At Takamaka Bay, La Grande Maison is the home kitchen of Christelle Verheyden, arguably the country's most talented chef. The atmosphere, in a restored and airy colonial home, is a fine backdrop for Verheyden's exquisite tastes built around the best local (often organic) ingredients and fine-dining sensibility. Verheyden is also a sommelier: the wines are as excellent as the cooking.
The menu changes almost daily but Verheyden wouldn't dare change favourites such as Creole bouillabaisse, pork rum and raisin, or seafood au coco (where the seafood is served in a coconut). Lunch is a more casual affair, with perfectly conceived tapas. The terrace at the back opens onto a tropical garden, there's live music from 8pm on some evenings. We'd eat here every day if we could.
