St. Patty's Day

Hey, never mind STX, this Vacation message boarder wants to know about Charlotte on St Patty's day- no kidding! We should be there on that day, coming down from Boston to check out potential retirement (hah!) properties and both being of Irish descent, feel its only right to celebrate- any quick suggestions??? Sorry I'm no help to you about STX

Where are you staying? maybe we an get together again if STJ. Knew you couldn't stay away long 😉 Hope your holidays were good.

Depends on what kind of scene you want to get into...feel free to message me or email me and i can give ya some ideas! jamie.amanda@gmail.com

amanda

As a "veteran" of the St. P's Day parade (had my own float once, and I don't even live there!) I can help a little. I believe it will be on March 18, although it hasn't been announced yet to my knowledge. It's one of the few events in the islands that actually starts on time (11:00 AM in past years) and it takes about 1.5-2 hours (it moves really slowly to progress up Company Street from Fort Christianvaern to Times Square/Sunday Market Square) and back down King Street to the wharf area (the whole route is about 10 blocks). Side streets are closed (as, of course, are Company and King Streets - the two major thoroughfares in and out of town) and there are many vendors around selling beer, drinks, food, beer and drinks. It's a very festive atmosphere, and many, many of us dress up (in green, of course) in sometimes ridiculous outfits. The whole thing is over around 1:00/1:30 but it takes a while to clean up thereafter.

Two things you should know: First, since many of the C'sted restaurants participate or hang out, many of them close that day (staff too partied out). Also, it is nearly impossible to get a cab until well after the streets are re-opened. I'm probably going to have to change my departure plans because the airline changed their schedule and I don't see how I can get to the airport on time, even if I were to skip the parade (perish the thought!).

We always rent a car when we go so taxi's won't be an issue...need a ride?? if we decide to leave on saturday i believe the flight leaves around 4. Whenever we come back on a Sunday, we usually take Monday off too but at my job, we don't get many vacation days so i can't spare any!

Thanks for the info!!!
Amanda

STX does the day much better than STT! The former has a BIG parade with all the trimmings, while the latter has just a basic pub crawl and mini-parade around the East End which is nothing much to write home about in comparison.

FYI, The Toad and Tart English Pub on STT does (all historical alleged antagonism put aside and which we've never contributed to anyway) serve THE BEST corned beef and cabbage on that evening, an accolade from certainly not the owner but based on customer's rave reviews!

STT Resident, I'll be on Water Island the month of March. In the past we've spent so much time working on the house that our "vacations" kept us mostly in the areas of Subbase (Sea Chest, Pueblo, auto parts) and "the country" (Home Depot, Big Kmart, etc.). But, this trip I'm putting my foot down and INSISTING on relaxing and enjoying the islands! What day (17/3?) and time will The Toad & Tart start serving "THE BEST"? Do you serve only beer & wine (we've got a friend who only drinks rum - hates beer)? What's an estimated taxi ride cost and estimated length of time from subbase? (Thinking we could take a Safari over there and catch a "sanctioned" taxi on the return trip.)

Yikes! Dear FL Barrier Islander, The Toad and Tart is an English Pub for goodness' sake. Yes, we have beers on tap and yes we have nice house wine (but no real "name brands" or a real wine selection!) but of course we have a full bar, probably the best selection of rums housed in any bar around, plus everything else from aperitifs to digestifs.

The Toad and Tart is open Thursday through Saturday with dinner served from 5:30-10PM.

VI Taxi (340-774-7457) would have no problem picking you up to come here and then dropping you back off at the Water Island ferry or else PM me and my favourite gypsy driver will be more than happy to accomodate you.

March 17th? That's a Friday and Joanne mentioned that she thought St. Patrick's Day fell on the 18th which is a Saturday. Correction - I just checked and the official St. Patrick's Day is the Friday which is March 17th and so that's when we'll do the corned beef dinner. And of course the regular Friday fish and chips. Glad we got that sorted out...

The Safari buses don't run much after dark but you could probably hop one to be here early and then there's no problem getting you back. I don't know off-hand how late the Water Island ferry runs but you can check that out. The ride from Sub base is about 20 minutes depending on traffic. The safari ride will cost you $2pp (they were recently awarded a fare hike for longer trips) and the return via taxi will be about $5pp - variable!

Hope this helps!

STT Res, WI ferry has a run on WED/FRI/SAT @ 9:00 pm (w/reservation)so the timing is perfect. The menu & drinks make my mouth water and I look forward to making the journey to your establishment that I've heard sooo much about - and meeting the feisty proprietress that makes me chuckle on this board. We'll have friends with us from Sovereign Harbour/Eastbourne/East Sussex. Their first time to USVI and The Toad & Tart will be a nice surprise for them as well. The Toad & Tart for St. Patty Day!

Hi AJWayne,

St. Patty's Day on STX is a blast!!!!! I went last year (my first time) and had an outrageously good time. The parade was fun, the costumes hilarious (and sometimes quite revealing ... especially the dude in the green and gold teeny bikini), and the beer flowed like water. Sometimes it was even sprayed out of those great big squirt guns! Be prepared to get soaking wet (if you want to, that is). I can't remember how many bands there were, but it was a lot.

The bands here don't march. Large flatbed trucks carry them down the street, instead, with members of the band, their coterie, and equipment, including huge stacks of mega-speakers mounted at the rear. People in parade cars and on the trucks toss beads, candy, and trinkets at the crowds lining the street. Some of the "floats" are sponsored by beer companies, and they give away free Heinekens and other brands. I didn't buy a single beverage all day. 😉

All the restaurants and clubs are open as are the local shops. Some restaurants, like the Mexican place on Company Street across from Club 54 (can't think of the name right off hand), have entertainment for the day as well as their usual great food. Club 54, BTW, was hopping too. We danced all afternoon to this great band out of New York that has a big following down here. (Hmmm, I think it was that band, but that might have been the last jump-up.)

I haven't been over to STT for their Paddy's day celebration, but the one in Christiansted takes the cake, IMHO!

MsKinsey

TOO funny, wanker! Your Southern UK friends are close enough - county-wise, that is - to my old home turf (Suffolk, Kent and then all parts of London) to merit Tart abuse of the best kind. They can also explain to you what a wanker is. My bark is infinitely less than my bite, despite what you may have heard.

Look forward to meeting you and serving you up some good grub! Cheers! XXX

Hi Pia, it just dawned on me that you and others would have misread the email- I meant Charlotte NC where the inquiring question came from, not CA/STT. I wish!!! But we've have a long range plan to look for "retirement" property someplace down south and take our first research trip down to North Carolina in the Spring, probably around March or April. A trip back to the USVIs is unknown right now, depends on whether or not our son continues college (tuition $$) after this next semester. Believe me, you are on my list WHEN we come back. We've already decided on a return to the solid studios at Concordia, no more tents so we will be in Coral Bay again. May not be for 1-3 years however, time will tell. Our best to Les, TTYS!

I'm a nc native. If you are considering NC, I can suggest some other great places. Don't get me wrong Charlotte is a nice city but there are other great options, less expensive,more centrally located, etc.

PM me if you want info.

May I reply to your message...we have heard that one of our past friends lives on STT. He's a Brit (we learned the meaning of "wanker" from him) His name is Karl, if anyone knows of him-PM me, I'd love to get in touch with hime since were moving soon to STX. I knew he was recently in Florida getting car parts from our buddy with the parts store in Orlando.

Hi again AJWayne!

A car will definitely help! Just be aware that the congestion will slow your trip out of town. And thanks for the offer of a lift! My problem is that my departure time has been changed from 4-ish to 1-ish. Gotta fix that, and I wouldn't mind staying until Sunday, although I'd have to change the site of my "traditional" final dinner on island.

Regarding the restaurants - I should have mentioned that I was speaking of evening dining. There are still plenty of places open, to be sure, but the choices (especially in C'sted) are a bit more limited. Sounds like it won't be an issue for you, and you'll be able to depart directly from a really great party atmosphere.

A famous tale of the parade, retold to the point where it must contain some apocrypha: Seems a certain Frederiksted restaurant had a float that they began to construct the night before the parade while downing many beverages. Since they had access to a fireworks expert, they apparently incorporated that feature into their float - a large dog who would lift his leg and hose down the crowd. The governor was in the reviewing stand that day and, when the float paused there, they set off the fireworks. Now, imagine the effect of loud noises sounding very much like shots fired on his security detail (such as it is). Then, up came the dog's leg.... So, effectively, they shot the guv and then peed on him (some might think that's not a bad idea). They did not win the trophy that year.

Anyway, be sure to bring whatever outlandish St. P's Day garb you can easily pack!!

Thanks, ok, I PM'd you, my first, lets see if I did it right!

Drat!

I did think you meant Charlotte Amalie! Sorry you won't be here to visit the Toad and Tart and Molly Molone's for St. Pat's Day.

Max

Me too, Max, WE (chuck included) too! Someday......