Yolanda and Coert Princ have opened Auberge de Princenhof. They are my new neighbors who took over Rendezvous. A small group of us went opening night. It is French cuisine prepared by Coert, a 1 star Michelin chef with an impressive background. The dining room is a lovely blue with a Grecian feel. The service was impeccable. The menu diverse and varied. We ordered duck, trout and a salmon dish. For a starter we had smoked fish.

The smoked eel was the hit of the night. Delish..the preparation is artful and creative. The duck was pronounced delicious but a little "tough". My trout was amazing BUT it is served with the full bone Dutch style so be warned. It was work to eat it but well worth it..the flavours are great. The salmon spinach dish was the shining star of the evening.

Priced at the higher end of Bonaire dining prices, Auberge is a must do for a special night of dining.

Eating a trout a la meuniere or aux amandes serving the whole fish is not Dutch Style but absolutly normal in France, Belgium, Spain, Germany etc as well as South America ...

o...I have eaten a whole fish bone in in the Caribbean but never in fine dining...The restaurant server told me it was Dutch style..haa..it was yummy despite the bones...

Restaurants in the States also usually serve trout whole, to be operated on at the table, by your waiter at 'better' restaurants. The deboning operation is easy, after all, and only takes a minute or two: the ribs and backbone come out as one, leaving the meat boneless. In fact, I don't remember ever seeing trout fillet or steak type cuts on a restaurant menu. How do the Dutch serve trout, Brigitte?? (Not pickled like herring, I hope. :–) )

And tuna is typically served only seared in my experience; with notice in the menu beforehand mostly. Why toughen it up by cooking it through, anyway??? If fish is not fresh enough to be good raw, you shouldn't be eating it at all!!!

(Message edited by glenr on July 13, 2005)

As I am not Dutch ..... but I lived there some years ... the Dutch do like the others in Europe -- and it is considered fine dining getting the whole trout ... prepared with butter in a frying pan a) add lots of parsley and it is called a la meuniere b) add lots of garlic and it is al ajillo c) make a sauce with almonds and it is aux amandes - or you steam it and it gets a special sauce and than it is called bleu -- or like you get it a lot in South America, very little butter in the frying pan and it is called a la plancha ... and you can get a fillet as smoked trout (truite fumee) but that is an appetizer .... an 'operating' waiter means a real very expensive restaurant .....

They all sound good! An added way here is on the trout stream, the fish just caught and cleaned (nothing like fresh-caught!): flour dredge with salt and pepper, egg wash, corn meal dredge and then butter in the frying pan. Really the best way.

TKS.

Nuff said, head to Auberge and try for yourself..

IN order to complete this fine discussion about our dishes I would like to ad some comments:
First, the fish we are talking about on our menu isn't a trout, but a Dutch baby SOLE!!!! This baby SOLE is served with the bone. It is always served with the bone in the Netherlands!!!! Our TROUT is served as a FILET and is smoked! It is a part of a smoked fish platter and has nothing to do with the SOLE main course. Maybe it's better to visit our restaurant and give your opinion after your dinner, than speculate over us without never being our guest!
Ann did have dinner with us and liked it and we thank her for this!

Koert Prins
Maitre the Cuisine Auberge de Princenhof

Koert -

An interesting post to be sure.

:-) Carl

Koert, I didn't like the Sole..I LOVED it..cannot wait to come back..

Koert,

TKS for the clarification. I think most of our comments about trout after Annie's first were general comments, certainly mine were, and not directly about your menu. I always enjoyed Marcels' Rendevous and look forward to the Auberge.