canterbury417

Is it worth paying for the mealplan at the 4s or are the night dining choices superb on Nevis? Which ones and about how much p/p. Also, how is the cab situation there? Do the places call for you and about how much will they run us at night? Many thanks to my favorite travelers! June

ejcrowe

my best meals on Nevis were dinners at Montpelier for fine dining and Cla-Cha-Del for local dining, but whose owners have unfortunately retired now.

iw

I wouldn't do the meal plan. Coconut Grove was excellent and Oualie Beach is very good with fine food in a casual setting. I am thinking that each place is $18-25 p/p without alcohol. Bananas is great, but I won't see the new location until later this month. Taxis are very easy to get and the same driver that drops you off will be glad to pick you up. Taxis were cheap....maybe $10 each way.

A_Traveller

Here's another vote to skip the 4S meal plan. While there are several dining options at 4S there are too many other great places to dine on the island.

For us, the best food and romantic ambiance for dinner is the Mill at Montpelier Plantation. If the Mill is booked or if they are not serving in the Mill during your stay you'll find dining on the terrace overlooking the lights of Charlestown and St. Kitts to be just as enjoyable. If memory serves me correct a 3 course dinner on the terrace runs $55US PP and a 4 course dinner in the Mill runs $60US PP (FYI - drinks and wine will be extra at all dining places on the island). For other upscale dining try Coconut Grove (probably the most expensive place on the island - expect to pay $200 to $300 for dinner and drinks for 2) or Nisbet Plantation (prices similar to Montpelier. For a quiet dinner try Mount Nevis Hotel. The food there is quite good and you'll dine on the veranda overlooking the lights from St. Kitts' southern pennisula. A three course dinner at Mount Nevis will probably run you about $50US PP. Bananas new location is on the hillside in Hamilton. Food there is always good. Dinners are ala carte with entrees in the $23 to $30 price range. The Hermitage has some fine dining on their terrace. prices are comparable to Mount Nevis.

Other resort/inn affiliated dining can be found at Oualie Beach, Golden Rock and the Cooperage at Old Manor.

Cla-Cha-Del has been gone for a couple of years now and Mingles, the place that opened at the same location about a year ago has also closed its doors.

For local food, try Rumours (near the airport), Double Douce (at the southern end of Pinney's Beach), Night Moves, Unella's or Le Bistro (all 3 in Charlestown). Expect to pay around $30US PP at these places.

There are a number of Chinese restaurants around the island where you can dine inexpensively and you can try Seafood Madness for modertely priced lunches and dinners. If you are in the mood for pizza try Pizza Beach (near the airport) or Mem's Pizza (on the main island road halfway between Charlestown and Montpelier). Prices at both places are very reasonable.

For beach bars consider the aforementioned Double Douce, Chevy's, Golden Rock Beach Club (only open for lunch, Sunshines, Gallipot (closed for low season - reopens in late October or early November) and Shirley's (may now be closed).

If you plan on dining off resort you'll have to provide your own transportation (no - the restaurant won't send a car for you) but taxis are readily available at the 4S. When dining out (or going anywhere for that matter) just tell the driver approximately what time you will be ready to return to your hotel and he/she will be there to pick up. You should know that taxi fares do mount up and if you take two or more r/t's a day the fares with tip will cost you about the same or more than a rental car. Fares are based on distance travelled and will run you anywhere between $8US and $25US per one-way trip not including tip.

Knowing

If you have an opportunity to take a breakfast plan, do so, but there are too many good restaurants that struck our fancy to not indulge in them. The Cooperage, Banana's, Montpelier (in the sugarmill)are the best. In our experience, the best food at the FS was at their Mango's restaurant.
We didn't rent a car on Nevis and used cabs. There is always one at the FS. Some cab drivers will ask how long you will be, some just tell you they will be there when you are done, and some give you their business card and you give it to your waitress or the person at the front and have them call when you are ready. Nevis is the easiest island with cabs we've ever found.
This was the best place and our best vacation. Simply enjoy and everyone else will do the rest. The staff at the FS make it so easy for you to just relax and the locals make it easy for you to enjoy the local culture and attractions. We hope you find it as special and unforgettable as we did.

eileen

Nisbet has an absolutely fantastic beach barbecue on Thursday nights. They grill all this incredible fresh seafood, there's a band, the night is really fun and very popular apparently. People who are not staying there make their reservations way in advance. I highly recommend it.

StanKase

For us to miss the breakfast buffet on at least 3-4 mornings and 3-4 dinners at FS is a mistakein a 7 night stay. I would pay the freight for 1-2 buffet breakfasts at the beginning and eat ocal for a few nights and then go on the meal plan, MAP, for the last 3 days based on our 3 stays at FS in 8 years.

Nevisian

4S Nevis has a "Bed & Breakfast" plan that is less than an additional $10.00 per day. The one thing that most visitors miss is getting off the resort. Lunch is great downtown at Unella's or Cafe des Arts, You must try the lobster salad at Golden Rock for lunch. It's around the island and you should plan on spending some time taking a short nature hike to work off the calories. Dine on the veranda and on a good day you might see the volcanoe on Montserrat letting off steam on the horizon. For dinner: Banana's is in a new location (I think up Hamilton) and open for dinner. Eileen is correct that you should dine at Nisbet but in the main dining room. We also go to Nisbet for Sunday brunch at the beach. The beach barbecue is a travelling thing, - each hotel host one, 4S has theirs on Tuesday, I think, and it's a bit better but the same band. Montpellier will cost you as much as the main dining room at 4S but it is worth the experience. I'd also suggest that you consider The Hermitage for one night. The cooks there make everything taste good and your hosts are always there to start the evening off with cocktail hour. We've had great lunches and dinners at Mt. Nevis Hotel. The hotel and/or Plantation concierge will make reservations for you and arrange for a taxi. They call it a "dine-around". Skip Miss Junes; it's past it's prime. Stan is right in that you can always change to the MAP plan if you don't like eating around the island but if you are staying on Nevis you should experience Nevis and get off the reservation (oops, I mean the resort). The cab drivers will wait for you to dine and return you to your hotel. At first I thought that there would be a "waiting charge" but no. So take advantage of thier generous offer. It's a Nevisian cabdrivers way of saying you're welcome to their island.

iw

I could not say enough good things about dining around. We just left Nevis on Sunday and are in St. Barts. The food in Nevis is wonderful....Chevy's...Coconut Grove.