Michael and Barbie Barry expanded their successful Sun Dog Café and Gecko Gazebo operations by opening another restaurant just yards down the Mongoose Shopping Center walkway from the other two properties. Virgin Fire started cooking up what Michael Barry terms casual elegant fare in November 2013.
“The average check is $35,” he said, putting the bill well below the island’s more upscale dining establishments and above the really casual spots like Sun Dog Café.
Barry suggests diners start with what he calls spa drinks. A chocolate espresso martini or a drink called Prisoner of St. John, made of Absolut Citron vodka and fresh watermelon basil lemonade.
He said people asked for blender drinks but the noise from running the blender would deafen conversation in his restaurant.
The menu is an eclectic mix that begins with an appetizer such as the Himalayan Salt Block. The salt block is heated to 500 degrees and comes to the table with an array of raw yellow-fin tuna, jumbo shrimp and New York strip steak to cook at the table. Mango chile, caper lime aioli and ponzu dips provide added flavor.
“It gives people something to talk about,” he said.
Even burgers get tarted up. The chef takes the traditional paella mainstays like shrimp, chicken and chorizo sausage, grinds them up and makes patties out of them for the paella burger sliders. The fish and chips come with pickled mango slaw, and the ribs are basted with a tamarind barbecue sauce.
“We take something very casual and make it upscale,” he said.
Desserts tempt with dishes such as passion fruit crème brulee.
Barry, 59, is a career restaurateur. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Syracuse University, the West Islip, New York, native started managing restaurants in upstate New York. Eventually, he and his partners owned restaurants in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and Utica.
“We had 11 restaurants and 550 employees,” he said.
He’s a stickler for detail, launching into a tangent about how he decided on the height of the booths at the 101-seat Virgin Fire. The backs stop at about neck height so people can see and be seen by others in the restaurant.
“People like to people watch,” he said.
A movable low wall divides the restaurant and the bar, making the bar a cozy spot to gather with friends. The fact that the wall can move gives Barry the option of reconfiguring the seating to host weddings and other large parties. He can also tap into Sun Dog’s alfresco space at the restaurant for even larger parties.
He said the proliferation of restaurant shows on cable television lead people to expect every dining experience to be “the greatest meal they ever had.”
“We are trying to be a reliable dinner house,” he said, noting that there are times when things just don’t go right.
All St. John restaurant owners face challenges in finding and keeping good staff. The competition is keen but Barry said he has a good crew.
With all that restaurant experience on his resume, he knows that he has to depend on local residents along with tourists to pick Virgin Fire when going out to eat.
Virgin Fire recently began showing first-run movies at 9 p.m. on Friday nights, and has music several nights a week depending on the season. Barry takes his turn at the guitar on Sunday nights.
And Virgin Fire has a slick online reservation system that cuts down on the need to return reservation phone calls.
“Click, click, it’s a minute,” he said.
Barry joined the island’s restaurant scene just before Hurricane Marilyn hit in 1995. He and his wife came for three months but are still on St. John.
He said he was so impressed with how the island pulled together he and his wife decided to call it home. Son Jackson came along, and with his arrival, the family put down permanent roots.
The Barrys were founding members of the Coral Bay School, a high school that soon merged with what started out as the elementary level Pine Peace School to become Gifft Hill School. He still serves on the board of Gifft Hill School.
With two restaurants and a bar to run, he doesn’t have much spare time.
“I’ve never worked harder but I love all the commotion,” he said.
Virgin Fire opens every day with half-priced appetizers until 6 p.m. The restaurant is open until 9 p.m.
The restaurant’s website is at www.virginfirevi.com, or can be reached by calling 1-340-777-3473.
