Oceana Restaurant and Wine Bar

Would never go here again. Way overrated. Avoid this place. In fact, I would go out of my way to tell people not to go here. Food wasn’t good!!! Lots of better places on the islands to eat. If I could give zero stars I would. They also have a no cell phone policy that is not evenly enforced. Our server, Matt, was great, but the server next to us was obnoxious… Overly pretentious in a very marginal restaurant.

5 stars for a 5 star experience
Excellent location — waterside with magnificent views
Excellent Service — Attentive, knowledgeable staff
Excellent food — Fresh Ahi Tuna
Excellent wine choice — several wonderful choices
Excellent atmosphere — Enjoyed fine dining island style

The food is amazing and I could go back here and eat every day. The only problem is that the service was bad. We were here to celebrate our honeymoon and my husband had to get up to get his own drink and while at the bar found that the drink had been sitting on the bar for a while. No one ever offered to bring me another glass of wine or to refill my water. After our waiter dropped off the food he never came back to ask if my steak was cooked correctly or if we needed anything. He dropped off the dessert menu and after waiting for 10 minutes to order something we decided to skip dessert and after dinner drinks and went up to the bar to get our check. The manager on duty was very nice but when the waiter came to the bar to give us our tab he told the bartender in front of us that he was tired of this job and being told he wasn’t doing his job. We still tipped but it was more for the food then for the service.

Came here for dinner tonight.
Ordered the ribeye medium. 40 minutes later I was served a burnt over cooked steak. The service was horrible. the server is stated that the steak was burnt but still had the nerve to bring this burnt piece if meat to my table and place it front if as if I was going to ignore the char-​burnt ribeye. The homemade ice cream… homemade ice milk… the chocolate soufflé cake. microwaved and disgusting. Coffee bitter… the service lacked service. the ONLY thing the place had to offer was the spectacular view. the food and service….

Excellent food and service. Make sure you try some of their freshly made sherbet in local flavors.

Only OK. The food was really good, but for the money, the service was marginal. I think there are better dining experiences on the island if you’re willing to spend at this level.

I dont know about the quality of the food becauSe i didnt get a chance to eat but from the minute we walked in the hostes looked at us up and down and said they are a fine dining reataurant and they dont accept beach attire! Kind of questioning since we are on an island and 90% of the people are tourist! But the off part was that i didnt see the «fine dining room» since all i saw was an outside beach bar looking area. Sad for them

The views are absolutely breathtaking, staff was very pleasant, and the locally caught red snapper and dessert was delicious. A must see for anyone visiting St. Thomas

We liked:
Scenery, atmosphere, view were amazing
Service was very good.
Cocktails and Wine — really good (best we had on the island so far)
We didn’t like:
Food — Actually 2 of us who ate salmon felt sick and nauseous immediately after.
Steak was ok, but we had better.
We felt salad wasn’t fresh.
Soup, was cream and mushroom — very creamy, we didn’t like it.
For the price of $ 420 for a family of 5, we would expect better food.

Great location, food, service.
Sat outside with Eric as our host/​server. Very nice guy who knew his stuff about the menu (and the island restaurant scene).
No bugs, romantic, quiet setting enjoying a few of their signature drinks.
My wife started with the scallops and I had the beet panna cotta. Both were delicious.
She had the grouper special and I had the surf and turf.
Eric recommended I swap out potatoes, offering the manchego mashed as an option. I was not familiar with this cheese and told him I would lean more to the plain mashed or fingerling as I’m a potato purist.
He said ok, but returned a minute later with a small serving of the manchego, which was good, so I went for the manchego mashed.
It was definitely the right decision.
Unfortunately I could not convince my wife to split a white chocolate panna cotta, so I had a very nice latte and called it a night.
Great restaurant.

