There aren’t many places to dine in Bathsheba, but the venerable Atlantic Hotel (est. 1884), which specializes in "ABC," or "All Bajan Cuisine," pulls out all the stops on Wednesdays and Sundays, when locals and visitors flock to the special buffet lunch. As I was visiting on a Tuesday, however, this did me little good. Happily, a set price menu for BD$35 offered a choice of tasty entrées.

When I entered the restaurant from the sun-drenched patio, it took a moment to adjust to the dim interior. At least on a Tuesday, the dining room of the Atlantis is a quiet place. A few waiters lounged by the entrance, while a sprinkling of couples and older patrons sat at tables, clearly relishing the peace and relative quiet.

I say relative quiet because the pounding surf was an ever-present accompaniment. At first, I requested a table on the outdoor terrace, but when the wind suddenly rose and sent napkins, menus, and other items sailing, I asked to be seated indoors. I still had a view of Tent Bay, with its anchored fishing boats bobbing up and down, but was protected from the stiffening breeze.

The luncheon menu at the Atlantis is not elaborate. Among the choices were a lamb, chicken, and fish entrée–the fish being the ubiquitous flying fish done so well in Barbados. (In fact, I’m not entirely sure that it isn’t the national dish. It certainly deserves to be.) Having already had flying fish several times that week, I was nevertheless happy to order it again. The fish fillets were tender and flavorful, and for a change, they were not fried as I’d had them before. Flying fish stops just short of being fishy, yet has character that milder fish, such as flounder, lacks.

The entrée was preceded by a choice of an appetizer. I chose vegetable soup, which turned out to be a creamy pumpkin (or perhaps squash) concoction, pureed and very gently seasoned. The fish was accompanied with island-style seasoned rice and lentils (or "peas" as they are called locally), squash and carrots, breadfruit, fish cakes (small spicy fritters), and a salad of greens and chilled cooked plantains served with a piquant lime/onion sauce. I particularly relished the nutty, dense breadfruit slices. I concluded this "just enough" meal with Bajan fruitcake (more like a spice cake than American fruitcake) and coffee. Everything was well prepared, and the service was unobtrusively attentive.

I lingered over the meal, finding myself mesmerized by the view of the crashing surf, intensely blue sea, and swaying palm trees. While I had better meals in Barbados, I can honestly say that none were in such a striking setting.