Cabo San Lucas is on the Tropic of Cancer, and Barbados is near the equator, and since both are in the tropics and have great food I’ve decided to post my most memorable meals. Somehow they included a lot of desserts.

Cabo has great restaurants, and not all of them Mexican. Our favorite Italian restaurant is there; we’ve been dining at Alcaravea since it opened over 10 years ago. It’s the one time of the year I’ll allow myself fettuccini Alfredo, as it’s the best. Chamoyo is the Brazilian steak place I mentioned last year, and we were there for a return visit. And of course, Nick San, our favorite sushi place was a must go-to, even though our friend Jinx won’t eat sushi. Her grilled sea bass looked as scrumptious as our sushi. Unfortunately our favorite sushi chef Abel had the night off so we’ll have to try to see him next year, but Edie took good care of us.

Click on image to view full size

Even Grand Solmar’s poolside bar had great guacamole, shrimp Caesar salad and ceviche, so we didn’t have to stray far for a good meal.

Click on image to view full size

Believe it or not, I had some of the best hamburgers of my life in Barbados. My friend Cindy and I stayed at the Hilton at Needham’s Point, and their Waterside Restaurant served burgers, fish cakes which were very much like New England clam cakes, deep fried dough balls but with chunks of fish instead of clams, salads and the like, but the burgers and fried plantain chips were a hit with me. But after several rum punches I totally forgot to take a picture. We didn’t need to go far for great lunches, and our beach waitress, Sherrianne, was terrific. All we needed to do was put our flag up and she showed up with two rum punches and extra ice.

Dinners out were varied and interesting; we hit a place called Tapas, which was indeed a tapas bar with a bartender who made a mean Martini. The tapas were good, too, but the desserts were even better. The Tapas Dame Blanche was a flourless brownie with vanilla ice cream and a chocolate shell, and the Tempura Banana Kebab was a deep fried banana in cinnamon tempura with vanilla ice-cream and caramel sauce.

Click on image to view full size

We had traditional Bajan food at Brown Sugar, a quick walk from the hotel, and the desserts there were outstanding as well. I’m a sucker for bread pudding, and it was made better by a rum sauce that was heavy on the rum. Cindy’s triple chocolate mousse cake, with a side of chocolate, didn’t disappoint.

Click on image to view full size

Our last night was at Naru, an Asian restaurant on the boardwalk in Hastings, right next door to Tapas. Cindy had a fried rice bowl with beef, both beautiful and delicious, and I had sushi. While I’d need a few more outings there to compare it to my other favorites Nick San in Cabo and Yuzu in Quebec, I must say the Hemingway, a roll with tuna, zucchini tempura, grilled asparagus, shitake mushrooms and spicy yuzu soy was a taste explosion in my mouth. I’d go back to Barbados just for that. And their desserts! Basmati rice corn pudding with macadamia nut crust, sweet brown butter and pistachios was on even par with their deep fried custard with ginger syrup, toasted sesame seed dust, vanilla ice cream and spun sugar.

Click on image to view full size

Lord have mercy. It’s a five pound vacation.

Deborah