I want to preface this review that it is completely based on value. If the restaurant was half the cost, I would probably give it 3, maybe 4 stars if I’m in a good mood.
My wife and I started the meal with crab cake. This was amazing and the highlight of the meal. Everything else was meh at best. My wife had the filet. She asked for medium rare and it came out medium. It was not seasoned well. The potatoes that came with filet were disgusting. Again no seasoning, but the worst part was that it was way overcooked and completely dry. I had the lamb loin, and it was ok. It wasn’t a very tender piece of meat, and again, not seasoned well. The couscous that came with the lamb was awesome though. We finished our meal with crème brûlée and for $ 12, totally not worth it. It was the most shallow crème brûlée I’ve ever had — maybe a centimeter of crème below the caramelized surface.
So I know what some of you are thinking… you shouldn’t order meat at a seafood restaurant. Well, if you can’t cook it well, don’t put it on your menu. I love seafood, but there just weren’t many options. Your only options (besides a $ 48 fish stew) are Caribbean lobster (not as good as Maine in my opinion), shrimp, scallops (had night before at Banana Tree Grille — which in my opinion is the best restaurant in St. Thomas), and mahi mahi (every restaurant on the island serves mahi mahi).

Went during the off season and sat in the outdoor dining area; bring bug spray and wear light clothes bc it was a little hot out! For starters I got the arugula and watermelon salad, which was perfect since it was kind of hot and no breeze. I got the curry salmon for entrée and it was very good with a little kick from the curry! Desserts was the chocolate soufflé, it was pretty good, but make sure u order it with ice cream bc it doesn’t come with it! The mocha martini at the end, also was pretty good. Nothing blew me away, but service was great and the dishes were tasty.

If I had to give this restaurant a one word review, it would be: OVER-​RATED! Dont be fooled by the 5 star reviews — you will notice they’re mostly from tourists from the mid-​west.
We called ahead of time for reservations and was told the earliest accommodations for a party of 4 was 7:45pm, we then told the hostess that we will take it and have drinks at the bar since we will arrive around 7:15pm.
When we arrived early, as we said we would, the hostess behaved like such a snob. Also, there were 5 four tops that had no diners the entire duration of our pre-​dinner drinks and entire dinner. How rude… granted the tables werent by the water, we should have been offered that option… and left for us to decide…
Yes, the restaurant is beach side which may be very impressive for some folks but honestly the view wasnt spectacular at all considering you’re in the caribbean.
The food alone is worth the ONE STAR review! The appetizers were just ok but the entrees were downright sad. The $ 40 ribeye steak we ordered rare was completely overcooked, chewy and lacked any type of flavor except balsamic vinegar! The fish dish was entirely disappointing in that it tasted frozen and not fresh and in light of the fact that we were in the caribbean, theres just no excuse to ef up fish! If you dont believe me, just look at my photos.
Our waiter while professional was overall very robotic and cold. Somewhat amateur. Both of my friends had half an entire ribeye left on their plate and he didnt even stop to ask if there was anything wrong with the dish? Amateur.
The only highlight was our super friendly bartender who made us some kick-​ass cocktails while we were at the bar. Hope she is promoted to hostess soon.
In conclusion, if you’re not much of a foodie and anything served to you in a fancy restaurant will make your mouth water then go for it. But if quality and integrity of the food means something to you then STAY AWAY!

«Ok»
Made reservations for a birthday and confirmed
Bread service came after third mention from server
and after appetizers
I mentioned I wanted a cocktail but wine with dinner
Cocktail came and was immediately warm — it’s an island — why not serve with a shaker to keep cold?
We wanted appetizer first to space our evening and time — enjoy the phenomenal view but «chef» — no pronoun — prefers to have the whole order at once. Customer first?
Wine list was never brought back or mentioned
Bouillabaisse was wonderful! But ½ of the mussel shells were closed — hostess — not waiter asked how dinner was and graciously brought mussels and waiter said for the «trouble» a soda was in the house? Weird
Dessert menu came delivered by waiter Eric — with no suggestions or selling — whose hands smelt so badly of his cigarette break it made me gag — we declined dessert — they made no mention of birthday.
Service and menu NOT commiserate with prices or as their menu states «without pretense». Highly suggest the waiter — who never thanked us for coming upon collection of the check — use the super cool after dinner towelette.
The locations and view are spectacular.

The food was outstanding! I had crab cakes, each with unique sauce. For my entrée I had the garlic shrimp. full of flavor. And for dessert the soufflé… DELISH!

