Make Yourself at Home

What you'll find in this story: dream destinations, top vacation spots, amazing places, trips around the world, exotic travel, India travel Excerpted from 1,000 Places to See Before You Die, Copyright © 2003 by Patricia Schultz. Used by permission of Workman Publishing Co., Inc., New York. All Rights Reserved. Tossing aside the obvious, we narrowed it down to the 10 that really got our motors running. Jaisalmer Rajasthan, India Known as the Golden City, this former caravan center on the route to the Khyber Pass rises from a sea of sand, its 30-foot crenellated walls and medieval sandstone fort sheltering carved spires and palaces. So little has changed here that it's easy to imagine yourself back in the city's early days, in the thirteenth century. Jaisalmer's wealth originally came from the heavy levies it placed on camel caravans passing through, and merchants and townspeople built handsome havelis (mansions elaborately carved from the local golden stone). It's the only fortress city in India still functioning, with one quarter of its population living within the original walls. Details: Six hours by car from Jodhpur. Stay in the Narayan Niwas Palace, a former caravansary built by the maharaja in 1840. Doubles from $48 (low season) or $60 (high season); 011-91/29922-52408, fax 011-91/29922-52101, narayanniwas.com/. Best times: October to February. Highland games, Braemar, Scotland Begun in the Middle Ages as county fairs for the exchange of goods and news, these summer sporting events gave clan chiefs the chance to check out the physical prowess of the area's most promising young lads. Of the nation's 40-some annual gatherings, the ones at Braemar are the most renowned. (Queen Elizabeth usually pops in from Balmoral Castle.) A breed of gigantic men--called the Heavies--engage in "throwing the hammer," "putting the stone," and the prime event, "tossing the caber"--in which they hurl a 20-foot tree trunk weighing over 130 pounds. Expect bagpipes, bright tartans, Highlands dancing, and a nip of whiskey to help things along. Details: Held the first Saturday in September, in Braemar's Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park. Tickets are $20 to $36; 011-44/1339-755-377 (phone and fax), braemargathering.org/. Giants CausewayBushmills, Antrim, Northern Ireland The grand and astonishing Giant's Causeway--on the northern coast of the island--is made up of more than 40,000 volcanic basalt columns, each a foot or two in diameter. Most are hexagonal, but some have four or five sides, and others have as many as 10 (and reach as high as 40 feet). If modern-day visitors are struck with wonder at the sight, imagine the disbelief of the ancient Irish, who attributed the geological wonder to the fabled giant Finn McCool. The warrior was said to have created the Causeway as a bridge to his lady love on the Scottish island of Staffa. We now know it was formed by volcanic eruptions some 60 million years ago. Hopscotch along the columns, or marvel at the Causeway from the clifftop belvederes. Details: 75 miles northwest of Belfast; 011-44/28-207-31855, fax 011-44/28-207-32537, northantrim.com/. Moscow Metro, Moscow, Russia Details: For information in the U.S., contact the Russian National Group, 212/575-3431, fax 212/575-3434, russia-travel.com/. Cha Ca La Vong, Hanoi, Vietnam Cha Ca La Vong serves only one dish--cha ca, a succulent fried-fish masterpiece, the recipe for which has been in the Doan family for generations (the name translates roughly to "curried Red River fish"). After more than seven decades, cha ca became so entrenched in Hanoi that the city renamed the lane out front in its honor. A rickety flight of wooden stairs leads to the unremarkable second-floor dining room, full of equally rickety chairs. Patrons cook chunks of seasoned garoupa fish on a charcoal clay brazier, stirring in chives and dill. The rich, oily stew is then spooned into bowls of vermicelli rice noodles and enlivened by the addition of shrimp sauce, fried peanuts, and pickled vegetables. The secret ingredient, if you believe the rumors, is two drops of an essence extracted from the perfume gland of the ca cuong beetle. Details: about $5; 14 Cha Ca St., 011-84/4-825-3929. Chuuk Lagoon Lost Fleet Chuuk, Micronesia On February 17, 1944, American Task Force 58 engaged in Operation Hailstone, dropping over 500 tons of bombs on the