One of the prettiest restaurants on the island is Emilio's which is actually only 9 minutes from Royal Palms if no traffic It is about a half mile from Marks and sits at the bottom of the zip line adventures Although we have been there at least twice, we missed their little sign (big one was down because of a storm) and traveled a bit too far into the island venturing into uncharted territory which did not make us feel uncomfortable a quick turn around and the building was easier to see from the road coming in the opposite direction
candles led the way to the beautiful stone building transformed from a former sugar boiling house only about 4 couples where dinning and we were really not greeted by the lonely bartender until we greeted him first
a server came over and showed us to our table, shortly thereafter offered us water but waited about ten minutes before offering us any cocktails drinks were made quickly but sat on the end of the bar while the two servers who saw them decided to deliver them my wife's mojito was well prepared Emilio's is an open air restaurant along with outdoor seating, they have recently added air conditioning which was working on all cylinders keeping the room very comfortable
shortly after orders were taken my water glass remained empty while both servers passed by our table without even glancing over, we had to ask for the water to be filled servers would walk by all table all night and not do a "look over" to see if anything needed to be refilled
there was absolutely no friendly conversation from either server, almost robotic like service
Emilio's offers a $57 three course prix fix with a surcharge for filet and short ribs
appetizers got us off to a good start with the fishcakes and octopus 3 petite fishcakes were served with a small salad, crispy prosciutto and a delightful pineapple salsa while the octopus was tasty, the three bitesize pieces had a little chew and had me wishing for a larger portion both dishes were artfully presented
for my wife's main, four medium sized pecan dusted scallops were missing that necessary sear and lacking any sauce for the mild tasting scallops the scallops were not overcooked and served over lite basmati rice it think the dish would have benefitted with a lite sauce, maybe a citrus buerre blanc
I ordered the shrimp risotto which my wife has had it the past I really enjoyed the cheesy risotto topped with 8 medium sized shrimp no one checked on us if we were enjoying our meals or not
for dessert, my wife ordered her favorite carrot cake which is prepared with one of the owner's recipe the small slice of cake was served with what I believe was a citrus cream cheese frosting on the side and presented on a happy anniversary plate one bite of my rich slated flourless chocolate "tarte" and I knew I had it last year despite the small size, it was rich enough to satisfy
coffee was never offered
while the food was good and presented nicely, nothing really awoke our taste buds except the chocolate for me
we have had nicer and more attentive service on previous visits
minor details was a bar stool in the corner filled with the server's backpacks and other belongings also a very unripe mostly white strawberry garnishing my wife's dessert most notably was the service, just take order and deliver
while I'm sure most guests will enjoy Emilio's, unfortunately it is scratched off next years list
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