Caribbean Cuisine

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The pickin's are slim at this time of year for restaurants on Virgin Gorda. Here are the ones we enjoyed (in no particular order):
1) Dixie's - local joint in Spanishtown open late and serving up tray after tray of fried chicken, fabulous milkshakes, and reggae videos. We got to meet "Chicken Harry" and "Shadow", two frequent patrons.
2) Island Pot (see previous post). We only saw Island Pot open twice in the week, it seems to be run by high school girls and their moms on non-school nights.
3) Bath & Turtle - this place has a variety of things including pretty decent pizza, is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and has been owned by a former US Marine and his wife for the last 17 years. It's a bit expensive for what it is, but the laundromat is right next door, so it's a good place to hang out while laundry is spinning
4) Mine Shaft Cafe - Nice menu, friendly service, and great views from the Copper Mine area of the island
5) The Rock - romantic place for seafood; pretty pricey but we had a gift certificate
6) Buck's (the grocery store) - we bought pasta and sauce and cooked at the resort one night; beware, groceries are expensive here!
7) Pate' lady. This grandmother makes fried meat pies daily and sells them from a tupperware container on a TV tray. Very popular with locals, prices range from $3-4 - we figure she must pull in a couple hundred dollars a day, tax free.
8) Top o' the Baths - we just had breakfast here but it was tasty
9) Mad Dog - also near the Baths; excellent triple decker BLTs and PB & J's for lunch; make sure to get a frozen Snickers bar too!
10) Little Dix - we ate here for lunch (not really by choice) and although the food was good, it was extremely overpriced (like everything else at Little Dix!)
11) Georgio's Table - this is the restaurant at Mango Bay; it was closed for the month we were there but we ended up meeting one of the cooks in town and he described the most amazing homemade pasta, cheese and wine imported from Italy, and insane desserts; definitely one to go back for!
12) LNS Bakery - pretty good bread pudding and carrot cake

Prices are obviously more expensive than in the States, I would say most meals are nearly Switzerland prices. Some of the local places however, can be cost-effective. One night we cooked pasta in our very own outdoor kitchen at Mango Bay. We cannot say enough good things about this resort, and the manager, Gino! Check out J's photos from around the grounds...

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