Japanese navy. Today, Chuuk Lagoon (also called Truk Lagoon) holds the wrecks of 60 Japanese ships, the largest concentration of sunken ships in the world. The 433-foot Fujikawa Maru is the most famous, an aircraft carrier that sits upright in 30 to 112 feet of water, a gaping torpedo hole in her side. A combination of warm water, prolific marine life, and lagoon currents has acted as an incubator, transforming the WWII hulks--their guns, trucks, silverware, and sake bottles left undisturbed--into artificial reefs. Details: Most air connections to Chuuk are via Guam. Stay at the Blue Lagoon Dive Resort. Doubles from $130; 011-691/330-2727, fax 011-691/330-2439, bluelagoondiveresort.com/. Dive operator: Blue Lagoon Dive Shop. Two-dive boat trip, $95 per person; 011-691/330-2796, fax 011-691/330-4307. Best times: January to April. El Questro Wilderness ParkKimberely, Australia El Questro is the ultimate outback experience: a million-acre working cattle ranch in the middle of Kimberley, just a dot on the map of massive, sparsely populated Western Australia. Explore the property's many tropical gorges or remote water holes, or go on a ranger-led horse, foot, or four-wheel-drive trek to waterfalls, thermal springs, and Aboriginal rock art. There's a fancy hotel, with suites, cantilevered over the Chamberlain River, but those whose wallets dictate Foster's instead of champagne can choose one of El Questro's three less-expensive lodging options--including camping sites under the stars. Details: One hour by air from Darwin. Suites start at $603 per person per night (with all meals and most activities), bungalows sleeping one to four people are $147, tented cabins for two run $90, and camping is $8.50 per person; 011-61/8-9169-1777, fax 011-61/8-9169-1383, elquestro.com.au/. Closed November to April. Sturgis Motorcycle RallySturgis, South Dakota For one week in early August, the town of Sturgis (population 6,400) hosts America's largest motorcycle rally, now attracting well over a half-million people. Begun in 1938 by the local Jackpine Gypsies, the Black Hills Motor Classic grew over the years into a bacchanal drawing gangs of self-styled outlaws. In the late 1980s, the city partnered with the Jackpine Gypsies to civilize the event, and today law and order prevail. Baby strollers are not an uncommon sight--which is not to say that the saloons and tattoo parlors don't still do a brisk business. Wanna-bes and diehards alike partake in the hill climbs and concerts. Downtime is spent admiring each other's bikes, marveling at the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum & Hall of Fame, or eating at the Road Kill Cafe--favorites include Chicken That Didn't Quite Cross the Road and the daily special, Guess That Mess. Details: Sturgis is 24 miles north of Rapid City. City of Sturgis Rally Department: 605/720-0800, fax 605/720-0801, sturgismotorcyclerally.com/. Mercado de HechiceriaLa Paz, Bolivia At La Paz's Witchcraft Market, proud chola women sit among their goods like queens, unfailingly wearing two braids festooned behind them and bowler hats adapted from the British many years ago. What they sell: herbal-tea fusions, folk cures, coca leaves, figurines, snakeskins, slabs of llama lard to be burned in offerings to the gods, and amulets to guarantee a long and happy sex life. The market has lately begun to accommodate the growing number of gringo curiosity seekers, and booths hawking colorful alpaca sweaters and woven textiles do a brisker business than the vendors pushing dried llama fetuses. Details: Held daily, on Calle Linares between Calle Santa Cruz and Calle Sagárnaga. Best times: April to October. Diving with Manta raysTobago, Lesser Antilles Divers are flocking to the island of Tobago for the chance to swim with monster manta rays. A dozen or so giant mantas, 6 to 10 feet wide, live in the Batteaux Bay area, some year-round. Divers may have to settle for a sighting of the creatures, but most will be able to interact with them. The friendly mantas encourage divers to hold on for a ride--a practice that once earned them the nickname Tobago taxis. Today's more-sensitive approach is to merely swim in their presence. Details: Stay beachside at the Manta Lodge, a dive resort with a PADI facility. Doubles begin at $95 (low season) or $115 (high season); 868/660-5268, fax 868/660-5030, mantalodge.com/. Best times: November to April.

