Dinner at Blanchards Restaurant

On November 8^th 2013, a group of friends joined Shantelle for dinner at Blanchards Restaurant to celebrate her 30^th birthday! I had not been to Blanchards restaurant since I was a teenager so I was looking forward to the experience.

Shantelle looked radiant in red and before dinner her husband Derrys Richardson who was the photographer at my wedding in February took individual shots with Shantelle and each of her guests. You can see fabulous shots from my wedding in this blog post.

Shantelle and I – Dinner at Blanchards Restaurant

We were a large group and we were seated close to the beach so there was a lovely breeze flowing through. The restaurant was packed to capacity and when we weren’t busy laughing and talking which was pretty much the whole night we could hear the laughter and voices of the other diners. It was a Friday evening and we were happy and relaxed with no other concerns in the world other than having fun with friends and eating our belly full.

These ladies were sitting directly opposite me and they ceased their entertaining chatter to smile for the camera.

Pat, Lolo and Sherma at Blanchards Restaurant, Anguilla

Then on either side of me were the lovely Jamila and Nashara who were also all smiles. The problem with large groups and long tables though is that it is difficult to have a conversation with and to take photos with those on the other side of the table but I did get a shot of Kilah with Arniva in the background!

Jamie, Nashara and I at Blanchards Restaurant, Anguilla

Kilah and Arniva at Blanchard’s Restaurant

Our servers were lovely and dinner got off to a great start. Everything on the menu looked wonderful and I hoped it tasted as delicious as it sounded. I wasn’t starving because I had a Johnny cake from Fossy and Milly in South Valley before I left home. I didn’t have to worry about waiting too long to eat though because all of our courses came out quickly including hot rolls on the table when we were seated.

Jamila had to remind me all night to get pictures of the food since when I see food; my first thought is eat food. Thanks Jamie!

Lobster and shrimp cakes at Blanchards Restaurant

For my first course I had Blanchards lobster and shrimp cakes. I love all things seafood and this appetizer did not disappoint. I tasted the corn chowder which I had considered for a bit from Patricia and while it was tasty the lobster and crab cakes were definitely winners for me.

For my entrée, I had the Mahi Mahi which was good. I expected a smaller portion size but I was quite delighted with the relatively full plate of food I received (I like to eat)!

Dinner at Blanchards Restaurant, Anguilla

Sherma is somewhere behind her entrée which was the Caribbean sampler. This consisted of Mahi Mahi, grilled crayfish, and jerk chicken. I sampled it all and while I wasn’t in love with the jerk chicken the other items were quite good.  The grilled cinnamon rum bananas were interesting.

Caribbean Sampler – Dinner at Blanchards Restaurant

Jamila’s crayfish certainly looks tasty! Don’t you agree?

Dinner at Blanchards Restaurant, Anguilla

After our main course some of us were wondering if we could handle dessert. I am not necessarily a big dessert fan but the cracked coconut sounded good. Sherma was very excited about tasting it which made me excited too. When it was placed in front of me, I thought oh oh…this is huge. I thought there is no way I could get through this even though the menu said ‘be sure to eat the shell, it’s the best part.’ I didn’t eat most of the shell since it was just too much chocolate for me but I did have the coconut ice-cream inside which tasted like Bounty chocolate. Would I get the cracked coconut again? Definitely but only if I shared it with someone!

Cracked Coconut – Dinner at Blanchards Restaurant, Anguilla

Sherma had the bread pudding which was melt in your mouth delicious. I am a sucker for bread pudding. You can take away all other desserts from me and I would be fine with never having them again but I will fail the test when it comes to ignoring well done bread pudding any day. I literally get excited when someone brings me bread pudding. I almost always get bread pudding if it is on the menu. My mouth starts to water, my stomach starts to growl and I devour the bread pudding in minutes. Yes that was my ode to bread pudding.

Back to the birthday girl! She got a special dessert!

HBD Shantelle – we ate most of the cake!

At the end of dinner at Blanchards Restaurant Shantelle gave us these treats. Aren’t they are adorable! However Nash ate mines but I am sure they were yummy.

Muffins for Shantelle’s birthday

Patricia drove me to dinner that night thankfully as after dinner I was tired and stuffed. Blanchards is in West End and when you live in Anguilla, a drive from West End to Tackling Estates is a long drive. Thanks Pat!

I enjoyed the evening and the meal thoroughly. Dinner at Blanchards Restaurant is on the high price of the scale when it comes to eating out in Anguilla but based on this experience I would definitely recommend it.

Do you want to read more about dinner in Anguilla? Check out Dinner at Flavours Restaurant or Dinner at Straw Hat Restaurant or Dinner at The Blue Bar, CeBlue.

What about you? What are your thoughts on dinner at Blanchards Restaurant? Let us know. Don’t forget to leave a comment and to like us on Facebook and YouTube at My Anguilla Experience.