to be a truly outstanding sunset.  It was another Green Flash night, which surprised me, considering how overcast the entire day had been.

We headed out to Sandy Ground for dinner at Dolce Vita.  We were the first ones to arrive and so had our pick of tables. Selecting the one in the far corner, we settled in for what we knew would be a great meal. I always start off with a mojito there because they're the perfect balance between the lime and the generous amount of fresh mint.  I wish I could say that I branched out and tried something new, but alas, almost everything I ordered that night was a repeat of something I've loved there before.

DH and I shared the spinach & pear salad, which they kindly split onto two plates for us. Then I moved on to the eggplant rollatini (appetizer size) while DH had the gorgonzola gnocchi (also an appetizer size).  There's a damn good reason why we both ordered the same thing we'd had in the past: it's excellent.  I've never, and I mean never, had gnocchi anywhere before that was as light and pillowy as these.

This is half of a salad

Though disappointed that the limoncello cheesecake wasn't on the menu, I was game to try the new flavor: Nutella cheesecake with a coconut cream sauce. It was...okay.  I liked the first few bites fine, but ultimately I decided it wasn't my cup of tea.  The presentation was beautiful, and I did like the coconut cream sauce, but calling it a cheesecake was a little odd since neither the texture nor the flavor was anything like a cheesecake.  More like a silk chiffon pie.

The good news is that they still come 'round with the shots of limoncello for a post-prandial drink.  Abbi also stopped by the table a couple of times to say hi and say some kind things. By the time we left, every table was full and the atmosphere was most convivial.  We even ran into our new friends, Frank & Lori, on the way out.  All in all, it was a pretty perfect end to a pretty perfect day--combining new scenes with old favorites. And we'd get to do it all over again the next day.