Nearly four years have passed since I published my first "Little Wonder Restaurants of Paris" article, so the time seemed ripe to revisit the City of Light (and heavy eating). It turns out I was ripe as well. Just as soon as I got the assignment, I got pregnant (the better, I suppose, to re-create my first eating tour, which occurred when I was six months along with my first child). So once again, here I am, waddling through Paris, fighting back nausea, finicky and forever famished. It's actually quite a good condition for a food critic, because believe you me, if I like the meal in this state, you're going to love it. A few things have changed since that last article. One of our favorite restaurants closed, three others went drastically downhill, another raised its prices. But in this city of infinite eating options, I've been able to find even better cheap joints to take their place. So don't believe the hype about Paris: Yes, prices have gone up since President Clinton was in office, thanks to the steady devaluation of the dollar (as I write this it's achieved parity with the euro). But the little mama et papa eateries still exist, where good, honest grub is dished up for a reasonable rate, as well as some fairly chic and happening places that cater to the young and perpetually impoverished student crowds. (Where prices appear in euros, you can more or less assume that E1=$1.) Chartier 7 Faubourg-Montmartre, 01-47-70-86-29. Metro: Grand Boulevards. Two courses from e8.65 ($8.65), two courses with wine from E11.15 ($11.15). My first pick is a "returnee" from the first article, Paris's classic budget restaurant. I had the pleasure of dining at Chartier on my last visit with an American friend who's lived in Paris so long, she can coordinate a silk scarf with an outfit and tie it in that chic Gallic manner in less than two minutes. Being now tres "French," there was a single word she muttered as she tasted each dish, smiling as she said it. "Correct," she would repeat, "this is very correct." Was this a code word for "dull" or "distasteful"? Not in the least. What she meant was that each dish was done in the way it was supposed to be done, in a traditional manner to the traditional specifications. And that's what you come to Chartier for: the classic French meal. You come for steak with a classic bearnaise sauce (E9.70), for the simple but tasty oeuf mayonnaise (Egg with mayonnaise, E1.60), for grilled salmon (E9.05), for pommes frites (E2.20). All are correct, and all are highly affordable, with appetizers averaging E2.20 and main dishes going for between e7.05 and E9.70. And you come to be a part of history. Chartier began as a bouillon, or workers' canteen, in the 1890s, and all of the building's belle epoque flourishes are untouched. It's a grand open space, seating several hundred, with soaring ceilings, marble wainscoting, bulbous chandeliers, and brass luggage racks above the tables. As you enter, take a peek at the numbered, dark-wood cabinets: These were where regulars stored their personal napkins until the practice was outlawed in the mid-twentieth century for health reasons. Restaurant Lescure 7 rue Mondovi, 01-42-60-18-91. Metro: Concorde. Two courses from E11.50 ($11.50). Closed Sundays. I know it's very, well, American of me, but I prefer to eat at places where the waiters don't seem to despise their jobs and customers. And while I don't buy into the idea that the service in Paris is any more brusque than it is in many other large European cities (try getting a meal with a smile in Prague), there are times when the eater just doesn't feel loved. That's the moment when they should leave where they are and head straight for Lescure (and if they're anywhere near the Louvre or the Tuileries, they'll be pretty close). Located on perhaps the least friendly street in Paris (it's at the back of the American Embassy, so a large armored vehicle blocks the street, and police in bullet-proof vests pace the intersection), Lescure is an oasis of old-fashioned bonhomie. As patrons enter, they are greeted with a hearty handshake by the staff, a jovial group, who will lay a friendly hand on your shoulder as you order, offer suggestions, and crack jokes. It's a family-owned place, passed down from father to son since 1919. The setting is just as convivial, a transplanted country inn in looks, with a low, beamed ceiling, straw hats as wall art, and lamps shaded in a fabric that looks like nothing so much as fancy cheesecloth. Diners sit elbow to elbow in the cramped rooms, a difficult situation for lefties, but a terrific one for striking up unexpected conversations. You'll want to bring your appetite, as the portions are massive (in fact, I suggest splitting the starters). The dishes are homey and unpretentious, from the marbled slab of chicken-liver terrine (E4), served with tear-inducingly sour cornichons; to the Henry VIII portions of stuffed chicken (E9) or chicken with a piquant tomato sauce (E8); to the classic boeuf bourguignon (E11). I