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Dollar amount for dinning out
Dollar amount for dinning out
Hey guys,oops and gals!
I'm tring to figure if bringing the cooler with food is worth it. we already have to eat out 2 nights and days in st thomas, but what should i plan on spending on food for lunch and dinner 5 nights st john. mostly cheap maybe one night special night out
I'm tring to figure if bringing the cooler with food is worth it. we already have to eat out 2 nights and days in st thomas, but what should i plan on spending on food for lunch and dinner 5 nights st john. mostly cheap maybe one night special night out
Rocken Robbin gets her dream Honeymoon vacation in the Virgin Islands
We never miss Uncle Joe's for takeout on STJ.
Cooking at whichever house we're staying at is very fulfilling, as well.
Just do a little food shopping, and plan your meals, if you're on a budget.
If you can swing it, bring down your favorite foods/cold cuts, etc...,and do your best to keep them frozen.
Have fun!
Smiles-
MJ
Cooking at whichever house we're staying at is very fulfilling, as well.
Just do a little food shopping, and plan your meals, if you're on a budget.
If you can swing it, bring down your favorite foods/cold cuts, etc...,and do your best to keep them frozen.
Have fun!
Smiles-
MJ
My advice is to consider how you eat.
For example - a cooler is worth it for us because my family eats a lot and is particular about quality.
We are a "live to eat" type of family.
The grandparents are the opposite.
They can stretch one BBQ take away into three shared meals.
They are the "eat to live" type of family.
Their food costs are very small in the overall vacation expense. They eat so little that a cooler wouldn't be worth while for them.
It has been a year since we were on STJ so my memory of restaurant prices has faded. I am sure someone will chime in with their more recent experiences.
For example - a cooler is worth it for us because my family eats a lot and is particular about quality.
We are a "live to eat" type of family.
The grandparents are the opposite.
They can stretch one BBQ take away into three shared meals.
They are the "eat to live" type of family.
Their food costs are very small in the overall vacation expense. They eat so little that a cooler wouldn't be worth while for them.
It has been a year since we were on STJ so my memory of restaurant prices has faded. I am sure someone will chime in with their more recent experiences.
I agree with PA girl.
We really like good food. But as we always have kids with us, we are really only willing to pay for a nice dinner maybe one or two nights out of 10. I don't think the nice dinners are that much more than the states. (There are nice and then there are VERY nice) Then we might go out for burgers or get ribs to take home for two or three nights.
We always get sandwiches at deli grotto or something for lunches-very reasonable I think.
We really don't want to eat mediocre food the other nights-either at restaurants or at the villa. So we will bring nice frozen shrimp, steak, pork tenderloin we have bought on sale at home. We often even freeze some of it in the marinade or bring grill rubs with us. Just to make it as little work as possible while we are there.
Smoked salmon for bagels and cream cheese/capers, the works every am. It is just a better quality and price than you can find at the store. Plus we hate shopping on vacation.
We also bring a box of dry goods and fit as much as we can-like drink mixes, coffee, granola bars, nuts and stuff like rice mix, couscous or whatever. Again, part is for the expense but part is just convenience. I don't want to spend a hour or more in a market right when I get there. That is prime time to me! And to me, even though the prices are not unreasonable (they are high, but I "get" why they are high) to me it is very stressful to spend twice as much on something if I can bring it in a box for free. (we are priority fliers so we get an extra allotment).
My husband loves grilling so that helps also. I get to sit and drink bloody marys!
We really like good food. But as we always have kids with us, we are really only willing to pay for a nice dinner maybe one or two nights out of 10. I don't think the nice dinners are that much more than the states. (There are nice and then there are VERY nice) Then we might go out for burgers or get ribs to take home for two or three nights.
We always get sandwiches at deli grotto or something for lunches-very reasonable I think.
We really don't want to eat mediocre food the other nights-either at restaurants or at the villa. So we will bring nice frozen shrimp, steak, pork tenderloin we have bought on sale at home. We often even freeze some of it in the marinade or bring grill rubs with us. Just to make it as little work as possible while we are there.
