City Lounge, or CILO, is a new restaurant located at the Seaport Mall in Oranjestaad, Aruba, DWI. There is both indoor and outdoor seating as well as a bar inside with WIFI service. Here’s a first look.
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.
You’ll find a crowd of local business people here and a few island visitors salted in. Prices are fair for the quality and good service. Guests of the nearby Renaissance Hotel and Timeshare may want to put this on their list for a convenient snack or meal.
Bon dia.
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.
Quite nice with those tensile fabrics overhead. And here is the bar.
They also offer the option of “eating in bed” but that’s not my thing so there is no photo here. Instead, let’s talk about the food. My wife started with the escargot, which she reports as very good. My friend began with calamari sauteed instead of fried. It was an interesting twist and tasty. I went with a plain old shrimp cocktail that met all expectations. Then came the entrees. My wife went with the grilled scallops shown here.
My friend’s wife choose the garlic shrimp, seen below.
My friend selected the red snapper filet.
Finally, I choose the broiled veal chop.
That was one delicious piece of meat, broiled to perfection with a flavorful sauce that did not overpower the natural essence of the underlying chop.
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