Trip Reports are always interesting to read. Newbie or veteran visitor, there's something to be learned from these accounts of stays on the island.
Rugsena's (from Waukegan) report chronicled she and her husband's return to the island, 14 years after their first visit.
They stayed at Cruz Views, a condo development overlooking Cruz Bay, up Centerline Road. They didn't cook in much, but they sure did eat out – apparently being budget conscious. Lots of 'food for thought' here.
"We went to dinner at Uncle Joe's BBQ. It wasn't as good as we remembered it."
"We ate at our favorite Italian restaurant from 14 years ago, Cafe Roma. We were so disappointed. It has changed hands and the menu has gone 'upscale' from what it was back then. We each ordered something different. Both our meals were terrible and expensive."
"We went to the Beach Bar for dinner. Tom ordered fish and chips and I ordered beer battered shrimp. Both were very good but the fries were really salty."
"We had a hard time finding an restaurant that was open on Sunday night. We finally found Castaways across from Café Roma. They serve food upstairs above their bar. We had an excellent hamburger and fries. The service was very friendly and excellent."
"We ate at Ronnie's Pizza. It was very good."
"Last night we had carryout Chinese from the Chinese carryout at the Lumberyard. It was very good."
"After coming home from the beach, we went back to Castaway's Bar for drinks and we ordered 'loaded nachos'. After we finished we were too full for dinner.
"We went into town for breakfast. We went to JJ's. It was good but too expensive."
"We went over to Candi's for Barbecue. It is a shack on the side of the road with picnic tables. Tom had chicken and I had shrimp. Both were excellent."
"We are going back to Ronnie’s for another pizza tonight. Yummy.''
Do you agree? Chime in by commenting here.
Read Rugesana's Trip Report here.
It’s a shame you didn’t find gastro grub and la Plancha. Best on island.
I have only been to Uncle Joe’s BBQ once, about two years ago. The BBQ was not as good as the reputation of the place.
I’ve been eating at Cafe Roma for more than twenty years of travel to St John. It has changed hands, but I have never had a meal there that I would call “terrible”. In fact the quality of food there doesn’t seem to have changed much at all. As far as costs go, if they haven’t been there in 14 years, of course prices will be higher, but I wouldn’t call it “expensive”, in fact the entrees are so large that two people can share them and it would be more than adequate….I think they were given a “bad rap” by the people from Waukegan.
I agree the food at Cafe Roma is amazing and it’s true that the portions are huge and we took the rest back with us to our villa and had it for a midnight snack.
Conniosseur from Waukegan? They were looking for a cheap vacation. After reading their full report I wonder if they tipped.
I dont think you can evaluate St. John restaurants by doing it bargain basement style. It’s a Carribbean resort, things are not cheap. Glad to see they hit Uncle Joe’s, but by being cheal they missed great food at Lime Inn, and Morgans. Awesome lunch out at Shipwreck Landing too. And last but not least…Zozos.
I hope that someone new to STJ doesn’t read the review and miss out on other great restaurants. Rhomb Lines is probably our favorite – we often eat there twice per visit. On our last visit we finally tried Waterfront Bistro and had excellent food. If too pricey for dinner, try it at lunch.
Finally, there is nothing like a simple, but tasty dinner at Beach Bar. For added atmosphere, pull up a table on the beach and enjoy.