Smoked salmon for bagels and cream cheese/capers, the works every am. It is just a better quality and price than you can find at the store. Plus we hate shopping on vacation.
We also bring a box of dry goods and fit as much as we can-like drink mixes, coffee, granola bars, nuts and stuff like rice mix, couscous or whatever. Again, part is for the expense but part is just convenience. I don't want to spend a hour or more in a market right when I get there. That is prime time to me! And to me, even though the prices are not unreasonable (they are high, but I "get" why they are high) to me it is very stressful to spend twice as much on something if I can bring it in a box for free. (we are priority fliers so we get an extra allotment).
My husband loves grilling so that helps also. I get to sit and drink bloody marys!
"Sponges grow in the ocean...I wonder how much deeper it would be if that didn't happen."
Buying groceries on island is not that big a deal. Bringing a cooler is good for your favorites and the must-haves, but especially for preserving time for fun instead of grocery shopping.
If you're not going directly to your villa, but staying somewhere on STT first, then a cooler does not really work out.
We're down to packing in our carryon cooler steaks for one night, bacon (Virginia dry-cured that does not refrigeration anyways) and frozen shrimp. The biggest reason I bring the cooler is to use on the beach.
Cheers, RickG
If you're not going directly to your villa, but staying somewhere on STT first, then a cooler does not really work out.
We're down to packing in our carryon cooler steaks for one night, bacon (Virginia dry-cured that does not refrigeration anyways) and frozen shrimp. The biggest reason I bring the cooler is to use on the beach.
Cheers, RickG
Last edited by RickG on Sat Feb 21, 2009 5:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
S/V Echoes - Coral Bay - St. John, VI
We just got back last week (3 couples) and each couple took one frozen meat for "their night to cook" at the villa. We brought Rib-Eyes, my sister brought a whole pork loin (which we cut up into chops and grilled) and the 3rd couple brought Chickens that were de-boned and grilled for chicken tacos. We also bought some frozen chicken breasts for the 4th meal at the villa. We also ate out at Skinny's one night (around $40 per couple) and Morgan's Mango for Valentines Day (around $100 per couple).
We bring a soft-sided cooler for the beach. Always buy lunchmeat, cheese, bread, and chips on-island and make all of our beach lunches. That saves a BUNCH of both money and time traveling back to a restaurant for lunch.
We bring a soft-sided cooler for the beach. Always buy lunchmeat, cheese, bread, and chips on-island and make all of our beach lunches. That saves a BUNCH of both money and time traveling back to a restaurant for lunch.
does your airline charge for checked bags?
I agree with Rick skip the cooler.
we used a cooler last year however we did a dinner party one night and I had over 10 lbs of meat. Yes Starfish costs more however kids had fun picking out food.
we loved Morgan's Mango no one seems to talk about the place here?
I agree with Rick skip the cooler.
we used a cooler last year however we did a dinner party one night and I had over 10 lbs of meat. Yes Starfish costs more however kids had fun picking out food.
we loved Morgan's Mango no one seems to talk about the place here?
My husband can get dry ice, so I'm wondering if we can freeze our meats and keep the cooler closed if it will all stay frozen. he would get dry ice on Wed and we stay in stt thursday and friday, get to villa sat. Do you think it will stay frozen?
Rocken Robbin gets her dream Honeymoon vacation in the Virgin Islands
Robbin ya sound pretty intent to bring some stuff down. I personally think ya will be fine with the cooler and dry ice. If not just buy some ice on island or maybe it will be available at your hotel.