suggest skipping the creme caramel (E3.50) and opting for either a sorbet (E5) or a chocolate fondant (E5.50). Le Petit Prince de Paris 12 rue de Lanneau, call first for reservations: 01-43-54-77-26. Metro: Maubert-Mutualite. Two courses for E17 ($17). Dinner only. We get a baby-sitter when we eat at Le Petit Prince. Sure, we could take our three-and-a-half-year-old with us, but why waste this dimly lit, romantic restaurant on a family meal? (The terra-cotta walls combined with the candlelight do wonders for the skin, making everyone look like they have a sexy Saint-Tropez tan.) It's a place for lovers of all stripes, as the restaurant is proudly gay-friendly, displaying rainbow flags in its window and playing a soundtrack that veers from the cliched (Judy crooning "Over the Rainbow") to the toe-tapping (Louis Prima) to the just plain odd (Madonna's version of Evita). The decor is as eclectic as the music, each of the three rooms with a distinct character. As you enter the place, it looks somewhat like an eccentric collector's parlor, with oddly shaped food tins, and unusual posters gracing the walls. Then you come upon what I call the "Italian garden"-the middle area-with its stone putti fountain, its abundant plants, its canary cage. Upstairs, you're back in France, sitting in a wooden-beamed den, with framed belle epoque posters on the walls. The food is, for the most part, excellent. Choose from two menus: a two-plate formule at E17, and a more elaborate E22 prix fixe. You won't be cheated by going with the less expensive option (but if you want such pricey treats as escargots and foie gras, you're going to have to ante up). On the cheapskate front are fresh salad with warm goat cheese and apples, poached eggs with blue cheese, and a rustic, tangy plate of potatoes, onions, and Lyonnaise sausages in a chive vinaigrette (scrumptious!). For the main plate, the choices often change with the seasons, but on the occasions I've been there, the highlights have been a frenchified chicken tandoori with a real pepper kick, plated on a spiced-yogurt foam; lamb chops smothered in goat cheese; and sesame-crusted veal in a creamy oregano sauce. If you decide to spring for dessert (an extra E5.80), avoid the overly sweet peach tart and instead go for the rich Charlotte au chocolat (basically a mousse in a crust), the chocolate menthe sorbet with hot chocolate sauce, the rice pudding, or the toasted almond mousse. Le Colimacon 44 rue Vielle du Temple, 01-48-87-12-01. Metro: Place du Ville. Appetizer and entree or entree and dessert for E14.50 ($14.50). Closed Tuesdays, dinner only. With a few key changes, such as getting rid of the unrelenting pop music and dimming the lights, Le Colimaeon would have ambience galore. Named for the treacherous, winding staircase in the center of the restaurant (patrons sit on two levels, and the rail-thin waiters stay that way by dashing up and down, loaded with trays), Le Colimaeon is set in a 1732 house constructed by royal architect Louis Le Tellier. The owners have the sense not to touch the rough stone walls, or the dark wooden beams in the ceiling, keeping the rooms serenely uncluttered. But it really isn't the look of the place that made this our new favorite in Paris-it's the food, which is a cut above standard budget fare (Le Petit Prince comes close to it in quality). At our first visit, my husband declared his mussels the best he'd ever had, and I couldn't agree more-those little critters had to have been born and raised in white wine and cream, so perfectly infused was each bite. The pork loin would have tickled Marie Antoinette, coated with honey and then dashed with vinegar. Even three-year-old Veronica was enthralled, downing her lamb chops so quickly I barely got a taste. I could go on and on about the lime mousse with raspberry sauce (which puts most key lime pies to shame), the perfect fish soup, the leek and shrimp flan...but you get the point. This place must be tasted! Le Colimacon is only open for dinner, so if you're looking for a place in the Marais for lunch, Le Reconforte, 37 rue de Poitou (Metro: Filles du Calvaire) is a terrific pick. While it's a bit pricier at dinner, its E12 prix fixe (two courses) puts it squarely in our budget for the midday meal. An elegant restaurant, looking like the library of a nineteenth-century noble (with a fondness for Turkish art, and oddly, twentieth-century painting), Le Reconforte serves inventive Proven?al cuisine. Another top choice. Restaurant La Peccadille 12 rue Pecquay, 01-44-59-86-72. Metro: Rambuteau. Two courses from E12.50 ($12.50). London has the reputation of being a gloomy, rainy place in winter, but the truth is that her neighbor across the channel can be just as gray and drizzly come November. Enter La Peccadille, a shockingly bright hole-in-the-wall of a restaurant, decorated entirely in yellows and oranges. "Orange is my element," explained owner/waiter Olivier. "It's so welcoming, especially when it is dark outside." Olivier is pretty