15 days to Coral Bay: Food

[Xislandgirl]

Taking the weekend off, see you on Monday for Day 12

Villa Cooking vs. Eating out

I love to cook. I love to come up with new ideas and recipes and I love to cook those tried and true family dishes that bring back great memories.
I do not love to cook on vacation.

I want to love it. I see trip reports with amazing picture of villa meals. I am envious of those folks that resist the lure of conch fritters and Mahi for dinner ever night at an island spot.

I always choose a villa that has a nice kitchen. Pool, AC in the bedrooms, and a nice kitchen. Top 3 must haves. Why do I do that? I eat yogurt and granola for breakfast, eat sandwiches on the beach, and if I cook at the villa, it is one night only.
One of the things on my list (ha, which one?) is to make sure that we do a good grocery shop on our first full day on island. I am going to get stuff for dinners. I am going to spend a few glorious nights soaking in the view, listening to my music, and enjoying a meal with my husband and my friends at the beautiful villa we have rented because it has a nice kitchen.

I will let you know how that goes

[waterguy]

I cook everyday at home but cooking on Vacation doesn't seem like a job to me like it does at home

[lazylane]

Breakfast is my favorite meal at the villa. Easy, leisurely morning, doesn't seem like work at all with that view, breezes, good company and not having to "rush" to get done!!! And in Coral Bay, it's even more relaxing to me!!!

[PA Girl]

I love to cook at home but don't do it on vacation.

Part of the reason is I can't resist the lure conch frittes and mahi. I want to eat differently on vacation than I do at home.

The other part of the reason is I am lazy, I don't want to take the time to find the guys selling fresh fish or track down lobsters, I want to sit on the beach and drink beer.

If there was a personal shopper on STJ that I could call and order everything I needed for that night's dinner and have it delivered, I would cook at the villa!

[eala]

We were there last month and my guy definately had seafood everyday. But we did hit the starfish market in Cruz to pick some up for the grill too which he's awesome with. The little Love City Mini-mart in Coral bay actually has a pretty good selection of everything too for such a small store. BTW, Vie's conch fritters are the best! The wahoo sandwich at Skinny Legs was pretty good too, loved the chowder at Shipwreck landing, the supreme lobster bisque at Chateau Bordeux and the lobster roll at The Tourist Trap was well worth it. But from our experience there's no bad chefs, food or service on this island!

[AquaGirl]

I would like to love to cook, but I just don't. Its on my list of things to work on - do more cooking and maybe it will grow on me.

I don't like to cook on vacation, but we love to enjoy our villa with the beautiful views. So we plan some simple meals or get carryout. We stay at Coconuts on Gifft Hill and the views are wonderful from the gazebo and deck. Here are a couple of things we did last time.

We always eat breakfast on the villa deck. Such a nice way to start the morning.

We love Sogos food and being on Gifft Hill, we were close to Cruz Bay. We would call in an order to Sogos and pop down to pick it up and take back to the villa. Our favorites are the Creole Shrimp and Curried Goat. No cooking, and we could enjoy the evening at the villa. It works well for us.

Our favorite villa meal is some kind of meat or chicken or seafood soaked overnight in a marinade with lime juice, garlic, lemon, orange juice, onion and Cruz Bay grill rub. Last trip it was pork chops. We cooked them on the grill and they were fantastic. The CBGR makes things sooo tasty. We usually pick up some side dishes from the Star Fish deli and have fresh veggies, so its minimal cooking. Sometimes Starfish has some nice side dishes (couscous, marinated salads, etc)

Some days we spend time on the beach until we have too much sun, snorkeling, swimming. We take snacks and drinks for the beach. Then we go eat a late lunch (2or 3ish) as our main meal. In the evening, we just have light fare or leftovers that requires little prep. We prefer to have our bigger meal earlier in the day anyway. This way, we can eat out early in the day, then enjoy the sunset and evening at the villa.

We have bought a rotisserie chicken at Starfish, then used it for sandwiches or chicken tacos. I like being able to buy some prepared food and eat it at the villa. We eat most of veggies raw anyway, so no cooking needed. I look forward to trying things from Sam and Jacks.

We also eat dinner out a few evenings because we enjoy the restaurants.

Happy trip planning!

