An Online Blog About the Daily Happenings of St. John, USVI
Formerly one of the island’s best restaurants – but then unexpectedly closed for business – Tage may be coming back.
Eric, posting on Anthony Finta’s Virgin-Islands-On-Line forum, says he read in the Tradewinds that Tage will re-open in November. The Web site is still online, at least.
Starfish Market’s expansion into an upscale food and wine specialty store is set to kick off early next month. (Picture at left is in the original Starfish store.)
A grand opening is being planned Nov. 5 for the new Starfish Gourmet and Wines store. The venture is located on the first floor of the Marketplace shopping center, across the corridor from Starfish Market. The shelves will be stock with wines, imported cheeses, coffees, meats, pizzas, pastas and other items.
By shifting wines and gourmet foods to a new retail space, the owners of Starfish give themselves the opportunity to expand offerings in the grocery store, too. More dairy products or produce may be considered.
Starfish Gourmet is likely to be a boon to in-villa catering services. The availability of a wider variety of items will also give cooks a bigger palette for culinary efforts. Several chefs at the island’s restaurants have said they feel restricted in preparing menus because food distributors on St. Thomas aren’t able to offer much variety. If Starfish can establish its own sources and supply lines, St. John could become a much more tasty island.
Caneel Bay has added a couple of one-time New Englanders to its staff.
Edward Gannon, Caneel’s new Resort Manager, and Anthony Dawodu, Executive Chef have extensive experience with high-end resorts including time together in the kitchen at the Four Seasons in Boston.
Gannon made the move from the kitchen to management while working at Winnetu Oceanside Resort in Martha’s Vineyard.
Dawodu, who grew up in Nigeria and relocated to London in the early ’90s, spent the last 11 years in Boston at the Four Seasons as well as handling executive chef duties for two notable restaurants. He will be responsible for all culinary operations at Caneel, including menu preparation at its restaurants as well as in-room dining and special events.
A lot of island restaurants close during late summer and early fall. St. John Ruth tries to keep up with who’s open and who’s closed and she posts it on her web site. I’ve taken a look at the schedule and here’s my best estimate of which restaurants that may have taken a break are now open this week. If you have better information, post it here. Best advice: call ahead
Open after going on hiatus:
Expect to be closed
Chateau Bordeaux has been voted the top restaurant in Coral Bay by readers of News of St. John. Perched high over Coral Bay with an astounding view of East End and the BVIs, its dinner offerings include Mahi Mahi, escargot, lobster tail. Here’s the menu. There are no prices on this online version of the menu, so beware – it’s not cheap. The phone is 340-776-6611.
Second place goes to Miss Lucy’s, whose original owner was also a cab driver, whose island tours were the best! The restaurant is located way outta town along the south shore and is best known for its Sunday brunches with live jazz, Lucy’s is a long-time favorite. There are a handful of tables on the beach – arrive early (very!) to get one. The phone is 340-693-5244.
You couldn’t be there? "Alza317" was and posted this video, "Maho Bay Boys Dominate Bar Wars."
Beware, there is much screaming and one young female who really can screech. Teams of waiters and bartenders have to deliver the goods through
obstacle courses set up on the beach and in the water there at the
Beach Bar at Wharfside. The late July event was all in good fun and the proceeds go to a worthy cause, the Animnal Care Center.
The Lime Inn is the best bet for a reasonable night out for dinner with your sweetie and/or the kids, according to results of our week-long poll on Cruz Bay restaurants.Specializing in seafood, Caribbean lobster, and known for its Wednesday night Shrimp Feast, the Lime Inn has been an island favorite for almost 20 years.
Other old reliables finishing near the top of the voting included Morgan’s Mango, featuring South American spicy specialties; Rhumb Lines, known for ‘Asian fusion’; the Fish Trap, specializing in, what else?, fish and some imaginative Asian-inspired treatments of old favorites; Banana Deck and its solid bar food, and Cafe Roma, serving up pasta and pizza.
Here are the results of our poll:
While Coral Bay is rapidly developing … ’cause that’s where the available land is … it’s still kind of laid back and relaxed. Which explains why its choices for a meal are all over the map. From a fantastic budget breakfast at the Donkey Diner to a moonlit, waterside dinner at Miss Lucy’s, the variety is broad.
Frankly, Coral Bay is often a state of mind. Its restaurants range from tacky to white tablecloth. Enjoying Coral Bay is easy to do. Sometimes you’re in a rock-and-roll state of mind, other times you’re looking for smooth and relaxing. So, in choosing a Coral Bay restaurant or bar, vote for the one where you have the most fun and the best memories.
If history is any guide. Kenny Chesney may be on island soon.
His Flip Flop Summer Tour wraps up this weekend in Atlanta. TicketsNow.com has seats in the 3rd row, center offered at $950.00.
But when Chesney does his last encore, watch out. Traditionally, that’s the time when he charters a plane and takes the band to St. John to kick back. 
So, you might expect Kenny sightings at Woody’s or even in the alley in back, where Anderson Cooper interviewed him for 60 Minutes. (See the video.)
At the same time, a new Chesney CD will be released on Tuesday, Sept. 11. It’s his first new music in two years. And Amazon is offering a deal on it. Own it for $9.99. You can order it through the Gift Shop. The online store has two other Chesney CDs at that price, too.Compose Post
The Stone Terrace finished solidly at the top of a poll of visitors’ favorite high-end restaurants in Cruz Bay over the past week. Zozo’s at Gallows Point came in second. While Tage comes in for much praise on various travel forums praise, it finished in third place, far back of the leaders.
Almost 750 votes were cast. Here are the results:
