Casual

The Sugar Mill Restaurant goes casual for lunch at its seaside Islands Restaurant (Great Apple Bay, 284/495-4355, noon–2 p.m. daily, $7–15), where you can watch the pelicans dive for food while you enjoy yours. In addition to its regular menu of sandwiches and salads, Islands has daily soup, seafood, and pasta specials. After you eat, relax on the beach next door. This is a great place to while away a few hours.

Hip and funky, Coco Plums Restaurant (Little Apple Bay, 284/495-4672, 7:30 a.m.–10 p.m. Sun.–Fri., 6–10 p.m. Sat., $10–26) serves bistro-style cuisine in a welcoming atmosphere. Set amidst the cozy village of Little Apple Bay, Coco Plums has indoor and patio seating. It serves sandwiches, pasta, fresh seafood, pizza, and upscale entrées like grilled steak and lobster. You can’t get food like this at these prices anywhere else on Tortola.

Fusion

Probably the best restaurant on Tortola, The Sugar Mill Restaurant (Great Apple Bay, 284/495-4355, 7–9 p.m., $18–32) fuses traditional gourmet fare with Caribbean ingredients and style. The service here is second to none. Run by food writers Jeff and Jinx Morgan, the Sugar Mill changes its menu nightly based on what’s fresh and in season. Salads, pastas, seafood, and remarkable dessert concoctions are among the favorites. Come early for a sunset cocktail on the patio. Dinner is served in a restored 18th-century sugar factory; Caribbean artwork adorns the walls.

© Susanna Henighan Potter from Moon Virgin Islands, 4th edition