Colibri Bistro Bar Lounge — Restaurant in Antigua

The chefs should be exasperated. Beautiful food and a totally incompetent front-of-house. A nightmare of a restaurant, We had a reservation at 7:30 with guidance that we'd need to vacate by 9:15, and with advice that it was best to arrive early. Fine; all good. We arrived early for drinks at the bar. The drinks were lovely, but what an extraordinarily surly person making them. But, that's OK; it accustomed you to the fact that you weren't going to get a smile from anyone all evening: it's your privilege to dine there, not their privilege to have you as a customer. When seated, it took 30 minutes for anything to happen, and 75 minutes (one hour and one quarter!) before the main course was served, which makes it all a bit laughable that they place a time limit on your table. The problem is that this was not exclusive to us: tables all around us were waiting ludicrous times for food, which built up a tension level that is the last thing you want on a night out. Is this the chefs' fault? Seemingly not; meals were lined up on the hot counter waiting to be served; front-of-house simply couldn't get the job done. Clearly, it needs an overseeing manager, and indeed we think we spotted one, but all he seemed to want to do was to schmooze with people he knew. In short, for the sake of the brilliant work in the kitchen, this place needs a major reassessment and uplift in culture; until then don't go there, or else risk considerable...

Colibri is a breath of fresh air into the English Harbor area. The French menu is well thought out with options for all while keeping a pinch of the Antigua flavor. We have eaten here several times and always like to try a place more than once before reviewing. That said, 5 star for sure. Yes, there is an occasional mosquito or noisy car passing by…. Who cares, you are in paradise eating great food and sipping fantastic cocktails. The owner makes sure to make rounds to every table to see how you are doing. That might seem “over the top” for some, however, we find it very grounded and intimate. No better way to keep a pulse on the overall experience than asking a gust. Hats off to the entire Colibri team. Owner, bartender, waitress, hostess, runners…. Perfect~

Tip-

1. make a reservation ahead of time. It is very easy to do online on the Colibri website.
2. order the Brandy...

Cute outdoor restaurant with a lot of space between tables.

The pappardelle with pink oyster mushrooms was a great choice with the tender mushrooms and creamy sauce.

The lobster risotto was inhaled by me as the texture of the risotto was delicious with the tender cut of lobster and foamy bisque surrounding it.

The item that wasn’t as delicious was the mussels as they were too loaded with toppings that would have been better as a garnish.

The pork confit, while tender and delicious, had too big a portion for two people. They had bad poker faces, judging us for not finishing either the mussels or the pork.

Overall it was a good experience, but the mains are much better...