welcoming himself, a grinning, goateed hurricane who greets guests, takes orders, and often pitches in in the kitchen of this new venture (it's less than a year old). The food can best be described as sunny, big on the salads, and occasionally with an African influence, as when lemony chicken Yassa is on the daily changing menu. While the cuisine is not complex, the salads and plates (pork Proven?al E9.50, beef foresti?re E10) have that straight-from-the-market taste. A good choice for lunch or dinner when visiting the Centre Pompidou (which is just a short stroll away). Le Petit Keller 13 bis rue Keller, 01-47-00-12-97. Metro: Bastille. Three courses for E14 ($14), dinner only. Many tourists overlook the Bastille, which is a shame because it's become one of Paris's most happening areas, a neighborhood of chic bars, hopping dance clubs, and interesting boutiques. Le Petit Keller has that young, vibrant spirit (not to mention a color scheme taken from Van Gogh's palette). It remains a gathering place, where under-35 patrons "sit in intense, smoky groups laughing and arguing and drinking cup after cup of espresso" (to quote from my first Paris article). The daily changing menu has also remained as good, and as interesting. Although the duck with honey and fig sauce was not offered on recent visits (much to my dismay), there was a fresh-as-the-color-green cucumber soup, a delish salad of fava beans in coriander and cumin, a fillet of fish in a piquant pepper sauce, a nice curried chicken, and more. None disappointed. Le Pied de Fouet 45 rue de Babylone, 01-47-05-12-27. Metro: Vaneau or St. Fran?ois-Xavier. Two courses from e8.90 ($8.90). Closed Sundays. I'm always leery of places that too many guidebooks have picked, and from the sticker-covered door of this one, it looks like none of them have missed this little 7th arrondissement bistro. So we were pleased to find, when we entered, that all of the neighboring tables were inhabited by Parisians (in a place this small, you can hear every conversation). It's not the most exciting-looking place, simply four small tables with red-checked cloths in a room festooned with postcards (there's also a small balcony with a few more tables), but the food is honest, well spiced, and remarkably cheap for the area (an easy stroll from the Bon March? department store, a doable walk from the Eiffel Tower). You can't really go wrong with anything on the menu, but we particularly liked the sauteed chicken livers, a steal at E6.90, sided by silky mashed potatoes. Also good is the carrot salad, a mound of shredded carrots but with a lovely dressing that somehow "elevates" the dish. Or try the rich fondant au chocolat (E2.75), the fillet of bass (E10), or the sausage plate (E9.50). Wine is just E2.30 more. Reportedly, Andre Gide was a frequent customer. Creperie Josselin 67 rue de Montparnasse, 01-43-20-93-50. Metro: Montparnasse-Bienvenue. Two courses from E10.85 ($10.85). Closed Mondays. As frilled as the traditional hats worn by the women of Brittany, La Creperie is a place of lace and knickknacks. The elaborately carved wood walls are festooned with decorative plates and regional photographs, there are little porcelain figurines to stare at, and every lamp in the place comes with its own lace chapeau. This is a long way of saying that children will dig it, as there's much to keep their attention here. They'll also enjoy the oversize crepes, which overhang the plates by a few inches, and the simple, savory fillings they come with: butter (E4); eggplant puree, ham, onions, sausage, egg, or cheese (E5.95); bacon (E6.40); or myriad combinations of the above ingredients, which range in price from e7.95 to e8.95. For dessert it's-what else?-more crepes, and these are the meal's highlight, often literally, when the waiter douses one in liqueur and carries it flaming to the table. Josselin is perpetually jammed-no mean feat on a street that is Paris's Brittany equivalent of a Chinatown, with nearly every business on the street a competing creperie. But none approach the quality or ambience of Josselin (including offshoot Le Petit Josselin), so get on line-it won't take too long. Don't eat away at your dining budget! Picnic for some of your meals-grab a baguette, some terrine of whatever, a prepared salad at a boulangerie, and chow down in a park or on a bench overlooking the Seine. You'll be hard-pressed to find as scenic a spot for a meal. Don't order bottled water at meals. Ask for eau naturel, which will arrive in a nifty carafe and tastes just as good as the stuff from out of town. Be aware that in many restaurants, "Le service est compris," meaning that service is included. So you can tip far less than you would in the States-although if your waiter is terrific, by all means don't hold back. Be careful if there's no price listed on the menu next to an item. If you see the words "selon grosseur," or more likely the abbreviation "s.g.," it means you'll be paying by the weight, and your tab may escalate rapidly.

