Cooking in at the Villa

[Greenskeeper]

Last year, we only ate one dinner in at the villa. This year I'd like to dine in more as it seems a waste not to enjoy the gorgeous views more.


After spending over $400 for a Valentine's Day meal that was not really worth it, I'd like to prepare a nice dinner for my family this year but honestly, was not thrilled by the quality of meats I found at Starfish.

Any suggestions for where to buy some really nice steaks for a nice dinner in? I'd even stop on STT on our way in if need be.

[msgcolleen]

Marina Market across the street from Red Hook had nice thick cuts of steak! We brought our own from home though and they stayed frozen the whole way there!
We love grilling at the villa~ so relaxing!

[Pianogrl]

The steaks we got at Starfish were very good (maybe just the timing). This last time we brought steaks we had frozen & they were still frozen when we got there. Just packed them in our luggage, wrapped in foil....arrived in perfect condition. Got our greens from Josephine's over in Coral Bay when we were there...AMAZING!

We love cooking in alot most nights; get to enjoy sunset, a swim & a wonderful meal without alot of effort...very relaxing. Of course we also dine out at most all the other meals - we definately do our part in contributing to the STJ culinary economy!

[toes in the sand]

Sorry to sidetrack..but where is Josephines Greens in Coral Bay? I have never seen her place.

[promoguy]

I'll second that quality of meat at Marina Market in RH. Much better quality meats then Starfish, IMHO.

But that being said, why don't you do a search on here with regards to packing some meat and taking it with.

[mickyb]

Toes in the sand:
Josephine's is on the road the Love City Mart is on in Coral Bay. About 3/4 mile past on the left and in a yellowish metal building.

[Greenskeeper]

I did read some information about packing meats. We do carry on only so not sure if it would work for us as I need all the room I can get for my stuff. We also fly out of Boston in the evening, spend the night at a hotel in Atlanta and then get a morning flight to STT so not sure about the logistics of keeping meat for that long.

It's only 4 of us so I wouldn't mind paying more for the convenience of finding a good quality butcher.

I read a great article on Josephine's Greens last year and am determined to buy some from the source in Coral Bay.

[sherban]

When we went to STJ we bought frozen meats and then transported them to STJ in a "carry cooler" (we checked it). It worked well for us.

We bought from Omaha Steaks, we got a deal on some burgers, pre-cooked bacon and Filet Mingnons. The handy thing is that everything is already frozen and packed in dry ice so it is easy to transfer to a cooler and carry on the trip. It was also convenient to not have to stop and shop for meats. We cooked on our balcony overloooking Cinnamon Bay...awesome!

[St. John Lover]

BTW, you can also buy Josephine's greens at almost all the markets in Cruz Bay as well (Starfish, Pine Peace, and whatever the newest one is called that's between Pine Peace and the Westin). I LOVE her greens and will buy them whenever I can find them.

I think she used to deliver fresh greens to the Cruz Bay markets on Tuesday afternoons/evenings but if I'm mistaken (which could very well be the case) or if she changed it to another day or if it's 2x/week or changes with hi/lo season, please post what is currently going on. Thanks!

[liamsaunt]

I just bring my own. I won't cook the meat or chicken available at the St. John markets. That said, Marina Market does have some quite decent looking meat.

I prep for my trips by buying what I think I am going to use for meat/chicken and then freeze it and vaccuum seal it, and then when it's time to go, I layer it in a polar bear cooler with techni ice. If you hard freeze it and pack the cooler full with food and techni ice it will stay frozen for at least 24 hours. I bring cheese also.

There's usually really nice fish available on the side of the road and at the market, and that's my first choice for dinner anyway.

[Greenskeeper]

Thanks for all the tips everyone. We may consider it so there may be questions later.

Liamsaunt- where do you get the techni ice? Also do you have concerns about Ciguatera from the fish? I think Rick G posted something about it and then when we were on island last year, my sister told me my nephew had it some years ago.

[jimg20]

We ditto Liamsaunt! We brought a lot of meat in our 12-pack size cooler. It was frozen solid for 12 hours home-to-villa. Be careful with the Techni ice and the TSA if you carry it on. Someone else suggested burying the "ice" under the meat until inside security. Once inside it can be repacked to cover the meat.

We got our Techni ice with our Polar Bear cooler.

JIM

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[liamsaunt]

Greenskeeper, ciguaterra is defintely a concern. I try and minimize my risk by only purchasing large open water fish such as tuna and mahi mahi. My understanding is that your risk of getting ciguaterra is greater if you consume fish that inhabit the reefs, such as parrotfish, triggerfish, snapper, etc. John's aunt had a terrible case of ciguaterra poisoning some years ago from eating barbecued barracuda in Jamaica. She was sick for about six months.

[pipanale]

I bought some fresh tuna and mahi mahi last year at the Westin dock when the fishing charter came in. I think you can get fresh fish at the dock in Cruz Bay and somewhere in Coral Bay too.

how do you know when to go looking? Is it a matter of seeing the boats come in and then heading to the dock to see what came in?

I'd love to get some freshly caught fish next summer.

Otherwise, I pack a big cooler with the week's worth of food.

I'm a cooler person. I have my 5 year chip right here.