[Lindy]

When we've travelled with our group of nine we wind up cooking at the villa a majority of the time just because it's unwieldy to try to find a restaurant that can accomodate a large group like that. I've also done trips with fewer people and gone out to eat every night. I personally like to have a mix of both because there are some days where it's just SO comfortable to stay in and not have the hassle of getting spiffed up to go out. If it's been a particularly long day at the beach and I'm glowing from sunburn I'd rather stay at the villa with something light and loose fitting and maybe take a dip in the pool to keep cool. It's also nice to enjoy cocktails without having to worry about the hairpin turns on the way back!!

[brenda]

I know how you feel! I always have great intentions for cooking dinners, but for just the two of us, it doesn't seem to be cost effective as we are not "cooler people". If it is more than just the two of you, I think it would be fun to cook in and relax a few nights. What we do though is get plenty of breakfast items. Bagels, English muffins, and the fixins for either omelettes or breakfast burritos. I haven't stayed in Coral Bay to comment on their markets, but I like Starfish with a stop at the gourmet market for some nice cheeses, salami type meat and crackers for snacks. I wish I would have discovered Sam and Jack's deli sooner because they have some great stuff! Homemade pastas and sauces and a host of other good items that would make for quick and easy dinners. Having said that, you could pretty much wrap it up at The Marketplace and get some odds and ends when needed at the Coral Bay Markets. I also like to make a quick pit stop at the duty free area at the airport for some libations. You are a veteran, so to me, it seems silly even giving you advice

[CBama]

so many restaurants (since my first trip)...and so little time!!!!

normally we eat breakfast and lunch in and dinners out on vacation...but I have way too many restaurants I want to try...seven nights.....not near long enough...

But budget wise...we should really cook in some nights.. just see how it goes when on island....

[bevm]

I can't plan meals on vacation because one day we leave the beach, head to a bar, have some drinks and nachos and that's dinner. One day we may hang at the house and feel like cheese and crackers or even a steak dinner. It's not vacation if you have to plan. Just relax and go with the flow...

[Capn Dan and Ruby]

Ya know, I am just cheep. We pick out the resturant faves, then cook the rest of the time. We can eat at the villa for a lot less if we plan ahead. Last year we brought some things from home, but did mostly grocery shopping. This year we are going to bring Steaks, burgers, bacon, and several pre-prepaired foods. (bough a Polar Bear this year ) Warm it up or grill it, serve it with some local sweet potatoes and Josephine's greens then relax at the villa with cheap Cruzan bought at the Captain's Corner. Ahhhhh. We discovered eating-in at Lovango last year, and really enjoyed it.

[Boston Mike]

Cooking? I don't think thats in my dictionary on island. Of course, if you like to cook us some nice steaks I'll take mine medium.

[Juli B]

For years, my motto on vacation is to eat out every night and not cook. After all, the key word is VACATION! Breakfasts and lunches vary. In May when I am doing a Girls Trip with 4 other women and money is an issue for us, I bought a large Polar Bear cooler and we will take the majority of our food and cook in except for two nights. The night we arrive we plan to get "grab and go" dinners at Sam and Jack's and we will eat one night at the Banana Deck. We are staying on the Cruz Bay side of the island, not Coral Bay.
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[Skillians]

We are a couple that love to cook, love to eat, love our million-dollar villa rentals and we value our privacy, so maybe in a 2 week vacation we eat dinner out three times. But I wouldn't say that we cook; it's more like we grill and make a salad. As the moon rises over the BVIs and the wine kicks in, we know we've got our own little slice of heaven. The view from 'our' deck beats the view from Zozo's, the Beach Bar, etc. hands down. No lines, no dressing up, no driving, no chatter, no stress.

[mindehankins]

We always eat breakfast in. I've already sauteed the pepers and onions with the sausage, to be mixed with scrambled eggs and cheese, for breakfast burritos. That bag is freezing in the freezer. We'll also have a more traditional bacon and eggs meal a couple of times, especially on a rainy morning.
I've got 4 steaks marinating, and cubed sirloin marinating til tomorrow evening, when I'll dump out most of the marinade and freeze those puppies. 2 Packages of couscous and one packet of microwave rice. Add salads and we'll have three dinner in.
I'm also bringing some good cheese and salami, and our friends' shiitake mushroom pate, and some great crackers.
So we'll still eat out some nights.
Ay yay yay....just want it to get here!