Since the 1990s, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, and above all South Miami Beach have developed no shortage of swank restaurants catering to the "beautiful people" (physically or financially-some of America's highest household incomes are found on Miami's residential islands). Overall, though, Miami is America's poorest large city, so there's also a dizzying variety of more affordable dining options. It's a little tougher to find good quality for rock-bottom prices in Miami Beach and Fort Lauderdale, but plenty of regular folks-including immigrants and students-live there, too. And they manage to scrape by on considerably less than Gloria Estefan, Rosie O'Donnell, and Ricky Martin. The immigrants in particular have set a-bubbling a culinary melting pot whose strongest dishes hail from Latin America and the Caribbean. Especially in the Miami area, you'll find heaping helpings from Argentina to Trinidad, with an obvious emphasis on Cuba. Even Fort Lauderdale, infamous for its spring-break madness, has managed to shed some of its white bread, surf-and-turf reputation. Miami/Miami Beach Since 2001, this cavernous space has seen a steady stream of diners round-the-clock (as well as folks crowding the counter up front for fancy pastries and Argentine sweets, and surfers at the Internet terminals in back). It really gets hopping in the wee hours, when club-goers most appreciate the Latin fare turned out to a pop-music beat. The menu is dominated by specialties of Cuba, owner Mairely Rodr'guez's homeland, and dishes are similar in quality to those at Puerto Sagua, the longtime landmark just below South Beach. But the setting here is spiffier (green-tile palms on cool white walls, exposed ceiling ducts, mod light fixtures) and the location is central-two blocks west of Ocean Drive, three blocks south of the chichi pedestrian mall known as Lincoln Road, and three blocks north of the distinguished Wolfsonian Museum. The frita cubana (Cuban-style hamburger, $3.70) and Cuban sandwich (cold cuts and pickles on French bread, run through a sandwich press, $5.55) are top picks from the sandwich menu. But the best deals are at the steam tables, with lech-n asado (succulent roast pork) and about a dozen other items for $5.55, including two sides (rice, beans, potatoes, plantains, cassava, or sweet potatoes). E la carte platters, most of which cost $9, include the same sides along with the likes of chicken and steak. Tropical calls itself La Casa del Churrasco (House of Steak), and for good reason. The vaca frita (fried flank steak with onions, $9) is less crisp than at other Cuban restaurants, instead playing up tenderness and flavors of lemon and garlic; the picadillo a la criolla (ground beef sautZed with olives and raisins, $5) is hearty and rich; and the joint's former Argentine influence shows in the high quality of its 12-ounce steak platters ($14.95). Tap Tap 819 5th St., South Beach, 305/672-2898; 4 p.m.-11 p.m. Mon.-Wed., 4 p.m.-midnight Thurs.-Sat., 4-11 p.m. Sun. Haitians are another major Caribbean ingredient in Miami's cultural stew. But most of the Haitian restaurants are in dicey neighborhoods. So, Katharin Kean founded Tap Tap eight years ago, both to introduce the general public to kizin krey~l and to give middle-class Haitian-Americans a nice place to enjoy it. The result is a mini-maze of five dining spaces, painted in cheerful primary colors and named after local artists and various Haitian voodoo gods. Tap Tap's funky, friendly vibe couldn't be further from the attitude of the rest of South Beach-especially on Thursday and Saturday evenings, when live bands do their thing. And the food? It's not unlike Jamaican, with subtle twists and sometimes different spicing. The stewed beef ($8.95) and chicken ($5.95) are delicious, but you'll also find tender goat (grilled, $12.95, and in a more elaborate creole-style stew, $8.95) and conch (same preparations, for about a dollar more). All main courses come with at least two of the following: rice, beans, fried plantains, or cassava fries. Soups, salads, and sides involving other Caribbean staples like okra and pumpkin are also reasonably priced. For dessert, try the blancmange ($3), a coconut pudding with an almost cake-like consistency. Scotty's Landing Chart House Dr., off South Bayshore Dr., Grove Key Marina, Coconut Grove, 305/854-2626; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. weekdays, 11 a.m.