Restaurant Review: The Tides Restaurant Barbados {lunch}

Last month we were invited back to The Tides Restaurant to sample their new lunch menu which launched; yes I know we are lucky. The Tides is without a doubt one of our favorite restaurants on the island, so any opportunity we get to dine there is an obvious one! When we arrived we took a quick stroll through their art gallery which was overflowing with Caribbean colour.

We started with a few cocktails - Rum Sour and Passiontini - which went down way too easily. 

We started off the meal with a Calamari Fritti Salad. One of the first things that stood out about this salad was the fact that a thick batter did not coat the calamari so you could actually taste the octopus! The salad was dressed with a coconut vinaigrette which rounded the spice of the calamari quite brilliantly. The tart grapefruit played off the coconut very well and the chili lime aioli cut though any fishiness' that may have been there from the calamari.

Our second starter was Tuna Crudo – not only was this a feast for our mouths but also our eyes! Slivers of fresh local Yellow Fin tuna lay ever so eloquently on a bed of pickled red onions and carrots. The dish was finished with passion fruit, coriander and a soy ginger glaze. Very Asian inspired, it was bursting with colour, flavor and freshness. We especially loved how the hints of sweetness from the passion fruit cooled down the spice of the ginger!  

For the first main we enjoyed Cajun Jumbo Shrimp Linguine which had quite a kick to it, however the char grilled vegetables did a wonderful job at cooling the spice down. The chorizo sausage added a surprising element of flavor to the overall dish. The shrimp were cooked perfectly and the pasta al-dente! It was rich and one awfully comforting dish we must admit. For the second entree, we chose the Catch of the Day grilled (which was Dolphin or as some of you may know Mahi Mahi).  The sticky sesame rice cake combined with the flaky and ‘melt in your mouth’ Mahi Mahi was such a pleasant surprise. The coconut in the red curry Beurre Blanc rounded out the overall dish and the stir fried vegetables gave it an additional layer of texture.

By this time you can imagine we were overly full, but there is always room for dessert, especially at The Tides. In the end we decided on an Oreo and Mars bar cheesecake. Oreo cookies were used to make the cheesecake crust and Mars bar along with Oreo chunk ran through the cheese cake. The beautifully presented dessert was surrounded by a butterscotch sauce and topped with honey comb; it was nothing but the best ending to a fantastic lunch!

As usual everything was immaculate. The attention to detail and consistency in all areas - food, service, ambience - is why we will always keep going back!