Moomba Beach Bar is located along Aruba’s famous Palm Beach. It’s on the northwest end, past the Holiday Inn.
It’s a giant, open-air palapa hut set on boards just above the sand. You have a great view out over the beach at the boats floating in the clear Caribbean sea. The drinks are cold, the staff friendly, and there are plenty of revelers to join in the fun. They got creative with one of their lights as you can see here:
That’s an interesting use of empty beer bottles. As far as I know, if you ring the bell, you bought a round for everyone at the bar, so be careful with that.
Either way, it’s a pleasant retreat from the sun and sand for a bit of refreshment and conversation. Better yet, you can walk to many of the hotels in just a few minutes. As always, enjoy your imbibing responsibly.
Bon dia.
And that bar I mentioned:
We enjoyed an early lunch here, with a view of the nearby marina where fisherman take tourists out for a day on the Caribbean Sea. As for the meal, it was quite good. I started with the tomato soup and here’s a look at the presentation.
Then my wife enjoyed smoked salmon and herbed cream cheese wrap that she found delicious. See below.
I went with the CILO club, which contains parma ham, brie cheese, and the usual lettuce tomato and such. Check it out.
Fries were crispy, too.
We arrived without reservations but with a hankering for some reliable Italian dishes. We were greeted by a friendly hostess who found us a nice table. There is a bar and seating outside, as well as a nice fellow playing the piano. I ordered a mixed salad, which arrived promptly and was well presented. Take a look:
The greens, tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers were garden-fresh, crunchy, and delicious. I appreciate a good salad to start, especially in Aruba, where vegetables (for some reason) are too often an afterthought. My wife likes a Caprese salad and here’s a view:
Again, a very pleasant presentation. Moving on to the entrees, my wife ordered grouper in puttanesca sauce. She thought it was great and here is what it looked like.
Don’t miss that little shaving of ginger on the bottom there. I went with the tried and true spaghetti bolognese and this meat sauce was a bit sweet but very good indeed. Here it is:
To think that this was the appetizer portion! I didn’t finish it until the second half was consumed for lunch the next day.
Most of the seating is outside, however, there are a few small tables inside. I prefer to eat inside but this time I took a seat outside, which turned out to be okay as the breeze was gentle and cool. There were three of us, each with different tastes. Escargot is a favorite, and upon finding it on the menu, it was ordered by one of our group. Here’s the presentation.
That was different and the flavor was very good. I ordered a salad, which was full of delicious bits including shaved cheeze, walnuts, and such. Here it is.
Then came the entrées. The salmon was ordered and reported to be delicious, and it can be seen below.
Then there was the duck in a nice sauce as seen here.
Those little potato croquettes served with the duck were a fresh touch. I went with a tried and true filet, which was cooked exactly right.
Service at Papillon was professional and attentive. Wines were had by the glass and they were worthy of the prices. The cost of eating here is at the very upper limit of my budget. For a special night out, it was worth it.
The Bent Page 
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