Among the best dining on the island
We had family on St. Thomas who were happy to recommend some of the best dining on the island and enjoy it with us. That said, I thought Oceana was probably the best of many good meals during our visit. Be aware it is not an inexpensive evening but the combination of fine food, good wine and a superb venue made this a more than pleasant evening. We shared tastes around our table and did not have any disappointing parts in the dinner with the exception of the complimentary amuse bouche, a jellified beetroot borscht. This seemed more odd and acidic than delightful to our palates.
I remember the bouillabaisse with particular pleasure. It was rich and fish filled with variety in its contents. Not left overs but a dish carefully crafted for flavor. It was noteworthy that the scallops were carefully cooked, not overdone. The lovely view and sunset timing combined with the quiet murmur of the waves to give us a memorable meal.
If we were neglected after our main course it was probably to keep us from feeling rushed through our meal or from our table and we should have made clear that we had another engagement to go to. Up to that point we found the meal well paced and leisurely without being stalled.
I might have to save up for it but I will look forward to going back again.

What a wonderful experience! My husband and I came here for our anniversary, and it was absolutely perfect! Staff, views, food, and wine selection were amazing ! Very romantic and the chef was fabulous! Can’t wait to go back! Definitely recommend for a romantic dinner with your significant other!

Couldn’t thank the staff enough. Arrived at 8:20 for are 8:30 reservation and was seated immediately the hostess gave us the best table in the restaurant. Seated us on the patio right by the water. Amazing, waves crashing and eating under the stars. (Perfect).
The waitress we had was great. Very attentive and so nice. Constantly came by and asked how everything was. She also brought us out complimentary taste from the chef. The sparkler she brought out for are engagement was the icing on the cake. Her name was Alicia.
As for the food. Hands down best meal I had in st Thomas and St. John. For an app we had The quartet crab cakes were very tasty with 4 diff sauces. The entrees we had was pan seared shrimp over risotto with arugula salad.(cooked perfect). And lobster tail over mashed with asparagus. Could be one of the best lobster tails I ever had. Didn’t even need to dip in butter.(melted in my mouth). For dessert we had the homemade ice cream— banana walnut chocolate ice cream sooo good.
Two thumbs up to the chef…
Definitely be back.,.

We enjoyed the food so much, we decided next time we are in St John, it would be worth the trip to take the ferry to St Thomas and back just to eat here. That says a lot.
The views, grounds and restaurant is a vacation paradise all on it’s own.
We stopped in the bar while waiting for our table, and the bartender was extremely knowledgeable. We selected a bottle that we took to the table once ready.
Our waiter was alright. My only complaint of the night was this: I told him I was a vegetarian, and do not eat seafood. I ordered the vegetarian meal. After this, he came by with 2 amuse bouche bites, both seafood. My husband happily gobbled them all down, while I sat with my stomach growling. For the rating and caliber of this restaurant, that shouldn’t have happened. Yes, I KNOW it’s a seafood restaurant, but again, even tomatoes on some bread would have been nice.
Now, onto the food I did get to enjoy. The beet salad was better than most, so for a healthy starter I do recommend. I ordered the pasta dish, it seemed like homemade Pappardelle and had a tangy lemon sauce. There were lots of veggies mixed in and made for a perfect filling meal.
Husband said the Mahi-​Mahi was out of this world, perfectly prepared.
We were too full to enjoy dessert, so we’ll need to make it a point to return on our next trip to the VI.
The upstairs, where the bathrooms are located, also host local artists work, so be sure to peruse before you go.
Last, prior to leaving, we got to visit with Morris, the Maître d of Oceana. Love at first sight!!!

Our new favorite place to dine. Perfect setting right on the water and beautiful white tablecloths.
I had the blackened Mahi with roasted potatoes which was absolutely perfect. Light flakey white meat, moist with a nice little kick. The presentation was amazing which I really like.
My wife celebrated her birthday tonight by trying the chef special. The fresh black grouper lightly pan seared with baby asparagus and a mango salsa on a bed of creamy sweet potatoes.
Is your mouth watering yet? Well how about a perfectly cooked chocolate soufflé with fresh whipped cream and mint?
Thank you to Brian for an awesome evening and to Chef Cory for preparing amazing dishes for us. We will be back!