When I first came to Amelia Island in 1995, my first impression of Amelia Island’s culinary reach was defined by barbecued ribs from Lewis at the Hammerhead and a burger for lunch at Sandy Bottoms. Ribs with sliced pickles was something I would have never considered appetizing until I ate Lewis’s and a burger at Sandy Bottoms was enriched beyond its true quality by the salty sea air and the view of the ocean.

Of course I realize that there most have been a lot more to the local gourmet offering than just the atmosphere and flavor fusion, but I was only on island for a short while and all the other restaurants we went to, did not make an impression of any sorts. Several years later I came to the island on a special invitation and experienced the food delicacies chef Johnny Kromann put together in what today is Indigo Alley, which I considered world class. After I moved to the island in 2006, Johnny cooked a couple of times exclusively for my friend Ric and myself, an experience I will never forget as long as I live, before Johnny moved back to his native Denmark.

My credentials in gourmet are diversified as an amateur chef, trained by Maestro Paul Bocuse for a brief stint in 1978, (yes I studied Escoffier cover to cover), writer and publisher of Dining Out Magazines in the early 1980s in the New York – Boston – Washington DC area, publisher/editor of Market Place Magazine ( a restaurant guide) in the Virgin Islands in the later 1980s and close to 20 years of gourmet experiences while living on the French Dutch Caribbean Island of St.Maarten/St.Martin, famous for its magnificent dining establishments. In 2004/2005 we even produced a TV program for the local channel about restaurants, chefs and entertainment called “Whassup St.Martin”.

when we moved here in 2006, we tried a dozen or more restaurants on various levels and were mainly disappointed about the fare. Since those days however quite a few jewels have opened their doors and existing establishments have picked up the glove of challenge. In the last two years our dining escapades have become increasingly satisfying to the point that now we are back to dining out several times a week and most experiences are worth the effort.

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