We bring meat, cheese, cold cuts, in our carry on in a Hot/Cold bag and it is still frozen 12 hours later with no ice. If that cooler keeps stuff at refrigerator temps for two days it will be fine my guess would be it may start beginning to thaw at worst, frozen solid at best. It can save alot of $$$ if ya don't mind the work. We always buy meat on sale at home and stock up our freezer so it really saves us money bringing stuff down. Like Pa girl said we are also live to eat peeps and when we drink even more so. Have a great trip and remember put half the cloths ya lay out back, ya won't need them
OOOPS didn't answer your other ? Figure 10to15 apiece a meal and drink for the cheap stuff like Uncle Joes,Candies, Woodys, Skinny Legs,Beach bar. I would recommend Rhumblines to anyone for good food and nice atmosphere the two of you could get out of there for $60or so doing it up right for a nice dinner out. Personally I could eat Joe's bbq everyday and be happy but my honey won't let that happen
We bring meat, cheese, cold cuts, in our carry on in a Hot/Cold bag and it is still frozen 12 hours later with no ice. If that cooler keeps stuff at refrigerator temps for two days it will be fine my guess would be it may start beginning to thaw at worst, frozen solid at best. It can save alot of $$$ if ya don't mind the work. We always buy meat on sale at home and stock up our freezer so it really saves us money bringing stuff down. Like Pa girl said we are also live to eat peeps and when we drink even more so. Have a great trip and remember put half the cloths ya lay out back, ya won't need them
OOOPS didn't answer your other ? Figure 10to15 apiece a meal and drink for the cheap stuff like Uncle Joes,Candies, Woodys, Skinny Legs,Beach bar. I would recommend Rhumblines to anyone for good food and nice atmosphere the two of you could get out of there for $60or so doing it up right for a nice dinner out. Personally I could eat Joe's bbq everyday and be happy but my honey won't let that happen
Last edited by cptnkirk on Sun Feb 22, 2009 8:50 am, edited 1 time in total.
Michele,
What we do is bring our Polar Bear cooler which is a high quality soft sided cooler. But many times in the past we have also used a regular cooler. We have sealed it with packing tape. We always put a half empty roll of packing tape inside (just in case they open it and need to reseal-I am sure they have tape but this makes us feel better) It also ensures we have tape for the return trip because we would need to seal it, even if it was empty.
The only other hint would be not to buy all the meat the day before or something. You would want to buy it a few days in advance so it is frozen solid.
For the dry goods, we use a cardboard box but our last trip we didn't have to pay b/c we had purchased our tickets before the new rules. Now that the checked items are $15, we will probably cut further back on clothes (we never wear everything and each trip we bring less) and maybe just pack a suitcase with dry goods. Family of four-one cooler (we will carry that on since it is soft sided), one suitcase, one duffel with snorkel gear etc., and maybe one suitcase of dry goods.
What we do is bring our Polar Bear cooler which is a high quality soft sided cooler. But many times in the past we have also used a regular cooler. We have sealed it with packing tape. We always put a half empty roll of packing tape inside (just in case they open it and need to reseal-I am sure they have tape but this makes us feel better) It also ensures we have tape for the return trip because we would need to seal it, even if it was empty.
The only other hint would be not to buy all the meat the day before or something. You would want to buy it a few days in advance so it is frozen solid.
For the dry goods, we use a cardboard box but our last trip we didn't have to pay b/c we had purchased our tickets before the new rules. Now that the checked items are $15, we will probably cut further back on clothes (we never wear everything and each trip we bring less) and maybe just pack a suitcase with dry goods. Family of four-one cooler (we will carry that on since it is soft sided), one suitcase, one duffel with snorkel gear etc., and maybe one suitcase of dry goods.
"Sponges grow in the ocean...I wonder how much deeper it would be if that didn't happen."
A lot depends on your flight schedule and your first night accomodations. We freeze everything SOLID (still in its original packaging), then wrap in newspaper, place in plastic, then wrap that in paper again and just put it in the luggage. It will stay rock-solid frozen for the better part of a full day. Just be sure to get it back into a freezer as soon as you can once you are on-island. We left Cincinnati at 5am to catch the flight and unpacked our bags at around 5pm on STT and all meat was still completely frozen - no issues at all.
Good Luck! Have Fun!
Good Luck! Have Fun!
Using a polar bear, our stuff was still frozen solid after more than 36 hours using techiice packs.
Like others said, having stuff completely frozen is key. We had the butcher vac pack and deep freeze our order.
Two nights and days plus travel time? I think that might require a lot of work and cooler maintenance.
Like others said, having stuff completely frozen is key. We had the butcher vac pack and deep freeze our order.
Two nights and days plus travel time? I think that might require a lot of work and cooler maintenance.