At a Glance:
Price: $$
Food: [rating=5]
Staff: [rating=4]
Feel: [rating=5]
Price range:
$0-$3: $
$3-$12: $$
$12-$25: $$$
$25-$50: $$$$
$50-up: $$$$$
When it’s as hot as it has been here lately, by which I mean unbearable, it’s nice to have somewhere nice and breezy to escape to. Kite Club Cafe will definitely do the trick
The Feel:
It’s a beach restaurant, with only a three picnic-like tables. It shares its beachfront view with its partner kite school so it’s frequented mostly by the cool kids, the beautiful people, topless men and bikini clad ladies in tip-top shape–what a bummer I know–all trying to get a fresh meal in to replenish from the day’s ridiculous amount of calorie burning activities.
Kiting means wind, and Kite Beach is world renown for its wind.(No really, you don’t have to take my word for it… If you google “top 10 places to kite in the world” the first result you get has cabarete as number nine.) That means there’s constantly a breeze here. Even when all the kiters are walking around bummed out that there’s not enough wind, there’s enough of a breeze here to allow you to take a break from mumbling things under your breath like a crazy person about the potentiality that maybe you might be missing winter a little bit sometimes.
Everything about this place is chill. Yes, there’s a constant hustle bustle of going ins and out: the woosh of kites being pumped up by the air compressor on the grassy knoll, kites flying overhead beyond the palm trees, never-ending conversations about wind forecast, but it’s Dominican Hustle Bustle, the relaxing kind. Tourists bring over the “get-it-done” attitude from back home they just can’t seem to get rid of, but apply it to kiting, which is pretty stress-free, instead of that week’s unfinished to-do list the secretary hasn’t sent the memo about yet.
We expats get to come over and feed off of that vibe… it’s energizing, it reminds us that somewhere in the world things actually get done, so maybe we can check a couple more things off our pretend list today after all, it might not give us a hernia.
The Food:
The food is just as refreshing as the ambience. I try to spend less than $5USD per meal (about RD$200) to fit my monthly budget, (yes, I’m a cheapskate, don’t judge me) so some of the items on the menu are reserved for “special occasions” but I really wouldn’t want to change a thing, since I wouldn’t want to jeopardize the quality.
Everything here is fresh and juicy and good for you too!! Really, as I sit at home writing this, and pools of sweat are accumulating in the wrinkles of my belly, all I want is a mouthful of their Surfer Salad, with spicy chicken and avocado, and almonds, and raisins… mmm… and some fresh coco water on the side. Luscious.
The food here is fresh, light, imaginative, colourful, and nutritious.(and delicious) Did I mention they bake fresh goodies daily? Like melt-in-your-mouth chocolate chip cookies, or brownies, or muffins, or banana bread? Aw man!
The Staff :
An other thing that makes Kite Club Cafe so fresh, is the staff.
It’s a mix of local dominican ladies who can really cook and twenty-something-children-of-the-world-type servers on some sort of work-holiday from where-ever, here to take a break from the real world, while they brush up on their water-sport skills. It keeps the place rooted in this country, but connected to the rest of the world.
You’re also very likely to run into the owner, Cailin, if you hang out here. You can read all about her and more about kiteclub cafe, in a Kiteworld Article from 2010.
The Whole:
If you’re in Cabarete, especially if you’re here to kite, this is a must-stop location.
Not only will each cell in your body thank you for the food you have just devoured, it’s a hub where you can network with fellow kiters from around the world, or just chill and enjoy the gentle wind while getting another chapter of that novel in.
Even if you’re not into doing it yourself, kiteboarding is a good spectator sport, and I can’t think of a better place to gawk at hot-bods pullin’ racy kite tricks all day long.
