By the Caribbean Journal staff
The Caribbean has no shortage of great culinary festivals, from St Barth to Barbados, all showcasing the marvelous diversity of Caribbean food.
But one of the Caribbean’s most popular destination food festivals has a rather special party piece: it comes with a side of island-hopping.
The British Virgin Islands’ BVI Food Fete is a month-long celebration of cuisine, one that, uniquely, combines events on six different islands: Tortola, Scrub Island, Virgin Gorda, Anegada, Cooper Island and Scrub Island.
The event kicks off with the BVI Gourmet Soiree, showcasing Scrub Island’s new executive chef, Chloe St-Cyr, with a menu helmed by six award-winning chefs.
On Nov. 9, the Taste of Tortola will be a culinary block party, with food trucks, local eateries and vendors cooking up their best work at the Queen Elizabeth II Park.
The following weekend includes the Cooper Island Rum Festival, centered around the boutique hotel’s famous rum bar with almost 300 different rums on offer, while the next day will see a pork barbecue on Jost Van Dyke.
Cooper Island is a pilgrimage destination for rum lovers.
The following weekend takes travelers to the Taste of Virgin Gorda, with a jazz-fueled gourmet party with views of The Baths.
The Anegada Reef in Anegada.
Finally, what may be the fete’s most popular event is hte two-day Anegada Lobster Festival from Nov. 30-Dec. 1, a two-day party celebrating what remains the Caribbean’s capital of lobster.
It’s a diverse schedule of must-visit food stops, meaning travelers can get a taste of the BVI on one island or plan a getaway with multiple Food Fete stops in their itinerary.
It’s yet another sign of the BVI’s inspiring comeback from the storms of 2017 – and a resounding message that the BVI is back and better than ever.
For more, visit the BVI Food Fete.
— CJ