We stumbled upon Temptation on a recent trip to St. Maarten.  This brand new restaurant is in the Atlantis Casino complex at Cupecoy.  The entrance, has an ingenious use of running water sheeting the windows and that was cool and inviting.  When we got inside, we found ourselves in a place unlike any other on the island.  The interior is light and cool, as much Manhattan as it is tropical.

Of course, we were there for the food and we found the Nouvelle Caribbean cuisine to be unparalleled.  Dixie started out with a Cesar salad, she said that it was one of the best she had had in a long time.  A "surf and turf" of grilled shrimp and tenderloin in a delicious light sauce accompanied by a variety of vegetables delighted with its blend of flavors.  Filet Mignon served on a bed of lightly seasoned potatoes was perfectly prepared.  A surprising dessert of champagne and fig sorbet completed the meal on a cool light note.  We also tried the misnamed cheesecake - made from ricotta and reminiscent of the delicious insides of cannoli, it was cheese surely, but there the resemblance to the standard custard served up around the world ended.  Temptation's cheesecake was light and delicate and wonderfully flavored.

While we like a good red wine, and since we make our own, we are not afficionados.  The California merlot suggested by the staff made an excellent accompaniment to the meal.  Dixie and I make several wines ourselves, but none are made from grapes.  We make a Strawberry Merlot and a Green Apple Reisling that our friends rave about when they come to our parties.

This is a sophisticated place, leave the beachwear and the kids at the hotel.  They just opened, but they obviously know what they were doing, everything was perfect.  We were pleasantly surprised and would go back on our next visit.