Papiamento Restaurant

This was one of our favorite restaurants on our recent trip to Aruba. We loved being seated along the poolside. It was a beautiful night and the ambience of the place was just perfect. The food was good too! My dish on the hot stone was fanastic. Service was fine. Bread pudding dessert was excellent. We will be returning next year for sure!

Its funny how perception of the same place can vary . I also had the concierge at Playa Linda make us a reservation and had a table by the pool .We thought the ambience was very delightful, the food was good, the service not exceptional... kind of a long wait between courses, but we were enjoying the atmosphere so much this was acceptable. I didn't need to use the restroom but my wife did and didn't have any comment about it when she came back. After dinner we took a quick tour of the little antique house on the way out , the girls really liked that. We have already recommended this place to friends and would go back !

My wife and I booked this resturant and 6 others thru the conceirge at Playa Linda. Let me say up front the food was good. The problems we had were with the cleanliness and service. We had a table by the pool. The water was so dirty and cloudy you could not see a foot down. We never received our salad...brought our food and we asked and the staff looked surprised. I had the unfortunate need to use the bathroom by the pool. The smell was so gross. Not sure if they septic was backed up or what...but its a good thing I went after the meal. I relayed our experience to the conceirge..she could have cared less.

We come to Aruba 3-4 times a year and always enjoyed Papiamento; we ate there on March 20th and were disappointed with the service. For a restaurant that does not have ocean views-it is quite wonderful. An older cunucu house, with white linen service, many trees with lights, and tables that surround a pool-the ambiance is great. In the past we also have eaten inside the house which is decorated wonderfully with antiques.

Our reservation was for 7pm and the place was VERY busy-we even commented to one another that we had never seen the place this crowded. We sat for about 15 minutes before a drink order was taken and bread was brought to our table. All meals have a caesar salad included with the meal but we did not see ours until we asked for it and that was 30 minutes after we placed our food order. Our food came but no one came to ask if it was alright and my husband wanted another glass of wine. We could not flag a staff member down so we split my glass of wine.

I had the Mermaid dish (fish cooked on a hot stone) which was good and my husband had the grouper with scallops and shrimp. He said it was just OK-very bland-kept using the hot pepper sauce that came with my meal to use for his fish.

While we ate, we could see the line that was forming at the host station. We even saw the owner running around like mad-from table to table(not sure why). We counted 10 service people but 5 of them looked like they were not sure what they should do and were wandering aimlessly through the tables. We could even hear the other tables near by and could hear the dissatisfaction of their meals and service.

For a meal of 2 entrees and 1 1/2 drinks for $95-that they also INCLUDE a service fee-just did not sit well with us. Maybe if the restaurant took away the automatic service fee-the staff would have to work harder to earn their $$$.

Not sure what happened at Papiamento that evening but we will wait a looooonnnnggggg time before returning.

As we walked inside the gate we were absolutely blown away by the beauty of this magical restaurant. The waitstaff were attentive and professional. An older gentleman served our wine with graceful elegance. Our food was magnificent in portion size and presentation. The quality of the food was outstanding. At meals end we were each presented with a warm washcloth that had been scented with mint oil. What a sensual treat! We will definitely return to this wonderful place. Thank you!

It is my very first time in this restaurant and now i know why some people had "UNDER RATE" it and "OVER RATE" the restaurant.
Indeed, the restaurant is very romantic, nice ambiance, and friendly-warm welcome by the lady hostess. Food is very delicious!!! And so as the dessert too! I had the creme brulee and its very outstanding!!! Waitstaff and Buspersons..... so/so.... Waiters are good in english but the buspersons.... we cant hardly understand each other! I cant complain the way they give me service but they lack "ENGLISH COMMUNICATION"!
Hope to be back here with the same food, service, ambiance, friendly hostess, and better english communication by the buspersons!

This was a beautiful restaurant, but I really didn't like the way it was set up. I felt like we were "on display" all the time. It was an intimate atmosphere, but you were so close to the other tables there was no privacy. You could overhear conversations, and it made me feel awkward. The food was good, but not exceptional. Too pricy for the quality. I'm glad we went once, but I won't go back.

In my experience - the best restaraunt on the island! Short taxi ride from the Hyatt/Marriott area
Service 10/10 - exceptional service. The only aggravating thing that happened was that the waiter interrupted us when my wife and I were having a nice/romantic conversation to check on us. A more aware server would have known not to approach us at that time.
Atmosphere 10/10 - can't see the ocean and it doesn't look like much from the outside, but inside it was the most romantic restaurant we've ever been to. Outside seating under a sea of small white lights in the trees, under the stars, and light jazz playing in the background - incredible!
Food - We split a fish bouillabaisse that was the best I've had 10/10 - plenty of lobster, fish, and other great stuff!
Stone grilled mahi mahi was a bit too spicy for me but my wife loved it 9/10. Sea bass with shrimp, scallops on top 10/10. Apple Strudel and ice cream 9/10. Wine reasonably priced - bottle of Andretti (chardonnay) was $32. Great cappuccino - first place on the island that had "Sugar in the Raw" as well!

The best experience I've had at a restaurant - even better than the elite restaurants in Washington DC - been to them all. We spent around $170 + tip and stayed there for 3 hours. In my view, the best $170 we spent on the island.

This is definitely one of our favorite restaurants on the island! Can't believe how under-rated it is! Started off with the smoked salmon and shrimp cocktail for appetizers. We all ordered the seafood on a stone...fresh, plentiful and delicious! Entree comes with a delicious caesar salad, rice and choice of dipping sauces. Ordered the fruit sorbet and the vanilla ice cream with dutch cookies and caramel sauce. To die for! Good coffee and espresso too! Love this place...family run, friendly, attentive service. You can dine outside around a pool or indoors in an old, charming cunucu atmosphere. We'll be back!

In our opinion, this is the second best restaraunt in Aruba; The Flying Fishbone is # 1. If you don't feel like traveling to the other side of the island to the Flying Fishbone, go here. We went her the last night of our trip. The building itself is in a 200 year old farm house. Its like visiting a museum. We ate outside overlooking the pool, which was very romantic.

The food was great.I started off with the Caesars salad, which was prepared the way it should be, with good size chunks of Parmesan cheese in it. For entrees my wife had the champagne seafood casserole and I had the butterflied steak on a stone. They were both excellent. The service was impeccable. At no time did my water glass ever become empty. This restaurant has received many good reviews and it lives up to them. The good reviews are very well earned.