-11 p.m. weekends. Coconut Grove, once a charming 1920s harborfront town of wood cottages and cobblestone lanes, has finished its long, strange trip from boho hippie hangout in the '60s and '70s to a land of Starbucks, Armani, and the mansions of Madonna and Stallone. Enough of the charm lingers to make the Grove something of a party magnet-especially on weekends-but there's also the lure of a historic mansion (Miami's oldest) called the Barnacle, the Coconut Grove Playhouse, the Vizcaya Mansion, the Miami Museum of Science and Space Transit Planetarium, and Key Biscayne, with its Seaquarium. Fortunately, there are a handful of refuges from high prices and plastic atmosphere-Scotty's Landing foremost among them. For 12 years, Scotty Wessel has run a weathered bait shack and an open-air dining area that's basically a dock under a green-and-white canopy, flanked by banana trees and coconut palms (you can even pull up in your boat). The clientele is made up of weekend boaters, grizzled old salts (especially around the bar), and slick, young investment bankers who all sit under overhead fans and watch the yachts slipping in and out of the marina; unspoiled Grove Key is in the background, Miami Beach is across the bay. Friday through Sunday, bands set up under a nearby banyan tree and serenade everybody with island rhythms. It's a great spot for knocking back a cold one at sunset (drafts from $2.35). This is some of the area's freshest, most unfancy seafood. The cracked conch is nice and moist ($6.95 with fries), and the 10-ounce grilled blackened mahi steak with fries and salad ($10.95) is another favorite. There are plenty of other mahi and conch options (including conch fritters jazzed up with a touch of Scotch bonnet, $4.75), as well as shrimp, clams, oysters, and calamari. Scotty's can be a little stingy with drinks (no refills at meals, no happy-hour discounts), but there's no better place to soak up the flavor of old Coconut Grove. Versailles Restaurant 3555 SW 8th St., at SW 36th Ave., Little Havana, 305/444-0240; 8 a.m.-2 a.m. Sun.-Thurs., 8 a.m.-4:30 a.m. Fri. and Sat. First things first: It's pronounced "vehr-sigh-yes," in the Spanish manner. This vast, must-visit landmark has reigned famously over the western end of Little Havana's Calle Ocho, the heart of Miami's Cuban exile community, since 1971. The ambience is heavily Latin, with glass chandeliers and etched, backlit mirrors that mean to suggest the original Versailles but wouldn't have kept the Sun King up nights. You get 'em all here: gray-hairs, blue-rinses, families, sleek young Yucas (young, upwardly mobile Cuban-Americans). It's not the finest Cuban food in town, but it's the best mix of good solid fare and an entertaining local scene. Start with the smoky black-bean soup ($2.55) or a plateful of crunchy/velvety croquettes (ham, chicken, or cod, $4.95), followed by a house specialty, lech-n asado (juicy roast pork, $8.75) or a more acquired taste such as lengua asada (ox tongue in wine sauce, $8.95). Daily specials start at $5.25, and most entreZs include sweet plantains and white or yellow rice. On a larger scale, the two surtidos cubanos (Cuban samplers, $10.95) come with two entrZes apiece, accompanied by a croquette and the standard sides. Whatever your pleasure, wash it all down with sweet, herbal Materva soda ($1.10) or an Hatuey beer ($3.25). After your feast, stroll around the galleries and shops of Calle Ocho-old guys in starched guayabera shirts will be playing dominos in (where else?) Domino Park, cigar rollers will be making stogies the old-fashioned way at La Gloria Cubana. Nearby, the Latin American Art Museum is also well worth a look.