Gabriel and Angela Laurencia started El Sol 13 years ago as a neighborhood bar after Gabriel retired from 30 years as a butcher. It started with the bar and a kitchen with one small stove and oven. Their reputation quickly spread and five years later they expanded into a restaurant with additional kitchen facilities and seating areas. Today it has grown from one to 12 employees.
On this hidden gem of an island, 26 miles long and six miles wide, two Danish forts still point cannons toward the sea to thwart enemy attack, the spicy aroma of West Indian dishes tantalizes the taste buds, and fresh mangos and coconuts can be bought from local farmers’ trucks parked along narrow, mahogany-shaded roads. They’ll be happy to open your coconut with the swift slice of a sharp machete and offer a straw to draw out the sweet water, while the constant trade wind breeze provides relief from 85 degree heat. Unpack your clothes into the antique armoire of a European-style hotel, trade travel shoes for flip-flops, and allow the serenity of clear Caribbean water to wash your stress away. Then dress for dinner in one of many world class restaurants offering freshly-caught seafood and local Crucian dishes such as succulent kallaloo
