We are excited to share that our newest St. John restaurant, Salty Mongoose Pizza & Rum Beach Bar – located in the Isola Shops in Coral Bay on the waterfront – is now open! The restaurant has all the ingredients for a successful business – excellent customer service, a delicious and reasonably priced product, a spectacular view, and owners who care about St. John and the local community.
The current menu is pizza-focused, with a vision for expanding over the coming months to include salads, pasta dishes, and daily sandwich specials.
The charismatic owners, Kimberly Alvarez and her son, Sean ‘Tarzan’ Philippe (who was born in the US Virgin Islands), moved back to the island a year and a half ago after moving away three decades ago so that three year old Sean could attend school in the states. Kim is a self-described island girl who missed the islands over the years and decided to bring her son back home. Sean is the chef, and the vibe of the bar. Kim and Sean have always enjoyed cooking for others and felt that starting a restaurant would be an ideal fit for them.
The restaurant uses the freshest ingredients possible. The dough is made by hand each night and cold proofed (a technique that slows the fermentation process) for maximum flavor and consistency. The cheese is a whole-milk mozzarella, provolone, and parmesan blend. The produce, such as the fresh basil, arugula, and other herbs are grown locally on St. John by Josephine’s Greens. For the meat-eaters, the pepperoni is purchased whole and diced fresh each day. The sausage is fresh and ground on site. The pizzas are hand tossed and cooked in a brick oven, which cooks quickly and evenly. The recipes were mostly created by Sean’s experimentation, and trial and error. His special pizza sauce is made with only a few ingredients, as he believes food tastes best when kept simple.
The restaurant has a casual, fun vibe, with panoramic views of the bay. A constant, gentle breeze makes it comfortable for outdoor seating, even on the hottest summer days. When the island reopens for visitors, they will offer a daily happy hour, as well as different theme nights such as Family Feud night, Dance Party night, a giant Twister game, DJs, and live bands to showcase our local talent.
Kim and Sean’s sense of community spoke to my heart. Several Coral Bay businesses have closed in recent years, and their goal is to revitalize the area by bringing it back to life. Their philosophy is that their business will thrive if they cross-promote by encouraging their customers to also patronize the other restaurants in Coral Bay. “We are stronger when we work together,” said Sean. He also wants to give the local community a place to relax after work with a cold beer and a bite to eat, without it costing a small fortune. “We are all about helping each other.”
The current hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 12:00 pm to 8:00 pm. After the COVID restrictions are released and visitors are allowed back to the territory, the hours will extend to 11:00 am to 11:00 pm 7 days a week.
To place an order, please call or text: (340) 643-8486.
Specialty pizza. What about specialty rum?
What a great review ! The pictures made me want to be there , biting into that delicious looking pizza ! It would be so much fun to meet Sean & his mom because I love their attitude about their business ! Next time I get to come to beautiful St. John again, I will have to post how delicious it is on my FB page ! Thanks for the great article !❤️
Their pizza looks amazebalz! This place will seriously affect the Cruz Bay pizza
joint- no need to cross the island anymore for good pizza !
Are they going to carry Blue Chair Bay Rum? It’s great rum!
What a great name cool logo!!! I think they will sell more branded merchandise than pizza!!!
Thank you Pat, Claudia and Jerry! Opening up in Covid has been a challenge, but Tarzan and I love challenges! The fact that all you beautiful locals have supported us only inspires us more!
Jerry, once the governor lets us open, we will have a “Rum tasting event , last Friday of every month, featuring the local runs of the Caribbean! St Martin, Guadalupe, Trinidad, st barts!! We are a rum bar and plan to bring the rim of the Caribbean to the forefront!
Kim and “Tarzan”, I am super excited for you and wish you all the best luck with the opening! Challenge is the word for it, and I do hope you can overcome it. You have a great-sounding concept and it made me want to book a flight down there, as we always stay on the Coral Bay side. I hope we can experience your amazing looking pizzas and local rums in the very near future (unless you want to deliver to Vegas? lol)