Cool Corner Bar & Restaurant
Upper Town's open-air Chinese kitchen and island watering hole
Why Go
Half local hangout, half takeout counter — Cool Corner is the breezy wooden corner in the heart of Oranjestad where Statia's dive crews, off-duty guides, and curious travelers all end up sooner or later.
The Experience
Perched on a corner in Upper Town — a two-minute wander from the St. Eustatius Historical Museum — Cool Corner is one of those places you smell before you see: wok smoke, garlic, and salt air drifting through the open sides of the wooden building. The huge central bar is the beating heart of the room, deliberately set up so strangers end up elbow to elbow, and Bruce, the ever-smiling owner, tends to remember your drink by the second visit. It's not a white-tablecloth affair; it's a Chinese-Caribbean canteen where the ceiling fans spin lazily, the trade winds do the rest of the cooling, and a plastic chair on the porch is prime real estate at sunset. Come for a cheap cold beer after a dive, stay because the kitchen is genuinely open until 11pm — a small miracle on an island where most places shutter early.
What to Try
Classic Chinese-Caribbean staples are the move: chicken chow mein, sweet-and-sour pork, garlic shrimp, and the fried rice, all sized more like a takeaway than a fine-dining plate (portions are generous and geared to fuel divers and construction crews alike). Pair it with a Carib or Heineken — Cool Corner is widely known for having some of the cheapest bar prices on Statia — or a rum and coke if you're settling in for the evening.
Insider Tip
The bar side stays lively long after the kitchen slows down, so don't write it off as "just Chinese food." Grab a stool at the central bar around 7–8pm on a weekday, order whatever the regulars are eating, and you'll get more real Statia gossip in an hour than any guidebook can offer. Cash is king here, and takeaway orders tend to come out faster than dine-in on busy nights.
The Practical Stuff
Address: F2M7+3GP, Upper Town, Oranjestad, St. Eustatius (Caribbean Netherlands), just a short walk from the Historical Museum. Hours: daily, roughly 12:00–23:00 (kitchen and bar). Phone: +599 318-3386. Wheelchair accessible via the open street-level entrance. Payment: bring cash — card acceptance on Statia can be hit-or-miss. Dress is fully casual; flip-flops and dive-shop t-shirts are the unofficial uniform.
Pair It With
- Aquarium - Dive Site Guide — Statia is a diver's island, and Cool Corner is the obvious refuel stop after a morning at the Aquarium dive site — beer, fried rice, and a bar full of people who probably just surfaced too.
- Alvin V Courtar Park Guide — Walk off dinner (or work up an appetite) with a lap around this nearby Upper Town green space before settling in at Cool Corner's porch bar.
- Ariel's Art Guide — Pair a lunch stop at Cool Corner with a browse through this local gallery a few doors away — a low-key Upper Town afternoon that shows off Oranjestad's small-town creative side.
