Very elegant restaurant that has copies of rave reviews outside in the hotel lobby. The story: American couple (she's from Kansas) settles in Puerto Rico and opens restaurant. Lights are dim, and soft music plays. There are 2 dining rooms; not many diners on this weeknight, but Melody French makes the round to talk to all of them.

We order the special appetizer assortment for 2 for $20 which is fingerlickin' good. It includes tostados with sour cream and caviar, a bowl of sliced sausages with greens, cod fish balls and grilled shrimp in a tomato sauce sitting in a coconut which we end up cleaning out of sauce and take back. We then have a salad of boston lettuce with blue cheese which is perfectly seasoned. They bake their own bread which is divine, and which you can have with a garlicky olive oil which they bring to the table. Earl Gray washes it all down. Our waiter, Miguel Angel is bilingual and has been working here for the better part of 4 years. Service is great; prices are in line with fine European style restaurants.

Melody shows us pics of her children. She's been here a long time, and is still adjusting. She says that there seems to be a struggle for her to understand people’s humor and for them to understand her. She wants friends. We talk about rums with Melody: she claims that DonQ far surpasses Bacardi in quality, but they don’t have the advertising power. We also discuss our travels with her, and I ask her about the Tibes Indian Ceremonial Center that is recommended in every brochure. Her answer is not overly enthusiastic, even though it is reconstructed to depict Taino life. The Tainos were the Indian inhabitants of the island in pre-Columbian days.

This restaurant is filled with ambiance, and the decor is very intimate. Don't miss it if you're in Ponce.