Meeting one of the old-time characters from St. Maarten, L'Escargot owner Joel Morand is one of those people who leaves you feeling warm and content. Entrepreneur and gentlemanly, comic and kindly, he is fascinating to talk to.

L'Escargot was opened on January 11, 1972. Parking was available on both sides of the road with far fewer shops in the area than there are today. L'Escargot was the only dining place in town – jackets and ties for gentlemen "if you please." The only competitive restaurant nearby was at Lido Steak House situated on the square.

Under the restaurant was a discotheque called "The Last Tango" which kept the business alive during the long, slow summer months. This disco never closed before the sun started kissing the earth. The island was very different back then.

The establishment and owners Sonya and Joel Morand have seen more than their fair share of fun and high-jinx that have gone with the business of running the restaurant in the last 40 plus years. One of the best stories is the one of the "Backward Italians" from Philly: A group of 12 walked in BACKWARDS one night and said to the waiter, "We want to spend the entire evening BACKWARDS, how can we go about this?" The waiter with barely a thought said; "I start by giving you the bill, you start by giving me a tip! And that is how the dinner went, from coffee and cognacs through to the hors d'euvres. Of course, the night ended with champagne on the house!

Joel Morand's life has been a fascinating one; he has done more, seen more and laughed more than most of us do in a lifetime:

Your forebears are interesting, who were they?

My mother was born and raised in Vietnam where her father was a government employee.

My father was born and raised in Algeria where his father was a veterinary farmer. My father met my mother in Tonkin, Indochina, where he was stationed in the army.

Where were you born and where did you spend your formative years?

Of three children, I was the only one who was born in France. My brother and sister were born in Vietnam. Due to the fact that my father was relocated every two-three years, I went to a lot of different schools.

Where did you go to school?

My schooling was in Hanoi, Tonkin; Pondichery, India; Dakar, Senegal; Fort-National, Algeria and Rabat, Morocco.

What schooling did you do after leaving high school?

After leaving high school, I was sent, to my dismay, from the Jungle of Kayes in Sudan – my father's latest posting – to Lycee "Henry 4th" of Paris and Hotel School. I was happier in Sudan with my mini-zoo where I could ride an ostrich through the village rather than having to go to school by bus through the city streets.

You lived in Morocco from what age? What did you do there?

In Morocco, we lived in Rabat, the royal city; I used to cross the city twice a day to go to school on my bicycle.

France had conscription in those days, were you conscripted?

Yes, I was. I was drafted when I was 19½ years old and sent directly to a French/Algerian infantry unit in Batna, which is situated in the Aures-Nemencha where the rebellion started six years earlier. We had a HUGE ram as the unit's mascot and he would lead us during our parades on parade day.

What is your fondest memory of this period of your life?

My fondest or most memorable memory is the time I was celebrating my 20th birthday in Algeria. I was hospitalized in the "Hopital Maillot" a very well known military hospital. The evening of my birthday, wearing borrowed civilian clothes and in the company of two other wounded soldiers, we slipped over the back wall of the hospital and went to spend the night in the Casbath of Algiers. This was OFF LIMITS to the military police. What a night it was in the company of these two professional soldiers – one a major with a missing ear – the other was a Foreign Legionnaire who had a leg in a cast!

Where did you meet your wife and long time partner?

I returned to school after being in the army and was sent to the island of Bermuda where I met my wife Sonya – the best thing in my life that has ever happened to me.

What urged you to move to St. Maarten and when was this?

We came to St. Maarten from St. Thomas for a holiday in September of 1972. We arrived in Marigot Bay on the Flying Goose (name of plane) which in those days was the sea-plane that operated between the islands, landing on the water. We saw the opportunity to open a French restaurant. With the help of Chester Wathey, we opened L'Escargot Restaurant within two months.

You had a few restaurants and a disco in the 80s; tell us a bit about them.

Of the many restaurants we owned during our time here, I have fond recollection of "The Boucanier Restaurant," which was in Marigot Bay next to The Mini-Club – we were on the water's edge in those days – "Pinocchio," of course, on the Square in Philipsburg; the tender of the cruise ship Norway used to disembark the passengers on the beach right in front of the restaurant; "The Ritz Café" in Grande Case where we used to have some lavish costume parties; "The Plantation" Mt. Vernon where we opened in the spring of 1979. There was nothing there; it was much too early to open a restaurant in a neighbourhood where Orient Bay did not exist and Grande Case was just a sleepy village.

Your children were all born on St. Maarten. How many children did you have and where are they now?

We have three children. All of them were born down the road from L'Escargot at St. Rose's hospital. Mark shares his time between here and Los Angeles; Julien shares his time between here and New York; and Vanessa, who is a fulltime mother, and is living happily in England.

You have been the owners of L'Escargot (an amazing restaurant where snails are the selling point) for many years; tell us about the building and the restaurant.

L'Escargot is (I assume by the cost of maintenance) over 150 years old at the turn of the century (1900). The building was a two-room hotel for the captains and crew who were bringing food from neighbouring islands. The underground room was the storage for the produce and the street is named Hotel Steeg, soon to be renamed L'Escargot Street (I hope).

Can you do a bit of name dropping and tell us of some well known patrons who have dined there?

Among the celebrities who have eaten at L'Escargot are Robert De Niro and Hollywood director, Martin Scorcese. Then there were Jack Nicholson, Simon Le Bon from Duran and guitarist Ronnie Wood from The Rolling Stones who enjoyed the wonderful cocktails made by Sonya. Richard Nixon, George Foreman, Phil Donahue and Frank Sinatra have all wined, dined and been brought under the spell of L'Escargot.

Where do you see yourselves in 10 years?

At L'Escargot with my soul mate Vernon Richardson, who has been on the job for 39 years, and my beautiful wife Sonya, offering escargot and Duck a L'orange to our guests at L'Escargot.

What three people (dead or alive) would you like to invite to dinner and what would you serve them?

I would invite Gordon Ramsey for a meal and to stay the week to straighten out our kitchen to last another 10 years. I would invite Anthony Bourdain especially to share in the meal I would serve, my snails and Duck a L'orange, of course! The third person I would invite would be a talent scout from Hollywood to visualize our Friday show and get us a ticket to the Oscars. Of course, the only meal we would serve them would be Snails (a special way) and, you've guessed it, Duck a L'orange!