Salutations Steemit Friends!

On my last foodie adventure, we experienced a very special French culinary experience - dining in the Eiffel Tower at Le Jules Verne. Both the cuisine and the views were haute and spectacular. I guess you could say it was a taste of the Parisian "high life", lol!

This week, we'll venture to a tropical destination where we'll sample some of the local fare. Once again, the food and views are superb. However, this time the dress code is super casual.

Grab your flip-flops and sunblock and join me for a taste of the Virgin Islands!

Our journey begins on the small and sparkling Caribbean island of St. John in the United States Virgin Islands...

St. John is home to the Virgin Islands National Park. Much of the island (7,000+ acres), its beaches and waters are protected by the U.S. National Parks Service.

All beaches on St. John are open to the public except for private beachfront property and a few beaches at two of the island's resorts. There's no fee to enter either the Virgin Islands National Park or the Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument. However, there is a small admission fee to Trunk Bay.

Trunk Bay is one of the many beautiful north shore beaches on St. John, USVI.

When visiting St. John, you'll want to get out and explore all of the beautiful beaches STJ has to offer. My advice would be to rent a car (and one with four-wheel drive).

Driving in the USVIs can be a little tricky for us U.S. mainlanders. After all, they drive on the wrong (or left) side of the road! Add to that the steep, rocky inclines, wild donkeys and frisky goats.

Despite all that, fellow Steemian @alexpmorris and I decided to go exploring on the East End of the island. The foodie rumor had it that there was a roadside shack on Route 10 that served up delicious, traditional island grub...

Finding Vie's Snack Shack was relatively easy. Finding it open, not as much, despite their listed schedule.

Albeit, that seemed to be the norm on St. John, especially during the off-peak season... plus everyone is on "island time"!

So, Vie's was still closed on our first attempt, but open for business our second time around. Thank goodness, because I was starving...

This was my very first time trying a traditional Virgin Island Johnnycake.

To describe the way it tasted, I'd say, imagine if a beignet and a funnel cake had a chubby baby together...

It was that kind of deep-fried, golden crusted, light 'n fluffy doughiness with honeyed goodness drizzled on top. It was soooo delicious I went back for seconds!

Up next was Vie's massive conch fritters...

Conch is a staple dish throughout the West Indies and is extremely popular in the Bahamas (where I had sampled it before).

Having previously tried many different combinations of conch (raw, fritters, burgers, chowder, you name it) I can say that Vie's was the best conch anything I had ever tasted!

So, like I said before, Vie's is a roadside shack with outdoor seating (picnic tables) located right by the order shack / kitchen.

If your preference is to snack beach side with a cold brew in hand, Vie's certainly accommodates with sweet digs. For just a few extra bucks, you can lounge and nosh on Vie's private and pristine beach.

Here's Alex ordering another round of fritters and johnnycakes!

If you didn't already know, conch meat is said to be an effective aphrodisiac. I'm not sure about all that, but maybe when combined with several tropical tipples!

I had planned to try Vie's famous garlic fried chicken too, but my tummy was full and I was feeling kind of conched out!

While driving on the East End, Alex and I spotted a villa under construction. We decided to stop by and take a peek of the sweeping sea views.

I'm convinced that this is a view of Hansen Bay (although, I could be mistaken).

The beaches on the East End are much rockier (with large hunks of coral) than the white sandy beaches of the North Shore. Nonetheless, they are still breathtakingly beautiful.

A glimpse of a dreamy vista...

This is the view of Hurricane Hole which seemed a bit like a misnomer. It was so peaceful and tranquil.

The sun was starting to dip below the horizon and the bugs were beginning to bite. We decided to hop back in the car and head to our bungalow in the sleepy seaside town of Coral Bay.

Dining and grocery options are a bit more limited on the East End of the island compared to the Cruz Bay area. With whatever glassware we had at our rental, and local ingredients we could find at the nearby grocery store, I created this cocktail...

It's a take off a rum buck with Cruzan coconut rum, ginger beer and fresh lime juice. Inspired by the wildlife on STJ, I named it a Donkey Buck!

We got a lot of bang out of our Donkey Bucks during the week long holiday... they were a hit!

I am sad to say that since my last visit Ms. Vie has shuttered her snack shack. Vie's restaurant profile on Yelp is now marked as permanently closed. : (

Maybe with some luck it will make a comeback someday soon. If not, I'll just have to learn how to make some johnnycakes at home!

Watch this video for dining options on the East End & Coral Bay:

All in all, I'd vote St. John as the perfect Caribbean island choice for the adventurer, the foodie, the nature lover or beach bum.

Have you ever tasted conch? If so, did you like it?

Thanks for commenting, upvoting and resteeming this post! I hope my little island foodie adventure will inspire you to try something new. Until next time...

Cheers!

Michelle

P.S. If you enjoyed this post (and I hope you did!) FOLLOW @michellectv for more Fun, Food, Drinks, Beauty, Travel & Style! ❤

FOODIE ADVENTURE: A TRADITIONAL TASTE of the VIRGIN ISLANDS on BEAUTIFUL ST. JOHN, USVI! 🐚🌺

Salutations Steemit Friends!

Watch this video for dining options on the East End & Coral Bay:

Have you ever tasted conch? If so, did you like it?

Cheers!

Michelle